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“And how exactly are you suffering? Where are your other brothers? The Renaldis?”
She slapped the edge of the desk so loudly the sound nearly made him jump in his chair. “My brothers’ hands are tied. My—father’s will does not allow them to assist me in any sort of legal matter. I am completely on my own.”
“Where is your mother?” He’d heard the story of poor devastated Claudia Renaldi, holed up in the Renaldi family compound on Italy’s Amalfi Coast. Was she still there? Hiding from the shame and embarrassment of her long-ago torrid affair while her daughter suffered the repercussions?
Considering the circumstances, his opinion of Claudia Renaldi wasn’t the best.
“She’s out of the country.” Stasia waved a negligent hand. “She cannot help me. She is too consum
ed with grief and guilt to be of any use.”
“Are you sure she cannot help you?” Her mother could at least bear some of the embarrassment and scandal.
“I think I would know my mother better than you, Gavin.”
He refrained from making a rude remark. Not that he believed she was a potential client anymore. “So what exactly do you want from me?” She certainly wasn’t here for his legal services.
“I want you to help me meet the Worths. Face to face, so we can speak without lawyers breathing down our necks.” She smiled prettily. “With the exception of you, of course.”
“I won’t do it.” He stood and started for the door, wanting her out of his office immediately. What she asked for made him uncomfortable—and it was downright unethical. She wanted him to use his connection to the Worth family so she could somehow convince them she deserved a piece of the Worth empire?
He didn’t think so.
Unfortunately, she didn’t follow him to the door, merely remained in her seat, though at least she’d turned to watch him. “I will pay you whatever is necessary.”
Now he was truly insulted. “Absolutely not.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re a lawyer. Why the sudden need to find your high and mighty ethical standards now?” She stood, her movements slow, downright sultry as she approached. “This has nothing to do with Worth’s financial holdings. I want to know who my family is. I want to talk to them, express my feelings in regards to all of this so they won’t think I’m only after the money.”
Gavin didn’t believe a word she said. Money made the world go ’round. And the more money a person made, the worse it became. This woman was no exception. She was upset because she’d lost her place in one family fortune and was being shut out from another. “I’m sure you do, but I don’t think I can be the one who can help you. I’m sorry.”
She stared at him, didn’t utter a word. As if she could reach into the very depths of his soul and see it—and him—perfectly. A rather unsettling sensation, considering he had a few secrets.
Like how he still felt like a fraud. Even after all these years.
“Such a shame,” she finally said, her voice husky, and dare he think it, sexy. “I thought you were a man who valued family. You aren’t married?”
He bristled like a dodgy old man. “My personal life is none of your business.”
“Which means you aren’t. You probably don’t have a girlfriend either.” She laughed but it rang false. “Short of getting on my knees and begging, I don’t know how else to plead my case.”
The image her words conjured was disturbingly arousing. The lushly beautiful Anastasia Renaldi on her knees, in the most prime location possible, begging him for…whatever he wanted.
He broke out in a cold sweat just thinking about it.
“Begging won’t be necessary,” he said rather abruptly, pissed at himself for even thinking of this woman pleading with him in that soft, slightly accented voice, her lush mouth poised and ready, hovering just above his…
“What a shame.” Her smile was one of a temptress. He knew in an instant she was trouble for both his mind and his libido. “Well, I thank you for your time.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of any assistance.” The lie fell easily from his lips. Taking her on as a client would’ve been a disaster. He wasn’t one of those lawyers who had secret relationships with their clients, and he’d heard of plenty of them. He’d always taken the high road, done the right thing, had prided himself on his reputation and how he appeared to both his peers and to his clients.
Working with Stasia Renaldi would’ve been detrimental to his reputation. He knew this without a doubt.
“It was a pleasure meeting you.” She put extra emphasis on the word pleasure. Either she was trying to flirt with him or it came naturally.
“You as well, Miss Renaldi.” He held the office door open for her and she paused, her gaze meeting his, her lips slightly pursed as she contemplated him.
“Perhaps we’ll run into each other in the future.”
