I’d known something was being built here, but the property had been obscured by tall wooden fencing. After I broke the lease I had with Giorgio, I pretended it didn’t exist.
The building looked like a supersized version of the Park Street Animal Shelter. Was it an expansion of some sort? The sign above the entry was also concealed by white canvas.
The parking lot was packed and several rows of cars filled an overflow area. A crowd gathered around a raised platform with a podium.
We parked and walked toward the people surrounding the stage, although I stayed some distance back with Leonard. There was no point in scaring the crowd into a riot.
Aubrey climbed the stairs and stood behind the podium, then grabbed a microphone when the crowd noise died down.
“Thank you all for joining us today. I know you’re curious about what’s going on and we appreciate your patience. As you know, Giorgio Acardi has invested a staggering amount of money and time into this venture, which will be an adjunct to the Park Street Animal Shelter.”
Applause and cheers filled the air and I smiled. Judging by the size of the building, and by the enclosures and paddocks, it would house everything that would have normally gone to my farm. Leaning down, I kissed Leonard between his ears. “Except for you, buddy. You’re staying with me.”
“It’s going to be so much more, though, and Mr. Acardi himself is going to tell you all about it.”
Giorgio climbed the stairs, Gabriel bundled into a wearable baby carrier on his chest. Instead of a suit, he wore jeans and the Leonard the Lion t-shirt I’d gotten him before things got fucked sideways. I tightened my fingers in Leonard’s mane, resisting the urge to run to him.
God, I missed him.
I heard a soft baa behind me and turned to see Chance leading Pixy toward me. Pixy pulled on his leash, dragging Chance behind him. When he reached us, Pixy licked Leonard’s face and bounced in excitement.
“What do you think of the place?” Chance asked.
“It’s beautiful, but it seems like a lot of building for a large animal rescue.”
“Mmm,” he said, nodding. “I reckon it is. Suppose we ought to listen to what the bloke on the stage has to say.”
Giorgio soothed the baby with a few kisses and took the microphone. When the applause died to a low murmur, he said, “Almost a year ago, I met someone who made me change the way I thought about people. She called me on my bulls… crap, and made me realize that even the humblest of us is valuable and worthy of love, attention, and the chance to work toward self-improvement.”
Cameras flashed and Giorgio cracked a grin. “And part of my epiphany came from all the people currently taking pictures in the hope that I’ll do something embarrassing. Sorry to disappoint you, but aside from getting sprayed in the face by this little guy’s water pistol when I change his diaper, I have no intention of giving you what you want.”
Joining the crowd’s laughter, I shook my head. I was thrilled to see Giorgio cuddling Gabriel. I’d been afraid they’d never bond. I also loved that he could poke fun of himself like that. With some sadness, I realized he was talking about Sara, and I couldn’t think of a better legacy for her life.
“I have a brother with Down Syndrome. His name is Antonio, and he’s one of the smartest, kindest people I know. He’ll be on staff here at this very shelter starting today. A year ago, he was unhealthy, his diet was abysmal, and his day revolved around watching television. Now, he’s going to school to become a certified diesel mechanic, and he’s already a darned good chef. In fact, he created the menu for the reception that will be held later.”
He paused again, waiting for the applause to die down. “But those changes took a catalyst, and it got me to thinking. The person I met last year changed the life of one person and did it without my financial resources. How many lives could I change?”
“Wow,” I whispered. “What is he talking about, Chance?”
He grinned down at me and laid an arm around my shoulders. “That would spoil the surprise.”
“This facility is named after a little girl who, sadly, passed away in childhood. She, more than anyone else, was my inspiration. It will be community outreach, large animal shelter, people shelter, training facility, and so much more that you’ll learn about during the reception.” He grinned, jiggling Gabriel.
“Are you ready to see the name?”
The crowd roared in approval and he gestured toward the white canvas hanging over the front of the building. Someone pulled a rope and it fell to the ground.
“Ay coño.” I couldn’t catch my breath and my knees buckled.
“What do you think?” Chance asked, supporting me with an arm around my waist.
“I gotta go.” Dropping Leonard’s leash, I took off running toward the stage.
Giorgio
It was done. The Katie Project was up and running. My guests were cheering, cameras flashed, and everybody looked happy. Hopefully, the video and promotional materials my PR staff had put together would convince all these kind people to write big fat checks.
If it didn’t, the black-tie gala scheduled for later in the month would do the trick. Rich people spent a lot of money for a chance to be seen at a charity event. I’d been no different, but I had better things to do with my time and money now.
The only thing missing was Carli. She’d eventually drive past it and I hoped it would make her think better of me, but I’d wanted her to be here to see my dream come to life. Maybe it was best she wasn’t. I didn’t think I could see her without begging her to come back to me.
Of course, Proserpina ensured that I’d never gotten a chance to have Carli in the first place.
With luck, Proserpina wouldn’t show up, but if she did manage to get free of her legal entanglements, Hunter and Jeremy were standing by to handle it. I wasn’t about to let her within a hundred yards of my son.
When the clapping died down, I said, “For those of you who have press badges, I’ll be holding a short question and answer session. Afterwards, you’re welcome to join the reception.”
“Giorgio Acardi, I have something to say!” a woman shouted. I thought for a moment it might be one of my ex-girlfriends, but the voice sounded too familiar, and my heart seized in my chest.
Hair flying in her face, Carli climbed the steps and stopped a few feet in front of me. Her feet were bare, revealing unpainted toes, and she wore a silky dark blue dress that dipped low in the front, the hem teasing me with glimpses of her knees. Even disheveled and windblown, she was as beautiful as ever.
“You named this place after my sister,” she said. “Why?”
“Antonio talked about her all the time.” Gabe fussed and I settled him back to sleep. “I started thinking about how lucky he was and everything you’d done for him.”
The crowd behind us quieted and I realized my microphone was still on. They could hear everything we said, but I wasn’t about to interrupt her.
“You were talking about me. All those things you said.” She shook her head and pushed her hair out of her eyes. “I thought you were talking about Sara.”
“No, not Sara. It was always you.”
She took a step toward me. “You did this… All of this because of me?”
“You, and Katie.” I looked over her head at the rapt faces staring up at me. “I wanted her name to be on it. Maybe she’s seeing it now, wherever she is. I want it to be a place where people like Antonio and Katie can learn and gain enough confidence to know they can do whatever they want.”
Beautiful brown eyes glistening with tears, she said, “Gio, I… I don’t have the words to say what this means to me. It’s overwhelming. When did you start working on it?”
“The day I asked you to give me six weeks to prove myself to you. This was going to be my response.”
She staggered and grabbed the podium. “You did this for me.”
“No, I did it for us.” Waving at the crowd, I added, “And for them.”
As she stare
d at me, I wondered what she was thinking. Tears rolled down her face and I set my feet in a desperate attempt to stop myself from reaching for her. Carli should never have reason to cry.
She let go of the podium and threw herself into my arms, squeezing me so tightly I almost couldn’t breathe. I didn’t ever want her to stop. Gabriel let out a complaint, making us laugh and give him a little more space, although we didn’t let go.
Grinning up at me, she asked, “Can I have a do-over on those six weeks?”
“Depends,” I said, stroking her velvety cheek. “Are you going to move back in with me?”
“Hmm, no, I thought you, Antonio, and Gabriel would move in with me. Thanks to you, my house is nicer than yours.”
“I believe you’re right about that.” I kissed her again, then said, “But we’re not putting a ramp for Leonard on our bed.”
“I bought him his own bed. He can sleep there.”
Laughing with her was the best thing in the world, next to holding my son. I helped her down the stairs, ignoring the cheers from the crowd. For once, I didn’t give a rat’s ass if they took pictures, and I smiled when Carli mugged for the cameras, sticking her tongue out at several photogs.
“Carli, tell us about your sister,” one shouted.
“Sorry, no. I’ll write something about her when I’m not busy with my new man.” She tickled Gabe’s chin, making him look up at her, his cloudy blue eyes wide. “Of course, after that, I’ll be busy with Giorgio, so you’ll just have to wait.”
Good-natured grumbles rose from the crowd, but they dispersed and moved toward the shelter. I turned away from them, intent only on my son and the woman in my arms.
“Giorgio,” a silky, very unwelcome voice said.
I spun around, scowling at Proserpina as she sauntered toward me. Although disheveled and slightly travel-worn, she held herself erect, her shoulders rigidly straight.
When she reached us, she gave Carli a nasty grin and pulled something from her pocket. I looked down and froze at the sight of the silvery pistol in her hand.
“Bruja vieja,” Carli hissed, pushing herself between me and Proserpina. “How dare you pull a gun so close to a newborn? Are you insane?”
“I have no intention of harming Gabriel or Giorgio,” she replied, her index finger caressing the trigger. “All you have to do is walk away. I’ll even throw in a few thousand dollars for your trouble. I doubt Giorgio paid you for your time in his bed.”
“Put the gun away, Proserpina,” I snapped. “You’re going to turn your ass around and get off my property before I have you arrested.”
Where were Hunter and Jeremy? I couldn’t move without risking Gabriel, but having Carli between my son and that pistol was untenable. As much as I wanted to put Carli behind me and well out of reach of Proserpina, I couldn’t risk Gabriel.
“No, I’m not going to do that,” Proserpina replied, pushing the muzzle of the pistol into Carli’s side. “I have an appropriate girl waiting for you. You’ll marry and she’ll make a good wife for you.”
My heart seized when I saw Jeremy and Hunter barreling down on her. “Gun!” I shouted. “Stay back!”
I couldn’t risk the pistol going off by accident and I wouldn’t allow myself to think about who might get hurt. As close as she was to me and to Carli, Proserpina was bound to hit one of us.
When they froze mid-step, Proserpina gave me a satisfied smirk. “Your future wife is young and biddable, and from a good family, unlike your little whore. Agree to marry her and I’ll let Ms. Pérez go unharmed.”
“You utter bitch,” I hissed. I glanced behind her at Jeremy, who was dividing his attention between his phone and Proserpina. Hunter sidled around her, putting himself between Proserpina and the few remaining people surrounding the stage.
Proserpina dug the pistol into Carli’s ribs, making her hiss in discomfort. “You know I’m right,” she said. “You’ll realize that when you meet the wife I’ve chosen for you.”
Carli looked over my shoulder and her eyes widened when a massive golden blur of sleek hide and muscle slammed into Proserpina, knocking her off her feet. She screamed, and the loud report of her pistol shocked me into movement.
I jerked Carlina backward, my hands roaming her body. “Did she hit you?” I asked, desperate to make sure she was okay.
“I’m fine. Terrified, but fine.” She pulled back the blankets covering Gabriel and looked him over. “Are you?”
“I’m good.” I cupped her cheeks, kissing her as hard as I could. “God, I’ve never been so scared.”
“Me neither.” She wrapped her arms around my waist, hugging me tight. Laughing softly, she added, “Leonard gets all the treats. He’s our knight in shining fur.”
We turned to look at Leonard crouched above Proserpina, his muzzle curled into a snarl as he roared in her face. Blood trickled down the golden fur of his shoulder, and I cursed. How dare that crazy bitch shoot my lion?
Still screaming, Proserpina lifted the pistol again.
“Oh, hell no!” Pulling away from me, Carli dashed toward Proserpina and grabbed her wrist, then slammed it against the ground until Proserpina dropped the gun. She snatched it out of reach and broke open the action, dropping bullets into a pile.
“Get this animal off me!” Proserpina screamed. She pounded against Leonard’s chest, her weak blows ineffective against four hundred pounds of irritated lion.
“Honestly, you’re lucky he’s missing his teeth,” Carli said. “I’d be totally down with watching him eat you.”
“Hands up!” a male voice shouted.
I rolled my eyes as several police officers approached, guns drawn. “Carli, honey, call Leonard off before he gets hurt again.”
She scowled, positioning herself between the police and Leonard. “You can have Proserpina with my blessing, but put those things away. I swear to God, I’ll go postal if you shoot Leonard.”
“Leonard the Lion?” one asked, lowering his gun.
“The one and only.” She tilted her lips into a grin. “You don’t want me to tell your kids you shot Leonard, do you?”
The officer cursed softly and holstered the weapon. “Call him off, ma’am. We need to arrest Mrs. Acardi.”
She patted her thigh and chirped, calling Leonard to her side. He leaned against her hip and mouthed her fingers, chuffing rhythmically. The blood trickling from the bullet wound on his shoulder slowed, but he needed medical attention.
“Can you deal with this without us?” I asked.
“Yes, sir,” the officer answered. “We’ll take care of it, but you’ll have to make a statement soon.”
“Fine.” I wrapped my arm around Carli. “Let’s get our hero to the clinic and get him patched up.”
“I refuse to allow this!” Proserpina shouted, getting to her feet. “You will obey me!” She fought against the police, slapping and kicking at them until they got cuffs on her.
“Shut up, Proserpina,” Carli snapped. “You have no power over us, and you probably ought to be more worried about what will happen when you get your crazy ass put in prison where you belong.”
Proserpina paled and she slammed her mouth shut. Shoulders slumped, she allowed the police to lead her away.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Carlina
Proserpina’s interruption cost us. Most of the visitors left within minutes of her arrest and I didn’t want to know how many donations Gio lost because of her. Although the nasty scene had been witnessed by only a few people, gossip spread quickly, and within thirty minutes, the parking lot was nearly empty.
Coño. Thinking about how close she’d come to hurting someone still made me sick to my stomach. Little Gabriel nuzzled his face into my chest, warm and sleepy from his bottle, and I kissed the top of his head. I could only think that she suffered from some sort of mental disorder, but I wasn’t able to dredge up much sympathy for her. Not when she’d put the tiny baby in my arms at risk. Leonard would be fine. The bullet had grazed him, leaving a
n ugly cut, but it wasn’t very deep and would heal quickly.
I was still furious about that, and about her upsetting poor Antonio so much that we had to have Jeremy take him and Leonard home. Jeremy promised to stay with them until another guard could be found. Thankfully, Antonio hadn’t been present for the horrifying scene, but the gossip had disturbed him badly.
Hunter watched us like a hawk, his arms crossed as he glared at anyone who got too close to either of us. Although Proserpina wouldn’t be able to bother us again, we didn’t know if she had friends.
Of course, the incident had already made the news, forcing Gio to spend hours giving interviews to make sure it didn’t affect his beautiful shelter. Maybe his PR people could spin it and make it work for him. I crossed my fingers, hoping they could fix it. After spending so much time and money on The Katie Project, he didn’t deserve to have it sink before people recognized the good it could do.
He rubbed his face, but smiled at the man he was speaking to. Despite his tiredness, he was still trying to maintain the support of the community.
Narrowing my eyes at his butt, I saw his phone sticking out of his back pocket. Although he ignored it, the thing had been buzzing and beeping all afternoon. Carefully sliding it free, I walked away and found a quiet corner on the other side of the room.
Swiping it awake, I frowned when I saw several missed calls from Tomas Acardi, Giorgio’s uncle, plus a few text messages offering his heartfelt apologies.
“Apologies don’t feed the bulldog, sport,” I muttered. But it gave me an idea. I tapped his number to call him.
When it connected, Tomas answered. “Giorgio, I am so sorry—”
“This isn’t Giorgio, but you’re going to wish it was before I’m done.”
He caught his breath with an audible hiss and went silent. After a moment, he asked, “Ms. Pérez, I assume. What can I do to make this right for you and Gio?”
I got right to the point. “Your wife crashed the grand opening of a charity, Mr. Acardi. She pulled a gun in the presence of a newborn, shot my lion, and put dozens of people at risk, many of whom were special-needs children and adults.”
Sexy Scoundrel: A Cocky Hero Club Novel Page 26