Harlequin Historical September 2021--Box Set 1 of 2

by Christine Merrill

  “That sounds wonderful, Benny. I’ll be out in just a few minutes.”

  “You keep wearing dresses like that, Miss Laroque, you might cause some of our customers to have a heart attack.” Benny smiled bright, then closed the door, leaving Evelyn alone with her thoughts.

  She wanted to just focus on her singing and not deal with whatever was going on with Lorenzo. She wished it didn’t have to be complicated, but she also wished there was a world where they could have feelings for each other and not be committing a crime.

  Lorenzo didn’t seem to worry much about the law. He had a winery and a distillery where he made bootleg liquor...he owned a speakeasy. Evelyn needed to be a rule-follower. Most of the time her life depended on her doing the right thing and not being caught in situations where she might be accused of a crime.

  West Eden and Greenwood were the only places she’d felt safe.

  But that wasn’t completely true. She felt safe with Lorenzo.

  She ate some of the delicious food before touching up her makeup. When another knock came, right before she was about to go on stage, she opened it without thinking, assuming it was Benny again.

  Lorenzo stood in front of her. He ran his hand through his hair and asked, “Can I come in?”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Lorenzo

  Lorenzo had stopped by Evelyn’s dressing room to remind her of the danger she was in, being associated with him. He had to make sure that she would be safe in his absence, so he’d met with Jeb again and now, on his way out to meet with his family about Vinny, he just wanted to make sure Evelyn was heeding his advice.

  Evelyn’s sweet lavender and vanilla scent hung in the air. The fresh flowers he’d had placed in her room the day before still bloomed, and added a sweet floral scent to the already full fragrances wafting through the air. He stepped into the room, not missing the perplexed look on Evelyn’s face. He was just happy that she wasn’t angry with him...yet. That could change very quickly, he was learning.

  She stepped aside and Lorenzo walked past her, taking a seat on the sofa.

  “Is something wrong?” she asked. “I thought you had something to do?”

  “I’m leaving in a few minutes. I wanted to see you one more time before I left. I need to be honest with you about something.”

  She sat next to him on the sofa. He was truly in shock at the ease of talking to her, being near her. He’d gotten so used to being on guard all the time, that the freedom he felt with her took him a while to understand.

  “Okay...color me interested...” Her delicate gloved hands fingered the delicate fabric of a pillow.

  Looking into those dazzling eyes, he said, “With everything going on, I wanted you to know that by working here you will be associated with the mob. Whether you have anything to do with me or not, people are going to make assumptions.”

  He reached for her hand. Evelyn clearly wasn’t expecting it, so she jerked. Her glove slid down, and Lorenzo saw the skin on her right hand was badly scarred. Evelyn pulled away quickly, but it was too late. He’d seen it.

  “What happened to you?”

  His jaw clenched. Seeing her burns, he wanted to kill someone for hurting her. Rage surged so quickly inside him he had to work hard to tamp down the emotion. All the years he’d practiced being calm and in charge of his emotions had gone with the wind the few times he’d thought Evelyn was being hurt, and this was no exception.

  “It’s nothing.” Evelyn pulled her glove back up, covering her scars. “Why would anyone associate me with the mob? I have nothing to do with that.”

  Lorenzo didn’t want to let what he’d seen go, but he could tell she wasn’t comfortable talking about it. “Trust me, I know how unfair it is, but that’s the way this city runs. You just need to make sure this is what you want. That’s all.”

  Lorenzo anxiously awaited her response.

  Evelyn took a deep breath and wrung her gloved hands together. “Thank you for your honesty. I guess I hadn’t thought about that aspect of working here. I knew working in a club would come with some amount of danger, but I hadn’t realized that your family would be involved.”

  “They aren’t, but it doesn’t matter. No one cares that I started this club with my own money, or that I’m a De Luca in name only. What they see is a mobster’s son.”

  Lorenzo couldn’t help the resentment that leaked into his voice. He resented how he’d benefitted even when he’d tried to cut ties.

  “And there I thought you’d come to explain where this coat came from.” Evelyn laughed.

  Lorenzo looked at the long white coat that was draped over a chair. The coat looked familiar, but he couldn’t place it. Then it hit him. “Yalaina must have put it in here. Jeb and I were talking about how the KKK tore your coat, and how we didn’t want you to get cold if you had to leave the building for some reason.”

  “Yalaina?” Evelyn’s gaze softened.

  “Here, let me help you try it on, to make sure it fits.”

  Lorenzo stood, grabbing the coat. Evelyn stood too, with her back to him. His hands grazed her skin and their eyes met in the mirror. The chemistry between them was like an uninvited guest. The heat of her body against his pulsed between them. He remembered he’d been taken with her from the first moment he’d laid eyes on her.

  She turned to face him, put on the coat. He slid his hand inside the coat and around her waist. He pulled her to him. His other hand cupped the back of her neck. He stared into her eyes.

  “Can I kiss you?” he said.

  He still feared for her, and he still didn’t want to let her get close to him, but maybe one kiss would tamp down the fire building in his body, threatening to explode.

  “Yes...” It came out as a whisper.

  Lorenzo brushed his lips against hers, gently at first. Evelyn closed her eyes and her lips parted, just slightly. Lorenzo nudged them farther apart with his tongue. With her body pressed against his, his arousal peaked. A moan escaped her lips and he wanted to groan from the pain of his erection and the pleasure of her warm mouth.

  Lorenzo backed her up to the couch, relishing in the softness of her full lips and the sweet taste of her mouth. Together with her intoxicating scent, it made Lorenzo completely lose himself. When he laid her back on the couch her petite body melted into his. His hands explored her body through her dress, cupping her breasts. She moaned into his mouth and it ignited a desire inside of him he’d thought long burned out. He kissed his way down her slender throat. Her legs parted and Lorenzo positioned himself between them.

  What were they doing? He knew it was wrong, but he couldn’t stop.

  “Oh, Lorenzo...”

  His breath caught. He loved his name on her lips. His hands caressed her thighs as he slid her dress up farther. Her back arched, giving him greater access to her most delicate part...

  The sound of crashing dishes broke them from their reverie.

  They looked at each other, jerking apart. Lorenzo stood, noticing the door to her dressing room hung wide open.

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  “No, don’t be. I... I wanted you to do—that.”

  Evelyn looked away. Suddenly, something was really interesting on the floor.

  He wanted to ignore the way his heart beat faster just because he was near her, but he couldn’t. A smile slid across his lips with such ease he couldn’t hide it.

  Not knowing what to say about what they’d just done, he decided to act as though nothing had happened. “I’m glad you like the coat. Now you’ll be warm.”

  She stood and fixed her dress. Walking back to the mirror, she admired herself in the coat. “I actually hadn’t given it a lot of thought, with everything that’s going on. But now that I’m staying here, I do need to get back home tomorrow. I want to get some things and reassure my grand that I’ll be okay.”

  �
�I can have Jerry drive you over.” He walked toward the door.

  “Um...sure. I think that would be fine, then I won’t have to bother my brother for a ride.”

  The door was still wide open, but Benny knocked anyway. “Excuse me, Miss Laroque... Lorenzo, but we should get started. The crowd is waiting for our new star.”

  Happiness filled Evelyn’s smile. Lorenzo loved that smile. He hadn’t seen it before. She’d always been so reserved. This was a real Evelyn smile; he could tell.

  “I was just going, Benny,” he said. “Far be it from me to keep her from blessing everyone with her voice.” He winked at her. “We can talk more after the show.”

  When she didn’t argue, or refuse, he left with a small piece of hope in his chest. But hope for what, he didn’t know.

  Lorenzo made his way to his roadster. He hopped in and cruised toward the outskirts of the city. He was both anxious and elated about seeing his family. Getting to be a part of the family again, in the way he was meant to be, felt right—even if it was temporary. He knew they wouldn’t like what he had to say, but they would respect him and his choice of how to handle the Klan.

  When Lorenzo pulled up, he cut the engine. Owls hooted in the distance and the full moon was shining a spotlight on the ancient mansion. If Lorenzo were superstitious, he would worry that it was an omen for his continued involvement with his family, but he wasn’t superstitious. He was pragmatic in his beliefs about the future. He was in charge, and nothing and no one would take his power to choose away.

  Taking a deep breath, he got out of his car. He patted the hood as he walked around it, satisfied with who he had become in spite of the temptation to return to the family business. He wasn’t naive any longer about the fact that he still benefitted from his family’s power and influence. But he’d worked hard against the pull of the mob, and now he was here to find out as much as he could about what had happened to Vinny, so he could make his final break with the family.

  “Hey, it’s my bambino.” Lorenzo’s father stood proud at the center of the horde of De Lucas. He smiled brightly, walking to Lorenzo and pulling him into a big hug. He kissed Lorenzo on both cheeks. “My boy, it’s so good to see you. Come, come...sit, drink.”

  His father put his arm around his shoulders and guided him toward the table. Drinks flowed and everyone smiled and laughed as they greeted him.

  He was home, and he couldn’t deny how right it felt, to be surrounded by the people who’d raised him, the people who had always protected him and had taught him everything he needed to know about being a successful businessman.

  After everyone had settled down to eat and drink, Lorenzo said, “I’m happy to be back. I’ve missed all of you.”

  “We missed you too, son.”

  Lorenzo had never seen his father so happy, so proud—not even when Blues Moon had made the newspaper for being the top-grossing nightclub in the Kansas City area. And those numbers hadn’t even included the liquor sales, since those were done strictly under the table.

  “But I do want to be clear. I only came to get information about Vinny’s murder.”

  * * *

  What his family had shared confirmed what Lorenzo had already found out. Vinny had been murdered by the KKK because Simmens had targeted Edith, not knowing that Edith was involved with the mob. Simmens was a problem that needed to be handled. If the police wouldn’t take the murders and assaults of women seriously, Lorenzo would.

  Once his family had realized his presence at the meeting didn’t mean he was taking up his role within the family, the meeting had gone very fast. He was thankful he would get to hear Evelyn sing for a little bit before meeting her for breakfast.

  Lorenzo took up his spot at the bar with his book of numbers in his hand.

  The spotlight cast an otherworldly glow on Evelyn. Her gold dress sparkled under the bright light. Her skin soaked up the luminescence like a sponge. The chatter in the club stopped as everyone listened, eyes glued to Evelyn. She closed her eyes and swayed as she released the first note. The saxophone came in right after her and the rest of the band a beat later. Her presence on stage consumed the entire club. Tommy had even stopped making drinks and was just watching her.

  Lorenzo took in the effect she had on everyone, including him.

  He wanted to ask her why she always closed her eyes when she sang. Sometimes she would open them and the glitter of unreleased tears sparkled, casting a watery shadow over her gold irises. He ached when she sang, ached and then froze in disbelief of the emotions crashing through him with each note. Her words hit him hard. She sang songs he’d heard, but she and Benny had also decided to sing some songs she had written. Those were the best ones Lorenzo decided.

  He’d stopped by the club after meeting with his family to work, but he couldn’t focus on the numbers. All he could think about was Evelyn. He’d meant to greet customers and make small talk as he usually did, but he couldn’t. All he could do was watch her.

  “She’s sensational.”

  The familiar voice brought Lorenzo out of his trance. Evelyn was on her seventh song and Lorenzo had gotten absolutely no work done. Dred slid onto the bar stool next to Lorenzo with her back to the stage. Everyone else had turned to face the stage, only turning toward the bar to order another drink or food.

  “Tommy, let me get a tequila with a lime, please.”

  Dred had on a long, sleek black dress. She always looked polished.

  “So, where’s Jeb?” she said.

  “I haven’t seen him since I got back. He’s around here somewhere.” Lorenzo eyed Dred suspiciously. “Why’re you asking about Jeb?”

  Lorenzo couldn’t help the smile that played at his lips. He wanted Dred to find someone who could handle her, who might be as lethal as her. And Jeb was definitely a good candidate. But Lorenzo hedged seeing the venom in Dred’s eyes.

  “I’m just asking...making small talk. You know—what I’ve been trying to teach you to do,” Lorenzo said.

  Dred lacked some social skills. She preferred to be alone most of the time, only coming to the club when she wanted to spend a little time with Lorenzo. They’d grown up like siblings, and when they went too long without talking they genuinely missed each other.

  “Well, I just came by to make sure you weren’t dead and to see what all the hype was about. You know news of this girl is all over the city?” Dred squeezed the lime into her glass and took a long sip of her liquor.

  Lorenzo didn’t like the sound of that. If Dred had heard something, that might mean trouble for Evelyn—well, more trouble, that was.

  “What did you hear?”

  Lorenzo looked away from Evelyn to take in Dred’s body language. He could tell if she was uneasy about something, even if no one else could. She held tension in her shoulders when something wasn’t right—just like she was doing now.

  “The Klan boys are talking. You have really pissed them off. You know they don’t like Italians anyway. They think all immigrants are ruining the country. Ignorant bastards.”

  Lorenzo took a deep breath and then let it out slowly.

  “You thought they had beef with you before? Well, they want to bop you and the girl now. I heard the KKK has a hit on you.”

  “We have to protect Evelyn. This is what I want you to do: round up Jeb and meet me in my office as soon as possible.”

  Dred downed her drink. “Let me get another, Tommy.”

  “Sorry, Dred. That was the last of it,” said Tommy.

  Dred looked at Lorenzo. “Something going on with the supply?”

  “Yeah, that’s an entire problem of its own.”

  Dred’s eyes grew hot with hate. Lorenzo assumed his looked similar. He knew that the KKK was behind what was happening with his liquor. And they would regret it. He had the fleeting thought that he should have killed Simmens when he’d had the chance. But then he thought
again. One death would just lead to the birth of another bigot to take his place.

  Lorenzo looked at Evelyn one last time before moving swiftly toward his office.

  He would need to get the chopper squad together.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Evelyn

  During her second set, she noticed that Lorenzo had returned, but shortly after he was missing from the bar where he’d been watching her. It both thrilled her and scared her how intensely he stared at her. It was like she was a puzzle he just couldn’t solve. She wondered what would happen if he ever did figure her out.

  What had happened between them in her dressing room had played on repeat while she was on stage. She didn’t know what to think of it. It didn’t have to mean anything. She was grown, and she could have fun with a nice man without it having to mean something. She hated how women had this unrealistic expectation of being prudish. Marrying wasn’t something she even wanted. She just wanted to be able to take care of her grandmother and sing.

  She’d thought he might be in his office, but it was empty. Her heart sank.

  She was headed toward her dressing room when a callused hand touched her arm—not roughly, but enough to stop her.

  She turned to see a tall Black man with skin the color of red clay. He had eyes that were nearly the same color, and hair cut really low. With his muscular build and height, he towered over Evelyn.

  “I’m sorry to bother you, but I couldn’t leave without telling you how beautiful you are. You took my breath away with your singing. I’d heard you were good, and gorgeous, but I had to come see for myself.”

  He let his hand drop from her arm after a long moment.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed the show. I’ll have one more set in about an hour.”

  “I know. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Evelyn smiled at him and turned to walk away. She probably should have stayed and talked with him, maybe even gone to the bar and had a drink with him. She was so inexperienced when it came to men. But something inside of her just wanted to find Lorenzo and ask him what he’d thought.