by M. O. Kenyan
“No!” Rosalinda’s desperate voice filled the room. “If you attack him, Catalella will only defend him. We will be the bad guys.”
“So what are you saying?” Lisette asked as she took a step forward.
“Catalella wants to behave like an adult. We give her a chance at being an adult,” Adrian said.
“Papa, you are not serious.” Lisette saw the hard set of his face, and she knew there was no way Catalella was escaping her latest mistake without a lesson.
“But you will give her some money?” AJ asked.
“No. In fact, to be sure the two of you will not go behind my back and help them, I am freezing your accounts. Any money you want, you can get it directly from me.” Adrian ignored the protest echoing in the room. “Plus, I think it is time the both of you moved out, to show Catalella that you can also make it on your own. You will obviously stay in apartments I rent for you. Not too far from your mother and me.”
“If you are giving us apartments, why don’t you give Catalella one?” Lisette asked.
“Both of you are past the age of twenty-one, and have limited access to the hundred thousand in your accounts. That is where your rent money and allowances will come from. And Michael Mathews has taken the responsibility of caring for your sister,” Adrian said. “He was after Catalella’s money when he married her.”
AJ let out a bark of laughter and Lisette quickly joined in. “He is going to be shocked.”
“Yes he is,” Adrian said with a sly grin. “I know you have a weakness for your little sister, but you have to let her learn on her own. That includes you Rosalinda.”
Lisette shot a glance at her mother. She had stopped crying now, and was shooting daggers at Adrian. It was obvious she didn’t agree. There was no other way to release Catalella from Michael, unless…
“I need to talk to you.” Reno’s hot breath tickled her eardrum.
Lisette felt a sliver of weakness run through her body. She didn’t want to get her heart broken again, and her body always seemed to betray her mind whenever they were alone together. “I can’t right now. My sister is missing.”
“I know that.” He groaned. “I have been up all night looking for her.”
“You have?” She stared at him in shock. When she thought she had finally gotten him pegged down he always seemed to surprise her.
“I haven’t slept for a long time. I am starting to feel like a zombie,” he teased.
“Then maybe you should go home.” From the frown on his face Lisette knew that he had taken her sign of concern the wrong way. “You need to get some sleep. Who else is going to help AJ bury that bastard’s body?”
Lisette breathed a sigh of relief when he smiled. He didn’t answer her though, DJ did. “I can. If AJ and Reno weren’t looking after us, and if you weren’t wasted we could have all been here, sharing stories of my father’s past. Catalella wouldn’t have had to go anywhere to get her fill of romance. Right, Dad?”
Lisette winced at the steel in DJ’s voice. His eyes were slits, a dark eyebrow raised as he stared daggers at his father. Dennis on the other hand, didn’t move, or show any sign of being affected by his remark. Issadora, however, did show the pain she felt.
Daniela looked like she didn’t have a clue. Something else besides Catalella’s disappearance was going on, and DJ seemed all too ready to let everyone in on it.
“My father is better at juggling women than I am.” DJ let out a sardonic chuckle. “You see my dear sister, this guy…” DJ said as he hooked his arm over Reno’s shoulder, “…is our brother.”
Lisette fell back into a chair, the weight of the news knocking her on her ass. She stared at Reno, his jaw clenched, a look of anger shadowed his face. Then he glanced at Daniela, the anger was gone, and concern took over.
“Is that what you meant by, you needed to talk to me?” Daniela asked in a broken whisper. “You are my brother?”
* * * *
Reno felt his heart drop into his stomach. Why would DJ do that? He was still angry, that was obvious by the way he was looking at Dennis. Daniela didn’t need to be part of the anger. Reno waited for the seventeen-year-old reaction, screaming and tantrums, but they didn’t come. Again DJ and Daniela proved how alike they were. She sat in silence, absorbing what DJ had said, every now and then shooting him a look, one he couldn’t read.
“I heard Mom and Dad talking. I thought I had a sister,” she said.
“You were eavesdropping on our conversation?” Issadora asked.
“That’s not the point. Besides, you were shouting. I hardly had to put a glass up against the door.” Reno watched as Daniela swallowed hard. “So who is the girl you were arguing about?”
“My sister, I mean our sister,” Reno said. He took a cautious step toward Daniela. When he didn’t see any sign of repulsion, he sat next to her. “She’s DJ’s age. She disappeared when she was two years old. I was six, I couldn’t protect her. I promise we will find her, and I will always protect you.”
Reno drew Daniela near when her shoulders started to tremble from her silent crying. He watched as DJ moved toward them. He sat on Daniela’s other side, his arm draped over her tiny shoulders.
“Please don’t cry. I didn’t mean for you to find out this way.” DJ said as he pressed a kiss on her temple.
“That’s not the reason, stupid. I just can’t believe I now have to suffer two brothers and not just one.” She smiled through her tears.
Reno breathed a sigh of relief. But that breath got hitched in his chest as he watched Lisette rise from her seat and walk away. He got up, but before he could go to her, the door flew open and Michael and Catalella walked into the room.
Reno watched as AJ took a step toward the new couple. He gave him a discouraging shake of the head and shot Lisette a look. As if she read his mind, Lisette took her scared sister into another room. Reno silently urged Issadora, Rosalinda and Daniela to follow. As soon as the women were out of the room, he, DJ and AJ pounced on the unsuspecting groom.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?” Michael asked in a panicked gasp.
“What the hell is wrong with you? My sister is just seventeen.” AJ asked as he tossed him across the room and into Reno’s arms.
“I think we should throw him over the balcony. Say it was a suicide.” DJ growled.
Reno shook his head discouragingly. “He won’t die at this height, but he would make a handsome cripple.”
“What? You wouldn’t!” Michael, like a panicked mouse, looked around the room for a hole to crawl into. “The police will catch you.”
“Uncle Adrian is a damn good lawyer. He’ll get us off, won’t you? And Dad, he can just pay off every single person who comes into contact with your mangled body.”
Reno lifted Michael off the ground and pushed him toward the balcony.
“Enough, boys!” Adrian barked.
Reno released him and Michael crumpled to the ground.
“Daniela, call Catalella in here,” Dennis said.
Reno looked back and for the first time noticed Daniela, wide eyed and standing in a corner. “I’m never bringing a boyfriend home,” she coughed.
“Keep that in mind, if you ever think of getting married behind our backs,” DJ warned.
“You wouldn’t.” Daniela terror-stricken eyes landed on Reno.
“We would,” Reno affirmed.
* * * *
Lisette couldn’t believe what Daniela had told them. She was angry that they didn’t let her get a turn with the gold-digging snake. They stood around the living room, as if they were the grand jury called in to decide on a murder charge. Never in a grand jury would her body feel the way it was now, standing next to Reno. She stared into his smoky eyes as they widened. Her eyes roaming over his muscular physique, wishing she could touch everything under his clothes.
“Stop it,” he whispered into her ear.
“Sorry.”
“This is the thing, Michael.” Lisette looked up and watched a
s her father passed his judgment. “You have decided to take responsibility over our daughter and we shall let you. Catalella will move in with you, and you will provide for her. Don’t worry—her college fund has been set up and the money will automatically be paid to Harvard Law. You will not be able to touch it.”
“What about my trust fund?”
Lisette could see how nervous Catalella was getting.
“You are seventeen. You have no access to that money, and if you do not meet the requirements that have been stipulated, you will never see that money. It will be passed on to your children and an independent executor will make sure it is not misappropriated.”
“Where are we going to live?” Michael whispered.
“Your apartment.” Adrian growled. “Did you marry my daughter not knowing where you were going to take her? Or did you think you would come and live here, or I would provide you with an apartment.”
Lisette knew that was exactly what Michael thought. He was depending on their father to go soft on Catalella, give her everything she asked for. She could see his head spinning. When she saw him drop Catalella’s hands as if they were a hot piece of coal, she knew Michael was rethinking his decision.
“What if we have children before she meets the requirements for her trust fund?” He asked, throwing one last coin into the wishing well.
“You will provide for them.” Adrian shot him a taunting smile. “You will keep your job at the firm. Your salary will not change. If you pass law school and your bar exam you could take up an associate position in the firm.”
Lisette could feel the protests dancing on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn’t say anything. Her father seemed to have a plan.
“So, nothing. No money—just a job that doesn’t pay enough to eat in a five star restaurant? But we keep the car?”
“No.” Catalella swallowed hard. “The car remains in Papa’s name until we receive the first installment of the trust, or a job that will pay for the insurance.” Lisette watched as Catalella lifted her gaze to AJ. She saw the pout on her lip and knew she was about to pull an emotional blackmail on AJ. One he might not be able to refuse. “Please, talk to Papa.”
AJ stared at her, tears in his eyes, an indication of him caving in. His jaw clenched his fingers balled into fists, and without a word AJ grabbed his jacket and left the apartment.
“Lisette?” a now crying Catalella turned her plea toward her elder sister.
“We’ve been kicked out too, because of you. I have to pack my stuff and head to my new apartment,” Lisette said. “I hope Michael is worth it, considering everything you are giving up.”
Lisette turned around and walked away, quickening her steps as she tried to outpace her sister’s sobs and pleas. When she reached her bedroom, she turned around to find Reno behind her.
“Do you want to get out of here?” he asked as his palm cupped her jaw, his thumb smoothing over her trembling bottom lip.
“Yes.”
Chapter Seven
Reno flipped on the light to his small apartment. He suddenly felt ashamed of his meager space. He had seen how Adrian had given Michael a dressing down. If Dennis hadn’t claimed him, he wouldn’t be able to maintain the lifestyle she was used to. He now saw the advantage of Dennis accepting him into the embrace of the Kent name. Reno was sure that with a proper job, there was no way Lisette would ever want for the necessities. For her though, necessities included some things normal people would see as vain. He would still have to live in the student apartments. It was that or the projects. Reno knew no matter how different Lisette was, living in that kind of neighborhood would be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
“Welcome. It’s not much but—”
“Do you have a bed?” Lisette asked a note of fragility in her voice.
Reno watched as Lisette walked into his closet apartment. She wasn’t looking around. Her eyes were focused on the wall in front of her, staring at nothing. He didn’t think she was looking at anything particular, nor was she taking in her new environment. Lisette seemed to be in a trance.
“Of course I have a bed.”
“Good, because we are going to need it.”
Quiet settled as quiet does. Lisette turned around and settled a steady gaze on him. He knew what she wanted but Reno didn’t think he could give it to her, not like this. He had fantasized about the first time he would make love to Lisette. It was the sort of fantasies you would expect from a little teenage girl and not a six-foot-five lineman. In his mind, it was supposed to be roses and daisies. The only people who were supposed to be there was him and Lisette. Now the whole Ross family had tagged along with Lisette, and who could forget Michael. Plus he also had the Kent family with him. He wanted a special moment between the two of them without the family baggage.
Dread settled heavily in his stomach as he said, “We can’t make love today, Lisette.”
“I don’t want to make love—” Reno blew out a sigh of relief, but his breath caught when she added, “I want a quick fuck, something to take my mind off what’s happened today. Are you going to be my designated guy, or should I go elsewhere?”
“What do you mean go elsewhere?” Anger glinted off him like sparks beneath a hammer. “You are not leaving this apartment, Lisette, you can bet your life on that.”
“You can’t keep me here.” Sparks flew, along with the lid of her temper.
Lisette took a step toward the door, but Reno shut and locked it.
“You need to deal with what your family is going through without doing something you will regret later. Lisette, think about your family.”
“The same way you think about yours?” Her sharp retort made him take a step back. “Don’t tell me how to handle my family when you can’t deal with your own.”
Her words cut him like a hot knife, slicing his heart. “My situation is different.”
* * * *
“How about we keep our problems to ourselves and continue with being broken up?” Lisette could feel the anger sizzling beneath her skin. But she wasn’t angry with Reno, she was angry at herself…angry at how her mistake could cost her little sister everything.
“Lisette.” She retreated when he took a step toward her.
“You don’t understand. This is entirely my fault. If I hadn’t brought Michael around, if I had realized just how desperate he was to be associated with my family, I would have gotten rid of him a long time ago.” Her head dropped to her chest as she tried to hide the tears streaming down her cheeks. “Now Catalella is stuck with him, for God knows how long.”
“It’s not your fault.” This time Lisette didn’t step back when he reached for her. “Do you know how much I love you?”
The embers simmering low in her body flared to life at the softness of his voice. She laid her head on his chest as her hands roamed all over his back. Her fingers felt so smooth over the hard muscles of his back. Daring a chance, she moved her hands under his shirt. When flesh came into contact with flesh, Lisette could feel a zing of awareness zip through her body, his low moan rippling through her like a caress.
“Are you still so sure, you don’t want me?”
Reno growled and held her at arms’ length. Lisette let out a whimper of disappointment as her hands left his body and fell like logs at her sides. “I want you. You can’t believe how much. But right now, we can’t afford the distraction. We need to talk about us first.”
“You broke up with me.”
“I was an ass for doing so.”
“Now you want me back?”
“I need you back.” He pulled her closer and rested his forehead against hers. “You have no idea how much I need you to be with me. I feel like you are the only thing anchoring me down to this world.”
“Dead weight?”
“No, as my other reason for being.”
“The other being, your sister.”
“Yes, I should tell you about her.”
Reno felt like he was poking at an open wound.
Rhyne had always been his. Even with Kono still alive, he had always known that Rhyne would always be his and his alone. Now he had to share her with Lisette. An open relationship was what he was going for. Lisette would have to understand why at a moment’s notice he would have to drop everything and go search for Rhyne. Her sightings were becoming as rare as the white Rhino. He pulled Lisette down on the bed beside him and let out a labored breath.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.” The sound of her voice was reassuring, soothing even. And when she combed her dainty fingers through his thick hair, he let out a purr like a content kitten.
“You got to stop doing that if we are going to talk anything out tonight.”
“All right, I’ll stop trying to seduce you.” Lisette took his face in both her hands then gently kissed him. “I’m listening.”
“As a child, as young as I was I always knew there was something wrong with my parents’ relationship. Dennis was always in and out of the picture. I had everything a little boy could ever want. I had all the latest toys and gadgets to keep me distracted. Dennis made sure of that.” Reno snorted. “When Rhyne came along, I knew she would always be mine.” He smiled, the image of her tiny fingers curling around his thumb warmed his heart. “I know they say kids don’t remember much of their childhood, but I could never forget the day Rhyne came home. She was so tiny and so pink at first. I felt proud to be a big brother. She was my star, the light in my eyes.”
“Kind of like how AJ and I are?”
“I don’t know. AJ had to get used to the little girl in pig tails taking over his territory,” he teased. “But with Rhyne, it was love at first sight. I wouldn’t let anyone near her. She was my responsibility, mine to protect. That’s what Dennis said.”
Reno shook his head in disgust as his memories fast-forwarded the two years after Rhyne had come into his family…
* * * *
“You need to understand my love,” Dennis coaxed.
“Understand what?” Kono was getting hysterical. Her long curly tresses stuck to the sweat on her face. Her eyes were wild, her screams of protest hysterical. “This is your family, Dennis. Reno is your first born, Rhyne your second. They are your heirs. How could you want to create another family when we are here?”