Annie West - The Flaw In Raffaele's Revenge

‘No, Signor Petri. That was the sound of surprise but not agreement.’

‘Interesting, Ms Nolan. Most people would jump at this opportunity. Why aren’t you? A family, is that it? You have a husband and children perhaps?’

‘No! I don’t—’ Lily clamped her lips shut before she blurted out anything else. Instinctively she felt safer keeping her private life private from this man.

‘No family? I thought you sounded a little young for one.’

Lily’s eyebrows arched. At twenty-eight she wasn’t so young. Or was he implying she didn’t sound professional?

Or maybe he’s just winding you up. This man enjoyed playing with her, like a cat with a trapped mouse.

Like a bully wielding his superior power.

Lily’s chin shot up. ‘I suppose age becomes important when one reaches...mature years.’

A little huff of sound reached her over the long distance. A gasp of irritation or, could it be, stifled laughter?

She shouldn’t have said it. The veiled reference to his age, five years her senior, was indiscreet and possibly ruinous. But she refused to sit like a pincushion to be needled.

‘Fortunately I’m not quite in my dotage, Ms Nolan.’

No, he wasn’t. She kept seeing photos of him at glamorous functions. Always with a sophisticated woman on his arm, but never the same one.

‘So if you don’t have a family to tie you there it must be a lover.’ His voice dipped low, like dark treacle rolling through her veins to eddy in her belly. Lily drew her knees up, pressing them to her chest, trying to kill the unsettling sensation.

‘My private life is no concern of yours, Signor Petri.’ Did he hear the wobble of fury in her voice?

‘But it is, Ms Nolan, when it comes between me and what I want.’

‘Then it’s time you discovered you can’t always get what you want.’ The words poured out. ‘I decide when and where I sell my services.’

Lily scrubbed a shaky hand over her face, her chest heaving. This was going from bad to worse. Anger and anxiety curdled her insides. And self-disgust. She needed to stay calm, no matter what the provocation.

‘I assume you don’t normally speak to your clients in that suggestively sexy voice.’ His own voice was far too sultry. ‘It would give them the wrong idea about what services you sell.’

Lily almost dropped the phone.

Suggestively sexy?

He had to be kidding! No man had ever called her sexy.

Of course he’s kidding. He’s playing with you, searching for your weak spots.

And finding them!

Curiously, the realisation calmed her, despite the burn of annoyance.

‘There are reasons I can’t work for you in New York, Signor Petri, but—’

‘Name three.’

‘Sorry?’

‘I want to know why you reject my offer. Come on, three sound reasons.’ The words shot out, quick and demanding, and before she knew it, Lily was answering.

‘I don’t have a passport for a start.’ She winced. That made her sound like some country hick to a man who travelled the world as easily as she travelled it vicariously via the internet.

‘That’s one. What else?’

‘I can’t afford to rent a place in New York.’

‘Not even with the bonus I’m offering?’

‘I have commitments here. Any money I earn goes to those.’

‘And the third? What’s your third reason?’

Because she couldn’t stand the thought of working in an office with other people? Because she wouldn’t put herself through all that again?

Because she preferred solitude? She had a good life and an exciting business plan and no bullying magnate was going to disrupt those on a whim.

‘You don’t answer, Ms Nolan, which makes me think it’s the most important reason of all. Or you don’t have one.’

Sheer strength of will stopped Lily from blurting a response. He wasn’t going to goad her again.

‘Is it a lover holding you back?’

‘You have no right to quiz me like this.’

‘I have every right when it stymies my most important deal.’

Despite his monumental arrogance, Lily’s ears pricked up. She was fascinated by this man’s business acumen, his ability to see opportunities before anyone else. She’d love to know what this secret project was.

‘You want my advice?’ She was in the process of saying ‘No’ when he spoke over top of her. ‘Ditch him, Ms Nolan. Find yourself a man who won’t obstruct such a brilliant opportunity. You’ve got real talent. You shouldn’t let him stand in the way of it.’

For a second Lily gawped. Raffaele Petri was beyond belief. If she had a partner she’d never leave him on the say-so of some self-important stranger.

‘I wasn’t aware you were an expert on relationships, Signor Petri. Aren’t your girlfriends famous for being short-term?’

Lily gasped as she heard her thoughts slip out. She’d just scuttled her future with his company. But his behaviour, his whole attitude, was offensive.

A crack of laughter sounded on the line, resolving into a warm chuckle that did strange things to her insides.

Lily stiffened as fire tongued her sensitive flesh. A hot shiver ripped through her as if a warm masculine hand, rather than a disembodied voice, caressed her. She swallowed hard, horrified at her instantaneous response.

Wasn’t it enough that the man looked like a Greek god come to life? Did he have to sound irresistible too? Lily pressed the heel of her palm to her sternum, trying to ease her heart’s wild pounding.

She detested bullies. Her response was inexplicable.

Except it wasn’t. She was a young, healthy woman, with the physical urges that went with that. Her hormones didn’t care if he was a saint or the devil incarnate. All they cared about was that they’d been deprived of anything like excitement or satisfaction for far too long.

‘Don’t laugh at me!’ Her words rapped out, too short, too sharp.

In the sudden silence she realised what she’d revealed. He knew he’d got to her.

Raffaele Petri might be a bully but he was clever. All the world knew he came from the backstreets of some large Italian city. His business success was a commercial miracle.

‘What if I’m laughing at myself? Finally being called on my defects.’ His voice held an edge but she couldn’t tell if it was amusement or banked fury. ‘My decrepit age. My lack of emotional staying power. What else, I wonder?’ He paused. ‘Have you been investigating me, Ms Nolan?’

Despite the rich cadence of his voice, Lily heard the threat in that low purr of sound.

‘I haven’t, Signor Petri. Your business, yes, before I agreed to work for it. But as for a personal profile...’ She shook her head, her hair swirling. ‘That wasn’t necessary.’

‘Because the paparazzi do such a thorough job of portraying someone’s life, don’t they?’

Lily frowned. Was that emotion? Had she hit a nerve?

‘The passport can be fast-tracked. I’ll get my people onto it. Accommodation will be arranged. Plus I’ll have the contract altered to include the increased salary and bonus.’ He paused, which was as well, because her head was spinning. His abrupt change of subject left her floundering. ‘Appealing enough for you?’

The silence that followed was thick with expectation. He was waiting for her to agree before he hung up and dealt with whatever issue was next on his list.

Except Lily wasn’t some problem to be fixed.

‘I appreciate the offer, the very handsome offer,’ she choked out, her fingers clamping the phone. ‘But it won’t work for me. I’m happy to do whatever I can from here—’

‘But that won’t work for me.’ His voice sent a trickle of foreboding down her backbone.

For ten seconds there was silence. For twenty. But Lily refused to back down. What he asked was impossible for her and she had too much pride to explain why.