“Are you okay?” he asked, shooting her a concerned look. “You got all flushed.”
“I’m fine,” she assured him quickly with a believable lie. “Just happy to be getting away from this hotel.”
Suddenly, she wished Rian would’ve called her bluff. Maybe staying in wouldn’t have been so bad after all...
8
ENZO RUBBED AT his chest, trying to ease the ache that seemed to get more intense each time he thought of the situation facing his family. He had no idea who was threatening his family and his business but the fact that the threats had become more violent frightened him more than he wanted to admit.
“Here are your designs for the upcoming Lusso line,” said Georgina, his personal secretary, as she entered his office. Young and pretty, Georgina was also sharp as a tack and kept his business running smoothly. She was also his lover. She frowned as she noted his distress. “What’s wrong?”
He sighed and pushed away the paperwork that he’d been staring at but hadn’t actually read a word of. “Nothing, nothing. Yes, let me see the mock-ups,” he said, trying to focus. The Lusso line was his signature design, something that he was proud of, perhaps the pinnacle of his established career, but even the joy of seeing his new shoe line come to fruition wasn’t enough to overshadow the worry in his heart. His thoughts strayed and he exhaled a short breath as he confessed, “My mind is unruly today. Forgive me, my love. Perhaps I can look at these later.”
“Of course, Enzo,” she said, smiling. He leaned back in his chair and invited her to join him. She promptly settled on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Something is bothering you. Are you worried about the new line? If so, don’t be. It’s your most innovative design yet. People will be clamoring to own an Abelli Lusso.”
He smiled briefly. If only that were his sole concern. At one time, his business had consumed his life—something he regretted now as it seemed he’d missed out on a lot with CoCo—but today, he was more concerned that the threats were getting more vicious and the most precious thing in his life wasn’t shoes as it turned out. “These threats...they get more cruel, more taunting. What am I supposed to do?”
“You are doing everything in your power,” Georgina said, not the least bit concerned. “This will blow over and then there will be nothing but people singing your praises for this new line.”
Ordinarily, he enjoyed Georgina’s flattery, but today it only served to irritate him. “Woman, this is serious. There is more at stake than just the latest shoe design to hit a bloated market,” he said, encouraging her to leave his lap. She slid off with an uncertain expression and he softened. It wasn’t Georgina he was upset with. “My apologies. I am in a terrible mood today. I am, perhaps, feeling my age.” Georgina nodded but she still seemed wounded by his curt words. “Let me make it up to you... Perhaps something to brighten that beautiful neck?”
“You are too good to me,” Georgina said, casting her gaze demurely before scooping up the plans and hugging them to her bountiful chest. “Please stop worrying. Everything will work out. You will see.”
Ah, the blind confidence of youth. He wished he was comforted by her assurances. Unlike Georgina, who had nothing to lose, he had everything to lose. He kept their relationship private so it wasn’t public knowledge that they were intimate. Not even CoCo knew of his intimacies with his assistant and he wished to keep it that way. Somehow, he knew his opinionated daughter would have something to say about that and he didn’t wish to hear it. Georgina kept him young, which at his age, he valued more than he should.
He thought of CoCo’s mother, Azalea, and for a moment lost himself to nostalgia. Perhaps one of his biggest regrets was letting her go. He’d been a brash, hotheaded idiot back then but by the time he’d figured out that he’d screwed up, Azalea had moved on. Burying himself in work had been his salvation. He should’ve worked harder to save his marriage. He should’ve been a more attentive father.
A single tear snaked down his cheek and he wiped it away in surprise. He wasn’t prone to tears. It was the situation, pressing down on him. He couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that something terrible was about to happen.