Chapter 3
Chapter Three
G od, she was tired.
After her lovely lunch with Neil, and the confrontation with Saxon, she’d gotten back to an afternoon of problems. A client caught up in a Twitter storm. Another client caught in a scandal involving a woman who was definitely not his wife.
Gia was tired to the bone and her face was throbbing.
She unlocked her apartment door. At least she didn’t look as bad as poor Haven had. During a theft at the museum, when a Monet had been stolen, her friend had been beaten. Haven’s bruises had lasted for days.
Haven had powered through, and she’d had Rhys at her side.
Gia was going to have a glass of red wine, and then sleep. She’d power through tomorrow.
She dumped her things on the island and kicked off her shoes.
Home . She loved her light, beautiful two-bedroom apartment. She had a gorgeous kitchen she didn’t have enough time to use. A spa-like master bathroom that was her favorite room in the place. And a balcony with great views.
She smiled, feeling a sense of peace wash over her. She’d picked out every little thing. Her apartment was her sanctuary. The place where she could shed her kickass, successful PR persona, and just be herself. There was nothing to prove, no one to impress.
A quick rat-a-tat-tat knock on her door made her frown. Someone had gotten past the doorman.
She checked the peephole and her pulse leaped.
Willow .
Gia wrenched open the door. “Will.”
Her friend pushed in. Willow’s face was twitchy, her blue eyes bright. She shoved her hair back. In high school, it had been thick and blonde, now it was stringy and the color of dishwater.
Willow was tall and far too thin. She paced into Gia’s apartment and whirled.
Gia studied her friend’s face carefully and let out a breath. “You’re high.”
“I’m in a fuck load of trouble, Gigi. I needed to chill a bit, take the edge off.”
“You got yourself into this situation by stealing a quarter of a million dollars of gems that aren’t yours.”
Willow shifted her beaten-up running shoes. “Dennett’s got loads of money. Why shouldn’t I get some?”
“Because it’s his .” Even if it was ill-gotten. “You stole from him.”
Willow shrugged a thin shoulder. “I thought you’d take my side.”
Crap, Gia had been taking Willow’s side for years. Excusing her friend’s poor choices. Saxon’s voice rang in her head.
God, had she been enabling Willow?
“Dennett’s man came after me,” Gia said. “He threatened me. You need to return the gems.”
Willow went silent, chewing on her lip. “You look okay.”
“He pulled a gun on me. He shot at me.”
“Your brothers won’t let anything happen to you. And that golden-boy snob would take a bullet for you.”
“Saxon?”
“Yes,” Willow sneered. “He won’t let anything happen to his precious princess.”
“Saxon is just—”
“Has fucking wanted you since before you were legal.”
The words sent a jolt through Gia.
“That blue-blooded asshole wouldn’t look at me twice, but you…” Jealousy laced Willow’s voice.
Gia dragged in a breath. Right now, this wasn’t about Saxon. “Look, focus on Dennett. You need to—”
“His guys have been tailing me all day.” Willow wiped a hand across her mouth. “I need—”
Gia straightened. “Did they follow you here?”
“Pretty sure I lost them.” Willow pulled a small, black bag from her pocket. “Look, Gigi, I just need to stash these here. Just for a bit.”
“Willow, no.” Her brothers and Saxon would lose their minds.
“I need to make things right. Please . Just hide them for a few hours and I’ll fix this, Gigi.”
Willow threw her arms around Gia in a tight hug. She was so thin, and the desperation wafted off her.
“Okay.” You’re an idiot, Gia Norcross . “Just for a few hours, Will.”
“Thank you.” Her friend smiled, the old Willow shining through.
Gia took the bag. It felt far too light for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
“I’m going to make this right.” Willow opened the front door. “You’ll see.”
Then she was gone.
Gia dropped heavily onto her lovely suede couch. The temptation was too much and she opened the bag.
She gasped. Oh, wow.
The stones were cool on her palm. Blood-red rubies, deep-green emeralds, jewel-blue sapphires, some large, pale-pink stone.
She gave herself a second to imagine a set of ruby earrings, or a gorgeous emerald necklace.
Then she shoved the gems back in the bag. She moved over to the floating shelf on her living room wall. She popped a panel on the side and slid the bag inside the hollow wood. She set the panel back in place.
She really wanted that glass of wine, but if her brothers found out that she had the gems and she hadn’t told them…
If Saxon found out, he’d ride her for days for being stupid.
She needed to visit Norcross.
Saxon’s warnings echoed in her head. She bit her lip. She didn’t believe Dennett was stupid enough to go up against her brothers. Still, she needed to be smart. She’d change, and get an Uber straight over to the Norcross office.
Hurrying into her bedroom, she stripped her work dress off and pulled her hair out of its twist. She pulled on her yoga gear—black leggings, lilac top, and her favorite hoodie sweatshirt that she only wore at home.
The gray fabric settled comfortingly around her.
No one would expect stylish Gia Norcross to be wearing a hoodie.
As she walked through the living room, she glanced at the shelf and felt the weight of those damn gems. She wanted them gone, and she wanted Willow safe.
Gia grabbed her keys and phone. She decided to be extra careful and take the stairs. Dammit, Saxon had her imagining the bogeyman everywhere.
In the lobby, she pulled the hood up over her hair and swiped the Uber app on her phone.
The car arrived, and as far as she could tell, no one was paying her any attention.
It was a short ride to South Beach, where Vander had purchased an old warehouse several years back to house the Norcross office—then completely gutted and renovated it.
Now, the bottom level of the warehouse housed the fleet of BMW SUVs that the Norcross team used, a high-tech gym, and cells.
Okay, technically, holding rooms. The next level was mostly open plan, with glass-walled offices that the guys barely used.
Every time she’d visited, the Norcross men were in the field doing badass security and investigations stuff.
Sitting at a desk was not their favorite thing to do.
She’d helped Vander pick out the interior for the office. The inside had a concrete-and-steel, industrial vibe that suited Vander. The upper floor and roof terrace were Vander’s private domain and home.
Gia slipped out of the Uber with a thank you, and headed down the street, looking quickly toward the warehouse.
Suddenly, a small, wiry body raced out of an alley and slammed into her.
“Hey!” she cried.
The man, only inches taller than her, pulled a knife. “Give me the bag.”
“I don’t have a bag.”
“The gems,” he barked.
Oh, shit . He must be one of the guys who’d been following Willow.
“She gave them to you,” the man snapped. “I want them.”
Gia stiffened. Then in her haughtiest voice, she said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The knife slashed and Gia felt a sting of pain on her forearm.
Anger exploded inside her. She’d had a crappy, trying few days. Her mama liked to say that Gia had inherited her fiery, Italian temper from her.
Gia struck. She chopped her hand into her attacker’s arm. With a shout, his knife dropped to the pavement.
She kicked him in the crotch, but he deflected at the last second and she caught his thigh. She kept attacking. She’d been taught well, but she knew she would never be as strong as a male attacker. She had to attack fast and hard, before he realized that she meant business.
She rammed her elbow into his neck and he coughed. Then he reached out and grabbed her hoodie and hair, and yanked.
Ow. Ow. Ow. Tears threatened. Her scalp felt like it was on fire. She jerked her arms up violently, breaking his hold, and probably losing a few strands of hair in the process.
But now he attacked full force.
His body drove into hers, slamming her into a nearby brick wall. It knocked the wind out of her.
He snatched the knife off the concrete and pressed it to her throat.
Gia froze. Oh, shit. She felt the sting on her neck. Her first worry was about what germs and grime might be on the blade.
The man’s eyes glittered with rage. Screw this. She rammed her knee up between his legs. Really hard.
He made a horrible noise and she almost felt sorry for him. He dropped the knife again, and she shoved away from him.
The man raised his head, and she saw the frightening promise of retribution on his face.
“Hey!” a deep male voice roared.
Her attacker spun and awkwardly ran off, hunched over and hobbling.
Gia picked up the switchblade. “I’m keeping this, asshole.”
A tall man appeared beside her.
Ace Oliveira, Norcross’ guru of all things tech and electronic, looked nothing like any geek she’d ever seen. He was tall, dark, and Brazilian. His long, dark hair was pulled back in a sexy ponytail, showcasing the angles of his handsome face. His body was long, rangy, and muscled.
“Gia, you okay?”
“Yes.” But the shaking was setting in. “I’m okay.”
His dark eyes were concerned. “You’re bleeding.”
She swiped a hand across her neck. “Um, I think I’ll head home.”
Ace’s gaze narrowed.
“Can you…um, forget you ever saw this?”
“No.” He took her arm, his grip strong, and herded her toward the Norcross office.
Shit, she was afraid of that.
* * *
Saxon had just finished up with some searches on his laptop—tapping a few PI databases—when he heard the dangerous snap of Vander’s voice.
“What the fuck?”
Pushing back from his desk, Saxon strode into the central open area of the Norcross office.
Ace and Vander were scowling at a small woman with her back toward Saxon and a hood over her head.
But he’d recognize that curvy little ass anywhere. Hell, he’d dreamed about it constantly.
“Gia?”
She turned.
Saxon’s blood ran cold.