Читать книгу One Hot Weekend - Katherine Garbera - Страница 8

SOPHIA DELTONIO WAS at the top of her game. And everyone knew it. As she strode down the long hallway past the offices of the other assistant District Attorneys in Orange County, Florida, they all looked up and smiled at her. She’d just won a very difficult case, one she knew would impress Joan Mueller, her boss.

She paused in front of the door with the brass nameplate. Sophia Deltonio, Assistant District Attorney. If she played her cards right, it would read Deputy District Attorney in a short while. She then opened the door to her outer office.

“Hey, boss lady. Great job in court,” her secretary Alice said.

“Thanks.” She took the messages Alice handed her and entered her office. On the credenza were an assortment of balloons, flowers and a prank gift basket of condoms and crotchless panties from the other ADAs.

She’d just finished prosecuting the panty-raider, as he liked to be called. He’d stolen over one hundred thousand dollars in lacy underwear and sex aids from a local adults-only store. The things she did to keep the world safe from crime, she thought with a wry smile.

In the middle of her desk was another basket, which stopped her cold. It wasn’t exactly a basket but a small faux metal washtub. It was wrapped in cellophane and tied with a black velvet ribbon. The ribbon set off a chain reaction inside her.

A lifetime ago, she’d worn a ribbon like that around her neck every day. It’s just a coincidence. She dropped her briefcase and moved closer to her desk.

There was a card taped to the cellophane and she could see a ring of Corona beer bottles inside there. Oh, this wasn’t good.

She never drank anything but Pinot Grigio anymore. She almost didn’t want to open the card but that was foolish. It was just a card. It had no power over her.

As she studied the cream-colored envelope, a shiver of anticipation moved down her spine. Her hand shook but not from fear. A tingling awareness rippled through her.

This is so stupid. I’m thirty-two for chrissakes and in control of my life.

The handwriting wasn’t familiar to her. Of course, it wouldn’t be familiar. “Stop being ridiculous.”

Mitch Hollaran had been out of her life for a long time and he wasn’t suddenly going to show up again. She used her French-manicured nail to open the back of the envelope, and pulled out a card. Instead of the standard FTD one, the thick vellum bore the monogram of a prestigious Los Angeles law firm.

Her stomach sank. She opened the card and inside was the handwriting she recognized—bold, brash and filled with the kind of passion a girl could die from knowing.

See you in court.

There was no signature, just a scrawled M. But then she didn’t need a signature to know it was from Mitch. She sank down on one of the guest chairs and closed her eyes.

Memories of the man she once knew and of the passion they’d shared assailed her. The Corona incident had happened right before they’d broken up. Too poor to be able to afford a winter vacation, they’d stayed in their apartment near the Harvard campus where they both were studying law, with the thermostat cranked up to eighty, listening to blues music and making love for four days.

She seldom let herself think about that life. She was a different woman now. She was in line to become the Deputy D.A. in Orange County. All of Orlando knew she was a woman to be reckoned with inside the courtroom and out.

And she no longer indulged the sensual side of her personality. She’d learned the hard way that professional drive and personal passion didn’t mix inside her. They might for other women, but not for her.

She hadn’t had a lover since Robert had left her eighteen months earlier. He’d wanted marriage and Sophia hadn’t been able to commit herself to him. She hadn’t analyzed it and didn’t want to. She just knew Robert wasn’t as important as her career and never would be.

That’s probably why Mitch’s reappearance in her life was making her hot inside by dredging up memories of the most erotic time in her life.

But instead of focusing on that, she reached for the tin and pulled open the cellophane. Inside were six Coronas and a bag of limes. Next to the limes was a Stevie Ray Vaughan CD. She shivered hearing the raspy sound of Vaughan’s blues in her head and remembering Mitch’s fingers on her neck. Cool and wet with the juice of the lime, stroking down her back.

Her phone rang and she jumped. She put a hand to her neck and took a deep breath before answering the call.

“This is Deltonio.”

“Joan wants to see you in her office,” Alice said.

“Now?”

“As soon as you can make it. It involves the Spinder case.”

“Thanks, Alice. Tell her I’ll be right down.”

Sophia hung up the phone. She slipped the note and black velvet ribbon from Mitch into her briefcase. She took the Corona bucket and put it on the credenza behind the panty basket. Though hidden from view, the washtub continued to taunt her with memories.

The blues riffs of Stevie’s guitar echoed through her mind as she remembered the thrill of Mitch’s touch. This wasn’t good.

She had to focus. The Spinder case involved a Hollywood hotshot and a seventeen-year-old girl, Holly McBride. The charge against Jason Spinder was having sex with a minor. The alleged act had taken place last fall when Holly was only sixteen. Jason had been shooting his latest blockbuster—this summer’s Maximum Exposure in Orlando.

Sophia ran the facts of the case through her head, pushing Mitch back into the past. She was meeting with her boss and couldn’t—wouldn’t—let a man from her past interfere with her career. Damn. She needed a date a hell of a lot more than she’d thought if one basket could whip her into a frenzy like this.

She took a tube of Bobbi Brown lipstick from her purse and carefully touched up her lips. She fluffed her shoulder-length hair, then smoothed it into place. She banished Stevie Ray Vaughan from her mind and instead focused on ACDC’s “Back In Black.” The song she always played before entering the courtroom. The raucous rock ’n’ roll never failed to pump up her blood and make her feel invincible.

She grabbed the file and notes she’d made on the Spinder case. Already the D.A.’s office had more press than normal and she wasn’t looking forward to the media circus a high-profile defendant would bring.

That explained the basket of Coronas. From the news clippings and alumni newsletters she’d scanned guiltily for news about Mitch, she knew he’d developed a reputation for winning that anyone would envy. In fact, he was fast becoming the preeminent lawyer to the stars. Mitch had to be Spinder’s lawyer.

Of course, he’d have to reenter her life now when things were finally on track. When she wasn’t scraping to make a career and she’d finally found a place where she was comfortable being alone.

Damn, after ten years it shouldn’t matter that he was coming back. Except she knew it wasn’t going to be a happy reunion. She knew that she’d done him wrong in the worst way a woman could. She knew that he hadn’t forgotten or forgiven her. The Coronas and the CD guaranteed he was coming out here for more than courtroom victory.

He was coming for revenge.

JOAN MUELLER WATCHED her protégé nervously chew on her lower lip. Sophia usually brimmed with energy—ready to take on any challenge. But there was something different about her today.

“What took you so long to get here?” Joan asked. It had been fifteen minutes since her initial call. It wasn’t the first time that Sophia had taken her time arriving so that didn’t bother her. But there was something off about Sophia today.

“I had to find the file,” Sophia said.

That made sense. Sophia was the most organized attorney she had on staff and also the busiest. “Congratulations on your win.”

“Thanks. I can safely say that prosecuting a man called the panty-raider is something I never expected to do.”

“That’s what I love about this office. We see some really different cases.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Sophia said.

“Are you ready for this afternoon?” Normally, she wouldn’t have mentioned the arraignment phase of the case but with all the press interest she wanted to make sure every detail was smooth as silk.

“Um…about that. My caseload is really heavy. I was wondering if…?”

Joan sat back in her chair. Where was Sophia going with this? Sophia needed a high-profile win to add to her already impressive résumé to make her a definite shoo-in for the Deputy position. Joan had mentored the younger woman since she’d come on staff nearly seven years ago.

“Sophia, what’s wrong? You’re the only one I considered for this case. You need the practice with the press.” She’d been grooming Sophia for the Deputy D.A. position and until this moment hadn’t had any doubts that Sophia was the right attorney for the job.

She mentally went through the other candidates. Joseph O’Neill was a possibility. He was young and hungry. But Joan had wanted to see another woman succeed her when she retired.

“You’re right,” Sophia said.

“When this case is over you can take some time off,” Joan said. Sophia hadn’t taken a vacation since starting with the D.A.’s office. She’d never wanted one before.

“I do need a vacation,” Sophia admitted.

This case was important to the District Attorney’s office because it was high-profile.

Joan remembered her fifth year in the office and the decisions she’d had to make. At that time Maurice Hanner was still asking her out. And after a brief affair she’d thought about marrying him. But in the end no man could hold a candle to the law for her.

She hoped Sophia made the same choice. But just in case, Joan decided to start keeping a closer eye on Joseph.

REVENGE WAS BEST SERVED cold, Mitch Hollaran had heard. He didn’t care what temperature it was now that the end was in sight. For ten years he’d lived by a vow he’d made as a young man of twenty-four. When he’d followed his gonads instead of his head and had his ass served to him by a black-haired witch who still haunted his dreams.

He’d like to think he was a smarter man at thirty-four but there were days when he doubted it. Today wasn’t one of them. Everything was going his way. His flight had landed early. The exotic rental car service had a black Porsche waiting for him. He’d gotten a call from his office that the package he’d ordered had been delivered to Sophia.

He’d have loved to see Sophia’s face when she’d received his calling card, letting her know he was back in town. And back in her life.

Just the thought of seeing Sophia Deltonio again was enough to make him hard. It wasn’t just that she’d put him in an untenable position with the law firm he’d hoped to work for. It was that she’d ravaged his nice, neat plans for the future.

All of the Hollaran men had married their college sweethearts. Four generations of men had set the expectation for Mitch that women met in that phase of life were the ones to make a family with. Sophia had embodied everything he’d wanted in a woman and then she’d ripped that image to shreds with one coldly calculated move.

Though he was content with his life, he wouldn’t rest until he came out of an encounter with her the winner. And to think he was going to have to thank his pain-in-the-ass client Jason Spinder for the pleasure.

Mitch had talked with Spinder on the phone before leaving L.A. The case was basically one of “he said,” “she said.” Jason claimed that Holly McBride had told him she was eighteen and that others had corroborated her story. But the fact of the matter was Jason did have sex with Holly and she was underage. It was Mitch’s job to prove to the jury that Holly had tricked Jason for her own gain, using her body to get what she wanted.

Since the moment his assistant had sent him the file on Jason and the D.A. who was prosecuting the case Mitch had thought of nothing but the woman who’d betrayed him.

He had a chance to go up against the one woman he’d lost against so long ago. And this time he intended to come out the winner.

He’d had other lovers since they parted but he’d never let one woman consume him the way he’d let Sophia that long-ago winter. He’d been young.

Hell, he’d been a damned sap. But not anymore. He knew she had to have changed as well. And he needed to see the woman she was today. To exorcise the woman she was out of his system and move on.

In his mind he always pictured her wearing the velvet ribbon choker and nothing but lime juice. He swallowed and shifted his legs. She’d been one hell of a lover and the most sensual lady he’d ever met.

Everything with her had been erotic. Even law. He shook his head. He adjusted the radio dial off the pop station to some boisterous country music. It seemed to suit Orlando. The city was big and sophisticated but still clung to its cow-town roots. He maneuvered his way through the traffic thinking about Sophia.

She possessed hidden depths that she’d reveal to no man. Or at least she’d never revealed them to him. Years ago, he’d been planting the seeds for the future with her. But she’d wanted him only for what he could give her in bed. Well, that was fine; he no longer cared about the secrets of her soul.

He’d kept track of her through the alumni newsletter and the articles she’d written for the Harvard Law Bulletin. He’d seen a picture of her about a year ago when she’d won a humanitarian award.

It had ruined the coldhearted bitch image he had of her but he knew that it was pride that had made him think of her in those terms. Because truth be told if he’d had the same information she’d had, he wasn’t too sure he wouldn’t have sent her down a false trail and then claimed the one spot in the prestigious law firm, just as she had done to him.

He’d returned to Los Angeles and finished his graduate work at UCLA’s Law School. Fueled by the need to prove his worth to Sophia and the firm that had not selected him, he had scored a position in a very prestigious firm in Los Angeles and had recently been named an associate of the firm.

He knew that a gentleman would let the past rest. His father had counseled him many times to let go of things. But then Peter Hollaran had married his high-school sweetheart and had gone to work in his dad’s hardware store. His dad’s life was a bit simpler than Mitch’s.

Mitch had never been able to forget past wrongs. It was one of his faults and he’d made peace with a majority of his mistakes, but not Sophia. She haunted his dreams from time to time. And he knew it was time to force her out of his system once and for all.

Everything seemed to be coming together at once. He was on his own again since he’d refused to marry his live-in lover and she’d left him. He was finally facing the one woman who had left him hanging. He was plotting the kind of revenge that made him feel a little slimy, but then betrayal was something he knew Sophia understood.

So he didn’t really feel that bad. He didn’t regret the path his life had taken. He was a successful man by anyone’s standards, but deep inside the fire that had been driving him toward success was fueled by a deep-seated need for retribution.

He downshifted the Porsche Turbo and pulled into the downtown courthouse parking lot.

Who would have thought Jason Spinder, the twenty-two-year-old action movie star, would be the one to deliver it to him? Mitch entered the courthouse and spotted Jason standing off to one side with his manager, Marcus Richardson. Both men nodded at Mitch as he entered. He went through the metal detector and joined them.

“Hollaran, I thought you weren’t going to make it,” Jason said. Jason wasn’t overly attractive by Hollywood standards. But he had charisma, according to Betsy, Mitch’s secretary.

“Of course I made it. That’s what you pay me for.”

“What’s going to happen today?” Jason asked. He didn’t look like a blockbuster action star who commanded ten million dollars a picture. Instead he looked like a young kid in over his head.

“You’re going to be arraigned.”

“Then?”

“Wait for the trial to be set.”

“Oh, God. This is such a mess. Marcus has been trying to put a positive spin on it. But I think this is going to hurt my chances for an Oscar this year.”

“Let Marcus handle the media, that’s what he does best. I’ll handle the judge and jury. You just relax.”

“I can’t, man. My career is on the line and I don’t want to be blackballed because of this.”

“This is going to be tricky, Jason. I won’t lie to you, but I don’t intend to lose this case.”

“I heard the D.A.’s office is sending their barracuda,” Jason said.

“I’m a licensed fisherman.”

Jason cracked a smile. Then the three men headed down the hall toward the courtroom where Jason was scheduled to appear. Mitch stopped at the water fountain for a drink. “I’ll catch up with you inside.”

Mitch needed a few minutes to himself to prepare to see Sophia again. Perhaps the years hadn’t been kind to her. With more than a little spite, he imagined her overweight and graying.

With that image firmly in mind, he started for the courtroom ready to meet his nemesis. The door opened as he approached it and a woman barreled out with her head down and ran straight into Mitch.

He steadied her and then looked down into eyes he’d never forgotten. They were wide and a deeper blue than the Pacific Ocean at sunset. He started to release her, then stopped.

Her hips were a remembered softness under his flexed fingers. She shifted in his embrace, then seemed to realize what she was doing and tried to push away. He kept her close.

She held herself stiffly in his arms and he liked knowing he’d thrown her off guard.

“Mitch,” she said.

Just his name, but the tone of her voice stroked over his skin like a velvet glove bringing each nerve to quivering attention. He realized suddenly that revenge did have a temperature and it had just gotten much hotter.