California Girl (5 page)

She shook her head. “Nope. I’m not signing it. You can tell Ray the gig is up. I didn’t fall for it.” She laid out her most forceful tone and pushed Niko easily toward the door.

“I’ve said it before...” Niko argued as she moved him backward. “I don’t know who Ray is.”

“Yeah, sure you don’t.” She opened the door and pushed him into the hallway. “I’m done here. If you don’t leave me alone I’ll call the police, the press, and anybody else I can think of to put an end to this farce.”

As she slammed the door, she heard him say, “If you’ll just sign...”

Veronica moved back toward the bed and looked at the papers again as she sat down. Not that she was an expert in foreign documents or anything, but this one
looked
authentic. She glanced around the room and the thought to call Casey entered her mind.

She crawled over the bed to the nightstand and fumbled for her cell, hitting the television remote and turning on the TV just before latching onto her phone. She hit the speed dial and ended up with Casey’s voice mail. Frustrated, she said, “Hey, it’s me. Did you talk to Ray? I mean, really, this joke of his is getting out of hand. I need you to call me ASAP.”

Veronica
straightened and squared her shoulders—preparing to say goodbye—when she glanced at the television. There was an image of Niko on the screen. The closed captioning—she’d set it to English when she arrived—scrolled across the screen.
Nikolas Leandros, heir to Greece’s mega-conglomerate Leandros Shipping, was recently spotted in St. Tropez. Word is, he’s got a new fling. Someone to help him get over the breakup perhaps?

All sorts of scenarios crowded Veronica’s thoughts. But the one that made it from her head to her mouth was, “Holy shit!” She stared at the television, her mouth gaping open as if it’d been wired that way. In a much softer tone she said into the phone, “Never mind. I’m catching the first flight back to the States.” Veronica, her gaze still glued to the TV screen, utilized her chin to flip the phone shut.

Niko was the heir to a shipping fortune? Oh crap, she really was married!

CHAPTER 6

VERONICA STANFORD HAD BEEN nothing but a pain in the ass—ever since she’d run away from Niko in St. Tropez. And she was clearly going to leave him here in Nice too, just as soon as she got the chance. That made him want to go after her.

Was that it? Was it the thrill of the chase, or something deeper? Did Niko really like this girl?

A knock at the door pulled Niko away from his lingering thoughts about Veronica. It had to be the chase. He shook his head and started for the door. Christos was on the other side. He could tell by the knock. He hoped Veronica wasn’t running off again, at least not before she signed the papers. Niko couldn’t go home married, with no wife or prenup.

He opened the door. Christos was on the other side, holding what looked like the annulment papers. “Did she...?” Niko asked.

Christos nodded and offered Niko the document and an envelope. “She signed. She also left.”

“She left?” Niko looked at the papers; her signature was there. His first name was written on the envelope. Curiosity more than anything else, pushed him to see what was inside. He ripped open the envelope and pulled out the single piece of paper.

Niko,

I can’t begin to apologize enough to make up for my behavior and the way I’ve treated you over the last few days. You see, I thought you were sent to me under false pretenses—an actor hired by my ex-husband Ray
Hudson
to tarnish my good name—and I was determined not to let you complete your mission.

It’s no excuse, I know, but I hope you won’t think too badly of me for it. I’ve signed the papers. Please forward a copy of the final document to me in L.A., to the address below.

Don’t let your experience with me frighten you away from the prospect of marriage in the future. You’re a very charming man and any woman would be lucky to have you in her life. I was just too foolish to see it. For whatever it’s worth...you’re my favorite ex-husband!

Always,

Veronica

EPILOGUE

VERONICA HAD BEEN HOME three weeks, and today was her second day back at work. Her trip to Europe during summer hiatus had been an interesting one, but she was glad to be back on the set of L.A. Afternoon.

She loved her job as the show’s co-host, and thankfully she’d been gone long enough for the press to lose interest in her divorce from rock star Ray Hudson. Veronica was—to her joy—old news.

Of course, she’d be lying if she said Niko hadn’t been sneaking into her thoughts nearly every time she turned around. Each time she thought about her stupidity, it burned hot against her face. She was regretful that she hadn’t gotten to know her second, albeit brief, husband better.

“Hey, Vee...” Her assistant Anna stopped at her side. “Emily Marsh just called. She’s stuck in traffic. She’ll be a few minutes late.”

Veronica glanced at her watch. 10:30. “That’s not a problem.” The popular soap star had agreed to an interview, but wanted it taped because she didn’t want to appear in front of a live audience.
Divas
. “Let me know when she arrives.” Veronica headed toward the corridor to the right of the set, which led to the hosts’ dressing rooms.

Since Emily was late, Veronica had some free time and she wanted to use it to call Casey. She’d feel better if she could confirm that Ray had actually left for the European tour.

Veronica stepped inside her dressing room and closed the door. She pulled her cell out of her pocket, and it jingled. Surprised, she looked at the display but didn’t recognize the number.

“Veronica Stanford,” she answered the call.

“How’s my California girl?” The accented male voice was oddly familiar, yet she couldn’t place it.

“Who’s this?” she asked in a friendly tone.

“It’s your favorite ex husband.”

Huh?
Well it wasn’t Ray. He wasn’t her favorite anything. Niko. Could it be... “Niko?” Her heart did double-time against her chest, and it surprised her that the sound of his voice could make that happen.

“Did you know your other ex-husband is performing in Athens next month?”

“You called to tell me that?”

“Well, no. Actually, I called to tell you his band sucks.”

Daybreak
didn’t suck and neither did Ray—not when it came to music—but Veronica appreciated Niko saying otherwise. She tried not to laugh, but it was hard. “You got the papers, right?” That must be why he called.

“Yes. Christos gave them to me right after you left.”

“So I should be getting my filed copy soon?”

“Yes. It’ll be delivered today.”

“Thanks.” The call had to end soon, and she couldn’t understand the sad feeling overwhelming her. “So that’s why you called,” she said, trying to make small-talk to prolong the call—why she wanted to do that, she didn’t know.

“Close, but not exactly.” There was a pause, and Veronica had begun to wonder if the call had been dropped, when she heard him clear his throat. “I was just wondering...”

“What?” she asked, just above a whisper.

“I was wondering...if I come to America, will you go out with me?”

“Yes,” she said softly.

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

A knock at the door pulled her away from the fantasies sparking inside her head, of her and Niko romancing it up at some exotic locale. Veronica shook her head. Emily. She must have arrived. “Why’s that?” she asked Niko, opening opened the door and preparing to shush whoever was on the other side.

“Well...” Niko said, as the door opened. “It’d be a shame if I’d come all this way for nothing.” He flipped his phone shut and dropped it into his pocket.

The shock of seeing Niko standing in the hallway, holding a batch of red roses left her staring and tongue-tied. His eyes filled with an affectionate sparkle just before he winked at her,
tempting her with
a taste of what it could be like if he was in her life. All sorts of things came to mind, but none of it found its way to her mouth. The best she could do was smile as she disconnected the call and stuff the phone back inside her pocket, and then she looked at the flowers.

“These are for you,” he said, and offered them to her.

She took the bouquet and sniffed the flowers. “You’d better watch out.” She giggled. “A girl could get used to this.” She dropped her hand holding the flowers to her side.

“That’s what I’m counting on.” He stepped toward her, took her face in his hands, and pulled her into a kiss.

“How long are you planning to stay?” she asked between kisses.

“Until you tell me to leave.”

Veronica’s heart swelled into her throat. She really could get used to having Niko around, day in and day out!

**Thank you for reading
California Girl
. I hope you enjoyed the story. Look for more stories from Veronica’s friends Casey and Rosanna later this summer. On the following pages are excerpts from
Broken Wings
by Sandra Edwards and Cara Marsi’s
A Catered Romance
.**

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BROKEN WINGS

Soul Searchers: Book 1

by

Sandra Edwards

CHAPTER 1

Las Vegas, NV

Present Day

TURNER ATKINS was up to no-good. The stars had finally aligned for him and now all he had to do was grab them.

He’d happened upon the perfect scam years ago, but until recently he’d thought it was forever out of his reach. It mattered little that the scheme was brilliant, not to mention illegal; Turner needed help pulling it off. And not just anybody’s help. That’s where Rio Laraquette came into the picture.

He’d heard all about this little hotshot. She’d been running cons around town the last few weeks—cons that he’d played as a child. She’d gotten quite the rep from what he was hearing. And Turner had every intention of shutting her down—until he got a good look at her. There was something oddly familiar about her. It’d taken a little time to figure it out, but once he had he decided to give this tough little cookie a reprieve.

He’d summoned her to the back office of one of his many warehouses. She was a looker. A pretty redhead. But she was too feisty to suit Turner. Inside of a week, he’d probably want to kill her more than he’d want to screw her.

She was sitting across from him in one of the two chairs in front of his desk. She had her arm draped over the back of the empty chair. Looking like she owned the place, she gave him a blank stare. If she was feeling any doubt or fear, he couldn’t see it. That surprised Turner since most people were naturally afraid of him. With good reason.

He hadn’t gotten his ruthless reputation by being a pushover. He’d risen to power early in his career and quickly gained a name for being the most brutal gangster Vegas had seen in over fifty years.

“So…” Rio’s voice dragged Turner back to the here and now. “What exactly is it that you want with me?” she asked, cool as a cucumber.

He found her unruffled demeanor amusing. “I have a job for you,” he said. “One that’s going to pay you a whole lot more than those two-bit con jobs you got going on all over town.”

“I’m listening.” She gave him a little waving gesture with the one hand that was hanging off the back of the empty chair beside her. Anybody but Turner would have missed the necessity in her tone. She wanted to get straight to it and she didn’t like waiting.

Tough. She’d have to know the history to get the job. “When I was a little kid we used to visit my grandmother a lot. I can remember hearing stories about buried treasures in the hills between Carson and Virginia City.”

Oh, those glorious stories. When Turner was a kid, he loved listening to his grandmother spin her tales. She made it sound so fascinating. After a lazy afternoon of listening to her weave her yarns of mystery, robbery and romance…Turner would spend the next few days with his head in the clouds, dreaming about growing up and becoming a treasure hunter.

“And your family history has what to do with anything?” Rio asked.

Turner ignored her snarky attitude. He had to. Without her this thing would never work. “Ever since the first time I heard her tell one of her stories,” he said as if he hadn’t heard her rant, “my whole life…all I ever wanted was to find me one of them treasures.” He paused, as if deep in thought. “I never put much stock in actually finding one, though. Not until a few years ago when I met this woman named Audrey Tajan. She told me this fascinating story about an Indian warrior called Tajan and a beautiful white woman named Maggie Fuller. They were her great-great grandparents,” he said. “It seems that Audrey’s great-great grandma and her sisters had a keenness for robbing banks,” he announced with pride. “During the height of Virginia City’s glory, they went up there and stole a bunch of gold and silver.”

Rio fidgeted in her seat. Frustration tended to do that to her. It bothered her that she had worked so hard and for so long, trying to create the best opportunity to build a connection with Turner Atkins. And now that she’d finally done that, hearing folklore tales was what she was left with.

Turner seemed oblivious to her impatience. “They buried it up there somewhere,” he continued on as if she shared his enthusiasm for the story. “But they never got the chance to go back and get it.”

Well now
, Rio thought,
we’re finally getting down to the heart of the matter
. Granted, this wasn’t exactly what she had in mind, but she’d take what she could to get on his good side.