room and looking as if he were in a towering rage. “And where the hell is your sister?” His short, rotund body swiveled as if he suspected that his youngest daughter were hiding somewhere behind a chair. He looked angry, ready to take that anger out on whoever irked him even slightly.
Marissa blinked, not sure how he could have changed the subject so quickly. “Sierra is outside,” she came back. “I just left her by the pool.”
Joe Berutelli’s hands formed fists by his side and Marissa knew this was a very bad sign. “Your sister left the party right behind you. Care to explain what’s going on?”
Marissa hadn’t been aware of Sierra’s departure. In fact, she’d only been aware of this man and the anger, and other feelings that he seemed to invoke inside of her. “Dad, you don’t need to worry about this man. I don’t even…” she started to say but the stupid man interrupted her.
“I’m Zeke Vaughn,” the tall, mysterious man said, stepping around her and extending his hand towards her father. “I appreciate you inviting me on such short notice.”
Marissa was amazed at the transformation in her father at the mention of the man’s name. It was as if all of his anger had suddenly dissipated for some reason. And this man named Zeke…who was he and how could he contrive to dissolve her father’s anger so quickly?
Her father seemed to be positively exuberant now as he shook the taller man’s hand with enthusiasm. “Zeke Vaughn! I’ve heard a great deal about you,” her father effused. “Come, let’s go into my office and talk. I think we can do a lot of business together.”
Zeke glanced back at Marissa, noting the stoic expression that suddenly came over her lovely features. “I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to take a rain check on that discussion,” he said, turning back to the man. As Zeke surveyed the man’s bloodshot eyes, the spot of blood on his collar and the florid cheeks, things started to fall into place. Zeke had known that Joe Berutelli wasn’t a man to mess around with. But now that he was here, and he understood the fear in Marissa’s eyes, he found himself trying to figure out how to get her out of the house.
He was being ridiculous, he told himself as he made his excuses and turned to leave. Marissa was twenty-four years old and had survived living with her father for a long time. He was sure that her father wouldn’t do anything to hurt her.
But even as he walked out into the summer heat, something niggled in the back of his mind. For the first time in his life, he felt something more than just sexual need for a woman. He had this strange feeling, as if he wanted to protect Marissa. And was that actually possessiveness he was experiencing? He’d never cared if a woman came or went, as long as they were both mutually satisfied with the relationship. But something about the worried look in her eyes, and the relief when he walked out the door, struck a chord inside of him.
Shaking his head, he realized that he was being ridiculous. Marissa was just another woman. A strikingly lovely woman, but merely another luscious, feminine body. They could have a good time together if she would just learn to relax and accept this mind-blowing attraction that they had for each other.
As he pulled the door to his black Jaguar open and slid into the leather seats, he looked back at the house, surprised that he hadn’t made the connection between Marissa’s father and the infamous Berutelli family before.
Chapter 2
“You wanted to speak with me?” Marissa asked as she walked into her father’s office. She looked around at the room, surprised to find so many books lining the shelves of his office. This was one room in the house where she was forbidden to enter unless she was called in here by her father. All other times, she was to stay away. The office was even separated from the main house by a long hallway with a separate entrance to the garage and outside. Her father could come and go from the house without her or Sierra ever knowing. He was a very secretive man. Marissa had seen people coming and going from this room often over the years, always wondering what happened behind these heavy doors.
She stood awkwardly in front of her father’s desk, waiting for him to acknowledge