Daring In The City

Why take a bite of the Big Apple when there’s bachelor Luca Paladino?

Luca Paladino is moving into his Little Italy apartment now, and nothing—not even incomplete renos—will stop him. Well, except maybe for the incredibly sexy redheaded stranger he finds standing in his unfinished bedroom. In her underwear. Who is tempting him beyond all belief…

April Branagan’s been in New York for exactly a minute, and she’s already been swindled. Fortunately, she’s talked the extra-hunky-with-a-side-of-abs bachelor into letting her stay in his apartment—in return for helping out. But when April and Luca’s sexual attraction goes from a simmer to full-on piccante, their little deal turns into a whole lot more than either of them bargained for!

“You’re driving me crazy…”

Luca gave April a slight tug but it was enough to bring her too close.

He stared at her as if she was made of secrets. “Do you have any idea—” he said, his words so low she might have missed them if she hadn’t been just inches away. He opened his mouth once more, only to pull her into a searing kiss.

Oh, God. His lips, warm, urgent, on hers. His arms suddenly wrapped around her, holding her tight. His tongue seeking entry, teasing her to open her mouth.

All coherent thought vanished. It was what she’d wanted since the second night. This kiss, this heat, this urgency between them.

She tasted a hint of wine and something that belonged to Luca. Him. His scent, his hard body pressing against her, his erection growing and pulsing between them.

He wasn’t her dream man, he couldn’t be, not after all that had happened. She knew better than to believe that fairy tale. But he sure kissed like him.

His guttural moan was so intimate and erotic…and April knew she wasn’t going to be the one to say no.

Dear Reader,

Now, here’s a real welcome to New York: a long bus trip, stolen savings, breaking and entering (well, not so much breaking), a looming arrest and meeting the hero for the first time in nothing but your bikini panties!

That’s April Branagan’s first day in the Big Apple.

Lucky for her, she’s crash-landed at Luca Paladino’s new apartment. Somehow she convinces him to let her stay. Then he can’t bear to see her go! But things get complicated when Luca tries a little too hard to help fiercely independent April, and it almost tears them apart. In the end, though, love saves the day. Thank goodness.

I hope you enjoy the second book in my NYC Bachelors miniseries! Look for the final book in the trilogy, madly handsome Dominic’s story, coming in April 2017!

Oh, and did I tell you I was in Little Italy last October? After writing this book I’m more than ready to go again. I ♥ NY!

Ciao,

Jo Leigh

Daring in the City

Jo Leigh

www.millsandboon.co.uk

JO LEIGH is from Los Angeles and always thought she’d end up living in Manhattan. So how did she end up in Utah in a tiny town with a terrible internet connection, being bossed around by a houseful of rescued cats and dogs? What the heck, she says, predictability is boring. Jo has written more than forty-five novels for Harlequin. Find her on Twitter, @jo_leigh.

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Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

The Paladino Legacy

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Extract

Copyright

The Paladino Legacy

IN THIS GENTLY reimagined tale of Little Italy, the Paladino family has lived in their house on Mulberry Street in Little Italy since 1910. When Antonio Paladino, the brothers’ great-great-grandfather cobbled together some money working as a skilled mason, the first thing he did with it was buy property.

By the time Joseph Paladino had his three sons, the Paladinos owned a great deal of what is now the very heart of Little Italy. The Paladino Trust had been set up years ago to protect the properties and the family’s privacy in the hope of preserving Little Italy. Each of the three sons owns property within the Trust, comprised of both commercial businesses and housing.

But none of the family has any intention to sell. The people in the tight-knit community have no idea that the Paladinos are their landlords, hidden behind the name that had been assigned to the Trust. They believe they have a rent-control situation that keeps their rents reasonable—unlike the rest of the newly gentrified Lower East Side of Manhattan.

1

“WATCH IT!”

Luca followed his brother’s gaze across the gutted floor of the Grasso home and let out a breath. “It’s okay. She’s got it.”

“She almost hit Frankie with that beam,” Tony said.

“She did not. You’re just worried because she’s a girl.”

“Hey, up yours. You know better than that.”

Luca laughed. If his brother didn’t know when he was screwing around by now, then that was his problem. Luca had enough of his own.

“Whoa, is that the famous Tony Paladino?” Sal’s booming voice came from behind them, and they both turned around. “What’s got you in a hard hat, boss? You felt like slumming today, or what?”

“I thought I’d take a break from the office. That okay with you?”

Sal grinned and slapped Tony on the shoulder. “I’m just messing with you. I bet you came by to check up on my niece. The girl’s got chops,” he said, glancing over at her. “Carlita’s still green but she’s gonna do a good job.”

“I’m not worried,” Tony said and ignored Luca’s snorting laugh.

“Yeah, I know,” Sal said. “I heard that you’re too busy looking for wedding rings to bother with remodels.”

Luca turned on Tony. “You’re looking for rings? Why didn’t you say anything?”

Tony took off his hard hat and ran a hand through his hair. “One ring,” he said, shaking his head. “I saw a ring in a window and I asked about it. That’s it. What I want to know is who’s spying on me and shooting off their mouth?”

Luca, along with Sal and several others on the construction crew laughed. As if anyone could get away with anything in their tight-knit neighborhood. Gossip ran like wine through Manhattan’s Little Italy and no one was safe.

“Hey, Tony, while I’ve got you here,” Sal said, “I’m going to change the schedule on the Hester Street apartments. We’ve got two vacancies there so we can go in and take care of the plumbing before they’re occupied again.”

Tony nodded, and Luca thought about the last time he’d been the subject of gossip—way back during his junior year at Columbia when he’d bought his first motorcycle and rode it home one weekend. Pretty lame as far as gossip went. But when had he had time to get into any real trouble?

What was supposed to have been five years of hitting the books, partying and hooking up—not necessarily in that order—had been interrupted by Tony’s rocky marriage, their dad’s first heart attack and the damn recession that had slowed construction in the city down to a trickle.

Luca left Tony talking to Sal, the project manager in charge of several of their remodels. After a quick word with Frankie, who was taking measurements for the drywall, Luca thought about his brother ring shopping. It made sense.

After their father’s second heart attack, Tony had taken over the company so smoothly there hadn’t been a single complaint. Somehow he’d managed to stay on top of his new responsibilities. At the same time, he’d fallen hard for Catherine. They were perfect for each other. Luca could definitely see them getting married soon.

Luca wished his future was a little more certain. At thirty, he’d managed to complete his architecture degree and a year’s credit toward his required three-year internship, he had a good job working for the family business and a steady income. He knew he was luckier than most people in every way that counted. But that didn’t stop him from feeling somewhat adrift.

His folks were so proud of the idea of his becoming a “big-deal architect” that he couldn’t imagine what they would think if they knew what he really wanted to do was focus on his carpentry. And not just the finishing work he did for the business, but the custom pieces he made on the side.

Right now Paladino & Sons had great opportunities doing remodels and renovations all over Lower Manhattan. But with an in-house architect, they could expand into a whole new market—public buildings, chain stores and even military contracts. Jobs that, while they wouldn’t offer much creativity, would bring a major increase in cash flow and, more important, steady work for their stable of loyal construction crews.

Presently, Luca had the last two years of his required internship lined up at a prestigious firm, after which he’d be eligible for his professional license. His family was counting on him.

“Hey.”

Luca hadn’t seen his brother walk up to him. “What’s up?”

“That’s what I was gonna ask you,” Tony said. “You seem distracted. Everything okay?”

“Yeah, sure. Everything’s fine. Just, uh... I’ve asked a couple of guys from the Sanders project to come help me move some stuff to the Mercury Building.”

“What stuff?”

“Mostly equipment and tools, but some of my personal stuff, as well. I’m moving into the apartment while I do the renovations.”

Tony’s eyebrows rose pretty damn high. “Now?”

“Yeah, now. Angelo finished putting in the new pipes, the electrical is done and I’ve started busting down walls. So I’ll live upstairs while I work on the downstairs.” In accordance with the Paladino Trust—the one that decreed no one but the immediate family could know that the Paladinos owned a great deal of real estate in the Little Italy area and kept the old timers’ rents ridiculously low—Luca had claimed one of the two-story apartments on the top floor of the family-owned building.

Tony shook his head. “What about your internship?”

“The offer’s open-ended,” Luca said. “It’ll still be there when I’m ready.”

Tony frowned. “When you’re ready? You’ve been ready for years.”

“I didn’t mean it like that.” Except he kind of did, and that was the problem. Tony knew about his side job. But Luca doubted either of his brothers understood just how much he loved working with his hands. And his parents? Forget about it. They’d short-circuit. Tell him he was wasting his smarts and his education.

The thing was they wouldn’t be wrong. Damn, he felt bad about spending all that money for an Ivy League education. He really did. Ironically, it had taken all those years of school to make him realize that being an architect wasn’t what he wanted to do with his life.

“You realize I can handle things without you, right? The company won’t fold while you step back.” Tony bumped his shoulder. “Besides, you know how much government work we’re missing out on while we wait for you?”

“Look, I don’t want to get into a big discussion about this.” Now who couldn’t take a joke? He knew Tony was teasing but he’d hit a sore spot. “I can’t live with the folks anymore, okay? Now that Dad’s home all the time, they’re always bickering. It’s not even that, though. I haven’t lived on my own for a long time. I barely date, because I’m not about to bring a woman back to their place. I’m feeling pressure to get married already, and I just need some room to breathe. I mean, how am I supposed to ever hook up? Keep a room at the Marriott?”

Tony nodded. “Yeah, that’s true. You only had, what, two years of living on your own at college? I was all caught up in trying to patch things up with Angie when you moved back home. You really stepped up, man. Took care of the folks. Helped out more than your share with the company.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not complaining.”

“I know.” Tony shook his head. “You seeing anyone now?”

“You mean other than the women Mom and Nonna keep shoving at me?”

“Wait. Are you getting laid at all?”

“Do I look like a guy who’s getting laid?” he said, realizing he should’ve kept his voice down. “That’s why I have to get out of there. I have a date next week, one I arranged, so hopefully...”

“All right, I see your point. A year after I got divorced they started harassing me about getting married again.”

“I remember. And now that you have Catherine they’ve started going after me. So, yeah, thanks for that.”

Tony laughed. “Look, if you want to take some time off to get situated, we’ll be fine. I’m ready to get out of the office more so I can step in, and Dom’s doing great.”

Luca knew his contribution to the company wasn’t exactly crucial. The employees and subcontractors they had were top-notch. His brothers could easily carry his load. The only thing that would actually make a difference in their collective future was his becoming licensed.

If only being an architect was what he really wanted.

“And after that,” Tony said, “think about taking a step back from the company and pouring yourself into that internship at Willingham. We all had to regroup when Dad got sick, but it’s not fair to hold you back when all you’ve got is two more years of interning before you start your dream career.”

Dream career? Luca kept his expression neutral, not wanting to worry his brother. But why the hell couldn’t he have figured this stuff out before he’d returned to school?

Deep down he’d probably known then he was on the wrong track. But by that time Tony was in the middle of his divorce and understandably distracted. It had fallen to Luca to take his dad to all his doctors’ visits. Interpret what the doctor was saying. His mom had been worried sick and sometimes she got things confused.

Add to that the responsibility of managing the Paladino Trust when so many of their tenants had been hit hard by the downturn in the economy, and his life hadn’t been his own. The rest of his family had done what they could but it hadn’t been easy.

It certainly wasn’t how he’d imagined his college years being. Not that he would do anything different if he had to do it over again. Family was family.

But this was going to be his time. He’d act crazy if he wanted. Bring home a different woman every night, although that wasn’t like him. The point was the apartment would be all his and he could do whatever he pleased.

Still, the fact remained that everyone was counting on him to get his license and expand the business, but his true passion lay elsewhere.

“I don’t mean to tell you what to do,” Tony said, his dark brows furrowed. “I’m just—”

“Good. You can stop talking. What part of ‘I don’t want to get into a big discussion about this’ did you not hear?”

“Wiseass.” Tony chuckled. “You better be careful. Once you start fixing up your apartment, the matchmaking will get even worse. And now Pop’s on his ‘wanting grandkids’ kick.”

“I know. At least I won’t have to listen to them anymore every morning over coffee.”

“I get it.” Tony nodded. “I don’t know what to tell you. It’s the fate of all Paladino sons. I heard Nonna has started in on Dominic. Can you imagine?”

“As if he doesn’t already have a parade of women knocking at his door.”

Tony nodded. “Face it, Luca. You’re screwed.”

Tony didn’t know the half of it.

2

“WES, WHERE ARE YOU?” If only April Branagan had been able to sleep, maybe she wouldn’t feel so awful about Wes not calling her back over the last twenty-nine hours. “I’m on the bus. We’re pulling out of the station. This is it. I’m really on my way. I know everything’s probably fine, but please, whatever you’re doing, call me, okay? I want to try to get some rest before I reach Manhattan.”

She hung up the phone and made sure she didn’t need to plug it into the handy power outlet beside her seat. In fact, this would have been a very enjoyable ride if she hadn’t been up for almost two days, and if she’d heard from a certain someone who was supposed to be meeting her at the other end.

The trip from St. Louis to the Port Authority in New York would take over twenty-six hours, with eight stops and a transfer in Chicago. She’d planned to sleep most of the way, but instead, she was a nervous wreck.

To make things worse, the guy sitting across the aisle from her—a thirtysomething travel writer typing on his laptop—kept staring at her legs, which was making her uncomfortable. Until she realized she was jiggling her foot. Probably shaking the whole row.

She stopped. Gave him a conciliatory smile. Heard him hit the keyboard again as she watched her hometown disappear street by street.

By the time they’d gone ten miles, her mind had gone right back to worrying. Where the hell was Wes? Her ex-boyfriend/current business partner had gone ahead to New York to settle their living arrangements and meet up with some college friends who lived in Manhattan and had the connections she and Wes needed to get their fledgling concierge business off the ground.

Their last conversation had been great. He’d been excited about seeing her and showing her the temporary apartment he’d found for them. So why wasn’t he picking up?

The guy across the aisle was gathering up his things. One glance told her she was the reason. He stood, taking the time to give her an evil look.

Ah. Her leg was bouncing again. “Sorry,” she said, but he didn’t respond. At least now she had the row to herself.

Maybe if she just closed her eyes for a bit?

That lasted about two minutes.

Wes had managed to get an amazing deal on a place in Nolita, which, she’d quickly learned, meant the area north of Little Italy, in a building that was being remodeled. It was just a small room and a bathroom on the second floor of an empty apartment, but it was cheap, belonged to a friend of a friend and, well, they didn’t need all that much in the way of luxuries. The biggest problem would be the sleeping arrangements.

Wes knew their relationship was and would remain strictly business. They’d actually been over for a while. April knew he’d hoped the break they’d taken would only be temporary, but she had to wonder if he wasn’t answering because he knew her mind was made up and he was pissed about it. Although he’d had plenty of time to tell her he didn’t want to move forward with their business plans. She figured there had to be a good reason why he hadn’t been in contact, and she couldn’t help but worry that he’d been in an accident, or the victim of a mugging—or worse.

She stopped herself. No use sending herself into more of a tizzy. She’d find out what was going on soon enough.

At their stop in Chicago, she ordered a croissant and a large double espresso venti from a kiosk in the bus terminal then added a double-chocolate brownie and a blueberry muffin. She’d probably gain ten pounds before she even got to the most amazing restaurant city in the world.

The transfer to the new bus went smoothly, but it also meant the end of no neighbors. This time a lady wearing a Chicago Bears hat sat in the seat right next to her, pulled out a paperback book, then turned to face April. “I’m Lorene. Lorene Patrick. I’m going all the way to Toledo, and it’s my first time there. But I’ve got a job waiting for me. And my friend, Kiki, she’s letting me share her apartment until I can find a place of my own. Where are you headed?”

April stuffed half her muffin into her mouth, just to give her time to adjust to this new situation. Her first thought was to move seats immediately, but then she thought that Lorene might be the distraction she needed.

She was wrong. So very wrong. Lorene ended up talking her ear off for the next three hours before enough people had left the bus that April could finally claim a new seat. The first thing she did was call Wes. Of course he didn’t answer. She’d already sent three stealth texts while Lorene had been talking. And talking.

By now April wanted to strangle him. “Goddamn it, Wes. Where are you? Why aren’t you answering? Do I really have to call every hospital in New York to make sure you’re still alive? You’d better have a damn good excuse for this bullshit. I’m giving you one more hour, and then I’m going to call the police.”

The worst thing about cell phones was the inability to smash down a receiver. She made do by punching the disconnect button five times. It didn’t help.

April turned toward the window and stared at the lights of South Bend, feeling disembodied. She was so incredibly tired. But closing her eyes just revved her mind up into a spiral of one terrible thought after another.

When her phone actually rang, it made her jump so hard the thankfully quiet woman next to her jumped, too. Fumble-fingered, April finally saw that it wasn’t Wes calling. It was her mother.

She pasted a smile on her face, a trick she’d learned working as a waitress. Smiling through terrible situations made them less terrible. And tended to disguise her voice enough that it might earn her a tip. “Hi, Mom.”

“I hope I didn’t wake you,” her mom said. “You hardly got a wink of sleep the last couple of days.”

“I’m awake now. Don’t worry. I slept all morning. Besides, I should be worrying about you. Did Cassie get all her stuff inside? Are the kids settled yet?”

“It’s all coming together. I’ve put everyone to work, so we’ll be done by suppertime. But tell me about your trip. It must be so exciting. Is Wes calling you every twenty minutes?”

“Yeah, sure. Wes is beside himself waiting for me to arrive. He’s got the apartment all ready and everything.”

Her mother didn’t respond right away. “April Michela Branagan, are you telling me the truth?”

“Mom, it’s fine. I’m just tired, that’s all. Too much excitement, not enough room to burn off my nervous energy.”

April glanced at the woman next to her, who didn’t even pretend not to be eavesdropping. She turned to the window again and asked her mother to tell her about how the rest of the family was doing.

Her mom and dad had a full house once more. With five kids—only two of them still in school—her folks never did seem to get any peace. Her sister’s husband had left her, and Cassie couldn’t take care of her kids and afford a place on her salary, so they’d gone where all the Branagan kids seemed to wind up. Back home. God knew where everyone was sleeping. What a mess. Four kids, plus two sets of grandkids meant there was no vacancy at the inn. Which was a little scary for April, considering her business partner wasn’t calling her back.

But even if something bad had happened, she wasn’t going to let anything get in the way of this plan of theirs. She’d worked too hard, scrimped and saved every dime, to make her dream come true. Whatever was going on with Wes, she’d handle it. She’d make it work. She was good like that. Her dad called her the most determined girl in the whole Midwest. Which was true. Although it was easier to be determined when she wasn’t dizzy from not sleeping and she knew what the hell was going on.

“Listen to me, sweetheart,” her mom said. “I know how much you want this, and how hard you’ve worked, but if things don’t turn out like you planned, you know you can always come home. New York can be overwhelming. The goal you’ve set for yourself isn’t as simple as finding a job. Don’t listen to your father and your brother. Coming home doesn’t mean you’re a failure. So please promise me that if it gets to be too much, you’ll come back.”

Tears collected in the corners of her eyes. It would be a failure. She believed that with all her heart. She was going to be the first in her family to actually make it. On her own. She’d do whatever it took, no matter what—after she strangled Wes, of course. She’d make it in New York, all right. “Of course, Mom,” she said, her voice a little rougher than she would’ve liked. “I promise.”

* * *

APRIL STARED UP at the Mercury Building and then at the apartment key in the palm of her hand. Wes had mailed the key to her at the very last minute and she hadn’t thought to question it. How could she have been such a fool? Why would she need a key if he had intended to meet her at the bus station?

After she’d arrived at the Port Authority and saw Wes wasn’t there waiting for her, she hadn’t bothered to call him again. She’d simply slipped on her backpack, collected her heavy rolling suitcase and her enormous nonrolling duffel bag and managed to navigate the subway without bursting into tears.

She double-checked the address to be sure she was at the right place before lugging everything through the building’s darkened entranceway, praying the whole time that the key would actually fit the lock of apartment 4A. The first thing she saw was an out-of-order sign taped to the elevator door.

With a small whimper, she started up the stairs. The next problem—she couldn’t possibly take both bags at the same time. She’d fall and kill herself before she’d tasted a single slice of real New York pizza.

Making sure no one was watching her, she stashed the duffel in a tight shadowed alcove. She figured it would take her five minutes to get everything else upstairs and then she’d race back to get the bag. It was her only option at this point.

What felt like several hours later, she finally made it to the fourth floor.

Thankfully, the key worked. It was actually someone else’s apartment, unoccupied and filled with construction equipment. Soon enough she found the staircase that led to the room Wes had rented.

Her last shred of hope that this was all one great big misunderstanding disappeared when she entered the room.

Of course Wes wasn’t there.

She could tell because the room wasn’t very large and the closet door was open. There were no clothes in it. None. Zero. In fact, the only things in the room were an unmade mattress with a mess of sheets balled up in the middle, a pillow with no case and a microwave on the window ledge sitting next to a coffeemaker.

Sticking out from beneath the sheets was an envelope with her name printed on it in Wes’s handwriting.

Her hand trembled as she slipped out the letter. The black pit of anxiety in her stomach had her feeling nauseated to the point of checking how many steps it was to the bathroom down the hall. At least the toilet seat was up in case she had to make a run for it. She took a deep breath and looked down at the letter.

I’m really sorry. I’ll pay you back every penny. I swear.

The paper floated away as her legs refused to hold her up for another second. She missed the mattress, falling down hard on her knees on the wood floor. It was so much worse than even her nightmare scenarios. He was gone. Actually gone. With her money.

He’d left her in a strange city, in a weird apartment, with a business plan but no partner. He was supposed to handle all the tech. All the research into companies and potential workers. Background checks, safety records. Databases and money exchanges, so they’d bank a piece of every single job they matched. Their business was meant to be like a hotel concierge service complete with guaranteed safety checks.

And he’d disappeared. Ditched her without so much as a warning.

How could he have done this to her? They’d been lovers.

Her head dropped into her hands, and there was no holding back the great racking sobs. Not just because he’d stolen her money, but because she couldn’t...

God, the expectations of her family had been so important to her, ever since she’d excelled in high school. Before that, really. From a young age, her father had called her The Great Branagan Hope to whoever would listen. He’d laughed, but she knew he’d meant it. The nickname was hauled out with every A, every award, every success she’d earned.

And she’d been brought to her knees on her first day of what was supposed to be her greatest venture yet.

The humiliation was as hard to swallow as the betrayal. She was dizzy by the time she got control of her sobbing. But she hadn’t stopped shaking. And it was only then that she remembered she’d left her other bag downstairs.

She took a minute to gain her balance after she stood. When she could walk, she went into the bathroom to wipe her face. Instead of finding a towel, she found toilet paper sitting on the floor. With exactly four sheets left on the roll.

She’d find that son of a bitch, and she’d kill him.

Finally, she started making her way back down the four flights of stairs. It wasn’t until she hit the second floor that she noticed a crowd had gathered on the sidewalk.