Charmed Read Free Page B

name that his father couldn’t trace. But given enough time, he’d likely figure it out. Claudio needed to be dealt with.
    Serena called them to the kitchen, pulling Adam from his upset over his father. Together, they sat at the wooden table for a late meal of Brazilian-style gumbo made by his sister, accompanied by a cassava flour and cheese, baked bread called Pao de Queijo. Adam took a gulp of his Skol lager, still angry that his father would threaten or harm his mother to get to him.
    But then nothing was beyond Claudio. It was no secret what his father wanted from him, but Adam mentally fumed that he should deal with him directly, not pick on defenseless women. One thing was certain: Claudio would have to deal with a son who was no longer a boy, easily pushed around. The reckoning was coming, and it wouldn’t be pleasant. There was no avoiding it; for the family’s future Claudio Bianci had to be dealt with.
    Adam talked well into the evening, plied with questions from his mother and sister. He filled them in on his life as well he could, and even told them about Ella. Speaking of Ella wrenched his heart. It wasn’t right that they had to be apart, and he wished his arm was around her the whole time he talked with his family. Ella was his family now too; she’d become a part of him, and being without her was unbearable.
    It may have been a mistake, but hopefully a minor one, to tell them about Ella. So far Adam had kept her away from his life in Brazil. Just saying her name in his family home pulled her closer, ever closer to the danger. If Serena and Fiorella knew about Ella, then someone else could find out. His worst fear was that his father would find out. Yet he trusted his mother and sister. Plus they had no discourse with Claudio.
    Hours passed before Adam left for his own home in Rio. After saying goodbye to his family, he spoke to Nico, letting him know that security needed to be increased. He intended to assign personal guards for his mother and sister, to be with them night and day. Shifts would be arranged. Now that Adam was back, Nico would see to his personal protection in coordination with Miguel, giving him no reason to fear for his own personal safety.
    It would make no sense for Claudio Bianci to harm his son, because he wanted something from him. He was more likely to injure those he cared about to gain leverage, but then with a mad man one never knew; all the more reason for Ella to stay in Newport and remain unknown. A meeting was set with his attorney, Quinn Bauer, for the following day, and Adam contemplated encouraging his mother to press charges for the assault. Yet he knew it would be fruitless.
    It was her word against his, and with the protection of his criminal friends, Claudio might escape any penalty. If all else failed, he could buy off the authorities. Adam hoped to learn something from the investigation Quinn was conducting at his request. He needed to find out what his father was up to, sure that it was unsavory. On the way to his home, internal stress mounted. He was back in the thick of it, back in Rio, long his father’s turf—but Adam vowed to change that.
    At his villa, Adam grabbed another beer and sat out on his deck by the pool. His cook had stocked the refrigerator with food and drink, before leaving for the day. Only the guards surrounding the luxury home were left to keep a vigilant watch. It wouldn’t take long for Claudio to hear of his son’s return.
    Looking out at the glossy pool water, lit with spotlights, Adam felt the void of being without Ella. Now that he’d found her, he didn’t want to be without her. But he had no choice. Gazing off into the distance at the ocean gleaming in the moonlight, he decided it wouldn’t always be like this—not if he had anything to say about it.
    After finishing his beer, he called Ella, and the image of her on video was bittersweet. He wanted to hold her, to smell the sun in her hair, and feel the softness of her skin.