Unexpected

Xavier's POV

My phone rang just as I stepped into the casting building. The caller ID made me pause my grandfather's lawyer. Nothing good ever came from calls like this.

"Xavier Lorette speaking."

"Mr. Lorette, we need to discuss the Henderson acquisition. There's been a complication."

I sighed, moving toward a quieter corner of the building. "What kind of complication?"

"The city council is claiming that the project might cause environmental issues, but my sources say someone has been paying them to delay the project."

"Find out who and how much they want. Everyone has a price." I leaned against the wall, watching people hurry past. "And if they don't want money, find out what they do want."

"Already on it, sir. Should have answers by tonight."

"Good. And Jenkins? Next time something like this comes up, handle it before it becomes my problem."

"Of course, sir."

I ended the call and was about to head to my meeting when I heard familiar voices around the corner. Richard's voice, discussing something that made me pause.

I should have walked away. Richard's romantic problems weren't my concern, and I had better things to do than listen to his drama. But something in his tone made me stop.

"Stay away from Xavier," Richard was saying, his voice tight with jealousy.

I almost laughed. Poor Richard, always so insecure.

"Why? Is he single?" A female voice, flirty and calculating.

"Melanie, I'm serious. Xavier is dangerous. He goes through women like tissues and throws them away when he's done."

Well, Richard wasn't wrong about that. I had a reputation for a reason. Women were entertainment, nothing more.

"Don't worry, baby. I prefer men I can actually control. Like you."

I frowned. Wait a minute. Wasn't Richard supposed to be engaged to some girl? I'd heard family gossip about him finally settling down with someone respectable. What was her name... Darla something?

"You don't control me," Richard protested, though he sounded pleased.

"Don't I? I got you to court my boring cousin, didn't I? I got you to play the perfect boyfriend while really being mine. And soon, when you guys are married, everything she inherited from uncle will be ours."

My blood ran cold. This wasn't just cheating - this was fraud. And from the sound of it, this Darla girl had assets that Richard was planning to steal through marriage.

"We have to be careful. The wedding is only three months away. If Darla suspects anything before then..."

"She won't. She's too trusting, too stupid to see what's right in front of her. Besides, once you guys are married and she has that little accident we've planned..."

I went rigid. Had I just heard them planning murder? Richard might be weak and pathetic, but I never thought he'd cross that line.

"Don't talk about that here," Richard hissed. "Someone might hear."

"Relax. Who's going to overhear us? Your precious fiancée is probably at home taking those vitamins you give her, keeping her nice and docile."

Drugging her too. Jesus Christ, what had Richard gotten involved in?

My opinion of my cousin had never been high, but this was beyond anything I'd imagined him capable of. He wasn't just using some innocent girl - he was planning to murder her for her inheritance.

I felt disgusted. At least when I used women, they knew exactly what they were getting into. This was something else entirely.

I was about to leave when I heard footsteps. Someone else was coming around the corner.

"Hey guys!"

The voice was bright, cheerful, but there was something underneath it that made me stay put.

Richard and Melanie's shocked responses told me this had to be Darla. I shifted slightly, just enough to catch a glimpse of her around the corner.

She was so beautiful that it was obvious. Long hair, delicate features, the kind of innocent look that usually bored me to tears. But there was something in her posture, in the way she held herself, that caught my attention. Like she was playing a game and enjoying it.

"What are you doing here?" Melanie's voice was shaky.

"My audition, obviously. Why? Shouldn't I be here?"

This definitely didn't sound like the trusting, naive girl they'd just been describing.

The conversation continued, and I listened with growing fascination as Darla made them both increasingly uncomfortable. She wasn't confronting them directly, but she was definitely letting them know something had changed. The way she talked about firing maids, about accidents - it was all deliberate.

She knew. Somehow, this woman knew exactly what they were planning.

But how? And more importantly, what was she planning to do about it?

"Let's just say I'm full of surprises these days," she said as she left them.

I watched Richard and Melanie's faces as she walked away. They looked terrified. Whatever game they thought they were playing, Darla had just changed all the rules.

This made me smile. Richard and Melanie had clearly underestimated who they were dealing with. And from what I'd just heard, they deserved whatever was coming to them.

I waited a moment after she left, then stepped around the corner. Richard and Melanie were standing there looking like they'd been hit by a truck.

"Richard," I said casually, enjoying the way he jumped. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Xavier! I didn't know you were... what are you doing here?"

"Business meeting. You?" I studied his pale, sweaty face with new interest.

"I was just... supporting Melanie. For her audition."

I looked at Melanie, who was still shaken from her encounter with Darla.

"You must be the famous Melanie," I said pleasantly. "Richard has told the family so much about his girlfriend."

Both of them went white.

"Girlfriend?" Melanie squeaked.

"Wait, no," Richard stammered. "I never said... I mean, Darla is..."

"Oh, that's right," I said, pretending to remember. "Darla's the fiancée. Melanie's just the cousin." I smiled coldly. "My mistake. Though from what I just overheard, it seems like there might be some confusion about who's who in this little arrangement."

Richard looked like he was going to be sick. Melanie looked furious and terrified at the same time.

"I don't know what you think you heard..." Richard started.

"I heard enough," I said quietly. "And I have to say, Richard, even for you, this is low."

"You don't understand..."

"I understand perfectly. The question is, what are you going to do when she destroys you? Because from what I just witnessed, your fiancée is a lot smarter than you gave her credit for."

I left them standing there and headed toward the audition area, my mind racing. This situation was more complex than I'd initially thought, and more interesting.

I was still thinking about Darla when something collided with me. Hard.

A woman's purse went flying, contents scattering across the polished floor.

"I'm so sorry," she said immediately, dropping to gather her things. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Neither was I."

I crouched down to help, and found myself face to face with Darla. Up close, she was even more striking than I'd expected. But it was her eyes that caught me off guard - intelligent, determined, with a strength that definitely didn't match the "trusting and stupid" description I'd just heard.

"Thank you," she said, accepting her lipstick from my hand. Our fingers brushed for just a second and I noticed the way she tried to hide her reaction to our touch.

Interesting. And given what I'd just learned about her situation, potentially useful.

I helped her to her feet, studying her face.

"Are you here for the auditions?" I asked.

"Yeah, I am. You?"

"Business meeting." I smiled, genuinely curious about her now. This woman had somehow figured out that her fiancé and cousin were planning to kill her, and instead of running or going to the police, she was playing games with them. That took some guts. "Break a leg in there."

"Thanks."

She looked flustered, which was oddly appealing. Most women either threw themselves at me or tried to play hard to get. This felt different.

I started to walk away, then paused. Something about this whole situation was nagging at me, and not just because of Richard's involvement.

"You know, you look familiar. Have we met before?"

"I don't think so. I'm pretty sure I'd remember."

"Yeah," I said softly, studying her face. There was something about her that I couldn't shake, like I should know her from somewhere. "So would I."

As I walked away, I found myself thinking about her.

She was in serious danger from people who had access to her life. And she was fighting back alone.

The question was: what was she planning to do? And more intriguingly, could she use an ally?

I pulled out my phone and dialed my assistant.

"Sarah, I need you to do some research for me. Find out everything you can about a woman named Darla Morrison. Financial background, family history, legal situation, everything."

"Of course, sir. Should I prioritize this?"

I thought about what I'd overheard.

"Yes. And Sarah? Be discreet. I have a feeling this is going to get very interesting very quickly."

As I hung up, I realized I was looking forward to seeing how this played out. For the first time in years, I'd encountered someone who might actually surprise me.

And if Richard thought he could murder someone without consequences then he was about to learn how wrong he was.