Rebel (Wolfes of Manhattan 1)

“I’m glad you called, Lacey,” he said.

I cleared my throat. How did I let him know this was not a pleasure call?

“It was nice meeting you the other night,” I said.

“I enjoyed it too.”

I cleared my throat again. “I have a question for you. I represent the estate of Derek Wolfe, and he left significant assets to Riley Wolfe, his daughter. But we can’t seem to find her. Do you know where she might be?”

“Well…no. I don’t. I thought you said Riley was a friend of yours.”

“More like an acquaintance. Have you seen her recently?”

“I haven’t talked to Riley in the last month or so.”

“You said she’d had some issues. Is that anything you might feel comfortable discussing with me?”

“What does this have to do with her father’s estate?” he asked.

Smart man. I hadn’t given Fox enough credit. “We can’t get the property distributed if she’s not here. If I know what these issues are that she’s struggling with, I might have a better idea of where to find her.”

“Just some depression and stuff like that. She missed a few shoots earlier this year. That doesn’t bode well. But she’s so fantastic at what she does that the industry cuts her some slack.”

“I see.”

Riley had seemed a little off when she and I had dinner. She’d definitely wanted to talk to me about something, but then she’d reneged.

“Did she ever mention anyone who lives out of town? Anyone she might be visiting?”

“We aren’t really that close, Lacey. We’ve done a few runway shows together, but that’s the extent of my relationship with her.”

“All right. Thank you, Fox.”

“I am really glad you called, though. I enjoyed meeting you and would love to see you again for a drink. This time just the two of us?”

When it rained, it poured. I seemed to be a magnet for pretty boys—as Rock would call them—lately.

How to let him down gently…

“I’m flattered. Really. But I think I’m a little old for you, Fox.”

“Age is only a number.”

“Really? How old are you, then?”

“Twenty-one.”

God. Even younger than I’d imagined. “I’m thirty-one. That’s a decade.”

“Yeah, thanks. I can do the math, Lacey.”

“The math says no dice. I’m sorry. You’re a really nice guy. You certainly shouldn’t be lacking attention from women.”

“Most of them are too young,” he said, laughing.

“The right one will come along. In the meantime, you’re twenty-one. Have fun. You deserve it. Enjoy the money you’re making.”

“Oh, I get it. You’re looking for a relationship.”

I wasn’t really, but if that would send him packing… “Right. And you’re way too young to be settling down.”

“I guess you’re right about that. Oh!”

“What?”

“I’m so stupid. You’re dating Riley’s brother, aren’t you? He sure wanted to take care of you the other night.”

“Actually, no. We’re not dating.” Just fucking.

“That’s good. No offense, but he seemed like kind of a dick.”

Yeah, he didn’t do a great job of hiding that. “He has his moments,” was all I said.

“I’m sorry you’re not up for some fun,” Fox said, “but I respect your decision. Maybe we’ll see each other around.”

“Maybe.” Though I doubted it. “Thanks for the information, Fox. Have a great day.”

“You too. Bye.”

That hadn’t yielded much information at all. Did Rock know his sister was missing? He hadn’t mentioned her last night. Was it even my place to tell him?

I bit my lip. He’d been a complete shithead last night but then had given me incredible pleasure, and he was taking me to dinner tonight.

Still, he’d made it damned clear that he didn’t want a relationship. Were we friends? Not really. I didn’t know any more about him than I did when I first met him. We weren’t in a relationship, and we weren’t even friends. What the hell were we?

Fuck buddies?

I’d never had a fuck buddy before.

Rock Wolfe was a terrific fuck buddy, if that was what I was looking for.

I’d told Fox I was looking for a relationship, and I thought I’d been lying. Was I? Maybe I did want a relationship. I loved the idea of children, and I was thirty-one already. The biological clock was ticking away, almost like a time bomb.

If I wanted a relationship, I couldn’t be with Rock Wolfe. He’d made that clear. Anything with him would be a waste of time. A fun waste of time, but a waste nonetheless.

In fact, it might be best to call off dinner tonight. Should I tell him Riley seemed to be missing?

No. Best to stay out of family business. I cared about Riley. I cared about all of them, but I couldn’t get in any deeper. Rock would find out soon enough.

I grabbed my cell and then realized I didn’t know his number. We’d never talked on the phone. No matter. It would be in the Wolfe file, which was sitting on the corner of my desk. I located the number quickly and called.