Page 14 of Rio (Knight Empire #3)

RAQUEL

I need a lobotomy. That’s what it’s going to take to get that man out of my head. I haven’t been able to focus since the weekend and I’ve struggled at work. Pierce can see I’m not on my A-game, and I need to be.

Dex and Dani’s visit should’ve been a welcome distraction, and it was, for most part. Dani seemed happy. Dex was charming, sharp as ever.

But then he showed up.

The other Knight.

The bane of my life.

Uninvited, unexpected, and still impossibly charming and smug.

I wish I had more control. I usually do. I command, and lead. I decide if something happens or not, and as much as I tried not to give in to Rio Knight, I couldn’t.

This kiss was even hotter than the first one; the one I’ve been trying to forget for months. Only now I have something more vibrant, new and electric, imprinted on my mind and body, and I doubt I’ll ever forget it.

Or him.

Damn that man for knowing exactly how to unravel me without even trying. The way his voice dropped when he said my name. The way he looked at me like he still wants more.

I know I do. I was so sure this was a setup, him walking into the restaurant like it was unexpected. I was so sure of it, but he called my bluff. Turns out, he really was here for a meeting, even if it comes across as being too neat, too orchestrated.

Those Knights know how to do these things. They play 5D chess, while everyone else is playing chequers. I shouldn’t have stepped out of the restaurant with him. Dex and Dani shouldn’t have left us alone.

You didn’t have to go outside with him.

I thought I was strong. I thought I could convince myself, and him, that I didn’t want anything from him, but I can’t push him away.

Rio is like a storm that wreaks havoc in my carefully structured life. He uproots it, creating chaos and leaving wreckage in his wake. He chews up head and heart and spits it out.

We didn’t even talk for long.

Just enough to cause cracks in the walls I’ve built up around me.

Just enough to let him in and kiss him like I’ve never kissed anyone before.

By the time I walked back into the restaurant, I was shaking all over. I couldn’t think straight. Dex and Dani returned from the garden, smiling like nothing had happened. They asked where Rio had gone. I lied and told them called it an early night. They didn’t press.

We had brunch the next morning before their flight. Part of me—the stupid part—half-expected Rio to show up again. He didn’t.

And now, here I am, back at the office. Pretending to work. Staring at a file I’ve already read ten times but can’t absorb because all I see is him. All I feel is him. All I want is him.

The Blue Star Eco Resort case.

The more I dig into it, the more it infuriates me because I’ve seen this before.

The permits. The land acquisition. The way the local voices have been buried under layers of corporate silence.

It stinks of money and power and unchecked arrogance.

The kind of case that calls to my soul. No wonder I can’t let it go.

Pierce wanted me to skim through it, but the NGO, the non-governmental organization in Belize, known as EcoGuardians, are expecting someone to fly out and do a legal review of the situation. Skimming through a file isn’t enough.

I head into Pierce’s office, ready for a fight, my sharp heels clicking against the wooden floor.

It’s only when I step in to his office that I realize, too late, that I took off my cropped blazer and left it dangling my chair.

Now I’m standing in front of him in my navy-blue sleeveless sheath dress which hugs my figure more closely than I feel comfortable with.

I hug the EcoGuardians folder to my chest, like a shield.

“I’ve skimmed through this. They want someone to do a legal review of the site.”

He doesn’t seem to be listening. His attention is on my appearance, his gaze roving over me slowly. “Then you should go and do a legal review,” he says, his eyes finally lifting to meet mine.

This was not the answer I expected. “You want me to go?” This is a dream case, but I’m already working on the Santos arbitration and it’s highly billable, complex, and time-sensitive.

Panic grips me at the thought that he might be flying out with me, and that’s the only reason why he’s pushing for me to do this. I’ll resign if that’s the case.

“They mentioned your name.”

“Who?”

“EcoGuardians want you, so I’m sending you.”

“Just me?” I ask, my breath hitching.

“You’re more than capable of handling this..” He adjusts the cuffs of his shirts. “You’re one of the firm’s brightest stars. Is it so wrong for me to let you sink your teeth into the kind of case that lights you up?”

I can’t believe my ears.

“You’re okay to let me go to Belize?”

“Yes.”

I almost float on air as I leave his office. Getting out of the shadows of men like Pierce, even if it’s only temporary, feels like I’m won a dream prize. But I’m not just escaping from him. I also need to get away from memories of him.

Rio Knight.

And Belize suddenly feels like an escape.

***

RIO

I never should’ve gone to Miami.

I made a mistake thinking I could talk things over with Raquel. Thinking I could fix things. But I’ve made things worse since that night when we collided again.

This woman is fire and thorns in a sexy dress, and I walked right into the thick of it, thinking I could handle her as easily as I can most women.

But Raquel is not a like most women, and she can’t be handled. She just is. She’s wild, and free. And as sharp as a pin.

I kissed her, and she kissed me back. It was everything I knew it would be.

Hot, and feverish, and all consuming. I could come from just kissing her.

No sex involved. Sure, I had to fist myself to release so that I could fall asleep, but Raquel’s face, her scent, the feel of her, everything I should be trying to forget, is now stronger than ever in my thoughts.

She and I, we’re like boxers in a ring, circling one another with wary eyes, throwing insults, joking and teasing, but deep down inside, we hunger for one another.

It felt like her entire body missed me, because she seemed as desperate for it as I was.

And after? She shoved me away like I was nothing.

I thought I was going to Miami to find answers and maybe get some closure, but what I got was no respite, and my head filled with thoughts of her more potent than ever.

We parted on bad terms again and I’m not any wiser. She pushed me away with her words, and yet her eyes, her body, and the way she moved when I reached for her hand ... say otherwise.

Here I am, more conflicted than before I left for Miami, but one thing is crystal clear—I need to stay the hell away from her. It’s best for me, for her, for everyone.

When my father calls me in for a meeting, I’m little distracted. I brace myself as I walk into his office and find him at his desk, flipping through a messy pile of newspapers and shareholder briefs. He doesn’t look up until he’s good and ready.

It’s always a classic power play with him.

“Come in. Sit,” he says flatly.

There’s a folded paper on top of the stack. I catch a glimpse of a photo—me, Dex, Dani… and Raquel. Taken outside a restaurant in Miami.

My gut tenses. I hate the intrusion by the paparazzi. That picture of the four of us must piss him off. Me and Dex, with women, on what looks like a date, looking happy. Yeah, he won’t like that.

“Good weekend?” he asks, pretending to skim a letter as I sit down hoping this will be over soon. But I instinctively know that something’s up. The old man doesn’t ask about weekends unless he’s hunting for leverage. Or sniffing.

“Not bad. You?”

He doesn’t answer, and lets the silence hang for a few seconds, before sliding a file across the desk.

“I have something I need you to handle.”

“I’m about to fly to Verona, to meet with Nico Cazale. You recall the Cazale hotel empire I was telling you about?”

He dismisses my comment with a blink. Verona isn’t far from Soave, the place where we grew up. The place the old man knows too well. I was planning to visit Mama at the same time.

“Verona can wait.”

“What can’t wait?” It’s something pressing. Something he needs taken care of. I wonder what fire I’m about to put out now.

“We’ve got a situation in Belize, with the new eco resort.”

“The Blue Star?” This is my area. Hotels and real estate. I overlap with Enzo on the real estate. “It’s about to open within the month. What’s the problem?”

“It won’t open if this mess isn’t cleared up.”

He nods at the file. “Legal threats. Locals protesting. Rumors of environmental violations. We’ve been contacted by a non-governmental organization there, a pain in the butt group claiming water pollution, displacement, the usual activist drivel.

If this hits the press, we’re screwed, so I need you to contain it, and fast. I need you to work your charm. ”

“Containment and charm,” I repeat, voice dry. “I can do that.” But at the same time, something niggles me. What’s caused this? Did we do something wrong? Funny how the old man is all about cleaning up the mess, but what if we’re the ones responsible for the mess?

“I need this buried, and quietly. I don’t want any headlines, or courtroom drama. This could blow up in our face, so just deal with it.”

I glance down at the file. “This isn’t a Knight Enterprises internal project.”

“It’s tied to one of our subsidiaries and naturally, if they have a problem, we have a problem.

But we have more to lose. I don’t need that heat.

The resort will be an absolute showpiece.

This is where luxury meets sustainability.

I plan to open more resorts like this in Costa Rica, Guatemala, and as many far-flung destinations as we can.

But if this turns into a PR mess, it’ll ruin everything.

It won’t open on time, and that’s millions down the drain. ”

My jaw tightens. “Are we legit on this?” I find myself paying attention to Raquel’s words and all the ethical problems she always accuses Knight Enterprises of.

The old man leans back. “Legally, yes. Ethically... we’ve seen better days. But that’s not your concern. The case is baseless. Politically motivated. You’re going down there to smooth it over and make it go away. Quietly.”

That right there tells me it’s not squeaky clean. Which means I’m going to have to rely on the people on the ground at the site in Belize.

I hear Raquel’s voice in my head. I hear her accusations; about the damage we’re doing.

I’m starting to take note. I never listened.

Never wanted to. But now I can’t help wondering, just like I wonder why we stay and put up with the old man’s bullshit.

What he did with Jett, what he did with Dex, that shit with Dani’s father, it’s not normal.

I stay because the Knight legacy is worth billions.

Because Knight Enterprises isn’t just a company.

It’s a global, multibillion-dollar empire.

Walking away isn’t like quitting a job. It’s walking away from the chance to inherit serious power, wealth, and global influence.

We’re not fighting to be loved. We’re fighting to be the last man standing when the old man falls.

So, I nod. “Fine. When do I leave?”

“As soon as you can.”