Chapter 14
Leon
As soon as I wake up, I call a florist and put in an order for flowers. I have no idea what her favorite flowers are, which is something that needs to be remedied, but I settle for the most expensive ones.
I change into my workout gear and head out for my run, with Persephone in tow. Her muscular legs have no trouble keeping up with my pace, landing on the pavement with soft thumps. She’s the perfect running mate, always up for a sprint and not bothering me with unnecessary conversation.
After my run, I down my protein shake and continue the workout in my home gym. By the time I’m done, it’s almost noon. It would be late for some, but with the nature of my business, most of the work happens in the evening.
“You’re here late,” Dom notes as I enter the casino. I rarely come into the office before two pm, though the last couple of weeks were anything but typical.
“I wasn’t informed that I suddenly answer to you,” I bite back, passing by him, and he follows behind.
When I stroll into the office, the pile of papers on my desk seems even taller than yesterday.
I rub a hand over my face, painfully aware that it needs to be dealt with today.
Which reminds me. “You were wrong, by the way.”
“Wrong about what?”
“Alex. She has a perfectly good reason to carry a gun.”
“I’m sure she does.” Suspicion laces his voice.
“She’s allowed to, by the way,” I add when he’s on his way out.
“Sorry?” He stops in his tracks.
“She’s allowed to carry a gun, regardless of the rules.”
“And you’re sure that’s smart?”
“I’m sure it’s solely my decision.”
He dips his head with a clenched jaw and exits the office. I tackle the stack of papers, motivated by the fact that I plan to abandon them the second she enters the casino.
And it’s exactly what I do. As soon as I spot her copper curls, I’m out of my chair and dropping onto the stool next to her. As usual, I lose a few thousand dollars, almost excited knowing that when she clears the table, the real fun starts.
Luckily, it doesn’t take her long, and I’m pulling her up out of the stool by the hand.
“Did you like the flowers?” I ask on our way to my office.
“Flowers?”
“Yeah. The flowers I’ve sent you.”
“Oh, yeah. They were beautiful.” She plasters on a smile, but it sounds like she forgot all about them.
I pretend I’m not hurt by her indifference, but it’s long forgotten when her body molds to mine and her pussy wraps tightly around my cock.
The next few days, we follow the same routine.
I send her flowers, she comes to the casino, we play poker and have sex in my office.
My poor dick got conditioned to where it gets hard when I lose chips in poker, knowing he will soon be enveloped in the wet heat he became obsessed with.
Afterward, we eat dinner on the floor of my office, and I drive her home.
I would love for her to invite me up, but I understand why she’s apprehensive and wants to move slowly.
I enter the upstairs office at two pm sharp on a Friday, Dom already waiting for me inside. In the last few weeks, this office completely replaced my other one.
“What do you have for me?” I ask, unbutton the jacket of my suit, and drop into the chair.
“Some good news.”
Fucking finally. “Yeah?”
He nods. “We hit a Russian warehouse last night. There wasn’t a ton of merchandise inside, but it will definitely be a bump in their plans.”
“Good, good. Did you find anyone inside?”
He lets out a sigh that is an answer on its own. “No. There were no people inside. We’ve looked high and low for him. Don’t you think we should explore other angles?”
“Like what? He disappeared after the Russians killed our uncle, along with the girl they were trying to save. They left us a goddamn message.” Impatience oozes from my voice.
“I know. Things just aren’t adding up. They left us a message but haven’t reached out afterwards…”
I lift a hand to stop him, and he does. There’s not a point he can mention that I haven’t already thought about, in great detail. “Anything else?”
“Yeah. Johnny found potential managers for the West Coast. He wants to set up the interviews next week.”
Fuck, that sounds good. It means he won’t be traveling so much, leaving me alone to handle things around here. “Tell him to go for it. Just let me know the time.”
“Will do.”
I turn on my computer the second Dom exits the office, pulling up the security feed.
I know it’s too early for her, but it brings me comfort to know I’ll see her when she does.
She has truly been a beacon of light in the recent shitshow that is my life.
My feet jitter with restless energy, my body buzzing now that something good is happening. Maybe I should take Alex on a date?
Shit, there is a chance someone will see us, and it will put her in danger. I can’t risk that. But I can at least plan something at my place. I pull up my contacts, searching for the number of a certain world-renowned chef who owes me a favor. A few clicks later, and I have a plan for the night.
Fuck, is this how Luka felt when he was falling for a girl responsible for our father’s death amidst all the mess we had to deal with?
Like he couldn’t wait to see her, his thoughts swirling with how to make her smile?
I rub a hand over my face, remembering our last conversation.
It was a fight. I accused him of betraying our family because he went and fell in love with a girl we kidnapped.
I was so fucking mad at him, and now he’s gone.
That fight can’t be the last conversation we ever had.
I’m the older brother. Father counted on me to keep him safe, just like he counted on me to keep our business afloat, and so far, I’m failing at both.
If Luka were here now, he’d give me shit.
He’d call me a hypocrite, and I’d argue that one has nothing to do with the other.
Alex has no links to our family or our business.
She doesn’t jeopardize our plans, and she’s not a betrayal of the memory of our father.
He’d cross his arms, a massive smirk on his maddening face, knowing that’d push me to argue more.
He’d then point out the veins popping in my forehead, and I’d curse him out in Croatian.
Like every annoying brother, he knows just which buttons to push to make my facade slip.
He knows that no matter how much I try to supervise everything in my life; he is the one thing I never could.
Now, I’d give it all up to get him back.
I’d give up my casinos and the family business, just to have him poke fun at the expensive suit I’m wearing, or my fancy office.
The restlessness turns into a rock in my stomach.
I pour another shot of rakia, already knowing it won’t do anything to help.
Nothing distracts from the despair of my father being dead and my brother missing.
Nothing except a certain brilliant redhead.