5. CHAPTER 5
5
IVAN
“You better not fuck him up, Ivan,” Lev says to me from across the table, as we sit and watch the show at Desire. The girls here do nothing for me, but I can appreciate their gorgeous bodies and the show they put on. I turn to look at Lev. He watches everyone in the club, keeping an eye on his empire while suckling his Cuban cigar. I decide to play dumb.
“Who?”
That causes him to fix his stare on me. It doesn’t take a lot to bring out his impatient side, it’s what I like about him the most. Lev should come with a warning that says ‘highly flammable.’ It’s entertaining as fuck.
“You know who I’m talking about. The architect,” he says before he inhales another lungful of nicotine.
“Since when did you care about other people?”
“I don’t care. But I don’t want Dima sulking around like a fucking child because he has to find someone new. I don’t want the headache.”
“Fair enough. Speaking of headaches, where is Aaron?”
“He’s on his way over here with Simon. They had to drop off Dima at Starlight.”
As much as Lev tries to show indifference to Aaron, I can tell how much he obsesses over him. He’s checked his watch and phone at least five times since I joined him. Not that he’ll ever admit it.
I settle back into my seat and watch the girls on stage. I zone out as the music vibrates through me, the only image in my mind is Tyler. I did a little research earlier to find out where the company he works for is located and any social media accounts he may have. Unfortunately, he has no socials. The only information I could find was on his company website with his credentials. I’m itching to know more about him. What he likes, what he doesn’t like. His fears. His fantasies. What he looks like naked.
“Gentlemen,” a rich deep voice says, pulling me out of my Tyler thoughts. Next to our table stands Carlos, the brothers' distributor and kind of friend. He’s gorgeous, a sexy Brazilian with stunning olive skin, black hair, and sexy brown eyes. He would have my interest if it weren’t for Tyler, although I doubt that would matter as Carlos has his sights set on Simon, even if Simon hates him with every part of himself. This should be fun when Si turns up with Aaron.
“Carlos,” Lev greets with little interest.
“Hey, Carlos,” I say with a nod. His two bodyguards stand a couple of feet away.
“May I join you? I would like to discuss some business.”
“Business? Now I’m intrigued. Take a seat,” Lev says and stubs out his cigar in the glass ashtray in the center of the table. Our focus is now off the stage and wholly on Carlos, who leans his forearms on the table and clasps his palms. He’s wearing his signature look, a half-open black shirt with black pants and a fitted black jacket. He wears a simple chain that glistens in the light against his honey-toned skin. All smooth. Fuck he’s delicious.
“As you know, since you helped me find out who had stolen from me, I’ve encountered new problems with my brother. Two members of my crew have gone rogue, one of them is the one that you questioned on my behalf. The warning did not work. I need to bring them in and locate my brother, as my father has been in touch. I need your help, if possible, with a couple of your boys bringing them in. They won’t see it coming. I’m not sure who to trust in my crew, and want to keep this hush,” he says.
“You know, after seeing how easily you were able to help us dispose of those bastards who hurt Kai, I've been thinking about who you really are, Carlos. To have access to other crews in different states, buildings to use, cleanups, you're not just a distributor, are you?”
“It’s complicated.”
“No shit. I tell you what, if you tell me who the hell you and that family of yours really are, then I’ll help you out. A discounted fee for friends,” Lev says just as I notice movement to the side of the room where Simon and Aaron appear. Simon briefly stops when he sees Carlos sitting at our table. His nostril flare is impressive. I admire him for trying to compose himself as he approaches us, but his facial expressions give him away too easily. Simon is pissed off most of the time, but multiply it by one hundred when Carlos is around.
Aaron pushes past Simon and heads straight to Lev’s lap, not giving a shit that we were in the middle of talking or who is watching. He straddles Lev’s thighs and mauls his mouth. Ownership claimed of Lev for all to see. Lev breaks the kiss with a slight hint of smile.
“Doe, we’re talking business. You need to sit and be quiet or go get yourself a drink while I talk to Carlos.”
“Wow, you need to work on your greeting, baby,” Aaron says with that creepy grin on his face, eyes honed in on Lev who is clenching his jaw in annoyance.
“What did I say about calling me that?”
“I don't give a fuck as long as I have your attention. I’m gonna get a drink and talk to the girls,” he says as he stands and bounces off to the bar. Lev’s eyes stay focused on him, and I know that he wants to chase after him. Aaron knows what he’s doing as he looks over his shoulder like the cat that got the cream. Such an attention whore.
“Should I come back at another time?” Carlos says, trying to hold in the laughter of watching the big bad Lev being manipulated by his doe.
“No. Like I said, I want details before I agree to anything. I’m unsure if I’m annoyed that you’ve kept who you are a secret.”
“My past life is nothing relevant to you or any threat. I agree to tell you, but it has to stay between us.”
“These guys won’t say anything.”
“I’m a vault. You got no worries here,” I say.
“What about you, little lion? Can I trust you?” Carlos says to Simon, who glares at Carlos with such hatred that I’m surprised the guy hasn't turned to ash.
“I never talk about you, so it won't be a problem. I doubt anyone cares anyway,” Simon scoffs, scanning Carlos from head to toe, his lip curled up like he’s smelt shit on his shoe. It doesn’t have the desired effect on Carlos, as his face lights up with a stunning smile, his eyes sparkling. The freak loves Simon like this, and I don’t think Si knows what trouble he’s in.
“You protest too much, little lion,” Carlos says. Simon stands over him, fists clenched at his sides as he looks down on a smug-looking Carlos.
“I told you, you call me that again, and I’ll rearrange your face,” Simon snarls. This is some panty melting foreplay.
“Talk to him like that again, and I’ll rearrange your face. Now shut the fuck up and be professional,” Lev barks at Simon, who grumbles something under his breath as he moves back and stands behind Lev. Pretending to ignore Carlos.
Carlos refocuses back on Lev.
“My father is an arms dealer, mainly guns in Brazil. He’s a very powerful man. I didn’t want to be a part of that world. I wanted to branch out on my own and live in the US. My brother has always caused problems for my father, his gambling, drug habits, just causing trouble. So, my father said I could leave if I controlled my brother, Enrico. Make sure he didn’t cause issues for the family. It's been a fucking nightmare, and now he’s stolen from me, turned a few of my men against me, and he’s disappeared. The worst part is someone has told my father, and he wants me to return home with Enrico.”
“So you want us to find your men, which will then lead to finding Enrico. And then what?” Lev says.
“Then I return him to my father. Let him deal with him like he should have from the beginning.”
“And what about you?” I ask. Carlos moves his eyes to me, and an unconvincing smile reveals his lack of confidence in this plan.
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll handle my father. But I won't be returning to the family business. I have too much here for me now,” Carlos says. His stare quickly focuses on Simon, who has been watching intently, but he swiftly moves his head when he meets Carlos’ eyes, pretending he hasn’t been listening to him.
“Any chance this could come back on us? The last thing we need is beef with foreign cartels,” Lev says.
“No. You’ll be fine.”
“Let me talk to D, and I’ll get back to you tomorrow. He needs to know about this before I agree.”
“Of course,” Carlos says as he rises from his seat, says his goodbyes, and strides out of the club. I look up out of interest to see what Simon is doing, and to no surprise, he watches Carlos leave before stomping off to the bar to chat with the girls. The more I watch Simon, the better read I get on him. I’d bet he is confused with how Carlos makes him feel, so he deals with it by being a hot-tempered asshole who then sleeps with whichever girl is around and is willing to hide from the truth.
“Do you think Dima will be good with Carlos’ plans?” I ask Lev, who is ignoring me, and focused on Aaron, who appears to be flirting with one of the dancers. Aaron is gay. Lev knows this, yet it still pisses him off if Aaron talks to a woman, and of course Aaron knows this. That's why the little fucker keeps looking back at Lev, smirking.
“D will be fine. Come on, let's go before I bald Aaron’s head.”
“You know he’s gay. Right?”
“No fucker is anything in this family. She needs to keep her hands off him before I cut them off.”
“He’s doing it to annoy you,” I laugh as we head toward an ecstatic-looking Aaron.
“It’s fucking working. Doe, get your ass over here—time to go,” Lev orders. Aaron pushes the girl away and almost skips over to Lev.
“What did I tell you about flirting?”
“That you’ll beat my ass if I do it,” Aaron says before nibbling Lev's ear.
“I hope you don’t plan on sitting tomorrow, you little shit, as I aim to make you sore for a day.”
“Sounds fucking amazing.”
“You’re a nightmare. Let's go,” Lev says as he grips the back of Aaron's neck and guides him out of the club, where I follow behind. My thoughts wander to Tyler and what his skin would feel like to touch. To grope. Does he bruise easily? Is he a bleeder? How fast could I get his heart beating?
I can’t wait to see him again.