Chapter 7 - Damien
I was pushing it. I knew I was.
As aware as I was about how I was handling the whole situation with the rat and being around Sky, the ice I was treading couldn’t have been any thinner.
Only a full week had passed, and Sky was consuming my thoughts no matter how hard I tried to keep her face out of my mind, and it was threatening my job. My objective.
As far as she knew, I was just there for general safety and security. There weren’t any underlying issues or people I needed to look into. In her mind, my being there was just a precaution.
But being so near her, and knowing she was practically close enough to reach and touch, was driving me insane. Without a doubt, it was keeping me from giving my full attention to the job at hand.
It was all so maddening, and I didn’t know what to do about any of it. The intense infatuation was a first for me, and something about that was terrifying and exhilarating all at the same time.
Plus, I couldn’t ignore how my outbursts were pushing her away bit by bit.
I was being weird and impulsive, and I could feel her easing back. Her sunny, warm behavior seemed less so whenever I was around and it made my stomach clench.
Everything was slipping out of my grasp at an alarming rate, and I was ill-equipped to handle it. I was losing my mind and growing more desperate with every passing day. It was all so unlike me, and that was one of the more terrifying aspects…how someone as innocent as Sky could flip everything upside down for me.
How she could set my life on fire and be blissfully unaware.
Knowing how much her opinion of me mattered still annoyed me, but there was no point trying to fight it then. It was a losing battle, and by then, I didn’t even want to resist it.
I just wanted her.
With a huffed breath, I pulled up to one of the nightclubs owned by the Levovs and gave the valet my key fob before heading inside.
I didn’t know how much more I’d be able to take of the whole situation without completely losing my mind, but as the loud music moved through the space while I walked through, eyes scanning the dimly lit room, I hoped my little meeting with the Levovs would help keep my mind off Sky long enough to accomplish something more concrete.
As I walked in, a small brunette approached me, dressed in a black lingerie set while she carried a tray of drinks. Her eyes raked over me before she grinned with a faint glimmer in her gaze.
I knew that look. And at one time, it would’ve piqued my interest.
She was a pretty thing, and willing to spend more time with me than required, but I just couldn’t find it in me to reciprocate.
“Anything I can help you with?”
Despite sensing the hidden meaning in her words as she smiled at me too obviously, I kept my focus and easily remembered why I was there in the first place.
“I’m looking for Lukyan and Kir. I have a meeting with them,” I stated plainly, not lending her any kind of intrigue.
To the untrained eye, she might’ve looked just as polite as before, but I noticed the slight slip in her gaze. The veiled disappointment that I wasn’t biting the bait yet.
But I didn’t care anyway. It didn’t matter.
My mind was too preoccupied with that damn blonde woman to bring myself to follow along with her suggestion.
The woman nodded, then gestured for me to follow. The light in her expression faded by a touch as she led me further into the club. “This way…”
I scoffed inwardly at the newfound iciness that surrounded her as she brought me closer to the VIP section. Not far from the semi-circle of deep couches surrounded by modern decor and glass tables, there was an extended section of the main stage just for them, where the mostly naked dancers did their thing as practiced as anything.
Ignoring the dancers and their enticing aura, I found Luk and Kir sitting in the section while a woman with long black hair sat in the latter’s lap. The worker from before didn’t say anything before she ducked away and disappeared somewhere in the club.
Despite how the woman was vying for Kir’s attention while she perched on his thigh, arm draped around the back of his neck, he continued to watch the women on stage while he sipped from his glass, clearly finding satisfaction in the whole arrangement.
Luk, on the other hand, had his eyes on the dancers, but his legs were crossed while he bounced one impatiently and glanced down at his watch.
It seemed one was a lot more focused than the other.
“I didn’t realize the Levovs had time to sit around and sample their product,” I said, breaking the silence as I entered the space, glancing between them, the stage, and the woman in Kir’s lap.
Lukyan let go of a half-relieved, half-expectant breath once the two of them acknowledged me.
Kir chuckled and gave the woman’s hip a faint squeeze, eyes slightly glazed with his buzz. “Gotta stop and reap the rewards every once in a while, right?”
His brother, on the other hand, scoffed and gestured for me to sit. “It’s about time you got here.”
“Better late than never,” I returned, vaguely amused as I sat down on the section of couches across from them.
“At least you didn’t show up with a distraction,” Luk muttered as he grabbed the bottle of whiskey in front of them and poured some into a glass before handing it to me. He casted an annoyed glance at the other Levov.
The dark-haired woman’s face was buried in the crook of Kir’s neck while she kissed his skin and lightly traced the scar on his shoulder as he smirked at Luk. He adjusted his hold on her and chuckled. “Come on now, don’t be like that…”
“We’re here to work, not indulge.”
Kir hummed and let his hand glide down her back. “Why not both? That’s true efficiency.”
“Jackass…” Luk mumbled as he shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“This should’ve been a phone call anyway,” the other Levov stated, looking smug still as the woman in his lap continued her ministrations, growing more restless while she nipped at his skin.
“Well, it’s not. We were both here, and Damien was nearby, so get serious, will you?”
Kir mumbled something under his breath, grumbling as he pulled the woman back by her hips and gave her ass a small smack, eyes on her with a hazy grin. “Stick around…I’ll see you after.”
Despite looking vaguely annoyed by the interruption, she nodded with a wanton smile before slipping out of the VIP section.
“Alright, buzzkill. I’m wholly invested now,” Kir chided sarcastically to his brother as he leaned back in his seat with his arms spread across the back.
Chuckling to myself at Luk’s irritation about the whole thing, I shook my head and sipped the whiskey.
I hated to admit it, but the damn Levovs could be entertaining when they wanted to be…and they knew how to make a good drink.
“Onto more important matters,” Lukyan began, sighing before he directed his attention to me. “What have you found out?”
Focusing on the topic at hand, I pulled myself together and sat up a bit straighter. “So far, I’ve narrowed it down to a handful of suspects. They seem the most likely to be involved.”
They both nodded, but Luk lifted a brow at me. “And?”
“And I need more concrete proof before I can corner anyone about their involvement. I can’t go making claims without knowing for sure.”
The older Levov blinked back at me as if waiting for more. “That’s it?”
Slight guilt and irritation moved beneath my skin at his words, aware that I could’ve had more by then, but I didn’t. Mostly because I had been too focused on Sky, but I wasn’t about to tell him that much.
I nodded, wracking my brain for any kind of excuse or reasoning that might preserve their opinion of my work ethic.
Luk sighed and sat back, stroking his chin absently. “It’s been a full week now, and you don’t seem that close to uncovering who the rat is. We need to find out who’s leaking our information to other prominent families in the city.”
It was annoying to feel like I was being scolded for doing an inadequate job, but at the same time, I also knew he was right. By not locking in on one suspect and getting the truth out, I was leaving both of our families exposed, and it was giving those vultures more than enough time to act.
Uncovering the rat wasn’t just to help the Levovs. I was also guarding the best interest of my family, and that wasn’t something I was willing to fumble. I just needed to focus. I needed to get the job done.
Jaw set, irritated with myself and the very tempting distraction that was Sky Ridley, I forced out a breath. “Look, it’s not ideal, but at least I have more than nothing. I’ll get to the bottom of it, I just need time to be sure before I start making any accusations.”
Both Luk and Kir examined me for a long moment as if contemplating if they could take my word for it.
While I didn’t like feeling scrutinized or having to answer to them, I didn’t want to wound my pride further by not living up to my promise. I agreed to take the job due to my experience, but if I couldn’t find the rat, then I knew my abilities would be put into question by the Levovs.
As much as I didn’t want their opinions to matter, they did. And beyond that, there were too many lives invested in the success of our families. I wouldn’t just be letting the Levovs down by failing…I’d be letting down my whole family.
Even if Sky had been nothing but a distraction for me, I didn’t want to be perceived as incompetent. I was good at what I did, I just needed to correct my course.
Glancing between the two of them, I couldn’t ignore the subtle hesitation that moved through them. I had no doubt they were questioning my qualifications, and if I could deliver on my promise, but after a moment, Luk sighed again.
“Alright…there’s still time for you to close in on whoever’s leaking this information. But you have to report to us more often, and make sure you’re checking every camera, every employee, every possible outcome.”
I nodded my understanding, biting back the urge to bristle against his reminder as if I didn’t already know all of that.
Luk cocked a brow all the while his gaze rested on me expectantly. “We’re counting on you, Novikov. Don’t make us regret trusting you with this.”
“You won’t regret it,” I reassured him, sure in my words even if I hadn’t been fully living up to that expectation before. “I’ll find the rat, and once I do, they’ll lead us to whoever’s really behind this.”
While it seemed like Luk didn’t want to fully trust me yet, he eventually relented and nodded. “I hope so. Keep searching, and let us know when you have something more concrete.”
As irritated as I was by the whole thing, a part of me was grateful I was only dealing with Luk and Kir…at least for now. I couldn’t imagine having to take on the heat of their eldest brother.
“Seems it’s settled then,” Kir hummed with a lazy grin as he looked towards the dancers once again, evidently pleased by what he saw. He snickered and glanced back at Luk, mumbling, “This definitely could’ve been a phone call.”
“Just shut up, will you?”
Kir chuckled and stood from his place, dusting his hands off. “If you don’t mind, I have a plaything waiting for me. Gentlemen…”
Visibly irritated with his brother, Lukyan shook his head with his brows pinched together. “Once an idiot, always an idiot…”
I would’ve laughed if I didn’t have the weight of this undercover job on my shoulders, waiting to pull me under at any given point.