6. Alexander
Chapter 6
Alexander
I pace back and forth in the downstairs control room of the hotel, watching Antonio sift through tonight’s footage. I’m antsy and can’t seem to stand still. Why? Because apparently, I’ve lost my fucking mind.
He’s not looking for evidence of the brawl that erupted inside the bar. No, he’s combing through the footage of the reception area, searching for her —my little enigma.
I stayed in the penthouse long enough to keep my pride intact, resisting the urge to follow her and beg her to stay like some desperate fool. I was proud of myself for not letting my desire for that woman control me.
After showering and changing into a fresh suit, I came straight down here, where my perfectly laid plan promptly fell apart.
“Is that her?” he suddenly says, stopping me in my tracks.
I close the small distance between us and grasp the back of his chair, leaning in to examine the screen more closely.
I don’t answer his question; I’m too busy watching her as she crosses the space with the same confidence she first entered .
“Switch cameras,” I order as soon as she moves out of the frame.
“What exactly are you looking for?” he asks.
I have no fucking clue.
“Just do as I tell you,” I snap.
I keep telling myself that I’m just concerned about her walking home alone at this time of night, and while that’s true in part, that sinking feeling in my stomach tells me that there’s a lot more going on here.
Antonio doesn’t push further. He knows that if I want to give him more information, I will … which I don’t. I’m still trying to make sense of it all myself.
Am I doing this because she rejected me? Possibly. She’s the first woman ever to tell me no, but I think it has more to do with her than the knockback I received. She was a standout, and it’s been a long time since anyone captured my attention like she did.
The next angle shows her leaving the hotel. Without me having to ask, Antonio switches to the cameras on the exterior of the building, zooming in on her as she stands on the sidewalk.
My heart begins beating faster as I study her. She looks from left to right as she wraps her arms around herself and rubs her forearms. Her vulnerability is again calling me at the highest level.
“Is that your shirt she’s wearing?” Antonio asks, breaking me out of the spell she seems to have me under.
“Yes … I kind of ruined hers.”
He barks out a laugh as I slide my phone out of my pocket and pull up my driver’s number.
Me: I’m ready to leave. Meet me out in front.
Nico: Okay, boss. I’ll be there in a few minutes.
“We are leaving,” I say, shoving my phone back into my pocket and turning towards the door.
When I open it, I find Enzo standing outside with his arms crossed over his massive chest. He’s staring down the two hotel security guys I kicked out of the control room when I arrived.
Monitoring the cameras may be their job, but I own this place. Although they may work for me, I don’t know them personally, so I didn’t want them involved in my business. Hence, I removed them.
I continue towards the exit, and my men fall in beside me. “Is that a fat lip?” I ask Enzo as we enter the revolving glass doors.
“The cocksucker came in from the side … it was the only hit he got in.”
I chuckle to myself as I step into the cool night air. Nico is already waiting beside the car, so I head in that direction.
“Mr Mancini,” he says, opening the rear door.
“Nico.”
Antonio slides in beside me, and Enzo rounds the car and sits in the front passenger seat. The others head towards the vehicle parked behind us.
Once Nico is seated behind the wheel, he eyes me in the rear-view mirror. “To the house?” he asks.
“No. I want to drive around for a bit.”
Antonio side-eyes me but knows better than to question my decisions.
It’s been over half an hour since she exited the hotel, so common sense tells me she’s probably already left the area by now, but I still feel compelled to drive around just in case .
I have zero information on her—I don’t even know her fucking name—so this may be my only chance to see her again.
I wish I’d come downstairs sooner.
“I think it’s safe to say she’s tucked up in bed by now,” Antonio grumbles before blowing out a frustrated breath.
I know he’s right, but a part of me wants to keep searching. We’ve been driving around for over an hour and have been down almost every street within a five-kilometre radius of the hotel.
The cameras only showed the direction she walked off in, so I don’t know where she went from there.
“Can we go back to that car that was broken down on the side of the road?” I ask my driver.
“Fuck,” I hear Antonio mutter under his breath as he scrubs his hand down his face.
“You’re more than welcome to get out and find your own way back to the house,” I murmur, feeling my temper rise.
“Is there a reason you’re interested in the car?”
I turn my face to stare out the window, ignoring his question because I don’t need to explain anything to him; he’s my employee, not my boss.
Returning to the car I saw on the side of the road may be a long shot, but it’s my last chance. She said she broke down on the way to work, so there’s a chance it could belong to her. It’s only a block away from the hotel, so it puts her in the vicinity.
If this fails, I know I can call in some favours and see if the CCTV cameras around the city can give me a lead.
When we reach the vehicle that’s sitting just past an intersection, Nico turns down the nearest side street and pulls over by the kerb. Antonio goes for the door handle at the same time as I do.
“Stay in the car,” I mumble. He’s been grating on my last nerve for the past hour, and I’m not in the mood to deal with any more smart remarks or second-guessing my decisions.
Enzo exits the front passenger side, and I hold my hand up to him as I step onto the sidewalk. “Stay here, I won’t be long.”
“Sure thing, boss,” he replies with a nod.
My other men wouldn’t dare speak out of line the way Antonio does, and as much as his comments piss me off at times, I know he only has my best interests at heart.
When I reach the car, I shove my hands into the pockets of my trousers and take it all in. It’s an old white Ford Laser with a red driver’s side door and a dark grey rear left quarter panel. It’s a heap of shit, which matches her description of the vehicle perfectly. If it does, in fact, belong to her, I’m thankful she’s no longer going to be driving this hazard around.
I bend down and rest my hands against the window to peer inside, but I see nothing unusual. The car is empty, but logically, I didn’t expect to find her inside.
As I round the front of the car, I pull out my phone and take a quick snapshot of the number plate before returning to the limousine.
Once I’m reseated in the car, I text Antonio the image. “Find out who owns this,” I mutter.
I’m at my club today. I own this place as well as the hotel, which are both entirely above board. I have reputable people whom I trust to manage the day-to-day operations of my family’s various establishments in Sydney. However, I’m still responsible for overseeing all the major decisions.
I can’t be in ten places at once, so I divide my time between the family’s businesses when I’m not focused on my investments. Staying deeply involved is essential, especially since my father is using his pubs, restaurants, brothels, and strip clubs to launder illicit money. Am I happy about it? No. But truth be told, this part of his operation is the lesser evil. The drugs, arms dealing, and violence are things I want no part of.
I do my best to maintain a respectable reputation and follow the law as much as my family connections will allow.
When we discovered the previous accountant had been stealing from us, I offered to move to Sydney and take control of it all. I’ve been living here for thirteen years now. It was the only way I could get my father to loosen his grip on me, so to speak, my chance to get out of my hometown and away from the mob—at least to some extent. I no longer have to deal with the daily chaos that comes with being tangled up in Giovanni Mancini’s world.
My father is intelligent, but I like to think I’m smarter. I’m also not as impulsive. I govern with my mind, not my emotions. His obsession with himself—his power, his sense of superiority—is his greatest weakness, as far as I’m concerned.
When someone knocks on my office door, I close the folder before me and call out, “Come in.”
I hope it’s Antonio with the information I’ve been seeking. Although he couldn’t do much last night, he assured me he would get on it first thing this morning.
When I got home from our spur-of-the-moment drive around the city, sleep wouldn’t come. I tossed and turned all night. If the abandoned car doesn’t turn out to be hers, I’ll have to rethink my next move. But she’s under my skin now, and I won’t stop until I find her. I don’t have a plan beyond uncovering who she is, but I’ll figure it out along the way.
I need to find her first.
The door opens, and my lips thin as soon as I see who it is. Ava. She’s one of the barmaids here.
I may have been okay with her impromptu visit if it was yesterday, but not now. My mind is preoccupied with a pretty brunette with the whisky-coloured eyes.
Ava first caught my eye a few months ago when she started working here. She’s a leggy blonde with big blue eyes and a killer rack. Her tits are fake, but that doesn’t turn me off in the slightest. She’s still pleasant to look at.
It’s rare for me to hook up with someone on my payroll, but after being propositioned by her numerous times, I finally relented and summoned her to my office last week.
Since I’m familiar with her type, I made sure she knew the deal from the start. She was a good time, nothing more. I’ve had women try to trap me before, so I’m always transparent about my intentions going in. If they know the score upfront, there’s no room for misunderstandings, and nobody ends up hurt.
Ava twirls a lock of blonde hair around her finger and bats her long lashes, which I’m guessing are as fake as her tits.
“Hi, boss man,” she coos before dropping to her knees. When she starts to crawl towards my desk with prowess, my dick doesn’t even react. Like me, he’s less than impressed.
In that position, her blouse puckers, giving me an ample view of the intricate lace covering her tits. Even the sight of that pisses me off because it’s lace and not inexpensive cotton.
Have I lost my goddamn mind?
I grate my back teeth together, snapping, “Get up. ”
Her eyes widen slightly, and she pauses for the briefest moment before continuing forward … completely ignoring my command. That only angers me further. What is it with these disobedient women lately?
When she pouts her bottom lip, I stand, round my desk and reach down to grasp her elbow. “How did you get past my security?” I ask, helping her to her feet.
“I told them you wanted to see me.”
I arch an eyebrow, unimpressed. “So you lied?”
The fact that she was let in without checking with me first means someone’s head will roll. This is the kind of incompetence that puts lives at risk.
She grasps my tie, tugging on it slightly. “You seemed to enjoy having my lips wrapped around your cock last week, so I thought you might be interested in a redo … I know I am.”
I’ve yet to release my hold on her, so I turn and march across the room, bringing her with me.
When I fling the door open, Marco swings around in my direction. The look I give him is enough to let him know I’m unhappy. “Escort Miss Reynolds out of the building?—”
Ava gasps, cutting me off. “You’re firing me?”
My attention remains on Marco. “Tell Carissa I want to speak with her.”
Carissa is in charge of the bar staff here, so technically, Ava’s boss. I need to let her know she will be a woman down tonight.
“Sure thing, boss,” Marco says. “She told me you were expecting her.”
“She lied.”
“Fuck,” he mumbles under his breath. “I’m sorry, Mr Mancini, I thought?—”
“You thought wrong,” I growl. “I’ll deal with you later.”
He swallows thickly and nods, but I’m still confused by his actions. He’s one of my best men, so I don’t understand why he’d take Ava’s word and send her in. A mistake like that in my world could cost lives.
Marco takes Ava off my hands, and I slam my office door in their faces, stalking back to my desk.
I drop heavily into my leather chair and lean back, rubbing a hand over my face. I should’ve known better than to get involved with her, so I’m as much to blame as anyone. I’ll get a sense of what she’s like as an employee from Carissa before deciding what to do. The last thing I need is a lawsuit on my hands.
My phone dings in my pocket, and I briefly consider ignoring it but decide against it. Complacency is a luxury I can’t afford.
I slide my phone out of my pocket and glance down at the screen, seeing a message from Antonio. The single word it contains has me leaping to my feet.
Antonio: Bingo!