Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Our week is a whirlwind of flights, undercover work, and dodging calls from my brother.
I don’t even bother to listen to the dozens of messages that have filled up my voicemail, but it seems that the only other clubs that were compromised were the ones in Tucson, Arizona and San Antonio, Texas, which makes sense, both are close to the Mexican border.
I didn’t interfere with either club, not wanting to show my hand to Lorenzo.
I want to make sure he is out of the way before I go in and dismantle the operations there.
I also don’t have enough trusted staff to put in place.
I tasked Lacey with discretely interviewing new staff for both locations.
She has flourished and is taking to the roll like a boss girl.
I think I’ll probably offer her the job to oversee all locations to free up more of my time, but first, I need to deal with my uncle.
I didn’t get a chance to check out the Black Rose in Vegas, and by the time we arrive at Suncity, I’m pissed off and just a little murderous.
I consider heading home, but when I spoke to Suzy earlier in the week, she confirmed Gio moved his friends into the house.
I decided a night at the Lucky Diamond to get my emotions in check would be beneficial.
Thankfully she had gotten their last name, so Maeve’s Irish connections are busy doing a deep dive into their background.
“Ugh, it’s good to be home,” Sage says as he throws himself onto one of the couches in the presidential suite of the hotel. “I’m itching to get my hands on my plants.”
Sage has been so patient. A couple of times, he had to distract me from my murderous tendencies and did so by fucking my brains out.
I’m not sure why I didn’t explore men as a sexual outlet earlier.
I let Stacey get all up in my head when I could have been enjoying all the pleasures a male body has to offer.
“We will head home tomorrow. I just needed to catch up on a few things here before I get distracted by Gio and all his drama again,” I murmur, pouring us both a drink from the wet bar and joining him on the couch.
I pass him his drink as he puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his side. “What are you going to do about Gio?” he asks and I give him a small shrug of my shoulders.
“Not much I can do, is there? Short of killing them, I’m just going to have to accept they are now living in our house.”
“You would kill them?” he asks without judgment.
“I mean, sure, if they were a danger to us. I’m still waiting to hear back from Mickey and Maeve.”
“But don’t you have feelings for them?” he asks, and I turn to look at him when I hear the concern in his voice.
“Feelings of attraction. The four of them are sexy, and Vienna does this thing with her tongue that makes me see stars, but not anything deeper. I barely know them,” I reply, studying his expression for his reaction.
His lips turn down in disappointment. “Did you catch feelings already?” I ask, unable to hide the surprise in my voice.
He shrugs and avoids meeting my eyes as he takes a sip of his drink.
“They are okay,” he hedges, but my heart sinks. Ah shit. Sage is such a fucking softy, and he already caught feelings. I can tell.
“Well, don’t let me stop you if you want to spend more time with them,” I say, standing up and downing the rest of my drink.
There’s a rush of jealousy inside me, and I don’t like how it feels.
Who am I to demand anything of him? I’m not the most emotionally available, and I can tell he needs more than I’m giving him at the moment.
All of this shit is getting to me. I need to put some distance between me and Sage before I inevitably put my foot in my mouth by saying something to upset him.
“Why don’t you get some sleep or even head out, and I’ll meet you back at the house tomorrow?
I’ll probably be busy for the rest of the day, and I don’t want to stop you from returning to your plants or the others.
” I try to hide the hurt in my voice, so it comes out harsher than I wanted it to.
I hoped to sound like I didn’t care, but from the wince on his face, I don’t think I succeed.
“I’ll catch up with you later,” I tell him, not waiting for a reply before leaving the suite and heading to my office.
My heart races, and my palms sweat as I move through my hotel.
It’s early morning, and I would love to climb into bed, but I have some work I want to get done in my office.
I didn’t get any sleep on the flight from Texas, too busy mulling over everything we discovered on our little tour.
There is only a week until the merchandise Lorenzo was talking about is moved, and I need to find out everything Sam and Dean discovered.
They are coming in to brief me later, but I want to go over the previous week’s operations of the hotel and casino.
I don’t have time for the abundance of annoying emotions that are plaguing my body.
I have to lock that shit down and focus on the most important task at hand, and that is keeping control of the Russo family and making sure Lorenzo pays for attempting a hostile takeover.
A few staff members say, “Good morning,” and I give them a polite nod in return, but I don’t stop like I usually do.
When I enter the office area, the secretary that looks after both me and Bryce isn’t in yet, and I let out a small sigh of relief.
I don’t really have the mental capacity for small talk this morning.
Taking a seat at my desk, I begin catching up on reports from the previous week.
I’m going to be busy with other family stuff for a while, and I don’t want to get behind on the legitimate part of our businesses.
I’m deep in concentration when my door bangs open, and when I look up at the clock, I realize I’ve been hard at work for three hours. My lips purse in annoyance when I catch sight of Penelope at the door, but then I do a double take when she tows a small child in behind her.
“Who the fuck trusted you with a small human?” I ask dryly, leaning back in my chair as she waltzes into my office, gently tugging the small child with her.
The little girl with curly strawberry blond hair skips happily next to her and climbs up into one of the chairs in front of my desk while Penelope elegantly lowers herself into the other.
“You said a swear word,” she lisps, her eyes wide with amazement. “Grandfather says ladies aren’t supposed to swear.” I blink, not sure if I’m surprised at her comprehension or her conversational skills despite the lisp. Aren’t children mute until they are in school?
“Tori, watch your language,” Penelope scolds with no heat in her tone, and I become suspicious.
What does she want now? “Addison is Mario’s grandchild, and he asked me to take care of her today while her nanny is indisposed.
” Her nose wrinkles at the words, and when I turn my attention from the freckled faced child to my ex-stepmother, I’m surprised at what I see.
Penelope looks tired. She has big circles under her eyes and looks like she may have lost some weight.
There are also lines around her mouth and eyes, which indicate she’s not attending her ritual Botox appointments.
I watch as she pulls her phone out of her handbag and hands it to the small child who claps her hands with joy.
“Thanks, Penny. Grandfather never lets me play games.” The words rush out of her mouth with excitement as she takes the phone and focuses her full attention on the screen.
My mouth almost falls open in shock as Penelope reaches out and brushes a ringlet back from the child’s face, her eyes softening with what looks like some kind of maternal emotion. I clear my throat to get her attention.
“And he trusted her with you. Let’s be real, you aren’t exactly a maternal candidate of the year.”
She huffs out a breath of annoyance, but her eyes loose the softness and become a little more wary. “When your dad and I got together, you were already old enough not to need or want a mother figure. I thought it would be best if I kept my distance.”
Distance? I scoff. What explains her downright pettiness?
“But Addi is still a baby, and to be honest, that woman who calls herself a nanny is nasty. Look at the bruises on poor Addi’s arm.
Someone has been squeezing her too tightly.
” Penelope lowers her voice and nods in the direction of the child’s arm, and I see a shadow of bruises on her upper arm that is fully on display in the sleeveless dress she wears.
I feel a rush of anger at the sight but control my expression so Penelope doesn’t suspect I have a soft spot.
I study the girl a little closer. The dress she’s wearing is old-fashioned as fuck, paired with a pair of pristine white socks with frilly lace around the top and shiny black leather Mary Janes.
She looks like little orphan Annie after Daddy Warbucks had gotten his hooks into her.
“Where are her parents? Does Mario know about the nanny?” I ask, and when Penelope’s eyes sparkle, I realize I’ve fallen into her trap. Showing too much interest in the small human is going to bite me in the ass. I stifle a groan, though, not wanting to let her know she won.
She waves her hand. “Mario is fucking the nanny, so I don’t think he cares.
” My eyebrows jump at her breezy response.
I thought she was fucking Mario, but she doesn’t seem too concerned.
She sees my response and scowls. “Mario is into some shit that I don’t want to do.
” She shudders. “And if he’s doing that with the nanny, then I don’t have to,” she snaps, looking at the child to make sure she isn’t paying attention, but the little girl is completely in her own world.
From the noises on the phone, I’m assuming she’s playing some kind of game.