Chapter 6
Alexsey
One tough woman.
That was what had been running through my mind since the morning I’d met her. Which seemed much longer than it had actually been.
Not only was she tough in her physical abilities, but mentally and emotionally as well. In the limited time I’d known her, I’d been allowed to see and feel just a small portion of her fractured life.
A rough and very dangerous job.
Dealing with the grief of a dead husband killed on the job.
Raising a sick child on her own.
Serious money concerns, including the dilapidated house she was living in.
And an overbearing brother-in-law acting as if I was the devil dressed in Armani.
Well, a part of the last thought was true.
When the asshole had manhandled her, it had taken every ounce of control not to explain to him in explicit detail that he needed to learn how to treat a woman with respect.
Only the flash of her eyes had kept me from slamming his head on the bar.
The last remaining men who’d been determined to beat my ass finally returned to their seats, but not before tossing me angry glares.
I took my time heading toward the bar and several empty barstools where four patrons surrounded them, acting as if they weren’t going to allow me to sit down.
I glanced from one to another, doing nothing more than lifting an eyebrow.
“Let him sit down,” Halle gritted out, still refusing to take any shit.
I did so adore a woman with spirit.
They finally backed away, but I’d be damned if at least two of them didn’t growl like some big bad wolves.
I was highly amused, but said nothing before sliding onto the barstool.
She didn’t bother asking me what I wanted, instead grabbing a bottle of whiskey and a clean glass.
She thumped the tumbler down with enough force I was surprised she didn’t break it.
Her pour was long, her expression full of anger and her eyes full of spite. But… There was also an electric pulse created between us that even she couldn’t deny was real.
However, I’d learned a long time ago to be very careful with allowing my guard to fall around any woman.
I’d had my share of gold diggers and even women used for the purpose of obtaining information just as Mikhail had warned more than once.
Right now, the past and all red flags just didn’t seem to matter.
Maybe it was the way she handled herself in dangerous situations.
Maybe it was the fact she wasn’t impressed by anything I’d said, or who I was.
Maybe it was her voluptuous mouth and the way it twitched.
Maybe it was the way she looked at me, the intense fire that burned deep within.
Or maybe it was everything about her.
Whatever the reason, I’d never desired another woman as I did the beautiful brunette with the luminous green eyes.
“Your whiskey, Mr. Dmitriyev.” She shoved the glass across the bar, almost daring me to drink it.
“Remember. We’re friends. You said so yourself. So it’s Alexsey.”
She sighed because I’d won the round. “Fine. Alexsey. By the way. You can’t go around acting like you’re going to go napalm on people, especially around here.”
“Napalm?”
The roll of her eyes was adorable. “You know exactly what I mean.”
“I can tell the owner of the bar doesn’t like me very much.”
“Don’t kid yourself, Alexsey. No one likes Russians in this part of Vegas. Hopefully, that’s not something I need to tell you.”
Chuckling, I shifted my glass back and forth. “Understood and accepted. That still doesn’t make it right to treat women as objects.”
“Trust me, Alexsey. Contrary to seeing me breaking down earlier, I can take care of myself.”
“Of that I have no doubt.” She was very much on edge. Life had done that to her. For whatever crazy reason, I wanted to make it much better. I knew why both Mikhail and Vissarian were concerned, but right now, I didn’t care.
“What are you doing here?”
“You seem to continuously ask me the same question.” I took a gulp of whiskey and resisted spitting it out. Disgusting shit in comparison to my scotch. Meanwhile, there wasn’t a pair of eyes in the bar that wasn’t glaring at the two of us.
Including her brother-in-law. I’d read as much as I’d been able to find on Liam and her deceased husband Sean.
Liam was deeply in debt. The neighborhood bar should have closed a couple of years before.
Plus, it would seem he had a gambling habit.
That was my instinct telling me and not solid information.
With a wife and three kids, one being a special needs child, and with almost no money in the bank, he was a prime target for the Papadakis regime.
I’d also paid closer attention to the rumors whispered by limited informants who worked in everyday jobs.
The O’Leary family was as close to being a crime syndicate as it came without having the notoriety.
They bossed people around. They used their connections to get what they wanted.
But they weren’t on anyone’s radar, including law enforcement.
“Because it seems as if you’re stalking me.”
Her words dripped of both antagonism and a quirky longing for the conversation to continue. “I hardly think dropping by my favorite bar for a drink constitutes stalking you, but I appreciate the nod.”
She offered an unexpected laugh, which was deep, husky, and instantly drove my cock against my zipper. “Your favorite bar, huh? I guess that’s why you were so well received when you walked in.”
I shrugged in response. “Maybe I rub some people the wrong way.”
Folding her arms, she leaned across the bar. “Wrong way? You reek of the kind of money these people can only dream of. Did you bring your fancy-dancy sports car down here, because if you did, I can assure you that once you leave, you’ll have four missing tires. They’ll bring a pretty penny.”
Laughing around her was easier than I’d expected. So was the heavy bantering. “My fancy-dancy car happens to be in my mechanic’s shop thanks to an unruly woman.”
“Unruly?” She lifted both eyebrows. “You’ve got balls, buddy. Maybe I should have allowed the flames to feast on you instead of saving you.”
“It’s a shame such an interesting, talented, and very beautiful woman is so angry.
” Was I fishing for information? I was. I could have Alessandro provide a complete dossier on her.
Where she’d been born. Where she’d gone to school and her grades from day one.
I could learn about her eating habits and what purchases she made on .
I could discover hospital records about her and her daughter. There was nothing I couldn’t find out, including if she was being paid by her brother-in-law or someone else to interfere with my life. Perhaps ultimately using her feminine wiles to get me to lower my guard.
But if the latter was the case, she was going about it in a very creative way.
Of course, that only made me want to peel away her layers, exposing the darkness she was hiding inside that had little to do with her struggles and everything to do with her.
I sensed her needs, urges that she never took the time to fulfill.
Maybe I was blowing things out of proportion or reading into the situation because I wanted that to be the case, but I was willing to face continued rejection to find out.
Because one day she’d learn that it was impossible to turn away from me once I’d set my sights on something.
Or someone.
“I have my reasons.”
“Your daughter.”
She wrinkled her nose and I noticed a momentary slip in her guard.
“Yes. Why is it insurance companies can be such a pain in the ass? They don’t come through when you need them.
They refuse to answer questions. When you can get a representative on the phone, they give you the runaround and act like it’s your fault. ”
I fingered the glass, studying her face as she looked away. Her eyes were haunted. “Sometimes I believe they need a special course designed for insurance representatives. You know something like Customer Service 101 for Dummies.”
My suggestion completely surprised her and I was rewarded with a short laugh that floated into the air. Even her eyes danced briefly from my attempt at a joke. Which I sucked at.
“You’re so right. I could teach the course.”
“Is this about Emily? I mean if you don’t mind me asking.”
I could tell she needed to busy herself or didn’t like the fact she was enjoying our conversation.
She grabbed a rag and started wiping away nonexistent dirt or liquid on the bar’s surface.
“That’s bad enough given the cost of the inhalers, but this is about my dead husband’s estate.
With the way he died, there’s a suit about faulty equipment that’s been dragging on for months.
They won’t release his life insurance while the lawsuit continues. But I can tell that’s boring you.”
I sensed she was admonishing herself for opening up to a man she acted as if she couldn’t stand.
“Nothing you could ever say could bore me, Halle.”
She lifted her gaze, searching my eyes to see if I was being genuine, finally offering a half smile.
“I thought the company was ready to settle. It’s testy since I still work for the fire department that Liam’s family sued.
I understand their reasoning, but I didn’t want that and Sean wouldn’t have. ”
“But you need the money.”
“I do,” she admitted. “But even if the check came through, I’d feel like that was blood money. I really would. I feel like it was my fault he died.”
“How so?”
She was struggling, even glancing over her shoulder as if concerned that Liam was watching us closely. “It’s nothing. You’re a stranger and I’m no hero.”
The way she lifted her eyebrows was as if daring me to respond otherwise.
“That’s where you’re wrong, Halle. What you did in saving my life almost no one else would even consider. I will be eternally grateful for your kindness, your professionalism, and the fact that you’re one tough woman. To my beautiful heroine.” I lifted my glass in a toast.