Chapter 19 | Alexis
Alexis
It took me a few days to realize Nick was avoiding me. I wasn’t sure why he’d suddenly vanished from my life, but I knew one thing: it pissed the hell out of me.
One evening, a few nights after we returned home, Michael, Mom and I were having dinner as he glanced at his phone.
“What’s wrong?” Mom asked.
“I thought Nick might stop by for dinner before he headed to the club, but he texted me that he already ate.”
“Does Nick work at your nightclubs now?” I asked, annoyed that jealousy was snaking up my spine. The thought of Nick spending his nights at clubs with gorgeous, half-naked women didn’t sit well with me at all.
“We’ve had some issues with our liquor licenses and other permits, although things are smoother now that John’s gone,” Michael said. “But now that we’ve moved on to monitoring the bratva, you can’t be too careful.”
I nodded, pushing my food around my plate since it suddenly tasted like cardboard. “He’s been working so much. You all leave pretty early when you visit the docks, and I know you’ve sent him to some meetings in the Bronx with Sal’s contacts.”
“Our very own IT specialist, monitoring our whereabouts,” Michael teased.
“Actually, I need to update you on the dark net private forums. There’s some suspicious activity coming out of Eastern Europe. The IPs are traced to various countries around the world like Poland, South Korea and Brazil, but it could be connected to Sergey Kersna’s organization.”
Michae’s eyes narrowed. “What kind of activity?”
“An uptick in dark web illegal ecommerce drug sites that trade in Bitcoin.”
“Now in English, please,” Michael said, glancing at Mom as she grinned.
“Basically, these are dark net sites where people can order fentanyl, heroin, LSD and all the other crap I know you’re trying to control—well, as best you can,” I said with a shrug.
“I can continue to monitor it. The uptick isn’t too alarming for now, but if word gets out that you’ve eliminated human trafficking, Sergey is going to need to find other avenues to replace that income. ”
“Noted.” Michael sighed. “I agree with Sal. The world was easier when we had no technology and we just sold drugs in person like normal people.”
“Dear, that’s far from normal,” Bianca said, patting his hand.
“Touché,” he responded with a wink.
“I can sit down with Nick to go over things if you’d rather stay away from the tech stuff,” I said, trying to think of some excuse that would allow me access to the person I missed terribly. “He wasn’t born in the stone age so he might get it quicker.”
“You can’t be a sexy silver fox if you haven’t been around for a while,” Michael said, tapping the gray hair at his temple.
Mom glanced over at me and muttered, “He’s never going to let that one go.”
Grinning, I tilted my head. “The gray is pretty hot. I’ll give you that. But whatever,” I said, trying to sound nonchalant. “If Nick wants to go over it, we can, or I can keep monitoring things and just make sure to update you.”
“Let’s do that,” Michael said with a nod. “Nick’s been...distracted since you all got back. I’d be worried, but he gets like that sometimes. He’s always functioned just as well alone as he does with others around.”
“That’s because he got teased in school for his dyslexia. Kids can be jerks. I get it because I never really fit in either.”
Michael’s eyebrows lifted. “I’m surprised he told you that. He doesn’t confide in many people.”
“Well, when you’re stuck together for weeks, you learn to talk to each other.”
Michael’s dark eyes studied me, a latent curiosity in the depths. “Mmm.”
“Dinner was great, but I’m full,” I said, rising. “I’m going to head upstairs and continue working on my LinkedIn profile. Google isn’t going to hire me if I don’t get that done.”
“I’m so proud of you,” Mom said, patting my arm.
I smiled at her, hoping she wouldn’t notice it didn’t reach my eyes. I’d really hoped to see Nick at dinner and felt despondent that he hadn’t appeared.
Once I was upstairs, I worked on my profile and resume for a while before lying down and closing my eyes. Bringing my hand to cup my breast, I remembered how Nick had touched me in the bathtub after I’d fainted. He’d caressed me with such reverence as emotion and desire laced his expression.
“It was real, Alexis,” I whispered, running my thumb over my nipple above the fabric of my tank top, wishing it was his roughened skin. “You’re not crazy.”
Lying there in the dim light, I wondered what the hell to do when the man who consumed your every thought refused to talk to you...
Nick
I stood in the loud club, wishing I was anywhere but here.
Hell, at this point, I wished I was back in the shitty cabin with Alexis.
At least there, I’d been trapped with a beautiful, witty woman who didn’t make the room feel like it was closing in.
Hooking my finger in my collar, I tugged, needing room to breathe.
“Hey, Nick,” a sultry voice said, and I turned to see Scarlett beside me.
She’d started dancing at the club years ago, and I’d been smitten by her as a man in my mid-twenties who worked hard and had zero desire for a relationship.
Her platinum blond hair, blue eyes and killer body made her look like an OnlyFans model, and that had worked for me at the time.
We’d eased into a friends-with-benefits situation that held little substance beside sex.
That had been fine for my twenty-five-year-old self. Now, I much preferred a woman with some curves...one who had a stunning smile and green eyes...
Annoyed that I was now comparing every woman to Alexis, I returned my attention to Scarlett. “Hey, Scar. How’s it going?”
“Okay,” she said, chewing gum as she scanned the room. “Busy night, which is good. My personal life, on the other hand? Not so great. Ryan and I broke up.”
“Sorry to hear that,” I said, cupping her shoulder. “You two seemed to really hit it off.”
“Eh, he’s a deadbeat, and he hated that I wouldn’t stop dancing for him.” She gestured around the room. “I mean, I’m going to make two grand tonight, and he was a mechanic. What the hell was I supposed to do?”
“True love doesn’t pay the bills,” I said, grinning.
“Damn right it doesn’t.” Her eyes roved over me and landed on the band-aid that peeked out beneath my suit jacket. “Collateral damage? I heard about you getting snatched with Bianca Rossi’s daughter.”
“It’s just a scratch,” I said, lowering my jacket over the bandage. “Just another day in paradise in my line of work.”
She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing as she studied me. “You look...different. More...settled, but angry at the same time. What’s that about?”
“Couldn’t tell you.” I shrugged. “It’s been a long few months with Victor’s death, and then John’s death, and Michael taking over the Rossi organization. I think I’m just tired.”
Her teeth played with her lip as she pondered. “If you need to get laid, I’m available. Haven’t been with anyone since Ryan. I don’t really trust men...” She ran her ruby red fingernail over the back of my hand atop the bar. “But I know I can trust you.”
I waited for my dick to get the message. Hell, it had always gotten the message around Scarlett. She’d been a walking wet dream to me years ago, but now, I couldn’t feel my body react at all. Perplexed, I gently encircled her hand and placed it on the bar beside mine.
“Sorry, Scar. I think that ship has sailed for us. I hope you find someone you can trust. You deserve to be happy.”
Her eyes grew wide. “Wow. You’re turning down sex. I’m worried.”
Laughing, I picked up my water and took a sip. “I’m just...not in that space right now.”
“Not in that space,” she repeated, her tone suspicious. “Does this have anything to do with Alexis Rossi? You two were holed up together for a while, and if she looks anything like Bianca, she’s bound to be gorgeous.”
If you only knew. The words flew through my head, and I inwardly told myself to shut up. Relaying my feelings for Alexis was the fastest way to get her killed.
“She’s a spoiled brat,” I said, the words almost sticking in my throat at their blatant falsity. “I did my duty and she’s going to get a job at some fancy company in the city and break free of this world.”
“Good for her,” Scarlett said, scanning the room. “Tell her to take me with her.”
Chuckling, I nodded. “I’ll see if she has an opening.”
Scarlett assessed me one last time, her eyes completing a slow trek over my face. Leaning forward, she whispered, “You know, you’re a pretty bad liar for someone in the mafia. That’s something you need to work on if you’re going to take over for Michael.”
Scowling, I remained silent and chugged another gulp of water.
“Good for you. Everybody deserves to find love. I found it with Ryan, for a while, and hope like hell I’ll find it again. Wish me luck.”
She winked before turning and sauntering back toward the main dance floor.
Her ass swayed in her skimpy outfit, and I remembered how hot I’d been for her.
Now, I just wanted to be in sweats with Alexis—while she wore those tight-as-hell yoga pants—and watch the gay hockey romance I pretended to hate.
Man, I’d really gone off the deep end.
Determined to get back to work and focus like a normal person, I ordered another glass of water and resumed watching the room for anything suspicious.