Chapter 7
SEVEN
Hades
All it took was one night of being with Capri to make me destroy the years of peace I had accomplished.
I had been in a good place before she blew into my life like an erratic hurricane.
I could have evacuated, but instead, I stood in her path.
And now, I had to determine how much destruction my infatuation with her had caused.
She may have been the hurricane, but the storm was far from over. When Leo realized who his daughter had been spending her time with, I had to brace myself for a tsunami. It was perfect for me that I had skilled allies to help with the aftermath.
“Hades.” Zeus Regas waved me down from a secluded booth in the VIP area of my club. “Over here.”
He stood when I joined him at his table and shook my hand.
“Atticus said you wanted to meet with me,” Zeus said.
“Thank you for coming.” I sat across from him. “Do you need a refill on your drink?”
“I’m fine for now.” He placed his hand over his glass. “I have a feeling whatever you’d like to discuss should probably be done with a sober mind.”
Zeus and I had worked together many times over the years. He provided top-notch security and the utmost discretion when it came to completing complicated jobs. His background was in pulling off dangerous heists for high-end clients, so his expertise was not only impeccable but extremely useful.
“I may require your assistance,” I said.
“Does it have something to do with that beautiful woman sitting at the bar waiting patiently for you?”
“Doesn’t it always have something to do with a beautiful woman sitting at a bar?” I rested my chin on my knuckles. “That particular woman comes with a unique set of complications, and I want to be prepared.”
“I’m listening.”
“She’s Leonardo Ferrante’s daughter.”
“No shit.” He took a long, slow sip of his drink as he glanced at Capri. “I know you’re a daring son of a bitch, but…” He finished his drink. “That’s pretty bold.”
“She sought me out.”
“Did Ferrante send her?” he asked.
“I considered the possibility, but there would be no reason for him to seek me out now, and if he did want to rehash the past, I don’t believe he would send his daughter to me.”
“You have the best instincts of anyone I’ve ever worked with, so if you think she’s legit, then I’m not going to argue.”
“Believe me, Atticus is still digging, but as I said, I need to be prepared for what Leo does once he finds out Capri is staying in my house.”
“Oh, well…hmm.” He laughed. “That’s one way to get revenge.”
“I’m not particularly sure that’s what I want with her, but I’m not going to show all my cards.
” I winked at Capri when she smiled at me from the bar.
“For now, I need you to be available. I’m not certain if your services will be required here or if I’ll need to bring the fight to New York, but I wanted to make sure you were in. ”
“Hades, I’m always in when it comes to you.” He nodded. “This one will be interesting.”
“I’ll be in touch.” I stood. “Order dinner. The filet is exceptional tonight.”
“I will, thanks.”
I took my time strolling across the room, smiling and waving at my guests.
No one took out a phone to take a picture, which meant that Atticus had made it clear to anyone who came in tonight that photos of me were not permitted.
We wouldn’t be able to hide from Leo forever, but if I prolonged our picture from hitting social media long enough for me to see where Capri and I were headed, that would be for the best.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, little minnow.” I sat down next to her. “Business.”
“That’s okay.” When she swiveled her barstool so she could face me, I took in her long, tanned legs from her upper thighs all the way down to those sexy, red shoes. The ones she bought to commemorate losing her virginity. “Andrew kept my glass full, and I’ve been texting with my mother.”
“I take it your parents know you’re not coming home today?”
“My mother managed to convince my father to let me stay.”
After she sipped her prosecco, she licked her top lip. I leaned forward and kissed her, because I couldn’t resist.
“What was that for?” she asked.
The blush in her cheeks intrigued me. She had been so bold the first night I met her, I wasn’t aware that a quick public display of affection would embarrass her.
“I don’t need a reason.” I glided my hand under her short skirt and rested it between her legs. “Do I need your permission?”
She glanced between her legs, and then met my gaze. “No.”
“That’s the only answer I would have accepted.” I circled my fingers along her inner thigh. “I like the dress.”
“Thank you.”
“All of the dresses I’ve seen you in have a unique flair to them. It’s almost as if they were made for you.”
“I love that you said that.” Her whole face beamed with pride. “They are all made for me. Well, by me actually.”
“What?”
“I design dresses and I work with a seamstress to create them.” She ran her finger around the rim of her glass. “It’s a hobby.”
“It seems that it’s more than a hobby, or at least it should be.”
“Too bad you weren’t in my life when I started college. I could have used your input.”
“Why?”
“I wanted to major in fashion design. I mean, I’m at NYU and I live in Manhattan. It seemed like a no-brainer.”
“What happened?” I continued to touch her soft skin underneath her skirt. “Why did you change your mind?”
“I didn’t.” She traced her finger along the tattoo under my thumb that extended to my wrist. “My father thought the hospitality industry was more practical, and since he was paying, I had to agree.”
Oh, Leonardo, you’re making my job so much easier.
“I still got to go to NYU and he pays for the seamstress, so it was a win.”
“You should have been able to choose what you wanted to major in.”
“You know my dad.” She tossed her wavy curls over her shoulder, revealing her plunging neckline. “He gets what he wants.”
So do I.
“Speaking of that,” she said. “I have to leave the day after tomorrow.”
That’s not going to work. I let her continue as I pondered how I wanted to play this.
“My father is holding a reception in the city on Friday night, and I have to be there.” She shrugged. “He’s hosting some important associates, and he has insisted that I come home for it.”
“I see.”
“I promised my mother I would be there, because that was how I got her to help me stay these extra days. She said I should have some fun before I’m expected back.”
“I guess I owe Gia a thank you for letting me have you for a few more days,” I said.
“You’re not mad?”
“I would never expect you to go back on your word to your mother.” Being a liar is more your father’s style. “We’re just going to have to make the most of these two days.”
Letting her go home so soon wasn’t in my plan, but it was a hurdle I would overcome.
It would give me an opportunity to figure out how I would get her back to Greece.
According to Atticus, she would finish school a semester early.
I had to find a reason to get her here before school started in the fall.
I had him looking into online classes for her to complete her degree.
“What do you have in mind?” she asked.
I slipped my fingers inside her panties and ran them along her bare mound. She bit her bottom lip and stared at me with her wide, intuitive eyes, daring me to go further.
“You’ll have to come to the house and stay with me.”
“You want me to leave the hotel?”
“Yes,” I whispered into her ear. “I need you in my bed for the things I have planned.”
“I can do that.”
“Good girl.” I removed my hand from under her dress and trailed it up the side of her body. “I’m going to kiss you in front of all these people.”
“You’re asking?”
“No.” I brushed my fingers along her neck before capturing the side of her face in my palm. “I’m warning you.”
“That’s considerate of you.” She dropped her gaze to my lips. “But for the next forty-eight hours I’m yours, so you can do whatever you want.”
“You’re going to be mine a lot longer than that.” I leaned into her face. “And I do intend to do whatever I want with you.”
Drifting my lips across hers, I tasted the sweet, fruity essence of prosecco on them before tilting my head to the side and kissing her. As our tongues mingled, our lips molded into one another, creating the perfect fit.
I pulled back, still holding her face in my palm, trying not to forget myself. I wasn’t known for kissing so intimately in public.
“I smeared your lipstick.” I swiped my finger underneath her bottom lip, wiping the smudge away.
“You’re the sexiest man I’ve ever…” She looked over my shoulder to the other side of the bar.
“What is it?” I asked.
“That man.”
Just as I turned, a man sitting alone looked down at his phone, avoiding eye contact. I didn’t recognize him, but it didn’t mean that he wasn’t supposed to be in this lounge. A few of my associates often extended their privilege of being in the VIP lounge to guests.
“What about him?” I asked. “Do you know him?”
“No, but he took our picture,” she said. “He pretended he was taking a selfie but the phone wasn’t at the right angle. He was taking it of us.”
“Are you sure?”
“I know how to take a selfie. I also know when men are checking me out.”
“Well, we can’t have that, can we?” I motioned for Atticus to come over.
“What are you going to do?” She crossed her legs. “It’s a public place. He can take our picture, right?”
“Not if I say he can’t.”
“Is there a problem?” Atticus asked.
“Who is that man at the bar over there?” I nodded in the amateur photographer’s direction. “The one in the black shirt.”
“I haven’t seen him here before, but I can ask at the front door what name he gave when he arrived,” Atticus said. “What did he do?”
“He’s a creeper,” Capri replied as she nodded. “Maybe a stalker.”
“You would know a little about that.” I smirked. “Wouldn’t you?”
“That was different.” She adjusted the bottom of her dress. “I was on a mission.”
“Maybe he is too.” I waved over a couple of my men who stood by the patio doors that led to an outside bar. “He violated tonight’s no-photograph policy.”