Chapter 27 – Moretti
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Moretti
Vanessa once again looks like a wet dream. She’s in a black dress with a silver belt or sash that ties into a bow in the back. The dress is tight up top, flaring below the waist. It perfectly accentuates her curves while seeming low effort and playful.
She doesn’t seem to understand that we’re in the middle of winter, but she brings a knee-length peacoat at my prodding. Silver strappy heels weave up her ankles, and they’ll help make it possible if I decide to bend her over my desk following my meeting.
I’d really like to slide inside her again before handing her off to Magnum for the night, but I also don’t want her to overdo it.
She’s having waves of heat regularly every night, and that’s a solid indication that her heat will hit sooner rather than later.
Hopefully her system will give her at least a few days to recuperate before throwing her into the deep end with knotting, rut, and alpha cum.
I’m not great at sharing, but I will make an effort for Vanessa. It’s nearly impossible for one alpha to meet the needs of an omega in heat, and I’ll gain no joy from watching her suffer. At the same time, I have no idea how I’ll cope once the heat is over.
I suppose I’ll just have to figure it out.
I don’t think my wife would stand for anything less.
Hawk sits in the middle row, facing us, as Vanessa and I ride in the back of the SUV. He spent all day with her, but I don’t have cameras in the nest or pack bedroom, so the majority of what they did today is a mystery.
Seeing him give her gifts left me unsure how I was feeling.
He selected items specifically for her comfort, while I’ve focused on items to wow her, and now I’m wondering if I’ve taken the wrong approach.
There is a certain level of upkeep required to maintain the status quo, but I don’t pay much attention to that.
My gifts are to show her that she deserves nice things and proof to everyone that I’m proud to have her at my side. She has a few pieces that were passed down to her from her mother, but it doesn’t appear that her father felt the need to keep up appearances.
Reaching into the pocket on my coat, I pull out the jewelry box and offer it to Vanessa.
“What’s this?” she asks, taking it.
“You’ll know once you open it,” I say, chuckling. “If you haven’t noticed by now, I’m quietly courting you, darling.”
Hawk scoffs, shaking his head, but he’s smart enough not to say a word.
My wife, on the other hand, snorts as she pops the hinge on the box. “You totally watched us today and had to one-up Hawk. That’s sad.” She gets a look at the tennis bracelet inside and gasps. “Holy shit, Moretti. Is this thing real?”
“As if I would drape you in anything less than real diamonds.” It’s my turn to scoff.
“It’s white gold with over eight carats in a trillion cut,” I say, as if she can’t see that for herself.
It’s a versatile piece that will fit with nearly any outfit and assemble well with whatever other pieces of jewelry she selects to wear on a given night.
“The jeweler told me it symbolizes the interconnectedness of life, body, and mind, as well as past, present, and future.”
Jesus.
I sound like I’m reading directly from the brochure.
She hands me the box back, holding out her wrist. I get her hooked into the bracelet, and she leans over, kissing my cheek.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you,” she says, squeezing my forearm. “I hope it’s insured. If anyone ever tries to rob me, I’m tossing it at their head and running.”
I chuckle.
No one would be that stupid.
She settles back into her seat, looking at Hawk. “When I get home tonight, I’m going to snuggle under my heated blanket.”
“Don’t overdo it,” he says in a weirdly tender tone that I’ve never heard him use. “You get hot at night. It won’t hurt my feelings if you save it for another time.”
My eyes narrow.
He’s not allowed to be more thoughtful than I am.
That just makes me look bad.
Hmm.
I’ll have to up my game.
Or murder him in his sleep.
He should know I play to win.
Vanessa looks stunning as we make our way into the club. Normally I come in through the employees-only entrance, but I wanted to give her the full experience of Luxe. Her bracelet and engagement ring glitter in the LED lights, and my chest fills with pride.
I never realized how much I craved a true queen to stand by my side. She’s still adapting to joining the family, but I have no doubt that she’ll be a force to be reckoned with in a few months.
Cynthia approaches as soon as we step past the bar. She’s one of two managers, and if she wasn’t good at her job, I would have fired her ages ago.
She comes to a stop at my side, leaning close as she places her hand on my forearm. “It’s so good to see you, Mr. Moretti. It’s been ages since we’ve had you in the club. May I get you a drink?”
“No,” I say, fighting the urge to shake out of her hold. I have my other arm wrapped around Vanessa’s lower back. It should be a solid sign that I have no interest in her touching me, but I am interested to see how Mrs. Moretti handles the situation.
Cynthia has never made an overt pass at me—that’s grounds for immediate dismissal—but she is overly touchy. Most people are perceptive enough to discern that I have no interest in being touched by them.
“Vanessa, meet Cynthia. The club has two managers. Cynthia handles the employee schedules and HR, while Hector manages the financial side of things.” I pull my wife closer, turning to ensure that she can see the woman encroaching on my personal space.
“Oh, you brought a date,” Cynthia says, batting her lashes.
“I’m afraid not. A lot has changed since I visited last.” I pat Vanessa’s hip. “Cynthia, meet my wife.”
Vanessa’s face breaks out into a wicked smile as she says, “You can call me Mrs. Moretti.”
I barely hold back a laugh.
She’s not subtle at all. I never thought I would enjoy being publicly claimed by a woman, but I find I love it when it comes from her.
My wife leans into me, patting my chest. “Do you have cash, or do we need to visit the ATM? I’m sure you have one here. Don’t worry about me. I’ll keep myself busy while you’re in that meeting. I’m going to make it rain for your dancers.”
Hawk chuckles from behind me, and I regret not leaving his ass at home. Actually, I regret not canceling this meeting when I had the chance.
The forensic accountant I hired to deep dive into Grigoryan shoves a large envelope at me. I flip it over, but it’s closed with metal tongs, and I can’t be bothered to open it.
I toss it down at my side. “So what exactly are you saying, Jack?”
“His tax returns are clean. They’re bullshit, of course, but he’s paying out enough in taxes every year that Uncle Sam probably won’t go digging.
Not unless someone tips them off to a huge payday in back taxes and penalties.
” The accountant shrugs. “I can pop into his financials and leave enough of a trail that if you turn him in, they’ll probably get him on tax evasion.
But it’ll be expensive. I don’t fuck around when it comes to the IRS, so it’ll have to be done right.
It takes time, and it’s expensive. It’s your choice.
If you want to dump a hundred grand or more into it, I can get it done. ”
“There’s nothing to tie him to the missing persons cases? No way to link him to dirty money related to human fucking trafficking?” I ask, my annoyance rising.
I’ve already paid him a fortune, but I’m not too stubborn to cut my losses if it’s truly a useless endeavor.
“There are plenty of financial accounts that he’s not reporting,” Jack says. “I can trace those deposits one by one, but nine times out of ten, you’re going to get a shell corporation.”
That figures.
Even as intolerable as Grigoryan is, he’s not stupid. Hopefully Magnum will have better luck. If not, perhaps I’ll move on to hiring out that job. There are teams that can get in anywhere, but I prefer to work with someone I know rather than outsourcing if at all possible.
“I see,” I say, sighing heavily. “Okay. Give me some time to think it over, and I’ll get back to you.”
It would be wholly satisfying to see Grigoryan do jail time, but he deserves hardcore prison, not some fancy white-collar facility that will end up feeling like a vacation.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it free. There’s a text from Hawk that reads, Vanessa is hot. Taking her to your office. Hurry.
I’m surprised the big fucker was able to string together so many sentences in text with it actually being coherent. Autocorrect is probably to thank for that.
Anyway, it’s time for me to end this meeting and check on my wife.
Vanessa’s arousal spills out of my office and down the hallway.
I can scent her long before I can see her.
That means others could too.
A potent omega so close to her heat could draw other unbonded alphas.
Hawk really should have locked the door. Then again, I wouldn’t have been pleased if I had to knock and wait to be allowed in, all while wondering what they were doing.
It’s my goddamn office.
And that’s my goddamn wife.
Hawk has her stretched out over the leather couch on the far wall.
Her wrists are pinned together above her head with one of his hands, and I believe the other is buried in her pussy.
That dress is longer and puffier than some of the others she’s worn recently, so it’s only an educated guess based on the way his arm moves.
The way Vanessa writhes under him, begging into their kiss is also a solid indication that he’s finger-fucking my wife. That’s only slightly better than sticking his dick inside her, and a wave of pure rage washes through my body.
I clench my fists at my sides, rocking back on my heels to avoid crossing the room to put a bullet in Hawk’s brain. It’s tempting, but I’m not sure Vanessa would forgive me. I’d also likely regret it, but the fury makes it hard to remember that Hawk is my closest friend.
Vanessa whimpers, begging Hawk to fuck her.
I reach back, locking the door.
“Come all over my hand,” Hawk says, his arm moving faster. “Moretti should be here soon.”
“He can join us, but I want you too.” She whines the words, and the hair on the back of my neck stands up. It’s almost physically painful for an alpha to disregard an omega’s whine. “Harder. Oh, shit. I’m there.”
A low growl rattles out of my chest as the edges of my vision turn a hazy red.
Fuck.
That’s not a great sign.