“My wife is nothing but trouble sometimes.”
I ignore the comment as I show him around the suite.“Your wife will have more accommodations here.The private kitchen and staff are here to serve you both.With your wife’s special diet, this is the best option for you.”
“I want you to serve me.”He tries to make a grab for me again, but I dance away, my hip clipping the counter.I cringe to hold in a groan of pain, but he sees it.
“If you would just stay still, that wouldn’t have happened.Now I’ll just kiss it better.”
This time he gets a hold of me, and I push him away with my tablet.My phone rings, and he drops his arms.I answer, already knowing from the ringtone exactly who it is.
“I’ll be right there shortly,” I say, then hang up.
“How does he always know when to interrupt?There isn’t a camera in my suite, is there?”
“No.There isn’t a camera here.It was the front desk calling.I have a meeting I must attend,” I lie, not wanting him to know it was Alek.I have two ringtones for when my brother calls me.“Purple Lamborghini” is his work phone, while “If We Have Each Other” is his personal phone.
As I make my escape, I let Mr.March know I’ll be just a phone call away if he needs anything else.I walk down the hall to the employee elevator and return to the security floor.Again, my brother is waiting for me.
“What took you so long?”he demands, and I can’t help the bite in my voice.
“I was doing my job.Want me to drop them at the door and say ‘see yeah’?”
“Well, no, but you don’t need to spend over ten minutes in their suites.”
“I was showing him around and explaining why I chose that suite for him this time,” I tell him the truth.
“I don’t trust him.It’s not you, Dar.It’s him.The way he looks at you.He also works with the Triad and some of the other families but chooses to stay here instead of with them.”
I shake my head in exasperation.“Alek, we are the best hotel on the Strip for whales, and he knows that.His money spends just like all the others.Stop being so overly protective.I’m not Lyric.”I pat his cheek as I walk past him.
“I know you’re not.I’d spank her for doing that.”He overshares.
Holding my tablet to one side of my head and my phone to the other, I groan.“Yuck.I don’t need details, big bro.”
I step into my office and settle into the chair behind my desk.I finalize plans for another whale arriving tomorrow.Then I check to make sure Mr.March’s schedule for the week hasn’t changed.
By the time I’m done, it’s been an hour since Alek left for home.I call room service to place a food order for our suite, then head to the elevator to call it a night.
ChapterTwo
Paddy
It’s taken almost three weeks to get here.After meeting with Morosov and the Bratva, we found out there are soldiers and lieutenants from the other families involved in stirring up this potential war.Morosov has heard rumblings, and he’s going to start shaking out his men too.We haven’t decided whether to bring in the Italians, but I’m of a mind to.Morosov said he could talk to them because of a family connection.He didn’t explain further.
Family is all tangled up.We try not to mix between organizations, but it happens.My own cousins are married to one of Morosov’s seconds and to one of his close friends.I understand that sometimes you can’t control who you fall for.But as the head of the family, I have to be extremely careful about who I date, so I just choose not to.
Sitting in the office space on the second floor of my newest club, I wait for everyone to arrive.JJ and Jordon are in their offices, and Hayes is somewhere in the building.When we were having the club built, I decided it was time to stop conducting business in rental spaces or in my home, so we turned the entire second floor into offices.I even added a condo for myself on the third floor.
I got the idea from Morosov and the way he designed Yelena’s and the Cardroom.He built office space like this, along with another secure floor of condos for him and his men.
This club has become my biggest success out of all my others.My family owns several clubs throughout Vegas, on and off the Strip.We also have a few gentlemen’s clubs.But this one I’m most proud of.
Transitions is actually two clubs in one, depending on what you’re into.One side is a traditional dance club with a massive DJ booth and dancers performing behind glass along one wall.The dancers can’t be identified.They just dance and entertain.It’s decorated in bright neon colors and caters to the younger crowd.
The second side is also a dance club, but with private bottle-service areas.In there, I have aerial dancers on poles and swings for entertainment.It’s decorated in black and gold and caters to an older crowd.
Both clubs have been packed since opening a month ago, and sales have tripled compared to any of my other clubs.
My phone pings in my pocket, and I pull it out.
