Carlyle
“You look wonderful, Illya.” And she did, with her hair and eyebrows dyed dirty blonde, her makeup done to elongate her face. Illya was almost unrecognizable. She smiled happily, and I rolled my head back to frown at the golden hue high above. “Don’t worry about anything. Just get to that brat, get her drugged, and get her out. I have the utmost faith in you and also in myself for distractive shock value.”
“You really hate this chick, don’t you, Carlyle?” Nodding curtly, I sneered at the mere thought of how much Idespisedwomen like Isabel. “How long have you been planning this?”
“Since her father offered to sell her to me about two years ago.” Tonight was the night. I couldn’t even enjoy signing papers with my father because of this bitch. Bringing my cigarette to my lips, I took a huge, toxic, relaxing breath and held it as Illya rocked back on her heels. When I’d ordered someone to do all the shopping for her, I’d taken her chest into account, and I was surprised at how good she looked. The ocean blue color brought out the fake blue of her eyes, rimmed in charcoal, and I exhaled slowly.
It was about time to hit the road. Those stupid Italians had decided not to get together in the city, which made it easier for me. Admittedly, notallof them were stupid, but the old man was senile, and his daughter was just delusional.
I liked the son, though. He and I had done business before, although he liked getting dirty.
“I guess we should go do this. You’ll get there first with Theo. Wait until I arrive to do anything, though. Everyone will be falling over me, but Isabel will try to be coy and wait.” Illya nodded, her up-do kissing her shoulders, and I flicked my cigarette to crush the butt under my shoe. Catching her gaze, I reached to grab her chin, but she didn’t flinch. “Don’t fuck this up.”
“Don’t underestimate me.” Smirking slightly, I rubbed her chin with my thumb before letting go, and Illya turned to saunter towards the car. I watched her go with a little swish in her hips and wondered how the fuck anyone could ever agree to this scheme. She was a special breed, rare and invaluable, and I was lucky to have her on my side.
But this test would prove whether or not that lucky would pay off. Whether she succeeded or not was up to her, and if she didn’t . . . Imayconsider letting her and Theo run off together. At the very least, it was poetic.
“Is something bothering you, boss?” Leaning on my car, Carl cast me a cautious, curious glance, and I rubbed my jaw absently. My mind switched from one woman to another, and my gaze trailed down to the cell phone in his hand.
“It’s stupid, but Valerie doesn’t usually take so long to text me back.” His brows rose in surprise, and I scratched the back of my neck as discomfort lodged in my throat. “I don’t know if it’s because I sent her home last night or not. She wasn’tmad, exactly, but she did pout a lot.”
“Uh . . . yeah . . . you know, I can only speak from experience, but if my girl gets pissed at me, she never shuts the fuck up. Maybe she dropped her phone in the toilet or something. Theo said they got pretty hammered.” I grunted in acknowledgment, and Carl flopped his head back as he slipped his phone into his jacket pocket. “We got together in high school, so, over time, we learned each other’s quirks. The dinner went well, right? So, she could just be talking with her sister and stuff and not wanting to be distracted. That’s why my girl and I ignore each other when we’re at work. Otherwise, we’d never get shit done.”
“Maybe.” I always thought the worst, but Valerie wasn’t involved in my life enough to warrant it. Hopefully, it was something as mundane as Carl explained. “You used to drag race before I hired you, Carl. What did your girlfriend think of that?”
“She thought my reckless stupidity was a turn on. I don’t know why. I mean, we’ve been together for going on five years, and I still haven’t figured out why she puts up with my bullshit. I love her, and I would die without her, but she confuses the shit out of me.” Carl shot me a boyish smirk, and I frowned under furrowed brows. “And by ‘die,’ I mean I’d slowly starve to death because she’s the one with all the takeout numbers, and I can’t cook for shit.”
“Clearly, she holds all the cards.” Sauntering towards the car, I shook my head at Carl’s affirmative noise, and I opened the back passenger door to slide in. My mind churned with the possibilities, and my driver smoothly pulled out of the empty lot in which we sat. For once, he needed to drive the speed limit, so Illya got there a good bit of time before us, and I pulled my phone out of my jacket to check my notifications.
If Valerie didn’t text me back by tomorrow, I’d just have to assume our date was off for some reason I’d never know.
Sifting through my contacts, I tapped the one I probably hated the most, and my teeth ached as ringing trilled through the line.
“Lucky Lady Massage Parlor. Mandy speaking. How may I help you?”
“Yes, I need to schedule an appointment with the owner, please.” I got put on hold, and my knee bounced as agitation tightened my muscles. Memories played in my mind’s eye of the last time I’d had to do business with this bitch, and I clenched and released my jaw sharply. Renting Marcella just to blow her brains out because she tried to use them was going to bite me in the ass now.
“Esmarissa.” She clicked her tongue ring against her teeth, and the sound grated my ears as I cleared my throat roughly. “Oh, boy. I can’t wait to hear this. Carlyle, you fucking killed one of my girls, and now you’re calling me for another one?”
“I did you a favor, and no, I’m not calling you for another one. I want to ask—”
“For my forgiveness!” Cutting me off, Esmarissa scoffed loudly, and I rolled my eyes as I took a breath through flared lungs.
“No. I deal with your bitchy ass because it’s easier than shutting you down. Don’t forget that Wren Lockhart worked forme, Esmarissa. I’ll fucking kill every one of your girls if the mood fucking takes me.” Finally, she shut the fuck up and let me talk, and I exhaled a calming breath as I sat up a little. “Now, as I was saying, I want to ask when your next trip to New York is. We need to talk.”
“About what?”
“You know better than to ask that. Tell me when you’re available next— or, better yet, have Mandy tell my secretary, so I don’t have to listen to you until I absolutely have to.” Hanging up on her, I tossed my phone next to me as I lost my battle with my scowl, and I ran both my hands through my hair roughly. That fucking snake— I couldn’t fucking stand her, but she took over fair and square. Unless she did something I really couldn’t abide, I was stuck with her. “Fucking cunt.”
“Why did you callherof all people?” Speaking up from the driver’s seat, Carl caught my gaze in the rearview mirror, and I scowled darkly.
“Because I’m going to fuck the Italians in the ass, and I need someone to fill the vacuum. Since those greasy, babbling drunks work mostly in girls, I want her expertise on it. Maybe, I can snatch Mandy while I’m at it. That cunt knows her place, at least.” Why did all the women around me suddenly seem so fucking intolerable, and the one I actually enjoyed talking to disappeared?
