Chapter Nineteen
Carly
I’d arrived at Dangerous Curves to find that Sienna, one of the newer dancers, was in a panic over the outfit she needed for the group performance having a tear in it. After calming her down and quickly fixing it, I headed out front and up to the VIP section where I needed to check to be sure it was fully stocked for the night.
I’d just cleared the top step when I looked up to find Chablis and Gio kissing. “What. The. Fuck?” I saw Gio jerk away from Chablis even as I turned and made a beeline for the ground floor, and my office.
“Bella, Carly, wait. I can explain.”
“Save it, Gio. I don’t want to hear it.” I knew. I knew better than to let him close. This was the wake-up I needed to keep the man at arm’s length.
I made it to my office but before I could close the door, Gio was there. “I really don’t want to hear any excuses, Gio. Besides, it’s none of my business what, or who, you do.”
“Enough,Bella. She kissed me, not the other way around. If you’d waited a few seconds you would have seen me dump her on her ass with the warning that if she ever pulls a stunt like that again she can kiss her job goodbye.”
I stared at him. I wanted to believe him but how could I? I’d seen them kissing.
“Carly.Tesoro. If I have to fire her tonight to prove it to you, I will.”
I sighed and closed my eyes. “No. That won’t be necessary. It really isn’t any of my business, Gio. You’re my boss. Nothing more.”
“Non, Tesoro. I am more than that.”
I found myself pulled into his arms, despite my weak protests, and his lips claimed mine. A soft moan escaped me and my hands lifted to grip his shirt. The things he did to me. His arms tightened around me and for just a moment, I allowed myself to enjoy his embrace. Then I got control of my senses and pulled away. “Why was she in your lap in the first place if you aren’t interested in her?”
“She sat down and I am too much of a gentleman to push a woman onto the floor.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “Right. I’m sorry, but where I come from, we call that bullshit. If a woman sits in your lap and you don’t want her there, you move her. You don’t let her stay sitting and then let her kiss you. Not unless you’re actually interested in her.”
“Ah,Bella, you are going to make me work for it, aren’t you?”
My eyes widened when he trapped me against my desk and kissed me again.
“Challenge accepted.”
His growl sent a shiver of anticipation through me. I watched him walk out of my office and slumped against the desk. The man was definitely a danger to my peace of mind. As the music from the stage filtered through the office door, I gave myself a mental shake and pushed his kisses out of my mind and went out to focus on work. If I kept my mind occupied maybe I could get through the night without embarrassing myself.
“I hear Chablis made a play for the new boss.”
I looked up to see Camille sliding onto the seat across from me. Tonight was the night we split the shift between us. “Of course she did. Who’d you hear about it from?”
“Midori told me. I swear she needs to be put on a leash.”
Laughter bubbled up at Camille’s words. “Like the bitch she is.” We both cracked up before I sighed. “We might have a problem. Tony and I did inventory and some of the stock is missing.” I watched as her gaze traveled to where he stood behind the bar.
“Do you think one of the staff is stealing?”
“I don’t know. I hope not but we’ll be checking it again in a few days, if you’d like to help.”
“Maybe I will. What are you going to do if the numbers still don’t add up?”
“Take it to Gio and find out what he wants to do about it.”
“Speaking of Gio, he is watching you like a hawk.”
“He’s been doing that since we opened.”
“Maybe he’s got the hots for you.”
