“Fine,” Sean said in exasperation.
Alexei made an impatient gesture at him to finish up.A few minutes later found them nearly running into Trevor on his way down the stairs.Dressed in dark jeans and a blazer over a collared shirt, armed—with more weapons than Alexei was allowed—Trevor jerked his thumb over his shoulder.
“The girls are finishing up.They shouldn’t be long,” Trevor said.
“Did Katie inform the others?”Sean asked.
“The boss knows.He’s not happy.Heard her telling him to go to lunch and let us handle the meet alone since he’s not supposed to come anyway.I think they’re still arguing.”
“Bet he not like,” Alexei said mildly, even as his comms rang through his ears with a tone reserved for only one person.He answered, switching to Russian as he turned away from the others.“>”
“>” Kyle demanded.
“>” Alexei said.
“>”
“>”
“>”
“>”
“>”
“>”
Alexei cut the connection before Kyle could yell at him some more.When Kyle didn’t immediately call back to continue the argument, he assumed his brother was getting Jamie under control.Kyle, they’d all learned, was very good at that.
Annabelle came down the stairs a few minutes later.Katie arrived seconds later in a business-appropriate sheath dress and a pair of high heels that honestly looked like they could double as weapons, no longer yelling at their captain.She spared thirty seconds to finish fixing her hair into a loose chignon before double-checking that her 9mm was in her designer tote bag.
“Ready?”she asked as Trevor held the front door open for her
“Let’s go,” Annabelle replied.
They left with clear heads, knowing the UMG had agents discreetly posted around the home’s location to keep an eye on it in their absence.Lunch ended up being at the Grosvenor Hotel in Mayfair, a Victorian-style hotel filled with other businessmen and women taking clients out on the company’s account.The exterior was old and dated in a classic sort of way, if you liked that sort of thing.Inside, it was designed to impress, the marble flooring and paneling still holding up centuries after it was first built.
Only Trevor followed them inside, while Annabelle stayed with the SUV despite the valet’s assurance they could care for the vehicle.The Cavalier, a restaurant tucked away inside the hotel, was well-known for its revamped take on classic British food, with its chicken tikka taking pride of place on the menu.Alexei was glad about that because if Jansen had made reservations at a place where only small plates with tiny bites were offered, he’d have probably punched the guy.
Really, all Alexei needed was one little excuse.
Jansen was waiting for them at the table they were led to; it seated four, and three of the leather seats were empty.Trevor posted himself near the exit and out of the way of the servers bringing food to guests and topping up drinks, keeping a weather eye on his charges.
Jansen’s smile was as oily in daylight as in the light of his club, Alexei decided.
“Ekaterina, I’m so pleased you could make this meeting on such short notice,” Jansen said as he stood at their arrival.
Jansen pulled out Katie’s chair for her, and she smiled at him.“Thank you, Mr.Jansen.”
“What did I say about calling me Niko?It’s much easier to conduct business on a first-name basis.”
“Niko, then,” Katie agreed.She didn’t ask for him to call her Katie.
Alexei and Sean got situated in their spots, with Alexei putting himself next to Jansen-cum-Niko and across from Katie.It put him facing a majority of the restaurant and the exit, which left Katie to watch his six.It was as defensible as it could get, but it still made his skin crawl.FuckingNikomade his skin crawl.
Alexei picked up the tablet with the menu from the middle of the table.Niko hadn’t ordered anything yet other than a martini, so Alexei skimmed through the menu and chose what looked good.He passed the tablet over to Sean so he could pick his meal while Katie and Niko had a polite conversation that revealed absolutely nothing to each other.
For his part, Alexei slouched in his chair and opted to look bored, gaze trailing over everyone in the sleek dining room, picking out Niko’s bodyguards almost immediately.They’d taken up similar posts with Trevor, along with several men and women who screamed security.It told Alexei this lunch spot was favored by some wealthy people, or at least, people who wanted to be seen as wealthy.
