Russ was intercepted.
Russ is our weapons guy. Or hewasour weapons guy.
Me
He ok?
Dom
Yes, but our shit is gone
Fuck.I let out an internal groan. This day was a shitstorm of bad news. Before Alex came to the casino, I was sitting in my office, my tension headaches back full force. I was worried about Luka and felt guilty about our last conversation. I was stressing because of the Russians, and the new manager Johnny is supposed to hire. And then I saw her on the feed. I was out of my chairbefore the next beat of my heart, but I’m still pissed others had the time to lay their eyes on her.
When our eyes connected, it pushed all the business shit to the back of my mind. I bury my head in her neck; the scent of her skin grounding me. Business will still be here tomorrow. Alex won’t.
Me
We’ll deal with that tomorrow. Good night.
The message is obvious enough for him to stop texting, so I place my phone on the charger and wrap my arms around Alex, trying to cover as much of her body as possible. Soon, I’m drifting off to sleep.
CHAPTER 19
Alex
There’s no need for me to open my eyes to know that this cloud-like mattress is not Sophie’s couch. Waking up in Leon’s bed doesn’t shock me as much this time. I stretch my limbs out long, fluttering my eyes open, only to notice he’s not here. The tipped up corners of my lips drop with disappointment, but a second later, Leon bursts into the room with a cup of coffee in his hand. This time, my smile fully forms.
“Thank you,” I say, seizing the cup from his hands. “Do you need to get to work?” Unlike my naked form, he’s already freshly shaven and half-dressed.
He buttons the two remaining buttons on his shirt. “Not yet. But it’s a force of habit.” He shoots me a smile. The expression is so rare that it makes me feel special, like I’m the only one deserving of his smiles.
“I’d love to get dressed, too, but you kind of ruined my outfit last night.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got that covered.” He gestures to the three long boxes on top of his dresser.
I jump out of the bed, faintly aware of his gaze trailing my undressed body. The first box I open contains the dress he ruined last night. I gasp, running the fabric between my fingers as Irealize it’s a brand-new one, with no signs of passion-induced tearing. “H-how?”
He shrugs. “Money gets you things.” He slips his hands into his pockets, looking almost ashamed of it.
I lift the other box, revealing the dress he ruined a few weeks ago, and I shake my head. The third box contains a dress that isn’t familiar to me. It’s more casual, with a loose-fitting cut, but it’s designer and made from brown silk, so it’s probably just as expensive as the other two. “What’s this?”
“I figured these two were too dressy for bright daylight.”
“Or you didn’t want me wearing them in public?” I tease, but the way his eyes darken shows me I’m close to the truth.
“That, too.” One side of his mouth hooks and I chuckle. “You like it?”
“It’s beautiful.”
“I’ll give you some privacy,” he says and exits the room. I stare at the boxes, trying to remind myself it’s just a dress. Well, three dresses. It’s silly. But the attention, the care, play on the broken strings of my heart.
I release a shaky breath before brushing my teeth and getting dressed. The dress fits me perfectly, and it’s just the right amount of casual to not look like I’m doing the walk of shame. Again. A mouthwatering scent wafts into my nose when I enter the kitchen. Leon, fully dressed in his suit, plates the eggs and bacon he just prepared. The food tastes as good as it smells, and I find myself finishing my plate without a second thought. Leon’s phone pinging interrupts his meal. He responds to texts and answers quick calls. It’s obvious he should already be at the casino. It’s why I’m quick to finish my coffee so we can get going.
He, of course, doesn’t let me take a rideshare, insisting he drives me home. I’m so distracted by these newfound feelings and the memories of last night, I don’t notice the problem until he drops me off at home. Only, it’s not my home. It’s the building where his driver dropped me off multiple times before. I open my mouth to say something, but heinterrupts me.
“Here.”
The word makes little sense until the image before me registers. He’s holding his card out. The black credit card he offered last night, and I played it off as a joke.
