“Hey. I thought you were bringing someone with you,” Mallory shouts over the music. She is apparently here with Ava, whom I haven’t seen yet.
“Where is she?”
“She is here somewhere.” She laughs it off, but her face gives it away. She must be dancing with a guy. I won’t turn to look for her though. I made my bed, now I have to lie in it.
“Come with me, Mr. Alarie.” A tall, dark man with sunglasses comes up to me with his hands crossed in front of him. I say nothing as I leave Mallory behind. If things go sour in this deal, I don’t want her to pay the price because of me acknowledging that I know her.
We arrive at a door where the guard talks into themini-mic in his hand, getting the go-ahead to let me in. These deals don’t usually make me nervous, but knowing I’m next in line, it’s my duty to work with everyone in this biz.
The heavy metal door opens to a room filled with luxurious and expensive-looking furniture with a poker table in the corner. I find Rocco sitting on a big brown leather chair with a blonde in his lap. Her face is nuzzled in his neck.I used to have a blonde that loved doing that to me.
That blonde turns around to face me and all of the air escapes my lungs. I feel like I am suffocating. Ava. Ava is sitting in Rocco Bianchi’s lap. My gaze is fixed on her as her eyes find mine. I give her a “ what-the-fuck” look that luckily flies under the radar of the hulking man she is sitting on. Her eyes widen and I catch a glimpse of sadness on her face before she turns stone cold.Well, shit.
“Damien Alarie, come in. Sit down.” He taps Ava’s ass to get her to stand and my fists clench next to me. She gets up. Damn, she looks as beautiful as ever, but she’s lost a lot of weight. A little too much. “This is Ava. Ava, Damien Alarie.”
She reaches out to shake my hand. At least she knows better than to acknowledge that we know each other outside of here. I reach out to reciprocate the handshake and she jumps slightly. I know that look. That look of lust. But it quickly dies when Rocco interrupts. “Drink?”
“Uh, yes. Please,” I choke out with my voice more gravelly than usual. How can this be fucking happening? Does Mallory know about Ava and Rocco? The questions that are spinning around my head are making me dizzy.
“So, Damien, tell me about the shipment and how the tracking has been going. Remember, I probably already know the answer, so don’t try to lie.” Rocco chuckles.
“I don’t lie, Rocco.” Ava clears her throat and rolls her eyes. “Black Venom does solid business in the American underworld.”
Ava leans over from behind Rocco who is now sitting in the chair again. Her blonde tresses fall over his shoulder while she whispers in his ear. He brings his hand behind her head and pulls her in for a … KISS? The world stops turning. For a moment, I stand frozen in time. I can’t get my eyes off the woman of my life kissing the most dangerous man I’ve ever met—the man I’m supposed to partner with. I swallow hard, involuntarily gritting my teeth. I swear my eyelid starts twitching as my numb gaze is fixed on her.Them. I’m shaking and screaming inside. How could this happen? What is she doing here with him? The questions run through my head as I try to combat the storm of emotions inside me. On the outside, you wouldn’t see even a trace of feelings. I don’t even blink. I keep my poker face like I always do even though, deep down, I’m dying.
No, I shake my head, waking from this haze. That has to have been my mind playing tricks on me. She wouldn’t get messed up with this world again, would she? He whispers something in her ear and I watch casually as she leaves the room. Before closing the large door behind her, she turns to give me one final look.One final goodbye?
“She is something else.” Rocco shakes his head with a wide smile. I just had my cock in her mouth ten minutes ago. But enough about me, let’s get down to business.”They’re fucking.
AVALYNE
N
ever in a million years did I think I’d see Damien tonight. He looks so freaking hot. Tired, but hot. Too bad he dropped me. I walk into the dark club and find Mallory waiting for me at the bar. Lately, I have spent more time with her. She doesn't judge me and somehow understands me. It's something I don't get from Lilac, my long-term best friend, which is sad. Our friendship is drifting apart. Don't get me wrong. I don't blame just Lilac for that. The fault is mutual. It always is. After all, it takes two to tango, right? The thing is I've changed and Lilac doesn't seem to accept the "new" me.
“This isn’t where I left you.” I signal the bartender for service. “What happened to the sexy man you were grinding on?”
Mallory squints her beautiful green eyes at me, looking for information I am not willing to give her. “He left. We were just having a fun time. Didn’t even get his name.” She orders two tequila shots from the bartender and looks back at me. “Did you see him?”
Did I see him? Of course I saw the guy who ripped my heart in two. Somehow he’s got even better looking in the past couple of months. He took everything from me and I still can’t get him out of my head. I changed clubs, hoping I wouldn’t run into him. But I knew Rocco was a part of his world. Maybe subconsciously I wanted to see him. Maybe I wanted him to see me and how I’ve moved on … to bigger and better.
The shots land in front of Mallory and me. We lick our wrists, pour on the salt, and lick again like it’s second nature. I hold up my shot glass. “To bigger and better.”
She gives a rebuttal. “To friends, old and new.” She looks past me. I know who’s back there and hell if I’m not getting out of here. We pour the clear liquid into our mouths and my shot glass lands a little too hard on the black marble top bar.Whoops.
After I suck the lime, I hop off of the bar stool. “Gotta go, Mal. Thanks for coming tonight.” I press my cheek to hers and turn. Damien descends from the steps and starts towards me. My head gets light and it feels empty. Or does it feel heavy? Everything around me slows down, including time. I walk towards him, and he towards me, not losing eye contact. He is scowling, but my face isn’t much better. It’s cold. Heartless.
When I go to walk by him, he grabs me near the elbow. “Ava.” His voice is smooth like whiskey. But like whiskey, it burns going down. He burned me. I whip my arm away from him dramatically.I can’t have him thinking he has a hold on me.I send him one last stoney stare and I disappear up the steps. He’s definitely watching me. I can always feel when his eyes are on me.Not this time, Damien.
DAMIEN
“What the actual fuck was that?” I slam my hand downon the marble bar, demanding the attention of the bartender. “Double Johnnie Walker Platinum. Neat.”
“They just met.”
“What do you mean ‘they just met’? Where?”
“They met last night or the night before, at a bar.” She looks at me with her head cocked to the side. “Damien, I don’t want to overstep here, but if you love her so much, then why did you break up with her? Why did you push her away?”
