She looked up at him, shock evident on her face. “What?”
“You heard me.” He stared down at her intently, which seemed to be his default setting.
Her face folded in a frown. “Why would you think that? Are you trying to scare me? Because if you are, you’re failing miserably.”
He didn’t look convinced but he started walking again. “Glad to hear it.”
Still shaking her head, she followed him another few feet before he stopped in front of the very last door at the end of the hall.
“Do you want me to wait out here?”
Why would he— “Oh, for… Just open the damn door, Mr. Kanatawa. You’re starting to piss me off.”
He didn’t move. “You don’t like me much, do you?”
If he only knew. “I don’t know you well enough to dislike you.”
Which was the truth. But not exactly the whole truth.
His lips curved into a smile now, and she had to make a conscious effort to control her breathing.
Because she did like his smile. Much more than she should.
“Fair enough, carina.”
Then he turned, knocked twice and opened the door, waving her through in front of him.
Already flustered, she realized this was a really bad idea. Because, hole-lee hell, these men made her mouth water.
Before she’d started working for Tristan and Adam, she’d been a typical teenage girl who thought guys only looked good in ass-hugging jeans and skintight t-shirts.
She’d realized her mistake after seeing the men parading through the office and understood that a well-cut suit could be just as sexy. Even more so on some men.
Like these two. Of course, she’d never seen Max and Jesse in jeans so maybe she’d have to change her mind—
And no way was that going to happen. What the hell was she thinking?
Shoving those rogue thoughts out of her mind, she stopped several feet in front of the massive black desk Max sat behind.
Her heart beat faster than any death metal drummer and her throat dried to the consistency of the Sahara.
Max wanted to talk to her? Fine, he could talk. Didn’t mean she had to respond.
Which made her want to roll her eyes at herself. She was being ridiculous. But she still didn’t open her mouth.
He met her gaze and held her in place. “Mary Alice. How are you?”
“I’m fine, Mr. Burdanov. How are you?”
His smile made her swallow convulsively.
“I’m good. I understand you were being hassled in the club. We want you to know we don’t condone that type of behavior and it’ll be taken care of.”
“Taken care of, how? There’s nothing to take care of. I had it handled.”
His gaze narrowed slightly. “I’m sure you did. That doesn’t mean we should do nothing. If we don’t do something, customers may think we condone men hassling women. And they couldn’t be more wrong.”
Criminals with standards. How HBO of them.
Not fair. So not fair.
“Fine. But as you can see, I’m in one piece and no harm done.”
Max rose and rounded his desk, settling himself on the outer edge, much closer than he’d been before. She had to stick her feet to the floor so she didn’t take an instinctive step away.
“I’m glad to hear it.”
He exchanged a glance with Jesse, still behind her and out of her line of sight. They were communicating without words, and she had the feeling they were fighting though she had no idea why she thought that.
Their silent conversation only lasted a few seconds and then she had Max’s full attention again. Her knees wanted to quake and she locked them tight as he continued to watch her.
“I’d like to take you to dinner tomorrow night. If you’re free.”
Her mouth dropped open for several seconds before she consciously shut it. But she still had nothing to say.
Completely taken off guard, she shook her head, wondering if she’d heard him correctly. “I’m sorry…did you just ask me out?”
He didn’t look at all put off by her obvious confusion. “Yes, I did. I’ll understand if it’s short notice but then I’ll just ask about the next night and the night after that.”
She blinked. “Why?”
Max’s expression didn’t change. “Because I’d like to spend time with you and dinner is a safe option. You choose the restaurant. I can send a car for you if you don’t want me to pick you up.”
Her mouth opened but she had no idea what she should say so she closed it again. Max continued to stare, waiting, like he had nothing better to do.
“You want to take me on a date?”
“Yes, I do. Has it been so long since you’ve had one that you don’t remember what they are?”
“I—No! Of course not.” Was he laughing at her? “I just don’t understand what your angle is.”
His head cocked to the side. “My angle?”
“What do you want with me?”
His lips curved up. “How about the pleasure of your company?”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I’m having a hard time believing you want to take me out. We don’t really know each other.”
There was that smile again. “I understand dates are good for that.”
“But…”
She couldn’t think of anything else to say. What she wanted to say was yes. She wanted to go out with him.
Okay, what she wanted a little more complicated than that but she’d settle for a date with Max. To start.
And that was where everything went off the rails because she shouldn’t want to go out with Max. Shouldn’t want—
What?
What she couldn’t have.
“But what?” Max prompted.
He continued to watch her with those dark blue eyes that stood out against his pale skin, his Russian ancestry stamped so clearly on his face, he could never deny it. His auburn hair was at least five shades darker than her own copper curls and cut short on the sides with a little bit of length on the top. Suitable for business yet still a little rebellious. Or he just hadn’t had the time to get it cut lately, what with trying to become a legitimate businessman after years of working for a Russian mob boss.
His eyes narrowed as if he’d read her mind and his mouth tightened. But his expression cleared in the next instant as if it’d never been there.
And since she wanted to believe she wasn’t the type of person who held a man’s past mistakes against him, she shook those thoughts out of her head.
“But nothing.”
With a sigh, he stood and took the few steps to close the distance between them. She had to look pretty far up and she couldn’t help a shiver of attraction.
Both Jesse and Max elicited the same response from her. They both made her breathless. That wasn’t how normal relationships worked.
Except…her bosses were involved in a multiple-partner relationship and so were their lover’s brother and his best friend. They were making it work.
Her parents would be horrified. Because wanting to have sex with two men, at the same time, was strange, right? Aberrant.
And not at all what Max was offering her. He’d asked her out and made no mention of Jesse. So all these fantasies running through her head meant nothing right now.
“I’m not sure that’d be a good idea.”
He didn’t look surprised by her answer. Which pissed her off.
“And why is that?”
Because you’re not the only man I want to date and that scares me.
“Because I’m not sure I want to date anyone right now.”
Lies, lies, and more lies.
One side of his mouth quirked, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. Then he nodded and stood and she thought, for a brief second, that he might lean forward and kiss her.
Instead, he turned his back to her as he walked around his desk to sit in his chair before meeting her gaze again.
“I’m sorry to hea
r that.”
So was she.
She nodded and blinked, shifting her gaze away from his way-too-perceptive one. “I really need to go. I have to be at work early tomorrow.”
“Of course.” Max’s gaze flashed over her shoulder. “Jesse will walk you to your car. I have business I need to handle.”
She nodded, mostly because she was afraid she’d make an idiot out of herself by stuttering if she opened her mouth. Then she turned to find Jesse by the door, his hand on the knob.
So anxious to get rid her.
She raised her eyebrows at him. “I am capable of walking myself to my car.”
Jesse shrugged. “It’s late. Humor us.”
Us. Yes, she’d love to. God, she was so screwed up.
Shaking her head, she tilted her head back to look at him. “My brothers taught me how to take care of myself.”
Jesse waved her ahead of him. “I’m sure they did. I’m still walking you to your car.”
Because she hadn’t really expected to win this battle, she nodded and headed toward the door.
“Mary Alice.”
Max’s voice stopped her in her tracks, and she drew in a quick breath before turning to look at him over her shoulder.
“Take care.”
He sounded…so final.
And that made her want to tell him she’d made a mistake, that she really did want to go out with him.
She forced herself to walk through the door.
Chapter Three
Jesse steered Mary Alice toward the service door at the end of the hallway so they wouldn’t have to go out through the club.
They didn’t speak as they walked out of the building and down the alley.
She barely came to his shoulder, and he had the almost overwhelming urge to put his arm around her and pull her against his side.
Or shove her up against the wall and kiss the hell out of her.
He hadn’t been kidding when he’d told Max he didn’t have a clue how he felt about this girl. When he thought about her, he had the urge to run the other way. And another, just-as-strong urge to put his mouth on hers.
But for the first time in his and Max’s long relationship, they were out of sync.
Mary Alice was the reason. She could put a wedge between them they might never be able to fix.
As they walked in silence to the parking garage, she stared straight ahead. He tried to keep his attention focused on their surroundings. Never knew where the first strike might come from.
When she finally stopped at her car, she opened the door before turning back to him.
Blue eyes solemn, she stared up at him. “Thank you for walking with me but I think I can take it from here.”
She didn’t smile, but she didn’t look scared. In fact—
No. No way did he see attraction in her eyes.
He nodded, watching her because he couldn’t not. Because Max had him totally wrong.
“Good night, Mary Alice.”
“Good night, Mr. Kanatawa.”
Then she climbed into her red Jeep Wrangler. She looked tiny behind the wheel. Young. Defenseless.
Christ, he was a stupid, fucking idiot.
The Jeep started with a muted roar. Someone had obviously worked on that engine and put a little more power into it. Probably one of her brothers.
When she pulled out of the space, she glanced at him, raising an eyebrow as if to say, “See, no problem.”
He stifled a smile.
The girl had a sharp tongue and a smart brain, and together they made his dick and every other part of him sit up and take notice.
How the fuck did Max not see that?
Maybe you just got good at hiding things.
The problem was, he and Max didn’t hide things from each other. They never had.
They’d shared practically everything since Max had given Jesse half of his sandwich on Jesse’s first day in fourth grade.
What Mary Alice didn’t know was that he and she shared something, as well. Something darker and more painful and nothing she’d probably want to talk about with him.
When she finally drove out of sight, he headed back to the club. He entered through the front, nodding to the doorman, whose stiff back and sharp nod made him stifle a sigh.
Christ, he was tired of always having to be a hard ass.
Making his way across the floor, he nodded to a few other employees and ignored the women who smiled at him or blatantly rubbed against him as he passed by. He wasn’t interested in any of them. Would never be interested in any of them.
Party girls held no appeal for him. The ones who got sloppy drunk and hung all over men and thought they were having a good time. Or the cold, cool ones who thought they were too good for everyone else and, if they stooped to your level for a little fun, well, you should be honored and fall at their feet.
Which meant he didn’t meet a lot of women who appealed to him.
As soon as he walked through the door into the back rooms of the club, he breathed a sigh of relief. Stupid but true.
Who would’ve thought going legit would be so fucking terrifying?
Back at Max’s office, Jesse stepped inside and Max looked up from the paperwork he’d been going through.
“Thank you.”
Jesse knew why Max had said it but it pissed him off that Max thought he had to.
“What are those?”
Max sighed hard. “The previous owners kept double books. I’m trying to figure out if the club can sustain itself without the extra cash from the games and the girls and the drugs.”
“And?”
“I think this one’ll make it. We may have to unload one of the other two.”
Which meant finding legitimate buyers for a property that was a well-known front for criminal activity because Max couldn’t afford to sell that property to any other criminally oriented parties. Not if they wanted to get out of the life.
Jesse sank into his chair by the door. “How bad will that cut into finances?”
“Bad, at first. But after a few months, it should level out.”
“And we can hold steady?”
Max sighed, pushing the files away from him as he leaned back in his chair. Closing his eyes, he rubbed them hard before opening them again.
Jesse’s hands clenched on the chair arms. “You need some sleep or you’re going to fuck something up. Let’s go home.”
Max shook his head. “I’m fine. And when the hell did you become my nursemaid?”
“See, you’re getting cranky. You need some sleep.”
“What I need is to get laid but that’s not happening tonight.”
No, it wasn’t. Because the girl Max wanted had just left. And Jesse knew no one else would do now.
“Then I guess you should let me take you home so I can get some damn sleep.”
Max cocked his head to the side, staring at him intently. “Jesse. What the fuck’s going on with you? I feel like you’ve got this secret and I don’t know what it is and it’s driving me fucking crazy.”
The problem was Jesse had secrets, one in particular he wasn’t in the mood to share, but he’d give Max something because the guy was genuinely dumbfounded.
“I’m worried about you. About the long hours and the amount of alcohol you’ve been consuming and the stress you’re putting on yourself. I’m worried about someone deciding you’re vulnerable now that Mickey’s gone and that I won’t be able to protect you because we don’t have the backup we had before. I’m worried that you won’t let me hire additional guys for protection because you don’t want to look like you’re building a force.
“I’m worried about the Dominicans and the Mexicans and the Italians and the South Philly gangs who’re starting to make a push north. I’m worried about the Baltimore Russians who gave Mickey a run for his money the last time they made a push into his territory. I’m worried that trying to go legit is going to get you killed, and you better fucking know that if they take you out, I’ll be
right behind you.”
Jesse knew that was the one thing Max feared above all else. That Jesse would get hurt because someone came after Max. And that’s probably exactly what would happen. Because Jesse’s sole purpose was to keep Max safe. The problem was, that’s what Max thought about Jesse.
After several seconds of staring at each other, Max finally drew in a deep breath. “Is this your way of telling me I shouldn’t’ve asked her out?”
Was it? Fuck. Maybe a little. But more, it was everything that’d been building for the past few months since Mickey Oleksy and his brother had moved back to Moscow, given over most of their holdings to the Antonoff family, and left Max and Jesse with the rest, the businesses they were trying to take legitimate. That they could build into their future.
“No,” Jesse said. “You’re right about one thing. You still deserve to have a life. If that means we gotta be even more careful about shit, then I guess we do. So, you gonna ask her out again? She wanted to say yes. You know that, don’t you?”
Max didn’t answer right away, just continued to stare. Then he sighed. “She seemed pretty damn adamant to me.”
“That’s because you were too focused on what she was saying and not what she wasn’t.”
Max frowned. “And you’re a mind reader now?”
Christ. Jesse didn’t bother to hide his sigh. “I could see her expression, asshole. She likes you.”
Shaking his head, Max gave him the finger. “Yeah, right. Which is why she turned me down.” He thrust a hand through his hair. “Christ, you’re right. It was a huge fucking mistake to ask her out.”
“No, damn it. I’m being an idiot. Call her tomorrow and ask her out again.”
“No. Adam will fucking break my head open if he finds out I’ve been stalking her.”
Jesse shook his head. “When the fuck did you become such a pussy?”
“Fuck you, Jesse.”
Silence fell for several seconds until Max shoved away from the desk. “You’re right. I’m not gonna get anything else done tonight.”
“Max—”
“No. Just…I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Let’s go.”
Jesse watched Max head out the door before pushing to his feet to follow.
Kobo Indecent Arrangment Part I Page 3
