by S. Ann Cole
Laughter rang out again, then I stopped abruptly at a familiar-sounding voice. Nah. I immediately discarded the inane thought that it was his voice. Not at all. It couldn’t possibly be him. Resuming my email sifting, I continued down the stairs and headed for the kitchen. Once I turned the corner, my worst fears turned out to be true. It was him. Here. In our house. Sitting next to my father at the breakfast bar, unknowing of my presence, their backs to me.
They both turned when I harrumphed.
My father stood up and came to hug me. “Axia, sweetheart. I’m so sorry I wasn’t here when you came in last night.”
Vince Blacksille was a handsome man who looked around ten years younger than his age. I assume this was because he smiled a lot, and was the most benign person I’ve ever known. Anger was a rare emotion for him, and his easygoing persona made him favorable to some of the most powerful people. I’d lost count of how many businesses he was in partnership with, the majority of which he’d encouraged Romaine and I to invest in. He was about six feet two with a slender frame. His night-black hair was cut short and not a strand of gray hair was evident.
He gazed down at me with dark eyes and a smile he reserved only for his loved ones. When I’d arrived in the morning yesterday he was still in bed, and I’d left almost immediately for the photo shoot, and when I came in last night he was absent. So he was now seeing me for the first time since I arrived.
“It’s okay, Daddy. I was tired anyway. I went straight to bed.”
Vince hugged me tight again. “Oh, I’ve missed you. It’s been over a month since I’ve seen you.”
“I’ve missed you, too, Daddy.”
Unable to focus on my father’s over-affection of not seeing me for a month, even though I was only a one-hour flight away, my eyes skittered past him and landed on Lovello who was staring at me with an impassive expression. Casually clothed in black jeans, black T-shirt, a chocolate-brown leather jacket, and with his inky hair customarily tousled, the man looked like he’d just walked off the center pages of a magazine. Lost for words, I slid a questioning gaze back at Vince.
Vince smiled. “You remember my old friend Marcello Nelson, the one I play golf with and go horseback riding with on occasion, don’t you?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Well, you know he’s always bragging about his boys.” He walked over to Lovello and slapped a palm on his shoulder. “This is his youngest. Lovello Nelson. CEO of Coded Solutions, home of his social networks RisquePeers, Dawdlers and Tellit. Founder also of the booming software company MEU. You might’ve heard of him?”
It became clear to me that he hadn’t told my father that he knew me. ‘Founder’ of so many goddamn things and yet he still ‘found’ time to play these silly games.
Maybe he wants to be the founder of you, too.
My gaze slid to Lovello once more but his face remained expressionless. No breaking through those impenetrable eyes.
“No, I haven’t,” I prevaricated. “Um, what’s he doing here, by the way? I don’t know you to be a morning spirit, Daddy.”
Vince’s shoulders shook as he laughed. “Oh, you know me too well, sweetheart. Marcello phoned me last night to let me know that Lovello here would be making an early morning visit. It’s business talk.”
“Oh. Well, I guess I’ll go and leave you two at it.”
I started to leave but Lovello spoke in such a polite tone I’ve never heard him use before, that I had to blink at him twice. The only thing short of his properness was a British accent. “Are you not the proprietor of Proud Sweat Fitness Center?”
“Yep, that’s me.”
He tilted his head to look at my father and snapped his fingers. “I thought she looked familiar. I would have never guessed she was your daughter, Mr. Blacksille. After all, she does look Hispanic. Beautiful, I must say. Angelically beautiful.”
Vince, who was standing next to Lovello with his hand resting so proudly on his shoulder as if he were trying to sell him to me, chuckled and gave me a warm smile. “That she is. She looks every bit like her mother, so much that people often mistake them for sisters. But she holds more of my traits. At least, she did.”
Lovello focused his gaze on me again, his slate-grays still impassive. “So, Axia … Axia is it?”
Reluctantly, I nodded. The pretentious ass.
“Would it be presumptuous of me if I ask that you share with me a bit about yourself?”
Resisting the urge to make that impolite gesture of rolling my eyes or flipping the bird, I responded, “I thought you were here to talk business? Not to cast your debauched interest in a potential business partner’s daughter.”
Vince shot me a chastising stare.
There was a slight twitch of Lovello’s upper lip but he remained expressionless. “I was raised in a decorous fashion, Miss Blacksille. I was trained to be genteel and courteous. And when doing business with someone, it is essential that I put an effort into knowing the family of that business partner as well as I know that partner as a person.”
“Well, Mr. Nelson, there’s not much to know about this gal. My name is Axia Blacksille and I’m a lesbian gym owner who despises men. That just about sums me up.”
“Axia!” Vince scolded.
“Sorry, Daddy.” I sneered at Lovello. “I just don’t like this man’s spirit. Something’s off. Don’t do any business with him.”
Vince cast his eyes upward. “You say that about every guy. When are you gonna stop pining on this basketball player and move on with your life? I need some grandkids, you know.”
“For the grandkids, I’ve told you, expect those shitty screamers from Romaine. Not from me. I’m never having kids. And are you suggesting that I move on with this arrogant prick?”
Vince shrugged. “I don’t see why not. He’s a brilliant young man.”
“Daddy,” I said impatiently. “Do you have so much as an inkling of this man’s reputation with women?”
“I thought you said you’ve never heard of him?”
“Yeah, I thought you said you haven’t,” Lovello chimed in. “And what about my reputation? Last I heard, I was at the top of the list for San Francisco’s most eligible bachelors.”
Ignoring the gray-eyed bastard, I fixed my eyes on my father. “It’s hard to live anywhere in this region of the world and not know about this womanizer, Daddy.”
“Axia, you should know better,” Vince chided. “Living in the public eye, people are going to garble all kinds of absurd stories. I know Marcello is a man who keeps his boys in line, and behavior like what you’re describing is not acceptable in his family.”
Clearly, Lovello had already gotten his paws into my father. The Nelson brothers were anything but proper. They were just so darn good at brainwashing the people who mattered with their genteel conduct and urbaneness, that people, like my father, failed to see through their acts. Knowing there was no winning with my father once he was set on someone, I gave up the fight.
“Yes, Daddy. You’re right. I should know better. I’m sorry for attacking your guest.” My eyes were chilled when they landed on Lovello. “My sincere apologies, Mr. Nelson. I’ll leave you two to continue your meeting.”
As I swept out of the kitchen, I could hear Lovello rambling something quietly to Vince, but I couldn’t make it out.
“Sweetheart!” my father called after me.
On a sigh, I turned and re-entered the kitchen. “Yes, Daddy?”
“Let’s have breakfast together. That’s what you came down for, wasn’t it?”
I nodded.
“Well then, come along and have breakfast with your old man. I haven’t seen you in a month.”
When my shoulders resignedly slumped, Lovello’s face brightened with a winning smile.
“On the patio,” Vince told the kitchen maids.
And out onto the limestone patio we went.
Damn you, Pretty Boy Nelson!
VII
The patio table was round and large, so I waited u
ntil Vince and Lovello were seated before I took the seat that was furthest away. Seeing this, Lovello made a show of squinting at the sun and muttered, “Sun’s much too penetrating from this end.” Then he got up from where he sat and came right beside me, his knee brushing against mine. Vince smiled, knowing darn well that the sun was neither hot nor penetrating.
Lovello turned to me with unfathomable eyes. “So, you’re dating a basketball player?”
I shot him an irritating glare but he remained as serious as a judge, and there was an almost imperceptible ticking in his jaw. “No. I’m not dating anyone. Nor do I want to date anyone.”
Vince grunted. “God, I don’t know what’s wrong with you, Axia. Sometimes I just want to grip you and shake you and wake you up. You’re too young and beautiful to remain single. When your mother and I were your age, we were insanely in love, having fun and enjoying life the best we could. You only live once, sweetheart. Youth and beauty are passing. You’re here now, and just like that, the winds of Time will pass over you, and that’s it. Time is unfriendly. Time is unkind. Time, if we don’t make the most of it, is our worst enemy. Worst of all, Time is irretrievable. You don’t enjoy your life now, you’ll only regret it later when you realize you’re thirty years older and you’ve never lived. Or you’re alone, pining on someone that you know you can never be with, no matter how much you want to, or have tried to.” He lowered his eyes to the table and I knew he was thinking about my mother. “And you’ve never tried giving your love to someone else. Someone you can be with. Don’t waste your life, Axia. It’s too precious a gift.”
“Daddy, my life is fine. I’m happy and problem-free. I don’t know what gave you the impression that I’m not.”
“Ever heard the term The Miserable Rich Man, Axia? There are a lot of them out there in the world. There’s only so much comfort that money can bring you. It’s better to have someone than to have all the material gains of the world and no one. We don’t think we need people until we need them. So yes, your life is problem-free financial-wise. But no, you are not fine. I’ve lost my loving little girl five years ago when that basketball player ended things with you. You stopped living and you became cold and distant. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I want my daughter back.”
“That’s not true. My break-up with Zane hasn’t affected me in any way. I’m still your daughter.”
The young blonde maid I’d seen Romaine flirting with last night came out with a tray. She set down coffee for each of us and when I arched a brow at her, she flushed. “Is something wrong, Miss Blacksille?”
Instead of answering, I leaned back in my chair and directed my gaze out to the blooming summer garden. Vince, belatedly noticing that I was served coffee, sighed and spoke kindly to the blonde. “Axia doesn’t drink coffee, Lynn. Green tea only, okay?”
When the blonde nodded and left, Vince shook his head at me. “Sweetheart, isn’t it obvious that she’s new? You don’t have to be so rude all the time. Treat people kindly. All people. You never know when you’re going to need their help. And especially be kind to those handling your food.”
The heat of Lovello’s gaze penetrated my face, but I did my best to avoid him. “Are you going to berate me all day, Daddy?”
Before he could start another lecture, a curvaceous woman dressed in a black pencil skirt, red silk blouse and red heels walked out onto the patio. She had a flawless caramel complexion and her honey-brown hair was cut low. Looking at her, I could understand why my mother felt threatened. The woman was stunning, well put together, and had an amazing smile that was brightened by her ruby-red lips.
Vince’s face lit up when he saw her and, yes, there was love in his eyes. She bent at the waist and pecked him on his cheek then used her thumb to wipe away the lipstick stain. “Good morning, honey.”
Pulling her twinkling eyes away from my father’s, she looked over to Lovello and me, then conveyed politeness with a smile and a “Good morning.”
Vince wrapped his fingers around her perfectly manicured ones which were also painted red, and used his free hand to wave in our direction. “This is Lovello Nelson, and this is my daughter, Axia. Lovello, Axia, this is Eve Tomb.”
She held out her hand to Lovello who shook it and smiled amiably. Then she held out her hand to me, saying, “Nice to meet you, Axia. I’ve heard so much about you.” To which I shook it and replied, “Nice to meet you, too. My mother, Seleste D’costa-Blacksille, she hates you. Very much.”
Eve made a nervous laugh and glanced at Vince with questioning eyes. “Ignore her,” he told Eve as he stood up from his chair. “We were just about to have breakfast and I would’ve loved for us all to do so, but my daughter is rather crass and erratic and I don’t want you holding me accountable for whatever comes out of her mouth. So let’s have breakfast inside.”
“What?” I asked, frowning.
“What, what, Axia?” Vince snapped.
“A few minutes ago I was going about my business and you forced me to have breakfast with you and this prick next to me, and now you’re gonna just ditch me for your new sweetheart?”
“Axia, today is a pretty big day for Eve, and I don’t want you to ruin her mood.”
Eying his hand that was now wrapped around her waist and the other that was laced with her fingers, I asked, “So it’s true, then? You’re in love with her?”
Vince trembled with irritation. He glanced at Eve then back at me. “And what if I am?”
“You know what, Daddy.”
“Axia…” he trailed off, then unlaced his fingers from Eve’s and raked them through his hair. “I … we’ll talk later. Get to know this young man beside you. He might know what to do with you. ‘Cause God knows I don’t.”
I narrowed my eyes at their retreating forms, watching the way my father touched and smiled at Eve. Vince was only like that with my mother. If he wasn’t already in love with Eve, he was falling for her and that would break my mother in two.
Becoming aware that Lovello was still beside me, I pushed back my chair and started to get up but he clamped his hand down on my knee. “Don’t. Move.”
Having more energy and control than yesterday, I raised a foot and stomped it hard on his toes in his expensive shoes, and he yelped.
“I told you not to touch me!” I hissed at him.
Lovello Nelson looked grave. “Are you going to continue being a bitch for the rest of your life?”
“Did you just call me a bitch?”
“Yes. You’re a cold-hearted bitch and you need to be bridled.”
Again, I raised my foot and stomped on his toes. “How’s that for a bitch, huh?” Before he could shift his foot, I stomped on it again. “A bitch is a female dog and bridles are for donkeys, estúpido!”
I aimed for his foot again but he grabbed my shoulders and shook me. “Axia, stop it! You’re acting silly. What the hell is wrong with you?”
“You’re what’s wrong with me! Why do you keep following me? Why don’t you leave me alone?”
Lovello screeched my chair around to face him, and without releasing me, he stood halfway up and used his foot to spin his chair around so we were both facing each other, our knees kissing. He then locked his ankles around each of mine, pinning them to the chair legs. That way I couldn’t get up.
I scoffed. “What are you going to do, hold me hostage in my own home?”
“I think your father will allow it. He likes me. Besides, he seems frustrated with you and your behavior.”
“Don’t take Vince Blacksille lightly. He likes to play nice, but when he plays dirty, he plays dirty.”
“Why didn’t you answer my calls yesterday?” he asked in an accusatory tone.
“Um, let’s see … because I’m my own woman and I do whatever the hell I want! I don’t owe you anything.”
“Yes you do. You owe me you.”
I tried to move but I was pinned, feet and arms. “Seriously, Pretty Boy, you need to give it up.”
“Kick
and scream and fight as much as you want, Axia, I’m not gonna leave you alone. So you need to give it up. You’re a wild animal that needs to be subdued.”
“First I’m a bitch and now I’m a wild animal? Have any more disrespectful names for me, Pretty Boy Nelson?” I struggled again but he held my shoulders firm. “I swear, nothing would give me greater pleasure than to see your face scrunched in pain and your skin red with welts.”
Lovello furrowed his brows then promptly let go of my shoulders, but still kept my feet pinned. “What do you mean by that?”
Mierda … “Nothing.”
Thankfully he didn’t probe further on my gaffe. “You didn’t answer me yesterday, you know,” he said.
“What?”
“Yesterday when I asked if you loved that Zane person. You didn’t give me an answer. Now I’ve learned that he’s an ex who broke up with you. Why are you still seeing him? Are you in love with him?”
“You don’t have a right to ask me that question.”
“I know, but I’m asking you anyway.”
“That’s for me and Zane to know,” I shot. “And for you to take your nose out of.”
He made an exasperated grunt. “I don’t believe you’re in love with him, but I just want you to tell me that you’re not.”
“Why are you making Zane and me your problem?”
“Are you dense, or do you just insist on being difficult?” he snapped.
“What?”
Lovello leaned forward and cupped my face in both hands, locking his heated gray gaze on mine. “Axia, I want you. More than I’ve ever wanted any other woman. I’m used to getting anything and anyone I want. I’m used to my own way. I’ve never done shit like this before. Never chased anyone. Ever. And here I am chasing you like a dog after a bone, sponging your insults and your abuses. It’s not manly and it’s not me. Yet for some baffling reason, I’m drawn to you. You have something that a part of me wants, but I don’t know what that is just yet. The soul is quicker than the flesh. It takes a while for the flesh to know what the soul knows. And that is why I desire you. Ever since I saw you in my building that morning, I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind, Axia. Don’t think that this is a feeling that I embrace, I freakin’ hate it. And if it leaves tomorrow morning, I’ll be ecstatic, because God, dear God, you are one frustrating woman.”
