by Kenya Wright
The moment was insane, and I didn’t—we didn’t give one fuck.
Chapter 20
Giovanni
To stop the flow of music
would be like
the stopping of time itself,
incredible and inconceivable.
~Aaron Copland
The next day, I drove us back to my house. Tension filled the car. I knew that Ru had given Simone a hard time while she’d been with me. This morning, she’d called him back as I dressed. She’d tried to keep her voice down, but I’d heard her just the same. She kept on reassuring him that she was fine and that he needed to mind his business when it came to her love life.
There was an urge inside of me to storm into the living room, grab the phone from her, and curse him the fuck out. But she wanted her independence with handling him.
Still, I gripped the steering wheel hard with my hands when I rolled us into my garage.
David met us there. “Welcome back, sir. I hope you both had a great time.”
Simone nodded. “We did.”
David turned to me. “When it is a good time, I would like to speak to you privately, sir.”
That’s odd. What’s going on?
Simone shrugged. “I have to go meet with Ru anyway. I can let you both talk and then we’ll see each other soon.”
“Very soon. I already miss you.”
She grinned. “Yes, Gio. It won’t be long.”
Simone walked off and left the garage. I turned to David. “What’s going on?”
“A Mr. Midnight and his...entourage arrived this morning. I placed them in the west wing with your other guest.”
“Perfect.” Hopefully, Midnight and his crew would make a lot of noise and disturb the shit out of Ru. “Has Midnight’s crew caused any problems?”
“No, sir. They’ve been quite a delight.” David stepped closer. “However, there’s been some problems with Mr. Ru. I usually don’t want to complain about one of your guests, sir, but—”
“Never worry about that. I trust your judgment.”
“He’s been drinking quite a lot, since you went on your short trip. He broke several vases in his room last night.”
Anger rose in my chest. I formed my hands into fists. “Anything else.”
“As I was saying, his drinking increased and some of our...female staff have complained about him being...touchy.”
My anger must’ve showed on my face because David stepped back.
“Anything else?” I asked.
“No, sir. Again, the two times he inappropriately patted the maids’ bottoms, he was very drunk.”
“That’s no excuse.”
David bowed. “Of course, sir.”
“I’ll deal with him. Please, let me know if he does anything else.”
“Of course.” David raised his eyebrows. “Should I have Judy plan for a huge dinner this evening?”
“No. I’d rather avoid my guests tonight.” I walked off. “But tell Judy to plan a nice brunch tomorrow for everyone.”
“Okay, sir.”
I stormed out of the garage, heading for Ru’s room. Enough was enough. He’d cock blocked me as much as possible. He’d made Simone feel uncomfortable and lied to her about me. Now he was breaking things in my house and being rapey with the maids.
Is that what happens when you’re having a tantrum? You think you can take your anger out on my staff? You think you can disrespect the women that work for me?
I wished I hadn’t let Simone go to him by herself. He was probably drunk and mad. I didn’t want to think of what he would try with her in this state.
But as I headed toward the west wing, she appeared in the hallway walking in my direction.
I stopped. “What happened?”
“Nothing.” She shrugged. “He’s asleep. I knocked on his door a few times and heard him snoring, so I decided to let him rest.”
I remained seething, staring off in the direction of his room, ready to wake his ass up and toss him out of my house.
“What’s wrong?” A worried look hit her face.
I hated her expression like that. “Nothing.”
I didn’t know why I didn’t tell her everything. On one side, she didn’t need to be more stressed. On the other, I didn’t want my kicking her manager out to cause an argument. He had to go. There was no doubt in my mind, but how much did I want to unload on her?
“Gio?” she whispered. “What’s going on?”
I shook my head and grabbed her hand. “We can talk about this later.”
She moved her hand away. “Talk about what?”
I sighed. “I don’t want you to worry about this, but your manager has to go.”
“Okay. Of course. This is your house.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “What did he do?”
“He damaged some vases in a drunken fit.”
Shock hit her. “Ru?”
“According to David, and as long as I’ve known my butler he’s been trustworthy.”
She covered her face with her hands and wiped down as if she could get rid of everything rising around us. “I’m so sorry. I can’t believe he broke stuff.”
“It was just some vases, but that’s not what’s really pissed me off. According to David, Ru has inappropriately touched two of my maids.”
Her worried expression shifted to disgust. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“No.”
“Ru?”
“Yes.”
She shook her head. “I’ve known him for five years and I would’ve never thought he would be the type to do that. But then, I guess I’ve never really known him at all. All this week, he’s been acting so different.”
“He’s had you hidden in Brooklyn. There’s been no one around you to threaten the relationship he thinks you both have.”
“Relationship? No. He knows that there’s nothing between us.”
“You admitted that he was probably attracted to you.”
“Yes, but—”
“He bought a building to keep you away from me, princess. He was blowing up your phone the whole time we were in Salt Lake City like you were his wife and a maniac had stolen you away. What more do you need?”
She said nothing else.
Sighing, I pulled her in and wrapped my arms around her.
“This is crazy.” She leaned her head against my chest. “Just when everything is going great, he has to...”
“Be more possessive of you.”
She leaned away from me. “Let me handle all of this.”
I gritted my teeth.
“He’ll probably wake up in the morning. I’ll let him know that he must leave that afternoon. He’s my guest. My manager. My problem. If I wasn’t here, he wouldn’t have come here and caused all this trouble.”
“I would rather handle him myself.” I pictured my hands around his neck.
“I think there will be less conflict and problems, if I do it.”
“I don’t trust him around you.”
Smiling, she shook her head. “He’s not going to hurt me.”
I still didn’t like her dealing with him on her own. “Okay, but if he’s been drinking, I want you to leave and come get me. A normal guy doesn’t get drunk and start grabbing women’s behinds. That’s a creepy guy that gets drunk and does that. If he’s doing it while he’s intoxicated, it just means he’s letting the beast out of its cage.”
“Whoa. Whoa. I don’t think Ru is a sociopath.”
“So, you’re telling me that’s normal behavior?”
She gazed down at the ground. “No. You’re right. It’s just hard for me to wrap my head around it. I’ve always felt so safe with him.”
I tightened my hold on her. “Hey, relax. Maybe, I’m over exaggerating because I’m fucking tired of his shit.”
“I know. I shouldn’t have let him come.”
“That’s not your fault. Ru would’ve come here regardless.” I let her go and our gazes met. “I don’t want to shove my
way into your career and life, but...Ru has to not only leave this house, but he has to leave you alone too.”
She blinked and didn’t say anything.
“His behavior is outrageous. I know he’s done a lot for you and has been there through these years, but you deserved it. You’re talented. He got just as much as he gave. There’s no need to let some sense of loyalty keep you from ending your business relationship with him.”
She backed up and left my arms. “Gio, I have to think about all of this.”
“I know.”
“Everything is happening so fast. And now Ru is acting crazy and out of nowhere I’m in love...” She dropped her mouth open as if in shock of what she’d just confessed.
My heart warmed. Immediately, I forgot about Ru and the tense topic we’d been discussing.
I stepped toward her, closing the distance between us. “You’re in love?”
She looked away. “I’m falling for you. How could I not? You’ve been everything I’ve ever needed and more. You’ve been amazing.”
I breathed her in and gathered her back in my arms, kissing those lips and tasting her tongue. “Simone. Simone. I thought I was the only one that was falling. I thought it was too soon for me to say something. I thought...”
My mouth finished the words, delivering the message with my tongue. When we separated, she panted, stepped back, and leaned against the wall.
“So, that settles everything.”
“What does?”
“You’re mine.”
“Are you asking?”
“I’m telling you.”
She curved her lips into a smile. “I’m yours, but we have to take our time.”
“Sure, we will.”
“I’m serious.”
“I won’t slow down. I want you too much.”
She bit her bottom lip.
“And I won’t let you deal with Ru by yourself.”
“Gio, I can handle it.”
I shook my head. “No, you mean too much for me to let you deal with it all by yourself, and he’s done being your manager.”
“Gio—”
“Midnight is here. He can sign you as soon as you drop Ru.”
“Gio.” She shook her head and left the wall, walking toward the east wing. “You can’t just take control of my life.”
“I’m not trying to.” I gently grabbed her arm.
She moved it away. “You are trying to take complete control and I know you’re looking out for me, but just like Ru, you have to step back and let me live my life.”
“I can’t, and I know that I should’ve lied and said I could, but I can’t. You mean too much to me. Ru’s actions have put me on edge. I think he’s acting out of control—”
“I can deal with this.”
“But you won’t.”
She sighed and walked away.
“Simone?” I called after her.
“I’m going back to the bedroom to think. We can talk about this later.”
“Fine,” I said through clenched teeth.
Why can’t I compromise on this?
I knew I should’ve. There were so many better ways I could’ve handled it, besides being a big ogre and demanding it all go my way. Simone was smart, talented, and capable of taking care of herself. She’d made it this far without my help. Why couldn’t I just let her deal with it?
Because I don’t trust Ru. I know Simone will do the right thing, but he won’t. She’ll tell him to leave. She’ll listen to his pitiful excuse and maybe even understand why he did it. But would that be the end of the problem? No.
Ru wouldn’t leave, if she came to him. He’d figure out some way to make her feel guilty, or he could do worse.
She walked off and I let her, steaming away with anger at her manager. Every cell in me wanted to turn around, storm off to his room, and wake his bitch ass up with a punch to his fucking jaw. How dare he cause problems for us? How dare he have Simone worry? How dare he create a rift between Simone and me?
Everything had been going right between us, and then the reality of Ru seeped back into our lives like a black sludge, coating us both in annoyance.
I won’t let her deal with this on her own. She must get rid of him. He’ll never let us be. He’ll always cause problems.
“Baby!” Midnight’s gruff voice sounded behind me.
I turned. “Hey, I heard you arrived.”
Never simple, he wore a gold velvet suit with a large fur hat on his head. Diamond rings covered his fat fingers. All of them were new from the last time I’d seen him. A big chain dangled from his neck, holding a large M covered in diamonds, all decked out. For many men, this would be an outfit that they would wear to an extravagant ball with a velvet and fur theme. For Midnight, this was casual.
“It’s cold as fuck here.” My huge manager gave me a big hug, wrapping those fat arms around me.
I pushed him away. “Really, Midnight?”
“It’s been ages, baby.” He patted my arm. “I missed you. It’s been too long since you’ve stood in front of me.”
“Not long enough to be embracing me.” Smiling, I straightened my shirt.
Midnight looked off in the distance, watching Simone further down the hallway. “So, that’s her?”
“Yeah.”
He whistled as she walked around the corner. “What are you doing, Gio? You know damn well you can’t handle all that ass.”
“Stop looking at her ass.”
Midnight laughed. “Shit. If you think no one’s going to look at that big ass just because you lay up next to it, then you’re in for a rude awakening, baby. Shit. Her ass is so fat, I could see how big it was from the back. Shit. There isn’t any dress or shirt on this earth that’s going to stop people from looking at that.”
I frowned at him.
“Fine, Gio. I’ll stop looking at her ass.” He shook his head. “Come on, baby. Let’s go on a walk. I want to see that train set you’re always playing with.”
“Cool.” I needed to give Simone some space. We’d just had our first little disagreement. Unfortunately, I knew neither one of us would compromise. She thought I would just sit back as she dealt with her creepy manager. I was confident that I could get that motherfucker out of my house and away from her life all by myself.
After hearing about him groping my staff, I didn’t want him in the same room with Simone by herself. Guys like that didn’t get sexual gratification over lust and pleasure. They got off from cruel control and pushing the line.
But, you won’t have any more control over Simone. I don’t care how mad she gets at me. You must go.
“Yeah.” I nodded at Midnight. “Let’s go. I want to talk to you about something anyway.”
“What?”
“Simone’s going to need a new manager.”
Midnight stopped in the center of the hallway. “She’s dropping Ru?”
“Yes.”
He leaned his head to the side.
“She will.”
“Because you’re telling her to?”
“Yes.”
Midnight shook his head and walked off. “What are you doing?”
“He’s fucking rapey. I don’t like him around her. “
“And what does she think?”
“She...kind of agrees.”
“Sounds like you don’t truly know. I’m not getting in the middle of Ru and you.”
“Isn’t that the reason why you came here?”
“No. I came here to make sure you didn’t hurt him, not to help you gain advantage in a love triangle.”
“Hey, this isn’t a love triangle. Simone has no feelings for him.”
“Are you sure about that? They’ve been working together for five years. Emotions grow.”
“No.”
“That could be why you’re uneasy about him.”
“No.”
“I’m just saying. Do you think you’re thinking rationally?”
“Ru got drunk and groped women on my
staff. He’s breaking shit.”
Midnight shrugged and took his time going up the steps. “That’s how some guys do it.”
“Do what?”
Midnight huffed and leaned against the wall. “I thought you had an elevator?”
“Do what, Midnight?”
“Some guys grab chicks’ ass. It doesn’t mean he’s a danger to the community.”
“If he’s grabbing chicks’ ass, then he is a danger to the community.”
“She’s got your nose open.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“So, you’re not arguing against it?”
“I’m into her.”
“You got that ass and didn’t know what to do with yourself. Now, you’re running around trying to possess it, roaring at anyone that’ll get close. You know lions do shit like that? They’re territorial. But look, baby, we’re not lions. We’re not animals in the wild. You don’t have to piss on her.”
“This is your big advice? I’m being a lion and trying to piss on her?”
“You get what I’m saying. You say Ru is being possessive of her, but it sounds like you’re doing the same thing.”
Midnight’s words hung in my mind as we went to my train room and I showed him around. David ended up bringing us some drinks as we played with the trains, racing each other through the different cities. At least two hours passed.
By the time I headed to my bedroom, I was a little tipsy and confused at how I’d handled the situation with Simone. Maybe I was being too controlling. I still couldn’t see myself compromising, but I hoped to have a change of heart when I woke up.
But if not, I going to kick his ass out of here and make sure he stays far away from her.
When I entered, she lay fast asleep in the bed. I undressed, got under the fur blankets, and held her.
Moaning softly, she rolled over and lay in my arms.
I kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry.”
Surprising me, she scooted in closer to me and whispered, “I’m sorry too.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
“We will.”
Chapter 21
Simone
Music is spiritual.
