Alex Drakos 2_His Scandalous Family

by Mallory Monroe

Kari could feel a slight drop in her upbeat spirit. “Why didn’t it pan out?” she asked him. And why are you telling her this now, she wanted to ask.

  “She was married,” Alex said. “And meant it.”

  Kari’s heart dropped. He obviously still had a thing for this woman. Why else would he bring it up?

  “I wanted you to be fully aware,” Alex said as if he heard her thoughts.

  “Aware of what?”

  “Aware that it was an attraction that went nowhere and that is now over. I am telling you about it because I want no secrets between us.”

  If that was the real reason, Kari could appreciate that. Everybody, after all, had a past. Even her. She nodded her head. “Thanks for the heads up,” she said.

  “Speaking of heads up,” he said as he finished wiping his hand on the cloth, “come and give me some.”

  Kari smiled, but rose from her stool. “Do you ever get tired of fucking, Alex?”

  “Tired of fucking you? Hell no!”

  Kari laughed. But when she made her way up to him, and he opened his robe, revealing a fully aroused penis, the laughs were over.

  Kari gladly knelt down, and pleasured her man.

  But just as he was about to cum, and she thought her work was done, he lifted her onto the island, opened her legs, and had himself a second fulfilling round. On her.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Reno Gabrini tossed the thick file onto his messy desk and angrily leaned back. “What the fuck you think this is?” he asked his Talent Manager. “Does it look like I’m running a fucking carnival? I’ve already got thirty-five circus acts. Thirty-five! More than any other hotel on the Strip. I tell you get more talent for the new wing, and what do you do? You hand me a proposal filled with twelve more! Twelve more circus acts. Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “I understand what you’re saying, Boss,” the manager said. “But those acts are the ones bringing in the crowds.”

  “Bullshit! Caesar’s Palace has Celine Dion and Elton John. The Wynn’s getting Mel Brooks for crying out loud. But I have fucking clowns and elephants and lions and tigers and bears! And it’s my numbers that are down this quarter. Not theirs!”

  One of Reno’s assistants walked into an office already filled with managers and other assistants on phones, computers, and anything in between. She walked over to his desk. “Excuse me, sir,” she interrupted.

  Reno looked at her as if she’d just lost her mind. “What are you doing? You see us talking here?” He was from Jersey, and that accent had never left him.

  “I apologize for the interruption, sir,” the assistant said, “and I don’t mean to but in.”

  “Then but the hell out!”

  “Yes, sir. But Mr. Drakos has arrived, sir.”

  The assistant inwardly smiled when she saw the change in her boss’s bombastic attitude.

  And Reno nodded. “Got it,” he said. Then begrudgingly added: “Thanks. Then he rose to his feet and put on his suit coat jacket. He looked at the man who still stood before him. “Take those shit acts in that file and find me some real talent,” he said, “or I’ll find me a real talent manager.”

  “Yes, sir. Don’t worry, sir,” the manager said, as Reno left the office.

  When he left, the assistant looked at the manager. “If I had a dollar for the times he’s threatened to fire you,” she said, “I’d be rich.”

  But it was no laughing matter to the talent manager. “Fuck you,” he said angrily, as he grabbed his thick folder, and left.

  The assistant, well accustomed to the pressure he was under, still couldn’t help but laugh.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  He found him in the crowded casino. At the blackjack tables. As Reno walked toward him, he noticed a black lady cheering and raking in the dough. It didn’t appear to be much, given the chips on the table, but she was happy nonetheless. He didn’t realize the woman was with Alex Drakos until he saw Alex place his arm around her waist. For some reason, it surprised Reno. She didn’t seem like Alex’s type. Especially when Reno considered that Alex had wanted to fuck his wife, a woman Reno considered to be at the top of the food chain when it came to desirable women.

  But he also knew people’s taste could change. Maybe after the death of his son, Alex was turning over a new leaf. Getting his act together. Or maybe he was still old Alex, fucking anything he could get his hands on. But whatever.

  “There’s the man,” Reno said as he approached.

  When Alex and Kari turned toward the sound, Alex smiled too. “Well if it’s not Reno Gabrini. My competitor.”

  “Competitor my ass,” Reno responded jokingly. “You just got in the game. I changed the game. You’d better get a life, motherfucker!”

  Both men laughed, and Reno extended his hand. “How are you, Alexander?”

  “I’m great,” Alex responded, as they shook hands. “How are you?”

  “On the verge of a nervous breakdown,” Reno said, rifling through his already ruffled hair. “About to put a bullet through my brain if these fuckers don’t leave me alone. But other than that? I’m good.”

  Although Both men laughed, Kari was shocked by the bombastic style of the man before them. Was this really the owner of the PaLargio? He was, because Alex called him by his name. But she was expecting some button-down stuff shirt with his nose all in the air. But this guy, with his wrinkled-looking suit, and his unshaven face, and his bloodshot blue eyes, looked more like a gambler with a gambling problem, than the owner of the place.

  Since Kari was staring at him, Reno looked at her. “And who, may I ask, is this?” he asked. “Or are you two not together?”

  “We’re together,” Alex quickly said, and placed his hand around Kari’s waist. “Reno, I want you to meet my lady--”

  Reno interrupted him before he could continue. “Your lady? So you’ve got a lady now?”

  “That’s right.”

  Reno seemed surprised. Kari didn’t understand why. She knew she shouldn’t ask. This man would probably think she was so out of their league if she did ask. But since she already knew she wasn’t in their league, and that reality was no big deal to her, she asked anyway. “You seem surprised,” she said to Reno.

  At first, she could see a little bit of that who the fuck are you to ask me a question look in his eyes. But then he nodded. “I am,” he said. “Matter of fact.”

  Alex, who saw that momentary look in Reno’s eyes, too, rescued his lady and took over her questioning. “Why would you be surprised?” he asked Reno.

  “Why do you think? The times I’ve seen you around Vegas and you had some chick on your arm, you never introduced her as your lady. Not one time. Meaning no disrespect, young lady,” he added, looking at Kari, “but I’m just going to tell it like it is. Those females were just sex kittens to this guy. They were no big deal.” Then he looked at Alex again. “But now, all of a sudden, you want to introduce this one as your lady? I’d say I’m surprised. You’ve elevated this one.”

  Kari was a little shocked by how real he kept it, but Alex didn’t seem to be.

  “She’s definitely not one of them,” Alex responded to Reno.

  Reno smiled. “Well good. About time your horny ass settled down.”

  Alex smiled, too. “Who’s settling down? I’m amped up, if anything.”

  Reno laughed.

  “But this is my lady, I’m very proud to say,” Alex said, continuing the introduction. “This is Kari Grant.”

  Reno smiled. “Nice to meet you,” he said as they shook hands. “Any kin to that other Cary Grant? And I know, it’s a stupid question since you have the exact same name, right?

  Kari smiled. “I’m used to the question. But my Christian name is actually Karena. Everybody just calls me Kari, and not with a C and a Y, but with a K and an I. So no, I’m no kin to the actor.”

  Reno smiled and nodded. “Well good to meet you, Kari. You seem like a very nice person. Well-spoken. Intelligent. Got it together in every way. But that on
ly begs the question.”

  Kari and Alex were both confused. “What question is that?” Kari asked.

  “Why the hell are you with this loser?” Reno asked, motioning his head toward Alex. “You can do better than him!”

  Alex laughed. Kari smiled, but then she responded. “Actually,” she said, “I don’t think I can. I don’t think anyone can.”

  Alex and Reno said “Ooooh!” at the same time, as if they both understood that Kari had held her own against Reno’s put down of her man. Then Alex happily turned to Kari and he and she high-fived.

  “What do you say about that, old man?” Alex, grinning, asked Reno.

  But Reno was staring at Kari. He was impressed by her refusal to even joke about Alex. “I’d say you’d better hold on tight to that one,” he said.

  Alex’s smile slowly dissolved, and he and Reno exchanged a glance. And Alex nodded. “I think you’re right,” he said.

  But Reno, a man who prided himself on getting quick reads on people, suddenly saw that side of Kari that made him understand Alex’s attraction to her. It wasn’t about her looks, which were just okay in the full scheme of things, but it was about her guts. She had guts. It reminded him of his own wife.

  But like Trina when she and Reno first met, Reno wondered if this one really understood what she was getting herself into? Did she know about the real Alex Drakos? It took Reno time and a lot of private investigators sent to Greece to find out himself. Did she want to hitch her wagon to a man with that kind of background? To a man with the kind of nasty life Reno himself knew all too well?

  And suddenly Reno’s protective side overtook him, and he felt a need to warn her. He looked at Kari. “He’s no angel,” he said to her.

  “Neither am I,” she said to him.

  Alex again laughed and shook his head. To not just have found a good woman, but one who wasn’t too timid to stand up to Reno Gabrini, was a sight to behold. He was loving it!

  But Alex was cautious, too. He didn’t know Gabrini well, but he’d heard he could be vindictive as hell. Get the upper hand on him, and he’d cut you down to size. And although Reno was smiling, too, Alex could see more at work in his big, blue eyes.

  Alex decided, once again, to run interference. “Where’s Trina?” he asked.

  Although Alex had his own motive for asking that question, Kari didn’t know his motivation. But she did know that a sense of pain coursed through her body when he asked it. She was not looking forward to meeting this special lady as it was! She knew this Trina Gabrini had to be a serious piece of work to command the interest of these two titans.

  “She’s meeting us at the restaurant,” said Reno casually. Kari wondered if he even knew about the attraction Alex had had to his wife. “You know how hard she works. But she promised to be there.”

  “Good,” Alex said.

  Then Reno asked if they were ready to go. They said that they were.

  And they were off.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  They rode in the limousine across town and were seated in the VIP section of the exclusive restaurant. Trina Gabrini, to Kari’s disappointment, had not arrived yet, but that didn’t seem to bother the men. Busy people were busy, and they were probably accustomed to waiting. Kari was, too, but she wanted to meet this lady that caught Alex attention to such a degree that he had to warn Kari about it, and get it over with.

  But as the drinks were served at their table, and as Alex and Reno engaged in small-talk about golf (Reno hated it), and business, Kari also noticed that Reno Gabrini kept taking peeps at her. It was as if he was trying to figure out what Alex might have saw in her. It was a little disconcerting to have the man Alex said was known as the most powerful man in Vegas sit across from you staring at you. Kari wasn’t used to that.

  But Alex, without even realizing it this time, came to her rescue again when the conversation shifted from general talk to specifics. Alex asked if Reno had made a decision about joining his Apple Valley board of directors.

  Reno leaned back at their table and folded his arms. He placed the back of his hand on his cheek and began rubbing the stubble on his unshaven face. Then he spoke up. “That’s problematic,” he said.

  Alex didn’t seem bothered by that response, it seemed to Kari, as he leaned back too. “In what way?” he asked.

  “In every way. It’ll be like a major-leaguer joining the minors.”

  Kari was stunned by that reference. Was he calling Alex Drakos, the head of Drakos Capital, small potatoes?

  Alex had the very same question, but he grinned while asking it. “Are you calling me a minor-leaguer?” he asked Reno.

  “You? Hell no,” Reno responded. “I’m not calling you a minor-leaguer. Your business empire is bigger than mine, you think I don’t realize who you are? But this is your first time getting into the casino business. I’ve been king of casinos since I was eighteen years old. Your ass just got here. What the fuck I look like joining your board?”

  Kari thought Gabrini was excessively blunt, but Alex seemed to appreciate his forthrightness. She could tell, just by their body language alone, that they were two men who, begrudgingly perhaps, respected each other.

  And what Kari liked about Gabrini was that he came hard, but he didn’t stay there. He had an addendum to his outright rejection of Alex’s offer. “But if it’s my expertise you need,” Reno said to Alex, “then we can talk.”

  Alex smiled and extended his hand. It was exactly what he was after. That board offer was just to get the conversation started. “Your expertise,” Alex said happily, “will be greatly appreciated.” And the two men shook hands.

  “You know how this joker and I met?” Reno asked this of Kari before he released Alex’s hand.

  Since Kari didn’t know, she shook her head. “No,” she said.

  “We met because his horny ass had the hots for my wife,” Reno said bluntly. Then he released Alex’s hand. “I thought his ass had kidnapped her.”

  Alex continued to smile, but he could tell Reno still harbored resentment over that incident. But it was the kidnapping part that concerned Kari. “You thought he kidnapped her?” she asked.

  “I thought so, yeah. It was fucking crazy!”

  “But, of course,” Alex chimed in, “it was no kidnapping at all. She went with me willingly.”

  Reno looked at Alex with what Kari could only describe as a sharp look. Now both men were staring at each other, as if it was some kind of test of wills. This was turning out to be a tough day. It was too much testosterone for Kari!

  Not that it was new to her. She was used to guys duking it out all the time. Vito used to duke it out with the best of them. But she wasn’t used to this gentlemanly way of getting that upper hand. It was too taxing on the mind and spirit all at once. Especially since it involved another woman. She thought about excusing herself to the restroom, just to get away from it all. But just as she was about to do so, the star of the show arrived.

  Both men rose to their feet when Trina Gabrini arrived, and Kari was happy that she had a ringside seat and could size her up before she made it to their table. And what she saw was impressive. Like Kari, Trina was African-American, too. She had a fast gait, a curvaceous figure, and a look about her that made it clear she was the boss. Even a bombastic drama king like Reno Gabrini, it seemed to Kari, was more than happy to turn the stage over to that one.

  Reno, in fact, was smiling when he first saw his wife, but when she approached, his words didn’t seem to match his eyes. “About time your ass made it,” he said, which surprised Kari in its harshness.

  “Fuck you, Reno,” Trina responded, which surprised Kari even more. These two, she thought, fought dirty. But then they gave each other a very passionate kiss, and smiled the warmest smile at each other. They might have fought dirty, Kari decided, but they probably loved dirty too.

  But then Trina looked at Alex and Kari. “Sorry I’m late, guys. Hey, Alex,” she added with a smile, as she sat beside her husband.

/>   “Good to see you again,” Alex said as he sat down. “I want you to meet somebody.”

  Trina smiled and looked at Kari. “You must be the great Kari Grant,” she said.

  Kari was surprised that she knew her name. Especially since her husband had known nothing about her. “I don’t know about the great part,” she said, “but I’m Kari”

  Trina laughed. “Oh, don’t sell yourself short. Alex certainly hasn’t. We’ve only spoken a couple of times since he met you, but he spoke very highly of you both times.”

  “And I still didn’t do her justice,” Alex said.

  “See,” Trina said with a smile. “Alex thinks you’re great.”

  Kari smiled.

  “He offered my wife a job in his conglomerate,” Reno said to Kari. “I don’t know if he mentioned it to you.”

  “He did, yes,” Kari responded.

  Reno was pleased to know it. At least Drakos wasn’t keeping that much from her.

  “That’s why we were communicating,” Trina pointed out, as she took a sip of the drink her husband had already ordered for her. “I had questions about his offer, and would ask how he was doing just to get the conversation going. But then he’d launch into this long discussion, not about his job offer, but about you.”

  Kari laughed.

  “He really likes you,” Trina said. “And that’s saying a lot for Alexander Drakos.”

  “Now that’s the truth,” Reno agreed.

  “I would say,” Alex said, disagreeing with them, “that it says more about who Kari is, and what she’s made of.”

  Kari’s heart melted inside. She’d never, not ever, met a man who treated her in public with the same level of affection he treated her in private. No matter where they went; no matter who they were around, Alex made it his business to put her on a pedestal. She was so not used to this. It made her feel so special that it scared her.

  She had been so worried about this meeting, and how he would treat her when Mrs. Gabrini showed up. She was worried that he would ignore her or treat her rudely, and elevate Mrs. Gabrini to prove that he was still available if she wanted him. But just the reverse happened. He elevated Kari the way he always did, Trina or no Trina, and even the Gabrinis seemed impressed.