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Three
ALEK
It’s been five days. The technicians weren’t able to find anything out of the ordinary, and I’m getting frustrated. I need to blow off some steam. Gray took last night off to take a beautiful tattoo artist to dinner. I think I’ll go harass him.
“Enter,” he growls when I knock on the door.
I wish he would trust me more to take on additional responsibilities. I get that he’s a control freak, as am I. He wasn’t pissed about my key cards being stolen, not that he could give it much thought. He’s been occupied with gaming commissioners coming in and wanting to talk and conduct inspections.
“Don’t get mad at me because you feel the need to handle everything yourself.” I smirk, and he just shakes his head.
“It’s as if this place can’t function without me,” he exclaims, throwing his hands up.
He reaches toward his ponytail to pull it out but stops. His eyes focus on his computer screen. I’m pretty sure I know what caught his attention. Behind him on the bank of monitors is every angle he can see her from. He watched her every chance he could yesterday before they went on their date.
“It can. You are the one who has left your number for everyone to call in case of an ‘emergency.’” I give him air quotes. “It’s not an emergency when a whale loses. It’s not an emergency when a cook calls out. You have plenty of them.” He needs to trust in his managers to do their jobs, or he’s never going to have a life.
I approach his desk as he turns toward the wall of monitors. Gray watches as she exits her suite that he upgraded her to.
“If you want a future with her, you’ll need to get your head out of your ass.” I gesture toward the screen, where the beautiful, tattooed woman is waiting for the elevator.
He chuckles as he grabs the folder of information I gathered on her. He uses me more to pull up dossiers on whales and other people. But I also manage the books, and security answers to me. I should tell him I want to take on a bigger role.
He sets the file down and picks up his cell phone. When I catch the smile on his face, I know he’s texting her. I decide I’m intruding and quietly return to my wing.
I watch our tech team as they run surveillance cameras and advise security and pit bosses on various issues. When the camera pans across the blackjack tables, a redhead catches my eye. It’s not her beauty that attracts me. No, there’s something about her that is vaguely familiar. Besides that is her demeanor. She seems distracted, her eyes tracking around the room, instead of paying attention to the people at her table. I pull up the schedule for the day to find out who she is.
Ainsley Duncan.
I begin to conduct a background check on her. She has a common last name, but still it’s too much of a coincidence to ignore. Jimmy Duncan has been causing Gray and me issues for years, even before we opened the casino.
“Hey.” Gray pops his head in the door. “I need you to do me a favor. It will cause too much of a stir if I do it.”
“Okay.”
I don’t question him because he is my friend, and I know he wouldn’t ask me to do something unless he really needed me to. Plus, I owe him for helping get me out of the Bratva. Oh, I still have some things to do with them, but I’m mostly staying clean. I don’t want to end up like my father.
“Will you take lunch down to Erika?”
“I can do that.”
I don’t like to socialize with people I don’t know, but for him, I’ll do this.
I make my way down to the in-house café, where he ordered her lunch already, and then head for the ballroom where the tattoo convention is being held. Women watch me as I pass, but I ignore them. When I reach her booth, I stand back and watch as she helps her client up. She cares for her, making sure she’s hydrated and steady on her feet before she lets her go. As I approach, her eyes move over me, but not in a sexual way. She’s curious.
“Hello, I’m Aleksei. Mr. Aldridge asked me to bring you some lunch and a drink.” I hold out the bag with her lunch in it.
She reaches for it but stops, and I watch as a wicked smile pulls up her lips. She’s stunningly beautiful and very petite. Smaller than my lisichka. When she turns to look at the camera, I have a feeling she’s going to give Gray a run for his money, and I kind of like that. He needs someone to keep him on his toes.
“How do I know you are with Mr. Aldridge?” She turns a sweet smile on me.
Unsure how to answer, I look at the camera, knowing Gray will be watching. When I turn back to her, she leans forward, and I keep my eyes above her cleavage. Gray would kill me if I didn’t. Plus, I’m not interested. She isn’t my girl.
“Why don’t you show me the secret handshake? If you know it, you know you have to kiss me.” I rear back. I’m not kissing this woman. No one else’s lips will touch mine until I find my lisichka, and again, I value my head on my shoulders, not rolling around the desert floor.
“I know that if I so much as touch you, they’ll never find my body. I can tell you that Mr. Aldridge is watching us right now,” I answer.
She smiles again, and this time it’s warm and kind. “Fine. So, Aleksei, will you tell me this super-secret job that Mr. Aldridge does for the casino?” She takes the offered water from me.
