Page 32 of Brutal Heir (Ruthless Heirs #3)
A RELEASE
A lessandro
The elevator doors hiss open on the top floor of Gemini Tower, and the familiar scent of rich leather, cologne, and cold steel smacks me in the face. This building used to feel like my inheritance, my birthright. Now it feels like enemy territory.
My steps echo across the gleaming marble floor as I stride across the foyer. The girls at the front desk offer tight smiles, nothing like the ones I used to receive before I became half-man half-monster. Well, the monster was always there, but I kept it hidden beneath a shiny facade.
“Hey, cuz, what are you doing here?” Matteo’s cheery tone streaks past the curtain of gloom.
I lower my voice inching closer to my cousin. “Time to let Papà in on the situation at the Vault.”
“You haven’t told him yet?” He eyes me incredulously.
How could I admit that I’d been so consumed with Rory’s disappearance I hadn’t even considered my father? All that mattered that night was finding her. And then I did, and things only got worse.
I had no intention of ever bringing up that damned kiss again. All I wanted was to forget it ever happened, but when I found myself alone with her half-naked in the stillness of the bathroom, I couldn’t help myself. I had to know.
When she said she didn’t regret it, hope had bubbled up, wild and explosive. Then came the crash. We could never do it again.
She may not regret it, but she sure as hell didn’t want to repeat it.
Why?
Was it really just because I was her patient? Because, fuck me, she was an amazing nurse, but if we could have more?
“You okay?” Matteo waves his hand an inch from my face.
Merda . I stopped talking for too long.
“No, I haven’t told him,” I finally grumble.
He smacks me on the good shoulder with a wicked grin. “Well, I’ll be waiting for you in the lounge if you need some moral support.”
“Thanks, Matty. What are you doing here?”
“ Papà needed my help. Someone hacked into the Gemini employee files. We’re trying to figure out what they were looking for and of course, track down the asshole.”
“Any luck?”
He shrugs. “Not yet, but I have no doubt I’ll catch the hacker soon. You know nothing gets by me.”
“I do…” My brows furrow as I regard him. “Who’d want information on our employees and for what?”
Again, his shoulders lift. “No idea. But don’t you worry your pretty little head, Ale, I’ll find out before some stalker shows up at your penthouse.”
“They got our personal info too?”
“We are all technically employees.”
“Right.”
“Coffee after?” He raises a brow.
“Rain check. Rory’s waiting for me at home…”
A devious grin parts his lips as he regards me. But I lift a hand before he can utter a sound. He walked in on the aftermath of the kiss the other night and though I hadn’t provided any details, he wasn’t stupid either. “Later then, cuz.”
I nod, grateful he doesn’t pry further and move toward the double doors of my father’s office. The receptionist barely glances up. She knows better than to stop me.
The doors are already open when I reach them.
Marco Rossi stands at the window, back straight, suit perfect, one hand curled around a tumbler of something dark and expensive. The skyline of Manhattan sprawls behind him like a kingdom.
“You’re here early,” he says without turning, a grin in his tone. “Haven’t even finished my scotch.”
“It’s noon, Papà .”
He shrugs. “It’s six o’clock in Italy.”
I shut the door behind me. “We’ve got a problem.”
That gets his attention.
He turns slowly, eyes sharpening. “The club?”
I nod once. “The night before last… we found a body.”
“And this is the first I’m hearing about it?”
“It’s under control.”
His brow twitches. Just barely. “Who?”
“One of the waitresses. Amber.”
His eyes narrow. He walks to the edge of his desk, fingers tapping once against the mahogany surface. “Cause?”
“Don’t know yet. Vincent found her in the back storage room. No weapon, no witnesses, at least not yet. We’re going through the surveillance now.”
He exhales slowly through his nose. “And the cops?”
“Not involved.”
“ Dio , Ale…” He shakes his head, turning away to pace toward the bar cart. “You realize what this means for us? If the press gets a whiff of a dead employee at the Vault, they’ll crucify us. Gemini’s name will be splashed across every headline. Again. Our competitors will circle like sharks.”
“I know.” I rake a hand through my hair, jaw tight. “That’s why I’m here. We’re handling it internally until we figure out what happened, but it wasn’t just some random accident. The way she was positioned… it felt intentional. A message maybe.”
My father pours another two fingers of scotch. No ice this time.
“You think it’s connected to whoever is stealing money from the club?”
I hesitate. “I didn’t. Not at first. But the more I think about it…”
“Too much coincidence,” he finishes, turning back to face me. “We’ve got one employee skimming off the top, another turning up dead. Either someone’s getting sloppy, or you’re right and they’re sending a message.”
My blood runs cold. “A rival?” I’d never considered the stealing was anything but a desperate employee.
“Maybe.” He sips. “Maybe it’s internal. I trust Lawson and Vincent, but not everyone who works for us is loyal. You know how many favors I had to cash in to keep the Vault off the radar after the shooting this summer? If another scandal hits, we’re done. Our licenses. Our permits. Everything.”
“I’ll find out who did it,” I promise. “I already have Vincent combing every inch of footage. And I’ve got eyes on every staff member, past and present.”
He regards me for a long moment. “Good. Because you’re the only one who can handle this right. The Velvet Vault is your domain. Own it.”
I nod once, turning toward the door.
“And Alessandro?”
I stop, glancing back.
His voice is low, but razor-sharp. “No more messes. The next one we don’t clean up in-house.” If the cops get involved, I lose my club. Then I’m saddled with my inheritance. Gemini Corporation.
The unspoken threat hangs in the air like a noose.
I don’t flinch. “Understood.”
Instead of going home after the stellar meeting with my father, I decide to take Matteo up on his offer.
Only instead of coffee, I take a page from Papà ’s playbook, and we end up at a near-empty bar in midtown.
I didn’t even realize it was an Irish pub until the bartender’s familiar accent sent my heart into overdrive.
Swirling the full tumbler of whiskey, the ice clinks against the glass. Matty eyes me warily perched on the barstool at my right. This is my second one, and my cousin knows full well I don’t drink much anymore. My tolerance is shit and coupled with the pain meds, it’s a disaster waiting to happen.
But after the past few days, I need a release. And seeing as sex isn’t an option, alcohol is the next best thing.
“Is that fiery little redhead going to come after me for letting you get drunk?” Matty smirks before he takes a long pull from his Guiness.
“She’s not my keeper,” I grumble and take another sip. The smooth, caramel liquid slides down my throat. Possibly too easily.
“No, but she’s your something all right.” He clinks the dark bottle against mine. “I haven’t seen you like that with” —he pauses dramatically— “anyone.”
“That’s not true.”
“No? Name one other woman you’ve spent all night wandering the streets for?” He raises a finger to my lips before I can respond. “And I don’t mean a prostitute.”
The glimmer of a smile tugs up the corners of my lips.
“You care about her, Ale. It’s okay to admit it.”
“It’s not okay for so many reasons.”
“Don’t let the chance at love pass you by because you’re scared. Trust me, it’s the worst mistake you’ll ever make.”
I eye my cousin for a second, something about the sharp edge to his tone striking a chord. When had Matteo been in love? How had I missed that? I open my mouth to ask more, but he jumps in before I can get a word out.
“Besides, I’m sure you’re not the first guy to get involved with someone who works for them.”
“It’s not just that…” My jaw tightens, molars grinding. How do I admit to my cousin that I don’t deserve her? That I’m only half a man, and she deserves so much more. That incident with the server at Thanksgiving is permanently etched into my mind. What if I can’t perform…
Despite the fact that I’ve had no problem getting erections around Rory, it doesn’t mean I’ll actually be able to fuck her properly. What if my dick really is broken?
I flag down the bartender. “I’ll take another.”
“Ale,” Matteo scolds.
“I’m fine, cuz. Just let me have one damned day to feel normal again.”
Shaking his head, Matty releases a long-suffering breath. “Fine… But if that naughty little nurse tries to blame this on me, I’m throwing you under the bus.”
“I can handle the tiny tyrant, trust me.”