Page 16 of Dangerous Men (Fortune City Mafia #1)

SYDNEY

It’s a relief to see Jade waiting for me across the ballroom, and I welcome the opportunity to excuse myself from dancing with Ash. I’m shaken after my conversation with him.

Shaken and confused.

Because the way Ash had touched me? The things he’d said about me? It made it sound like Alec wasn’t the only one who was smitten.

But that couldn’t be real, could it? What were the odds of one drop-dead gorgeous man wanting to pursue me, let alone two?

“Who,” Jade asks, staring at me with wild eyes and a huge grin as I approach her, “was that ?”

I glance back over my shoulder at them. Ash has joined Alec, chatting with him as they both wait in line for the bar. When he sees me looking, he waves at us, grinning.

“That’s… Ashton,” I tell Jade, squirming a little. “He’s, uh. He’s Alec’s chief marketing officer.”

Jade blinks.

“And Alec needs a marketing officer because…?” she asks .

“Because he’s… Mason Alexander Sterling. I guess,” I finish, twisting my hands together. “From, you know…” I wave my hand around the room we’re in. “ This . The Sterling hotels. And the, uh, casinos.”

When I look at her, Jade looks like her eyes are going to pop out of her head.

“Shut up!” she squeals a little too loudly. A few people turn, frowning. She lowers her voice to hiss it again. “ Shut up!”

I’m as stunned as she is.

“You know, I thought he looked familiar! Well, I was coming to see if you wanted to head home.” Jade shakes her head and laughs. “But if you think for one second that I’m going to let you leave now , with both of those men practically drooling over you? You’re out of your mind.”

“Wait, what happened with…” I stop when I spot the cute blonde caterer standing a few feet away, waiting patiently. She gives me a hesitant but friendly grin.

“Oh, yeah.” Jade smiles. “That’s why I wanted to offer you a ride. Vanessa just finished her shift for the night, and?—”

I slap Jade playfully on the arm, and she laughs.

“Vanessa!” I tease. “Tell me about Vanessa !”

“Well, Vanessa is a vegan,” Jade says, forming the words carefully and refusing to meet my eyes.

I reel back.

“Jade, you love meat,” I tell her, keeping my voice low so Vanessa can’t overhear. “You once told me you would marry bacon—the concept of bacon—if they ever made that legal.”

“And I stand by that,” Jade says, face serious. “But… you know. I can pretend not to be a soulless carnivore for a little while, right?”

“At least you’ll be eating vegan tonight.” I barely manage to keep a straight face as I say it.

Jade smacks my arm. “Oh, Syd, that was terrible, really it was.” She laughs. “But very funny. God, I’m so happy to have you back.”

Something twists unpleasantly in my chest.

“What do you mean, have me back?” I ask. I force a laugh. “Where did I go?”

“Nowhere! It’s just…” Jade hesitates. “Look, it’s not your fault, but… But when you met Chase, it was like you just disappeared, a little. You were already having such a hard time after your parents, and then…when you met him, it’s like you vanished even more. Like a part of you was just lost.”

I don’t know what to say to that, so I keep quiet. I felt the same way, but I had no idea that anyone else could see it, too. I didn’t realize that I had changed that noticeably.

Jade exhales loudly and says, “I just mean… I missed you. It feels like you’re really coming back to life lately. And I love that. I love you. ”

I know she means it, too. Jade has seen me through everything since childhood. She was there for me after my parents died, and later when I lost my grandmother. And she was there holding my hand after every fight with Chase. She knows me better than anyone.

I should have known I could never hide anything from her.

“It’s good to be back,” I tell her. And I mean it. But before she can get mushy on me again, I shoo her toward her date. “Now go! Take Vanessa home. I’m fine here.”

Jade looks unsure. “You’re sure? If you want me to stick around, I can tell her to leave without me.”

“I mean it, go!” I glance back at the bar, where Alec and Ashton are both watching me. “I’m … I’m interested to see what happens here. With them.”

“Girl, same ,” Jade says with a chuckle. “Okay, well… if you’re sure?”

I have to physically push Jade toward her waiting date, laughing as I do so. She waves her fingers at me as the two of them disappear into the crowd.

“Love you,” she calls over her shoulder.

“To the moon and back!” I answer, waving.

“Was that your ride?” Ash’s voice asks from behind me.

The closeness of his voice makes me jump.

When I turn to look up at him, he’s grinning at me, bright blue eyes sparkling. It’s hard not to stare at him. It should be illegal for someone to be this good-looking.

“It was, yeah,” I admit. I work very hard to keep my voice sounding neutral. Nonchalant. “But it’s fine. I can always catch a taxi later.”

Ash’s grin widens. “Of course you can! Come on. Alec snagged us all a table.”

He steers me through the crowd with a hand on my shoulder to where Alec is waiting with drinks. When we reach the table, Alec hands me a long-stemmed champagne glass, the bubbling liquid inside a strange shade of pink.

“Champagne with pomegranate juice,” he informs me, seeing my confusion. “For a little extra taste. One of our signature drinks for the evening. I thought you might like to try it.”

I take a sip, the bubbles tickling my lips, and instantly I’m in love.

“It’s delicious,” I tell him with a smile. “What’s it called?”

Alec smirks. “Hades’ Bargain.”

Ash excuses himself to use the restroom, leaving Alec and me on our own. I sip at my champagne, trying not to blush at the intense way Alec is watching me. Trying not to think about the things he said to me before Ash interrupted us.

“Did you enjoy your dance?” Alec asks.

I pause before I answer, searching his face for any sign of anger at seeing me dance with another man. But I see nothing there. No jealousy, no irritation. He seems genuinely curious .

“I did,” I answer honestly. “But… don’t tell him, but you’re a better dancer.”

Alec’s lips curve into a smile.

“I have a lot more practice,” he assures me. “Ashton rarely attends these events, actually. He made an exception tonight. After he found out you were planning to come.”

I take an extra-large gulp of my drink, ducking my head to hide my smile.

“I never thanked you earlier,” I say. “For stepping in with my ex, I mean. Even if I didn’t need saving, it was nice.”

Alec taps his finger absently on the glass in his hand, nodding.

“Do you want to tell me about him?” he asks.

“I don’t think I ever want to talk about him again for the rest of my life,” I answer, and I’m rewarded with a chuckle. “But… we dated. For a little over three years.”

“He called himself your fiancé,” Alec presses. I don’t miss the dark undercurrent in his voice. Like the idea that I could have been engaged is personally offensive to him.

I let out a long breath. “Well, that’s news to me.

He never officially asked me to marry him.

.. I think he was going to, eventually. That’s kind of what it was like with him towards the end.

I was planning the rest of my life, building a business and a career, but to him it was just…

an eventuality. Never something he had to put any effort into. ”

Alec is watching me closely, and even though I know I should stop, I can’t. The words just spill out of me.

“I think I was holding on to how we felt for each other in the beginning. When things were nice and fun. And then, after we broke up, I realized I never stopped to question if he was actually any good for me. If I even liked being with him.”

“Why did you break up?” Alec asks in a gentle voice.

The memory sends a wave of nausea through me .

“He cheated on me,” I mutter. The words hang in the air, an embarrassment, and just for something to do, I swallow the rest of my champagne, twirling the empty glass by its stem in my fingers.

“Had been cheating on me for a while, but… I finally found out, I guess. You sort of met her, the blonde he was with. Anyway, I found out, and that was that.”

It wasn’t, though. And knowing that makes the nausea in my stomach grow.

Because I didn’t really end it, not then. I tried to make it work, even after what he’d done to me. I tried so damn hard.

It took two months after I found them together for it to finally sink in that this life I thought I’d been building with him—this future I thought we had—was just a lie. One stupid lie I’d deluded myself into believing.

He never stopped seeing her, either. He just stopped trying to hide it.

I’m pulled away from my thoughts when Alec takes my hand in his.

“It’s not your fault,” he says softly. “What he did to you? That’s not your fault.”

I swallow hard and can’t meet his eyes.

“Believing him wasn’t your fault,” he insists. “Do you understand that, Sydney?”

I wish I could. But that’s the problem, isn’t it? Even after all this time, I don’t believe it. Logically, I know I shouldn’t be embarrassed that he fooled me. But emotionally?

“Hey, what did I miss?” Ash asks, coming through the crowd. He sets my empty glass on the table so he can take my hand, frowning. “Everything okay?”

“What’s his last name?” Alec asks, ignoring Ash entirely. His thumb is stroking the back of my hand in a smooth, calming gesture that’s leaving me a little breathless.

“Uh… Levine.” I answer. “Chase Levine. ”

“Ashton, tomorrow morning I want you to find out where Chase Levine works,” Alec says, voice low. “And buy the company.”

“You… what?” I ask, stupefied.

“Sure thing,” Ash answers, like it’s a completely normal request. “Anything else?”

“Yes. I want you to fire him.”

“Wait, that’s not… that’s really not necessary.” I laugh, looking between the two of them, not sure if they’re joking or not.

They are joking, aren’t they?

“Oh, I think it’s very necessary,” Alec says. “I don’t want anyone who is stupid enough to do that to you working at one of my companies.”