Page 40 of Dangerous Men (Fortune City Mafia #1)

SYDNEY

The Boss: Dinner? Tonight?

The text from Alec immediately puts a smile on my face, despite my foul mood. He’s finally back in Fortune City tonight, and, apparently, eager to see me.

I don’t get off work until late tonight.

The Boss: Late is fine.

I snort, setting my phone down. Instantly, it chimes again.

The Boss: I can take you out after you close for the night. Any time. My evening is all yours.

I’m almost tempted to say no. I’m exhausted. The stress of a new landlord and seeing Chase weighing on me more than I’d like to admit .

But…

My heart beats a little faster at the idea of having dinner with him. I guess I’m eager to see him, too.

Fine. We close at eight.

The reply is instant.

The Boss: I’ll pick you up then.

We’ve only spoken a few times since our last video call—the one where Ash picked up. Even thinking about it makes me blush, heat rushing to my cheeks and… other places. For a while, I was worried Alec might be mad. Or, at the least, irritated with what we’d done together without him.

But if he is, it’s not coming across in his messages. He sends me a text every day to wish me good morning, and another at night asking how my day was. If he’s terse, it’s no more than his usual communication seems to be.

And yet…

He wanted to take me out alone tonight.

I’m still not sure what this thing is between us. Between all three of us. And I’d like clarification before things get any more intense.

Just the thought has me rolling my eyes. Yeah, right. Like things aren’t already super intense . Alec has to be the most intense man I’ve ever met. Followed closely by Ash.

Actually…

I look over at Sebastian, hunched over his laptop, typing away.

He might top them both, now that I’m getting to know him better. Sebastian feels like a rubber band, about to snap. He’s so cold, so quiet, but underneath that mask is a rage I sometimes feel in myself .

His tattoos… Now that I know they’re there, I spot them sometimes when his sleeves creep up. Stark dark lines against his skin. I hate that I’ve always had a thing for tattoos…

I find myself watching Sebastian a lot lately. The way he watches everything, without seeming to. The way he sits, the way he eats.

I catch the way he looks at me, sometimes, when he thinks I won’t notice. Always assessing. I like to think I’m just doing to him what he’s doing to me. If he can watch me, judge me, belittle me, then why can’t I do the same thing to him?

A taste of his own medicine.

When eight finally rolls around and I turn off the lights, waving goodbye to Jade and closing and locking the shop door behind me, Alec is already waiting.

I’d know the black town car idling in front of my shop was his, even if he weren’t leaning against it watching me close up the shop. Cars like that aren’t common in this part of the city.

Seeing him there waiting for me, I feel a little nervous. He’s so gorgeous, in a suit that probably costs more than our store makes in a month. My little sundress feels incredibly childish in comparison.

But when he looks up at me, all those thoughts vanish.

Alec stares at me, taking me all in, from the top of my head to my feet in a way that makes my heart flutter.

When his eyes finally reach mine, I go molten under the heat of it.

“I missed you,” he tells me in a husky voice.

I give him a shy smile, trying not to think about the last time he saw me… tied up on my couch, with his best friend playing me like a fine instrument .

“I’ve missed you, too,” I manage to say.

He opens the door of the town car, helping to guide me inside, and climbs in after me.

The interior is just as nice as the outside.

Soft, supple leather seats with plenty of room.

The cabin is partitioned, separating us from the driver and giving us privacy.

I wonder if this is the same car that drove me home from the banquet.

The moment the door shuts behind Alec, we take off, pulling smoothly away from the curb.

“Where are we going?” I ask, trying not to sound too eager.

Alec stretches his arm on the seat behind me, moving against me until our thighs are touching. Even that little bit of contact with him is enough to make my blood heat.

“You’ll see,” he says, smiling cryptically.

Fine. I can be patient.

“How was your work trip?” I ask instead.

He places his hand casually on my knee. The sundress I’m wearing today, freshly rescued from the back of my closet, is bright yellow with a floral pattern and buttons up the front.

It’s a little short, ending just above the knee, leaving my legs bare.

His palm is warm against my skin, his touch electric.

“Productive,” he tells me, after considering the question. “Though some meetings were less productive than others.”

His eyes sparkle when he says it, and it takes me a second to remember.

Oh. Right. He was in a meeting when he’d called me that night, probably had only wanted to say goodnight during a brief respite in his day.

“I, uh…” I glance away, blushing. “I hope you weren’t mad.”

Alec stares down at me, lips pulling down into a slight frown.

“Mad?” he asks, sounding genuinely confused. “Why would I be mad? ”

“I mean…” I hedge. He can’t be serious, can he? “That Ash and I were…” I clear my throat, unsure of what to say.

“I bought you those toys for you to enjoy yourself,” Alec says, voice gruff. “And for you to explore what you might like. So my question is, did you enjoy yourself?”

I swallow and nod.

His hand moves a little higher up my leg.

“And did you learn anything from Ashton about what you might like?”

My legs press together as I remember the riding crop. The wrist cuffs.

I nod again, biting my lip with a smile.

“Good,” Alec says in a voice like a purr. “And for the record, I will never be mad at you for what you might do with him.”

“Why not?” I ask in a small voice.

“He’s my brother,” he tells me, as though it’s as simple as that. “Not biologically, but… we grew up together. We’re close. And my brothers mean everything to me. We run our business together, we live together, we… share things.”

“What kind of things?” I ask, feeling a little lightheaded.

“Everything,” he answers. The way he says it makes it sound like the answer is obvious.

I don’t mind sharing , his voice echoes in my memory.

The car slides to a stop, putting an end to the conversation.

“Ah,” Alec leans back, taking his hand from my knee. The air is shockingly cold against my skin where his hand was resting. “Looks like we’re here.”

The door opens from the outside, and Alec slides out, offering a hand to help me exit.

“Thanks, Earl,” Alec says.

The man inclines his head. He’s an older gentleman, maybe in his seventies, with kind eyes .

“I’m Sydney,” I say as I hold out my hand to shake his. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Earl looks up at Alec, as if waiting for permission, before reaching out to grasp my hand with both of his.

“It’s lovely to meet you as well, Sydney,” he says with a twinkle in his eyes. With that, he turns to head back to the driver’s side.

There’s something about him that feels familiar, like I’ve heard his voice before. I shake it off and turn back to Alec, finally registering the scene in front of me.

I stare up at the tall building, slightly shocked by the lights, the colors.

“It’s a casino,” I say, surprised.

“It is,” Alec says, sounding amused. He rests his hand on the small of my back, escorting me forward. “It’s my casino, in fact. The largest in Fortune City.”

Sterling Silver, the name reads, in bright neon lights.

All my years living here, and I’ve never actually been inside. I’ve seen a few of the other smaller casinos, but never been here, in the city’s most spectacular one. I find them fascinating, but I’m not exactly a gambler. I prefer to keep the small amount of money I have exactly where I can see it.

We’re greeted by smiling, happy faces as we make our way inside.

Every employee seems to notice Alec’s arrival, falling all over themselves to welcome him.

It’s a little overwhelming. That, and the sounds, the sights.

The front doors open to the main casino floor—a massive room of slot machines, and card tables, and flashing lights and noises.

There’s so much to see my eyes can’t seem to focus on any one thing.

“Did you know Vincent Laurent has a restaurant here?” Alec asks, steering me gracefully away from the lights and toward the edges of the room.

“Vincent Laurent?” I ask, in shock. “The celebrity chef? ”

Alec nods. “The same, yes.”

Wow. Even I know Chef Laurent. Though, truthfully, I only really recognize him from his TV show on the Food Channel. Still, I know enough to be impressed.

A sudden realization hits me. I glance over at Alec, looking glamorous and rich in a bespoke gray suit, and then down at myself.

In my flowery sundress. That I bought on sale. Long enough ago that I don’t even remember the year.

“Alec,” I protest, stopping. “I can’t go to a restaurant like that looking like… like this.”

“What’s wrong with the way you look?” Alec asks, bemused.

“I’m not dressed to go to a fancy restaurant,” I insist.

Chuckling, he adds a little pressure to the hand on my back, urging me forward.

“Don’t worry,” he says. “We’re not dining in the restaurant tonight. Though…” He leans down as we walk, murmuring in my ear. “I, personally, love what you’re wearing, Sydney.”

The way he says it, in such a dark velvety voice, makes it sound wonderfully dirty. I tremble against him as he straightens.

“We’re dining privately,” he informs me, leading me toward a series of elevators.

There’s even an attendant here, I notice, and she leaps forward to call the elevator for us.

“Let me guess,” I smirk when the doors open and he ushers us inside, slipping the attendant a tip. “The penthouse?”

Alec smiles.

“Of course,” he says. “Where else?”