Arranged love

“What about her?” Her voice has a high pitch to it. “Oh my God, is she okay?”

“She’s married to Luca Bianchi, who runs the Italian-America Mafia here in Vegas.”

She just stands there and stares at me, looking surprised and terrified at the same time. So, I step into her once again, placing my hands on her shoulders to keep her in place since she looks like she’s about to bolt any second. “Luca owns Glass.” I’m not going to disclose that Bones owns half of it as well. That’s his secret to tell, not mine. “That’s how Bones was going to get you the job.”

“And Jasmine knows all of this? That’s why she took me to Bones.” Her wide eyes search mine like she’s waiting for me to say gotcha.

“Yeah.” We grew up with Jasmine, Haven, and Emilee-those three women know more about us than any other women ever will.

“I, uh …” She pulls away from me.

“Alexa …?”

“Need a moment.” She spins around and rushes out of my office.

ALEXA

I CAN’T BELIEVE it! How did I not see it? Was I that blind? Or just stupid? A conversation I once had with my brother and April comes to mind when she first found out that Ethan was hiding something from her.

She sits across the bar from me up at Lucky’s.

“Anything you need me to do?” Derek asks. “Want me to talk to him about something? Is it girls?” he asks referring to Ethan.

She shakes her head. “I found a key card of some sort from Kingdom at the shop today. I think it fell out of his jacket pocket.”

“What?” I ask. “How the hell would he get in there?” Her younger brother isn’t even old enough to gamble.

She shrugs. “I’m not sure what the hell he would be doing with that.”

Derek’s dark eyes look around before he leans forward and whispers to her, “Kingdom is bad fucking news, April.”

She waves him off. “It’s just a casino.”

“No. I hear shit in here. Kingdom is into some bad shit.”

“Like what?” She frowns.

“Yeah? Like what?” I ask Derek. How the hell does he know about what goes on there? I’ve never heard talk in here about Kingdom before.

“I hear that the guy, Bones, is in big with the Mafia. Whatever they want, he gets them. Vice versa. And they bury bodies in the desert.”

“Mafia? Really?” She laughs. “Since when do you believe in that shit? And what could this Bones guy get them?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know exactly. I just know that anything goes there. I guess there’s some sort of black market that the guys run.”

“Illegally?”

He rolls his dark eyes. “That’s what black market stands for.”

“What would Ethan have to do with that?” She wonders, still skeptic.

He shakes his head. “You need to find out. And better hope that it’s not too late to get him out of it.”© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

Bodies? Isn’t that what Jasmine mentioned to Haven that morning at breakfast? How in the fuck did Derek know about all that? And who did he hear it from? Who is he hanging out with that would have that kind of inside information?

“Alexa?” I hear Jasmine call my name, but I jump onto the elevator. Before the door can close, she jumps in. “Hey, what happened?”

I spin around on her. “Luca runs the Mafia?”

She sighs, her shoulders sagging.

“Derek was right, and you …”

“It’s none of Derek’s business what others choose to do with their life,” she snaps. “Sometimes it’s either you do what you’re told, or you die.” She turns away from me, all of a sudden regretting getting in the elevator with me. “I don’t expect someone like you or Derek to understand that.”

The elevator dings, and the door opens. She steps out, and I go to reach out for her, but she pulls her arm away just in time to avoid it. “Jasmine?” Now I’m the one hollering at her, but she’s gone.

I run my hands through my hair, aggravated. What in the fuck just happened?

“Problem?”

I jump when I hear the man behind me. Spinning around, I come face-to-face with another King-Titan. All the Kings have one thing about them that’s the same-intimidation. They are all covered in ink, have muscles, and a pretty face. It’s truly unfair. Like they were all made in a lab. Titan is by far the largest of them. He has tattoos like Bones that run up and around his neck.

“Something like that,” I mumble.

He looks over at their private entrance where Jasmine ran out of the double doors. “She’ll come back.”

She can’t run too far. We’re partners now. “Yeah,” I agree.

“There you are, babe.” I hear a woman say and then see Emilee step up next to him. “Thought you were meeting me outside.” She looks at me, smiling. “Hey, Alexa. How are you doing?”

“Good,” I lie. I’m confused as fuck, and I hate that my best friend is away. But even if April was here, I still wouldn’t be able to talk to her about what’s going on. Not with what she’s going through right now. It sucks feeling alone.

Emilee frowns. “Titan, I’ll meet you up in your office,” she says, dismissing him.

“Okay.” He leans down and gives her a quick kiss on the lips, and then he turns, getting back on the elevator.

“Come on. Let’s take a drive.” She links her arm in mine and escorts me out the glass double doors and down the steps to a white Rolls-Royce Phantom coupe parked at the curb. I fall into the passenger seat, and she starts it up. “Talk to me.”

I glance out the blacked-out window, not really looking at anything as she pulls away from the Kings’ private entrance. “About?”

“Whatever it is that’s bothering you,” she says simply.

“It doesn’t matter.” Everything I’ve known is a lie. Or maybe I was just stupid and naïve. Bottom line-I only have myself to blame.

“Of course, it does. Tell me. Maybe I can help you out with it.”

She did grow up with them. She’s married to a King. Why not? I’ll give it a try. “I just found out that Bones is in with the Mafia.”

“Ahh.” She nods, pulling onto the Strip. “I see.”

“And I guess Haven is married to it.”

“Yep. Poor girl never stood a chance.” She chuckles. “She dated Luca while we were in school. She fell for him before she even knew what the Mafia was.”

Not surprised about that part. “Jasmine is mad at me,” I add, seeing where it gets me.

She sighs heavily. “Jasmine is going through something right now.”

“Like what?” I ask, worried for her.

“Her dad.”

I frown. “What about him?” I don’t know much about Jasmine’s family. She never talks about them.

“Well, he found out about Kink, and he is pissed. Told her to back out. She refused, of course. Jasmine isn’t one of those women who can be told what to do, ya know? Even by her father.”

That’s why she was snappy with me. I’ve never seen her that way before. She’s always smiling. Even when I know it’s fake. She’s good at that-making things look okay. “So, what happened?”

“Last she said to me was that she told him to fuck off and to stay out of her business.” Emilee shrugs.

“Why would he care that she opens up a Kink?” I wonder.

“Jasmine’s dad is a big deal … or so he thinks. And he takes his reputation very seriously.” She rolls her eyes so hard her head moves. “He’s a piece of shit. Always has been. Always will be.”

“So, what’s going to happen when she chooses to go against his demands?”

“I’m guessing he’ll cut her off. Who the hell knows? Jasmine has always been very independent. Well, I don’t have to tell you that. You’re her friend. She’ll figure it out.”

I sit back and let out a sigh. I never stopped to think about what others would think once they see we are opening up Kink. The members that will come in and out. I’m guessing most, if not all, will be high profile. I mean, some average Joe Smith won’t be able to afford fifty grand to join.