Alexei

  “I’ll have to ask your sugar daddy for gas money,” she teased. “The drive to your new palace is going to burn through my gas budget.”

  I thumped her leg. “He is not my sugar daddy!”

  “Shay?” Stas knocked on the door to the office. “You have a delivery.”

  “I bet it’s something totally ostentatious,” Kylee guessed as she hopped off the desk. “Probably twenty dozen roses or a car.”

  I wouldn’t put it passed Alexei to do something like that. Kylee followed me out of the office and down the hall toward the noise coming from the front door. When we rounded the corner, I nearly tripped over my feet as the boxes came into view. Moving boxes labeled in large red block letters were being carted into the house by men wearing the colors of Spider’s M.C.

  “Holy shit,” Kylee hissed. “Is that everything from inside your house?”

  Dumbfounded, I nodded. “I think so.”

  “Why are these strangers packing up your house?” Kylee seemed just as confused as me. “I figured we would do that when you were ready.”

  “So did I,” I murmured in disbelief.

  Alexei had officially gone too far.

  I didn’t know what to say as I stood there and watched my entire life come into Alexei’s home in hastily tossed together boxes. The thought of strangers going through my personal things made me feel queasy. Worry gripped me. What about my supplies? My tools? My unfinished client orders?

  Stas approached me with cautious steps. “This wasn’t my idea.”

  “I’m not upset with you,” I assured him. “Did Alexei tell you this was going to happen?”

  Stas nodded. “But I guess he forgot to tell you.”

  “Obviously,” I muttered.

  “Where do you want all these boxes to go?” Stas gestured to the men waiting for instructions.

  I want them to go back to my house.

  But it was too late for that. The boxes were here, and judging by the crew that had delivered them, Spider didn’t want me back in one of his properties. I cringed inwardly as I imagined the amount of trouble I had caused him. He tried to run a safe, clean park, and my sister and I had brought not only those skinheads onto his property but the police, too. He was probably in a rush to get rid of us.

  With a resigned sigh, I glanced over the boxes and formed a plan. “Put the ones with my name on them in the hall outside the master suite. The ones labeled with leather or handbags or tools can go in Alexei’s office. All the others can go into the empty room at the end of the hall.”

  Stas picked up a box and led a line of men upstairs. Kylee stepped closer and gave me a supportive smile. “Well, this got awkward real fast.”

  “Sorry about that,” a familiar female voice remarked.

  I glanced back at the open front doors and noticed Marley coming into the house with a smaller box. She set it on the nearest stack. With an apologetic expression, she explained, “Dad called me this morning and asked me go over and box up your things. I didn’t realize that you hadn’t asked for help until we got here. I am so sorry, Shay.”

  “It’s okay, Marley.” As long as I had known her, she had never struck me as the nosy or intrusive type. She was uncommonly generous and kind and would have dropped everything to come to the house to help pack up my things if she thought I needed help. “We’re fine.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  “I was really careful with your stuff,” Marley promised. “I made sure I personally boxed up your private things and Shannon’s. I also wrapped all of your handbags in tissue paper and put your tools in bubble wrap.” She opened up the box she had been carrying to show me. “See?”

  “Thank you,” I said as I poked through the box containing my collection of secondhand leather punches and stamps. She had done exactly as described, and I was thankful for her care with my things.

  “I wasn’t sure what to do with all the furniture, the food in your refrigerator or the potted plants around the house.”

  “I’ll take care of them.”

  Marley hesitated. “Dad wanted me to tell you that he has new renters moving in next week so he needs the place cleared out as soon as possible.”

  I could tell she didn’t want to be the messenger so I let her off the hook. “I understand. It’s just business.”

  “It sure as shit shouldn’t be just business,” she argued. “Not with you, Shay. You’ve lived down the street from me for nearly four years. You were a wonderful neighbor, and I don’t want you to think that you did anything wrong. It is so hypocritical of Dad to want you and Shannon out of the park when he’s…well…you know.”

  “I know.” I had often wondered how Marley had turned out so normal when her family was even more dysfunctional than mine.

  “Um, well,” Marley glanced at the men coming back downstairs, “I’ll run the unpacking of the truck and make sure we’re out of your hair as quickly as possible.”

  “There’s no rush.”

  After Marley stepped outside to direct the men, Kylee stepped up beside me. She glanced at her watch. “I’m sorry, Shay, but I’ve got to run. I have a marketing lecture and then I’ve got work.”

  It felt strange not to be thinking about work and the long night of cleaning, bending, lifting and sweating ahead of me.

  “Listen, I’ll text you later, and we’ll figure out our plans for tomorrow, okay?” Kylee air-kissed my cheeks. Lowering her voice, she added, “You better lay down the law with that Russian of yours. He’s hot as hell and the sweetest sugar daddy you’ll ever find—but he can’t do shit like this,” she gestured toward the boxes, “without telling you.”

  She was right. It was a conversation I didn’t look forward to having with him, but it had to be done.

  When Stas and I were finally alone in the house an hour later, he shut and locked the door. Leaning back against it, he crossed his arms in front of his broad chest and asked, “What now?”

  “Now?” I exhaled roughly. “Now we’re going for a drive.”

  Stas groaned but didn’t try to stop me. Shoving off the door, he said, “Yes, ma’am.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Stretching his tight neck, Alexei waited for the red light to turn green. In the passenger seats surrounding him, his marketing manager argued with his general manager about Alexei’s expansion plans. They had spent the last two hours visiting a dealership in Sugar Land that he wanted to buy. The owner was ready to retire and had no children interested in the family business. To Alexei, it seemed like the ideal situation.

  He didn’t want to get pulled into the back-and-forth so he kept his focus on the wet streets. The rain was starting to pick up again. Spending the night at home with Shay was the perfect plan for weather like this. He planned to build a fire and open a bottle of wine to set the mood. He hadn’t had a chance to properly seduce her yet. Tonight was that night.

  When they reached his main dealership, Alexei parked in his spot and asked his team members to pull together their thoughts in emails. He already had his mind set on buying the Sugar Land dealership, but he wanted to give himself a day or two to consider any differing points of view. He usually had good instincts, but he valued their opinions, even if he didn’t care for the back-and-forth bickering.

  Two steps into the dealership, he was pulled aside by his stand-in F&I manager who wanted him to sort out a salesman who had fucked up a deal by promising a rate and down payment that was way outside the customer’s credit worthiness. Getting in between the supervisor and salesman reminded him exactly why he had a finance and insurance manager who usually handled these issues. But Donna was on maternity leave until after the New Year and somehow it fell on Alexei to mediate the disagreement.

  “Enough, Dale!” Alexei said with some exasperation, cutting off the salesman who wanted to argue every single point that his supervisor brought up. “You fucked up with this customer. Own it like a man.”

  The salesman nodded and curtly answered, ?
??Yes, Mr. Sarnov.”

  Exhaling roughly, Alexei glanced at James. “Give the customer the promised rate and down payment. We’ll eat the difference.”

  Alexei pinned the salesman in place. “I’m giving you a pass today. Pull this shit again? You’ll be joining the unemployment line.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Alexei motioned toward the door of the supervisor’s office. “Go.”

  Alone with James, Alexei asked, “Other than this, how is he? He came in with the new group we hired in August?”

  James confirmed it with a nod. “Dale’s a pretty good salesman. He’s not top of the pack, but he’s up there. I think maybe he’s not suited for this lot. He would be better at one of our pre-owned lots.”

  “Call Tommy. Ask him if he can take Dale for a week or two. Make sure Dale knows we aren’t punishing him.” Alexei could already hear the complaints. “Let him know that we’re trying to find the most successful fit for him.”

  “I’ll take care of it.”

  Alexei left James’s office and crossed the main sales floor. He felt his pocket vibrate with a text message notification but didn’t answer it. His attention had been pulled toward the all too familiar face walking through the double doors. Blin.

  Never one to back down from confrontation, Alexei strode toward Detective Santos and held out his hand. “Eric.”

  “Alexei.” Eric gripped his hand with a strong shake. “Do you have time to talk?”

  “Of course.” Wanting to control the situation, he gestured toward the second floor. “Come up to my office.”

  “Sure.”

  Alexei led Eric into his office and offered the detective a beverage that he declined. After closing the door, Alexei took his seat and pushed aside a stack of paperwork that needed his signature. “I suppose you’re here to talk about Shay.”

  Eric got comfortable in his chair. “You don’t want to hear what I have to say when it comes to you and Shay.”

  “Then keep it to yourself,” Alexei suggested.

  Eric cracked a smile. “There’s the Alexei I’ve known for ten years.”

  “Almost twelve,” Alexei corrected and settled back into his seat. “As I remember it, we never had problems, Eric.”

  “We never had problems because you respected the rules.”

  “I still respect them.” He steepled his fingers and stared at Eric. “Do you?”

  Eric’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not a dirty cop.”

  “I didn’t say you were.” But Alexei knew that Eric had gone rogue with Nikolai when Vivian had been kidnapped. He might not have put on Kostya’s black apron, but he had watched the former FSB operative do the dirty work.

  “I’m not here to play mind games with you, Alexei.” Eric sat forward. “I know what your crew is like when it comes to protecting your women. You’ll keep Shay safe—but what about her sister?”

  “What about her?”

  “We know she checked into that motel that burned down on Saturday night. She used one of her well-known aliases to get the key. There was a body in the room.”

  Playing along and pretending he didn’t know, Alexei asked in a voice laced with concern, “Was it Shannon?”

  Eric shook his head. “It’s a man. We don’t have DNA back yet. The body was stripped and unrecognizable.”

  “Ruben?”

  “I doubt it. Ruben was a big dude. This body was smaller and thinner.” He paused. “I’m concerned it might be Lalo Contreras.”

  “Fuck.” Alexei let the expletive loose for two reasons. One: to make Eric think that he was just as shocked. Two: because if Eric thought the body was Lalo’s so did everyone else on the street.

  “If Shannon killed Lalo…” Eric didn’t finish his thought. “I need to find her before they do.”

  “I don’t know where she is and that is the truth. I’m not bullshitting you, Eric.” Alexei made sure Eric could read him. “Every second that Shannon is missing is a second that Shay is in danger.”

  “Do you know who Shannon was working for? With her little identity theft scam? She and Ruben didn’t have the money to do it on their own.”

  Alexei shrugged. “It wasn’t my family.”

  “I figured that out already. It wasn’t the Asian syndicate or Nicky Jackson’s boys either.”

  Wanting to give Mueller a taste of some police harassment after that shit he pulled with Shay, Alexei gave Eric a little nudge in the wrong direction. “The newest face in town has been having some problems gaining territory and creating a market for his wares. He might be interested in growing a new side business.”

  “Mueller.” Eric grumbled the name with distaste and rose from his chair. “I’ve said all I need to say. You know how to find me if Shannon makes contact with Shay.”

  “I do.”

  Eric walked to the door but didn’t open it. Looking back, he asked, “This thing you’re doing with Shay? Is it real?”

  “I’m not going to discuss my relationship with Shay.”

  “That’s your prerogative, but I’ve known Shay a long time.”

  “And?”

  “And I’ve known you a long time,” Eric shot back.

  Alexei understood what Eric meant. He didn’t like the guilty feeling that clawed at him. Eric had every right to be concerned. He’d earned his reputation as a man who burned through mistresses for a reason.

  “It’s not like that with Shay,” Alexei said finally. “It’s different with her.”

  “It better be,” Eric warned.

  Alexei bristled at Eric’s tone but let it slide. The last thing he needed was to get into a pissing match with a detective who could make his life a living hell. Even more than that, he couldn’t stand the thought that Shay would be disappointed in him if he got into a fight with Eric. Instead, he stayed in his chair and watched Eric leave.

  Thinking of Shay, he decided to call her and see what she wanted to do about dinner. He pulled his phone from his pocket and noticed the text message he had ignored earlier. He swiped the screen of his phone and opened the message from Stas.

  Your little bird has flown back to the nest.

  “Shit.”

  Alexei quickly cleaned off his desk and left his office, locking the door behind him. It didn’t take him long to figure out what had sent Shay running back home. Feeling like the worst asshole in the world for forgetting to tell her about the move he had arranged, Alexei made sure the dealership was in good hands and hurried out to his SUV, texting Stas as he walked.

  Is my little bird still in her nest?

  He was backing out of his parking place when the reply came.

  She’s visiting a neighbor.

  With his foot on the brake, he hastily tapped in his reply.

  I’ll be there soon. Keep her there.

  The sun began to set as he drove across the city. The rush of workers trying to get home slowed his progress and gave him plenty of time to think about his misstep. His first instinct was to do something special and give her an expensive gift to show how sorry he was, but as he pulled into the park and drove down her street, it occurred to him that Shay didn’t want things from him. She would want him to apologize for being an asshole—and to mean it.

  He parked in front of her mobile home and climbed out of the SUV, making sure to lock the doors behind him. He spotted his Maserati parked in her driveway. On habit, he checked the driver’s door and found it unlocked. He had a feeling she had done that on purpose.

  He climbed the rickety stairs to her small porch and knocked on the door. When there was no answer, he tried the door, found it unlocked and stepped into the house. “Shay?”

  There was no reply. She was probably still visiting that neighbor.

  He glanced around the living room and noticed how much larger it seemed without the furniture. He walked the length of the house and discovered every room was empty. The refrigerator had been cleaned out, and he could smell the lemon and pine scents of disinfectants and cleansers. Knowing Shay a
s he did, he was certain she had spent the afternoon scrubbing every inch of this place.

  Without a place to sit, he left the house to wait for her outside. When he reached the bottom step, he heard the squeaky whine of bicycle tires that badly needed a shot of WD-40. He watched a young boy with a too-big backpack ride down the street, dodging potholes and puddles until he reached the SUV. The little boy clambered off the bike and popped the kickstand. Hitching his backpack up higher, the chubby kid asked, “Are you Shay’s friend?”

  “Yes. Are you?” He leaned against the hood of his SUV.

  “Yep.” The kid wandered over to the Maserati. Eyes wide, he carefully touched the gleaming silver paint, running his hand over side panel. “Is this yours?”

  “Yes.” He reconsidered his reply and corrected himself. “It’s actually Shay’s now.”

  “Really?” The kid seemed skeptical.

  “Really,” Alexei confirmed. Remembering how much he had loved cars at that age, he asked, “Would you like to sit behind the wheel?”

  “Are you serious? Like for real?”

  Alexei gestured to the door. “It’s unlocked.”

  The kid laughed and raced around to the driver’s side. He jerked open the door, yanked off his backpack and climbed inside. Ignoring the urge to tell the kid to be careful with those muddy shoes, Alexei walked around to the other side and sat on the passenger seat after moving the kid’s backpack out of the way.

  “I’m Hector,” the boy said as he poked buttons and pretended to move the shifter.

  “Alexei.”

  “You’re Shay’s boyfriend, right? She was telling my mom about you.” Hector narrowed his eyes as if trying to decide if Alexei was worthy of Shay. “Mom thinks you’re sketchy and controlling. She says Shay can have any man she wants and that Shay needs to remind you of that.”

  Alexei snorted at that. “You’re mother sounds like a very smart lady.”

  “She is.” Hector pretended to drive the car while he chattered away. “She was glad that Shay wasn’t dead.”