by A. Marie
She had only hoped that he didn't hear her mocking Zaria. It was as hard to predict if he had seen it.
"I'm not quite sure if you were speaking to me or repeating Miss Kensley's previous words," Adrik spoke, his head slightly tilting in confusion.
"I was mocking her as a joke. I'm sorry, it was kind of mean.”
Avelina wasn't exactly sure where she was going, but she wanted to see more of Adrik's gigantic office building. It seemed so unreal that it all belonged to him.
"I understand that you are jealous," Adrik said calmly.
The elevator began to descend just as Avelina's jaw dropped, and her blush seemed to escalate.
She scoffed, "you must want me to be jealous.”
He didn't bother to make a remark, leaving her gaze to shift over to him. Once again, she found herself looking at him as he looked at her.
"I want you to be naked," he said in his full bluntness.
Avelina still had to get used to his honesty.
"Adrik.”
Her words seemed to fall from her lips, seductively. It truly wasn’t her intention, but at the same time, it was.
Their eyes held onto one another. He took a step closer to her before placing his hand on her hip.
"Avelina.”
She found herself wanting him to come closer. There was something so addicting about him. As her eyes drank him in, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have him press against her. She wanted to feel his lips against her own as her fingers would easily tangle themselves in his hair.
Forcing her out of her naughty thoughts, the elevator dinged. The ding alerted them that they had less than a second to pull apart before the doors would begin to open.
The loudest sound of chatter was quick to disperse all around them when the doors split apart. Adrik gently pulled himself away from Avelina just before fixing his suit jacket.
"Explore.”
Avelina let out a shaky breath but moved to step out of the elevator. Adrik followed behind her while she wandered the place. As she trailed over to the golden railing, her fingers grazed the cold metal.
Her eyes settled on the scene that took place in front of her. It was a massive casino with millions of people splurging their money only by taking a chance of faith.
"Your office is a casino?" She questioned, her eyes growing wide.
There was a bar on the far side of the place where pairs seemed to sit and speak on meaningless nothings. The casino presented itself in an illusion that made it easy pretending as if you were someone else.
"One of them," he stated.
Her eyebrows pulled together before she turned around to look at Adrik. Even with the sunglasses on his eyes, she could manage to catch a glimpse of his silver orbs.
"How many of these casinos do you have?"
He placed his hand on her waist before pointing towards the stairs. She welcomed his beckoning and walked with him down the glass of the staircase.
"I own two that own many more, Avelina.”
She couldn't believe everything was his. Even as a waitress passed by with a wine glass that had the words 'Zolotov’, she was still in disbelief.
"You are a casino billionaire. How did you make that possible?"
He appeared so young, and she knew of his autism, yet he managed to own so many places that reeked of elegance.
"It's all about strategy. I started from nothing, and I only used my mind to create everything.”
She smiled. "I find it inspiring how with autism, you were able to accomplish all of this.”
It was the first time she had ever been to a casino, and she liked it. One thing she never would've anticipated was the fact that she would have to take care of the Russian man who owns it.
When she turned to look at Adrik, she noticed his clenched jaw as he looked away from her. She felt her shoulders drop as her lips parted in wonder. He seemed upset, but she was not sure what he was upset about.
"That's a lovely, backhanded compliment," he said.
Avelina thought back to her words and how he presumed it to be a backhanded compliment, but it indeed wasn't her intention to offend him.
"For starters, I am deeply apologetic for offending you. I don't presume autism as an insult, and you shouldn't either. You are right, though; I should've just said you are inspiring without everything else," Avelina sighed, "You must think I am so cruel. I am sorry. What I meant was that you're an inspira-"
"I forgive you. Now, will you please stop apologizing?"
She sighed once more but nodded her head in response. Adrik placed his hand on her lower back and continued to walk with her through the casino.
When they made it to the bar, the bartender glanced over at Adrik before looking at the breathtaking Brazilian in Adrik's arms. Avelina eyed him cautiously as the bartender quickly moved to make a drink. There was panic in the man's eyes that caused her to narrow her eyes in curiosity.
"Your usual order is coming up, Mr. Zolotov, sir," the bartender gulped.
"I don't want a drink," Adrik told Avelina.
Avelina cleared her throat and walked closer toward the bartender. "Mr. Zolotov will not be having a drink at this time. He's just showing me around his casino. Thank you for your cooperation.”
He nodded his head slowly as his body seemed to grow into complete ease.
When Avelina walked back towards Adrik, she couldn't hide her proud smile on her face. It was the first time she had spoken for Adrik, and she felt as though she had done an outstanding job.
"You did okay. Next time don't explain yourself. Make it short and straight to the point.”
As a response, she nodded her head in understanding.
His hand was quick to return to her back as he walked her further throughout the casino. Her eyes were on everything. She eyed the waitresses, the laughing men in suits with cigars in their mouths, and the people who would lose but always managed to try again. It was amazing.
"Avelina, I would like you to meet a friend of mine, Valentino Romano," Adrik introduced.
There was a dangerous look in his eye, but it left no fear in Avelina.
“Avelina. It’s so nice to meet you," she said softly.
Adrik still had his hand on her lower back, leaving her to question if Valentino thought of them as anything more than patient and caretaker.
"Likewise," Valentino said with a tight-lipped smile before continuing, "I personally wanted to invite you to my wedding in two weeks. I know it's a bit sudden, but my fiancé is a very impatient woman."
"Yes, Avelina and I will attend.”
"Very well. See you both there. It is great to finally meet the woman in charge of his care," Valentino smiled.
She smiled at the man in return.
"Your suit pattern is tacky and makes you resemble a modern-day pimp," Adrik stated randomly to Valentino, who glanced down at his suit.
It was purple stripes that did look a bit too stylish. Avelina couldn't help but snicker at his words.
"I love your honesty, man," Valentino chuckled. "See you both at the wedding."
With that, Valentino walked off, leaving the two of them alone.
"I never thought you would have any friends. You seem like the lone wolf type, especially since you don't like to talk to people. That’s cool how close you are with him," Avelina said.
He looked at her and let out a small sigh. “You and backhanded compliments. . . We're more like allies. If someone comes after me, we defeat them together and vice versa.”
“Why would someone come after you?"
He seemed to pause for a moment as he looked into space. Then, his eyes returned to hers. "There are exactly three-hundred-twenty-four reasons why someone would come after me. The most popular of those reasonings are because I killed someone that they care about, they want to have what I have, and most importantly, they want to prove that they're worth something to the world.”
"You don't kill people, do you? I mean, that's insane. You're
a billionaire who owns casinos. That describes the apex of anyone's dream life. Why would you ever want to kill someone?" She chuckled out, but she could see that he was serious.
"I needed money to start my first casino, so I made that money by learning from a man who took me under his wing. I was his brain, and when he died, I became him. I'm more than just a billionaire that owns casinos, Avelina. I'm also the don to the Russian-American Mafia."
“What?”
He let out a sigh before walking her towards a place quieter and away from prying ears. Her brain was still attempting to process everything he had said, but it managed to be exceedingly difficult.
"Avelina," Johnathan called out, appearing from absolute thin air.
Avelina did not pay any attention to Johnathan. Her narrowed eyes remained on the man in front of her.
"You're in a mafia, and you don't think that belongs in a job description?" She questioned, surprisingly relatively calm.
Adrik took a step closer towards her, but before he could get too close, Johnathan stepped in. "He was kidding. It’s Adrik's sick joke to scare new people. Don't overthink it.”
"No, Adrik told me that he doesn't lie, joke, or kid ever. I don't believe he was kidding. I believe he meant every word," Avelina said.
She was quick to cross her arms over her chest. Anger at herself was flowing through her; she should've never ignored all of the red flags or laughed it off as if it were some joke. The answer was clear as day, and she had never felt more idiotic than she did at the moment.
"Look, we can increase your pay. The contract stated that you could not leave under any circumstances at all-"
"I'm not leaving. I understand what I must fulfill.”
Johnathan seemed shocked as his eyebrows pulled together. Suddenly, realization dawned on his features as he looked at her. "You work with the government, don't you?"
Avelina rolled her eyes at his question and found herself growing the slightest bit irritated. "No, I do not. What do you want me to do? You want me to cry, pack my bags, and run?”
She watched as Johnathan slowly nodded his head in response.
"Well, I was taught not to give up when I begin something. I made a commitment when I signed the contract that under no circumstances will I leave and that I will follow through with one-hundred-percent confidentiality," Avelina explained.
Johnathan exhaled a loud breath as relief seemed to take over his features.
Avelina held up her finger, "But-"
"I knew this was coming.”
"But it will strictly be me doing my job; nothing more and nothing less.”
Adrik didn't say a word, but she just knew he was looking at her behind those dark shades of sunglasses.
"Fine by me," Johnathan shrugged before grabbing a drink from one of the passing waitresses and raising it in the air. "To you, Avelina, for being such a courageous and kind woman. Also, for making my job a million times easier."
Avelina didn't say anything after that. She walked right past Adrik and towards the elevator. Her mind was racing a mile per minute. One thought that kept resurfacing was that she didn't care who and what he was. All she cared about was fulfilling her job and leaving. It was never her responsibility to develop any kind of feelings or any personal connections. She will do what she was assigned to do on the contract and forget about anything else.
Before she could travel up the stairs, Adrik quickly grabbed her arm to stop her from moving any further.
"What exact point are you attempting to get across with the statement 'nothing more, nothing less'?"
Avelina let out a huff of irritation before turning to look at him.
In a short amount of time, while doing her job, she had learned that Adrik preferred everything to be precise and specific.
"Adrik, I don't really like gangsters. I'm your nurse and your caregiver—nothing more and nothing less. It's about time we start acting like that, don't you think?" She questioned with a raised brow before continuing, "I'm done exploring."
When he didn't respond, she walked away from him and up the stairs to the elevator, where she pressed the up arrow and awaited its arrival. The second the elevator doors opened, Adrik seemed to walk right in
The elevator doors quickly shut, leaving them in a confined space. Avelina glanced over at Adrik to see he had already been looking at her. Even though he was wearing his sunglasses, she could just feel his eyes.
"I can't exactly decipher if you're mad at me, scared of me, or upset with me," Adrik spoke.
She looked off toward a corner in the elevator as she tried to figure out her own emotions. "I'm not mad, scared, or upset. I appreciate your candor. Telling me the truth was kind. I should be scared, but I am not because even though I have only met you for such a brief time, I know you will not hurt me. As for being upset, it isn't anyone's fault but my own.”
Her voice was almost inaudible, but Adrik still managed to make out her words.
"Your fault?"
Her eyes were quick to snap to his. "I have been letting things slide that I shouldn't. You are my employer, and I am your employee. I am getting paid to take care of you and not to develop any sort of. . . I don't know," she whispered the last part to herself.
"Okay.”
Her shoulders fell as she watched him turn away from her. It hurt to hear him dismiss her so quickly, but what did she expect? She told him to leave her alone unless it was professional, and that is precisely what he did.
With that, the elevator doors opened, leaving Avelina and Adrik back on the quietest level of the entire building. No one else dared to enter Adrik's office floor, aside from his assistant.
Avelina didn't exactly know what to do as she just stood there. She took advantage of the situation by looking around his office. One thing that she noticed was that almost everything was in Russian.
"You can sit down," Adrik told her with his hands moving over to take off his sunglasses.
She eyed the chair in front of his desk for a bit before deciding to sit. It was too close to Adrik for her liking. For some reason, she felt as though she had to be far away from him just to keep herself under control.
"Thank you.”
The second she sank into the comfy seat, her head leaned back against it as her entire body seemed to relax. The chair felt as though she were sitting on a cloud. Avelina couldn't stop her eyes from shutting as a small sigh left her lips.
Suddenly, she had gotten a notification from her phone. Pulling it out, she saw that it was a text from none other than Miss Paola.
[Miss Paola: I have a temporary ban on receiving caretaking services]
Avelina tried to resist the smile that coated her face as she shook her head back and forth.
[Avelina: Probably because you scare away every caregiver given to you]
Avelina turned off her phone and shifted her gaze over to Adrik, who had already been looking at her. When her eyes met his, he looked back down at the papers and pretended the moment hadn't happened.
"You have a pretty smile," Adrik said.
Avelina's whole demeanor lightened up as a smile beamed on her face once more. She didn't think she would ever hear a compliment from Adrik.
"Thank you.”
Silence made up for the nothings that left his lips. He didn't even bother to look up from the papers he was signing. However, Avelina didn't seem to mind at all. She found it satisfying to listen to the friction his pen made with the paper as he signed his name.
Her eyes moved with his hands. The thought of how many lives were taken by his hands only managed to make her frown. What was bizarre was the fact that she couldn't picture him hurting a single soul. Something about him was too pure, but maybe it was because she could only see what she wanted to believe.
"Can I ask you a personal question?" She asked.
He set his pen down and looked at her in wait. There was so much patience that took over his features, which helped allow her mind to relax.
"Yes.�
�
She wanted to smile at the innocent tilt of his head that he did, but she resisted. Things like that made it hard for her to believe he could ever do any wrong. "Why? I know you said you needed money to start, but you're here now with all the money in the world. You don't need to be in the mafia anymore. So, why do you do it?"
"The answer is quite simple, really—because I want to."
Avelina sighed and stood up from the chair.
"I do not want you to leave. Please stay," Adrik said.
She looked at him before her eyes switched over to the door. If she left, it wasn't like she would know exactly where to go. With that thought, she sat back down.
"I feel like there's more to the story, but I won't push the subject any longer," she muttered.
"You said, and I quote 'Adrik, I don't really like gangsters. I'm your nurse and your caregiver—nothing more and nothing less. It's about time we start acting like that, don't you think?'" he repeated her words before continuing, "Talking about my past choices in life has nothing to do with you doing your job, now does it?"
“If I am possibly putting my life in jeopardy, I think it's only fair that I get to know why.”
Working with someone who led an entire mafia would put her in a vulnerable situation. She would know viable information about Adrik that people would be willing to do anything to hear.
"You're protected.”
"Maybe, but maybe not. You're the smartest guy I know. Tell me, what are the chances of nothing dangerous happening to me?" She asked, her eyes narrowing in concentration.
He looked off in the distance for a while before his attention returned to Avelina. "Your chances of not being placed in a dangerous situation only because of your association with me is about eighty-seven-percent.”.
A sigh left her lips as she found herself leaning back against the seat. "I've never been the kind of girl who has the best of luck.”
"Okay.”
Avelina looked up at him with her eyebrows pulled together. He was back to signing papers and not having a single care in the world about anything else.
"You know what's crazy?" She asked him randomly.
"Crazy—intellectually disturbed, particularly shown in a wild or forceful manner.”
"I find it crazy how I have everything I have ever wanted, and I have accomplished every goal I have ever set for myself, yet I have no clue what I want to do with my life," she scoffed lightly while shaking her head.