“Damn, Jordan. Someone’s getting heated pretty fucking quick. I’ve got a guy. He’s new, but I think he’ll do a good job.”
“New? Who the fuck is new?”
“Kace. He’s an ex-SEAL, new to the personal security business. He’s doing a damn good job, though.”
“Fine. When can he be here?”
“Ten minutes.”
“Great, get him everything he needs and tell him to keep me informed.”
“Alright,” Reggie ends the call and I smirk widely. Lacey doesn’t know what’s about to happen tonight but I can assure her date won’t be going according to plan.
Chapter Five
“Always choose the truth over a pretty lie.”
~ Beau Taplin
Lacey
I shimmy out of the pencil skirt that’s been confining my deep lilac silk blouse dress all day long. Normally I wouldn’t mind changing, but I haven’t seen this person in ages and I want to get as much time with them as I can before they leave again. I hate how much they’re always flying around the continent, but totally understand. I won’t lie, I’m also a tad bit jealous. I’d kill to be visiting different cities, experiencing different cultures, food, fashion, etcetera.
My dress has gold buttons going down the front and now that my pencil skirt has been removed, it ends a couple inches below my ass. Typically I don’t wear things this sexy when I go out, but today felt like the right time. I just switch out my heels for a pair of over the knee lace up boots. They’re a bitch to put on, but they make me feel like I run the world.
Fuck, now Beyoncé is running through my mind. Once I finish getting sorted and freshen up my makeup a bit, I lock up my office, turn off the lights except for the usual few that constantly stay on and head into the elevator. I don’t even give a shit if Jordan is still in the office. It only takes a few minutes before I’m in the parking garage. I get into my Jeep Grand Cherokee and drive ten minutes toward the north part of the city.
Two Faced is a new restaurant that recently opened up in Northern Atlanta. I’ve never been able to get in here because it’s so new. I’m sure if I dropped one of the Steele’s names I’d be able to get in here, but I don’t use my personal connections like that. The coolest thing about this bar is how it’s inspired by Jekyll and Hyde. I’ve seen images of the gallery online and half the restaurant is light, bright and airy while the other half is dark, mysterious and sinful.
Somehow as I pull up, I’m able to get a parking spot on the street directly in front of the door. I hop out of my Jeep, click up the parking meter app for the city and pay for a three-hour slot before I walk inside.
As soon as I venture through the doorway I see for myself how the left half of the restaurant is glossy white, and the right half is a matte black. On the right there are gold, silver and deep red fake plants. I even see some decorative pieces, whereas on the left it’s giant green plants and orchids.
“Welcome to Two Faced, Madame. Are you feeling Jekyll or Hyde tonight?” The short little redheaded woman behind the hostess station asks me.
“Ask if she has a reservation first, Ally.” A man stands behind her and immediately berates her.
“Apologies. Do you have a reservation, Madame?”
I nod, “Yes, it should be under Kastillo.”
“Ah, please come this way. Your date is already here.” Ally comes out from behind the hostess booth and escorts me into the darker part of the restaurant. As we walk through, I’m blown away by the small details that makes this unlike any other bar I’ve ever been to before. Instead of typical light fixtures they’re painted the same matte black as the wall with copper accents, but the thing that makes it really pop is how the light is a globe that mimics the moon.
I spot her before Ally leads me up to her and rush over to where Delilah is sitting. I wrap my arms around Delilah, almost causing her to spill her prosecco. “I’ve missed you so much, bug!”
I release my best friend, who I might’ve led Jordan to believe was a man I had a date with and walk around to the other side of the table taking the empty seat. “Same to you, Chi!” Hearing the nickname she gave me as a child causes me to smile, forgetting all the stressors of the day and finally for the first time in longer than I care to admit, I can finally relax.
“I’m a bit envious at how you’re always so done up, even when you’re exhausted as hell.” I comment, staring at the skintight deep ocean blue bodycon dress she’s wearing. It accents her brown-blonde ombre hair so well, making her light blue eyes pop with the darkness of her irises and contrast with the white jewelry she has on.
“Don’t lie, you’re really envious because of what I do for a living.” Delilah cackles, tossing her head back.
“Only a tad,” I admit, showing her how much by placing my fingers almost to the point where they’re touching.
Delilah is an award-winning lifestyle blogger. She goes to various restaurants to try their food and feature them on their website. She even is offered free vacations to stay at resorts and comment about the experiences she’s had while she’s there. “Well, my lovely position gave us the ability to jump up the waitlist to get in here. I’m about to give them a five-star just for the prosecco. It’s fabulous!”
I roll my eyes, “So you’re already drunk then?”
“Oh, fuck off.” Delilah giggles.
A waiter comes over to us and I let Delilah take the lead. She does this for a living so she has to order specific things to comment on the overall experience and aura of the place. Plus, I’ve done this with her before. She orders the food and drinks, then we split them and both enjoy the fruits of the labor. The best part is how she gets the food for free. “Do we need to do anything specific?”
“Just post on Instagram after we leave, saying we came here, it was a good time. I’ll tease my followers of a new post coming soon with pictures and whatnot.”
“So typical,” I comment, causing her to smirk a bit.
Thankfully the waiter brought my drink out so I take a couple of sips and contemplate telling Delilah about what’s happened the past few days. She’s been friends with me since before my parents died. We both went to the same elementary school and stuck together until we graduated. While our relationship has ebbed and flowed, the tide always ends up bringing us back together. She’s the only one who ever knew about Jordan and I. I didn’t tell a soul, not even some of my other friends who were closer to me at the time. Delilah has always been the one person I knew I could count on in this world.
Delilah narrows her eyes at me, obviously sensing something is off. “Are you going to tell me what’s the matter, or will I have to dig for it like usual?”
“Considering I’m exhausted, I think I’ll just tell you.”
“Finally, you’re giving me a break for once.” Delilah comments.
“I ran into Jordan at the re-opening of Illusion. I was walking up to avoid passing the media and his town car pulled up at the exact same time. He had his bouncers move the ropes and extended his hand out to me like . . .”
“Like some modern-day Prince Charming?”
I scoff, “I was going to say like an arrogant piece of shit, but sure.”
Delilah busts out into laughter. “You get so heated when it comes to him. It still cracks me up. So, did you end up taking it?”
“Yes, and I’ll do you a favor and fast forward through the bullshit.” Over the course of ten minutes I fill her in on the last couple days, telling her how I was blindsided with the fact the Steeles knew about Jordan and I from the summer before I left for college. I went into detail telling her how he kissed me, subtly made it possible for me to become his assistant and egged me on tonight. I might’ve even added in how I told him I had a date.
Some of the dishes come out in the middle of me filling her in and she has no problem digging in as I continue. “So, you didn’t tell him your date was with me? You wanted to make him jealous, Chi.” Delilah cackles, cracking up.
I roll my eyes
but I know she’s right. “Yeah, just a little bit.”
Delilah focuses her attention behind me, raises a brow and looks at me. “Did Jordan know you were coming here tonight?”
“Huh? No. Why?”
“Because he just walked in here with some strawberry blonde bimbo. Don’t look, you’ll just end up— okay, totally ignore what I’m saying.” I’ve already turned at this point, seeing Jordan in his typical five-thousand-dollar suit with a woman I’ve never seen before on his arm.
“Wait. That’s not just any redhead.” Delilah mutters, her tone growing quieter.
“You’re right, that’s Greer Mackenzie.” I confirm. She’s one of Brooklyn’s new models at her all-natural makeup company. She’s a recent graduate from FIDM and is in the process of developing her own fashion line.
“Isn’t she rumored to be a mafia kingpin’s daughter?” Delilah asks.
I nod, “What a fitting couple.”
Chapter Six
“As soon as I see someone getting close to you, I get jealous.”
~Unknown
Jordan
“The woman who keeps staring over here like we’re a pair of celebrities is her, isn’t it?” Greer asks, batting her lashes at me.
“That would be her. And while you might not be a celebrity around these parts, sweetheart, I sure as hell am.” I confirm.
“Ugh, you’re incorrigible. You really asked me to get all fancy to come here with you just to make a girl jealous? You’re Jordan Steele. Surely you can have any woman you want falling at your feet. What’s so special about this one?”
I pick up the whiskey our waiter brought me a minute ago and stare right into Greer’s eyes. “That woman back there gave me all of her firsts. Her first kiss. The first time she opened her body up to a man, and her first heartbreak. You ask me what’s so special about her. The answer is simple. She’s not like any other woman.”
“Now I get it. You’re in love with her.” Greer states, picking up her glass of wine. She takes a sip and I think about objecting, but I don’t know if I’d be lying or not. “But why make a woman jealous like this? I’m sure it’ll only fire her up more.”
“That’s the idea, Greer. Lacey and I have an . . . interesting past. She was forbidden fruit to me for so long.”
“What changed? You act like it doesn’t matter anymore.”
“Hm, I suppose you’re right. Time went by and in the process everyone else in my life got their happily ever after. Maybe I’m ready for it now too, and maybe . . . just maybe I’m regretting a few choices I made in the past.”
“You shouldn’t have let her go.” Greer mumbles, sipping on her wine with a smirk in her eyes.
“Fuck, you just want me to revel in my pain.”
“Just a tad. You can’t say you don’t deserve it.” She jeers, getting a chuckle out of me.
“I can’t disagree with you there.”
“You’re a dick, Jordan. You always have been, but I hope you get your happiness.” Greer is one of the most genuine people I’ve had the pleasure of ever meeting. She and Brooklyn have known each other for a few years before they went into business together. Greer is one of the faces for Brooklyn’s all-natural makeup and skincare line.
When I first met her last year I thought we’d make a good pairing, sexually I mean. We went out on one date but she was too busy busting my chops. It was awkward and didn’t work, but it was enough for the media to snap a few pictures of us heading out in Los Angeles and around Atlanta. I’m sure everyone is going to assume Greer and I are ‘back together’ since we went out again this evening. Little do they know we weren’t anything to begin with, just two friends who enjoy one another’s company.
“I want shit to work between her and I, and I’ll do anything to ensure it happens. She’s just as feisty as a caged lioness while being stubborn as a mule.”
“Sounds like you both have quite a bit in common.” Greer chuckles, but we grow silent as the waiter comes back up to us, takes our order and disappears.
“I’d call you a bitch, but your statement is accurate as hell. You know, I wish the same for you.”
Greer furrows her brows together. “Me too, but we both know my happiness isn’t derived from falling in love with a special someone. It would make me happy just to have my family reunited again.”
Greer hasn’t divulged too much information, but her father is rumored to be Desmond Mackenzie of the Irish Mafia. She and her twin sister Sloane have lived here in the United States since they were little girls, purposefully being put in hiding. But it appears Greer got sick of being told to stay in the shadows. Going to FIDM for Fashion Design and starting to model when she was eighteen in LA. Still, I can’t imagine living without a majority of her family by her side. My family is the center of my entire life.
“Why don’t you just go over there? Nothing is stopping you. Is it?” I ask. She knows her father’s identity and has stayed away from him for what reason exactly. Fear? She’s a grown woman and she should make the choice to finally see him if she wants.
“Throughout my entire life I’ve been warned of the dangers, Jordan. But in my opinion it isn’t worth the suffering Sloane and I both have to experience. Regardless we’re in danger. The rumor on the streets is true, even if only a select handful of individuals know it. The rest assume and while their assumptions are correct, because of it we’re even more at risk. I’ve been contemplating going to see him for the last couple weeks and I think I’m going to. What else is there to lose? After all, haven’t we already lost enough?”
“Yeah, you have.”
“Enough about me, what are you going to do, Jordan? You can’t keep playing this mindfuck of a jealousy game with a woman like that.”
I draw my brows together, “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means if you want her, stop fucking with her head. You do it for too long and you’ll never get her back into those muscular arms of yours. No matter how much you try.”
I smirk, not saying a word.
“What’s that smile for?” Greer asks, craning her neck. Her phone buzzes on the table and I watch as she glances down to check it.
“If things were different, and if our personalities were a little different too, we probably would’ve worked. Fuck, we would’ve made one hell of a power couple.”
“I would crush you like the cockroach you are, Jordan. It wouldn’t have ever worked.”
I nod, “I know, but it is lovely to spend quality time with not only a beautiful woman, but one whose wits match mine.”
“See, that’s what you need to do. Use some of that Steele charm to your advantage!”
I turn back and look at Lacey, catching her eyes on me. “It’s going to take a lot more than my usual charm to win her back. I have a feeling this will be the fight of my fucking life.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you aren’t a man that gives up. Even more than that, you’re a winner. You won’t lose her, Jordan. I know you won’t.”
“I lost her once already.”
“Good, you’ve learned from your mistakes. And just in case you haven’t, call me before you do something stupid. Okay?” Greer stands up, takes a couple of steps toward me, bends down and kisses my cheek. “I have to get going. This has been great but Sloane texted me. I’m needed elsewhere.”
“You’d leave your date here by himself?” I question, a little frustrated she’s fucking with my plan.
“No, I’m giving my perfectly capable friend an in to go grab that one woman who got away. I don’t need to say this, but please let me: don’t fuck this up.” Greer says her peace and walks out toward the front entrance of the restaurant, leaving me alone to establish another plan.
Chapter Seven
Be gentle with yourself. You’re doing the best you can
~Unknown
Lacey
At some point we went from prosecco to scotch and I didn’t complain one bit. I’ll definitely be taking an Uber home tonight. I don�
�t drink and drive. It’s inexcusable. “I hate to do this to you but I really need to get going. I have a meeting with a potential investor tomorrow.”
“Investor? You don’t have to go; I can hook you up.” I joke.
Delilah laughs, placing her hand on my shoulder. “Chi, I need to go. This is a great opportunity for me and will skyrocket my career in the industry. There are talks about getting me my own show on the Travel Network, if I go to this meeting and things go smoothly. I know you don’t want me to leave you here since . . . he’s still here, but woman up and deal with it.” Delilah stands, grabs her purse from where it had been hanging all night on her chair and leans down to give me a hug.
“I love you, Bug.”
“Love you too, Chi. You’ll be fine. Look, I’m gonna shoot it straight with you for a second. You’ve never talked about any man the way you talk about Jordan, even though he did hurt you tremendously. Secretly you’ve been holding onto all these feelings through the years. Actually, ten years of emotions building up. There’s a reason you didn’t work out back then, but have you thought about the timing being off?”
“He left, without a call, text, or even a fucking email.”
“I’m not taking sides. Calm down for a second, will you? I’m simply saying the world has a really funny way of allowing things to work out.”
“You’re team Jordan this quickly?”
“No, I’m team-Chi. Jordan just might be part of your happiness. I’m not sure, but how could it hurt to try and see?”
“I’ve already gotten on that boat once before.” I mumble.
“Ten years ago. Let it go and see where the road takes you.”
“I thought you hated him.” I state, remembering the way she was so angry when we were teenagers.
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