“They don’t just meet with anyone or even mingle with anyone to discuss business. They’re so high-end with the market that no one can compare.”
“What is it you would like from them?” she asked.
“Some pieces to be donated, hell, their backing for this museum and art school, and of course their participation, even in some small form, would be amazing. But, there’s no use in daydreaming. We need to impress Tougher. I want him happy, smiling, and eating out of the palms of our hands, Pina. I will be by your place at five thirty. Wear something spectacular.”
She didn’t even bother to argue with the man. It wouldn’t be of any use. When he got things in his head, there was no turning back. She exited the office, cringing just thinking about meeting with Tougher Jerrico. Rich, stuck-up, good-looking, suave, and a ladies’ man. She’d never really met him, but he knew who she was, and the thought that Tougher might have suggested she be the one to explain the school and museum to him instead of Delores wouldn’t surprise her one bit. All it would take was one call to Delores.
She exhaled. It was stupid to get angry. She was used to men throwing around their money, flirting with her, trying to get her into bed. It came with the territory as CFO of this company people were impressed and especially men. But a man like Nolan Potts had multiple businesses. Each of them had their own financial staff, and she wanted no part of any other business but this legit one. He knew that she was onto him. That she was aware of his illegal businesses and his claims on always being in the black. It was a defense mechanism, and not her concern. He paid her well and this business was legit. Pina knew he had his hands in everything from restaurant supplies and business supplies to heavy equipment for construction and even storage facilities. He was probably worth millions, and she made sure to remain on the legit side of his business.
Tonight’s gala would attract people of many professions, but all had big-time money. She did well but kept a low profile. Despite the stuck-up snobs and corrupt assholes that would surely be at the event tonight, she looked forward to viewing the art, and the event did have certain areas sectioned off and guarded from average viewers. With a man as distinguished as Tougher, she could probably get in to see those pieces she longed to take sight of. Looks like her evening was going to turn into work and no play after all.
* * * *
“So it didn’t go so well after all?” Liam Russell asked Keno.
“No, it didn’t, and three men were killed during the process,” Keno told him, then poured the brandy into two glasses. He brought it over to Liam.
“Why is it that we can’t seem to get the upper hand on these men? I’m trying not to be obvious.”
“These little hits aren’t doing anything but probably pissing them off and making them investigate. People, suppliers don’t want to piss the Mondave brothers off. They have their illegal connections as well.”
“I know that, but there’s one family that hates them, and they hate the James brothers as well.”
“Archimbald? Are you out of your mind? Shit, Liam, maybe you’re taking this revenge thing too far. You’ve been doing great with businesses and making a shitload of money.”
“It could be more. It could be a much more if the Mondave family and James family were not monopolizing the industry. The James family has control over all aspects of security. If there is an event, no one of importance attends if the James family and Merk Enterprises, or even Ultimate Defense and the Hunt family, aren’t in charge of security. Throw in their friends the Mondave men, and their pull and connections, and the import and export business of fine art and jewels is dominated.”
“The Mondave brothers are smart, well trained, and soldiers, mercenaries with no fears. That’s a big obstacle to challenge, Liam. I understand they ripped you off from two major contracts, but it’s how the business goes. We still dominate the drugs-and-guns industry. We’re dealing with the Russians now. Who would have fucking thought?” Keno stated.
“The point is that every time I’ve caught wind of a potential contract the Mondave men get in on it before I even have a chance to bid. I lost three million on the last contract. Three fucking million. It’s bullshit, but now I think they finally did something that will help me to destroy them.”
“What is that?”
“They made a small deal with a company in the Middle East to get these shipments of very valuable artwork into the U.S. It isn’t exactly illegal, but the men they dealt with have connections to mercenaries and individuals on the U.S. government’s watch list as terrorists. I sent men in to screw up this job on purpose, to show someone of great power and influence that the Mondave men could be trying to move in on their territory.”
“Aurik Archimbald? Are you fucking crazy?” Keno asked. “Why would he even want to get involved?”
Liam smirked, leaned back in his chair, and downed the rest of his brandy.
He stared at Keno. “Let me ask you something, Keno. Have you gotten over the death of your brother? Has the desire to know who killed him still bothered you despite your differences?”
“Of course.”
“Well, Aurik Archimbald is no different. His brother and three others were killed by soldiers in Germany during an operation involving gun and ammunition imports. The U.S. government sent in a small group of special operation soldiers to intervene, and those soldiers were captured. Four were killed, three held prisoner. Aurik’s brother, Daphnee, was one of many mercenaries sent out to run that makeshift prison and torture the American soldiers. Even the U.S. government didn’t know where they were being held or if they were alive. Somehow those soldiers pulled together and overtook the facility. Other soldiers showed up as the one American survivor killed Daphnee and the remaining guards. Do you know who the one surviving soldier in that prison was?” Liam asked.
Keno shook his head.
“Clark Mondave.”
“Holy fuck.”
Liam smirked. “It gets better. Do you know who the soldiers were who went in to do a rescue operation without government approval, strictly on their own with their own resources?”
“Who?”
“Dane and Knox Mondave, along with Mercury and Falco James.”
Keno’s eyes widened, and he whistled.
“Yes, so you see, I believe that Aurik Archimbald will be more than willing to do some damage to those families. In fact, he will be at the gala tonight, which should make for a very interesting meeting.”
“You told him all of this and you have proof of it?” Keno asked.
“Of course not. I’ll wait for the right time to tell him. I do believe that he is losing business as well and probably wonders who is running guns from Russia and Germany and stealing his profit.”
“The Mondave men are doing that?”
“Men who the Mondave back. The James brothers have assisted when those shipments come into the U.S. and are delivered to those who ordered them. Merk Enterprises provides security.”
Keno smirked. “Nice.”
Chapter 2
“So you’re basically telling me you won’t be able to hang out with me tonight after all because your boss wants you to be eye candy for this guy he wants to do business with?” Louisa asked Pina.
Pina chuckled and her boyfriends Vaughn and his brothers stood in earshot immediately reacting.
“What?” Cooper asked.
Pina rolled her eyes and exhaled. “Please, don’t even get me started. I’m lucky the guy isn’t here yet.”
“Who is he?” Graham asked as he placed his arm around Louisa’s waist and held her close.
They were all so loving and affectionate to Louisa. She was so lucky, and Pina couldn’t help but feel a little jealous, despite the fact that Pina didn’t date or get involved with men. Too many skeletons in the closet and too many fears to get that close.
“Tougher Jerrico.” She took a sip from her glass.
“Shit,” Cooper stated in annoyance.
“You better watch yo
ur ass with him, Pina. The man is a complete player,” Daxton told her.
“Why do you need to kiss this guy’s ass anyway?” Graham asked.
“My boss, Nolan, is building that art school and museum, and apparently Tougher has connections to suppliers for very unique art. With his reputation as well, it would be beneficial for his name to be placed as a contributor.”
Just then she turned to the right and caught sight of her boss waving her over.
“Damn, time to start this. Thanks for the chat and sharing a drink. I’ll see you later, and again, Louisa, I’m so happy to see you out and enjoying yourself. Maybe later I can sneak away and we can catch up.” She gave her a kiss on the cheek.
“Watch yourself with him.”
Pina gave a wink. “You know I can take care of myself.”
She waved and smiled to the Hunt men and then headed toward her boss.
Her eyes took in the appearance of the stellar-looking blond talking and waving a hand in the air as another man approached them. She gasped as she walked right into a tall, big guy in a tux.
He grabbed her hips, and she looked up into his dark brown eyes.
“I’m so sorry. I was focused on something across the room,” she said, almost not getting out the last words of her sentence because this man was super good-looking and, oh my God, Jonah Mondave. Head of Mondave Enterprises.
“What I’m interested in knowing is who or what caught your attention so much that you plowed right into me,” he said, still holding her by her hips and staring down into her eyes.
She opened her mouth to speak and was shocked by both the attraction she felt for the man and her inability to speak. He smirked. “Maybe it’s not so interesting now?” he asked, flirting, and she snapped out of her fog.
“No matter how uninteresting it is, I must comply. Work related. I’m sorry to have bumped into you.” She then smirked just as another two men approached. She recognized one of them. The doctor who helped Louisa but who she wasn’t supposed to know was a doctor because he did it on the down low. Which meant he had some criminal ties, and holy shit, was he a Mondave, too?
“Who do we have here?” the blond with the crew-cut hair and sexy smile asked.
“A drive-by hitter,” Jonah said, and now all three men surrounded her. She looked at Niall. He squinted at her.
“Louisa’s friend, correct?” Niall asked.
“You know one another?” Jonah asked.
“Sort of,” she replied.
“Sort of?” Jonah asked.
“Well, It was on the down low, right?” she said to Niall. He didn’t hide his perusal of her body, and she didn’t mind it one bit. The man was super sexy, and so were these other two men.
“Champagne, Pina?” Niall asked, stopping the waiter and grabbing a glass to hand to her.
She was pleasantly surprised to find out he remembered her name. She glanced to the left, noticing Nolan’s angry expression, but then Jonah took her arm and pulled her between the three of them as four people walked by, nearly plowing into her. She caught scent of the man’s cologne. The feel of his strong, large hand against her bare skin did something to her. She tilted her head up, shocked at how tall these men were and, damn it, sexy as sin. They had powerful auras around them, and she couldn’t help but wonder if it was the mystery they held publically.
“Thank you.” She glanced at the people who’d nearly plowed into her as they passed.
Niall took her hand and wrapped it around the champagne glass. With both Niall and Jonah touching her skin together, a series of erotic thoughts flashed in her head. Holy shit. She didn’t even date and avoided men as if they had some sort of fatal disease. What was with her reaction here?
“Thank you so much, Niall. Again, I’m sorry, Mr. Mondave, for bumping into you.”
The other man placed his hand at her lower back, preventing her from leaving.
“Stay and talk with us. Any friend of Louisa’s is a friend of ours.” He winked. This brother was a total flirt.
She chuckled and glanced to the left and saw her boss looking over.
“I’m so sorry. I have to go over there. It’s my boss. Sorry again for bumping into you, but thank you for the champagne. I’m going to need it.” She turned and walked away feeling wild sensations run through her body. My God, were they good-looking men and tall, too, with such commanding presences. She couldn’t help but to glance back, and sure as shit, the three men stared right at her, taking in the sight.
She hoped she looked good. Hell, she knew she looked good. It was one of the many positives of working out and training so hard physically. Her obsession became a way of life, and therefore, clothing, especially tight material, really clung to her curves and muscular physique.
She wore a very slim-fitting black dress that had capped sleeves that hung off the shoulders. The dress accentuated her large breasts as well as her hips. She had definition in her arms from working out and training in Tae Kwon Do. She had become a master in self-defense and martial arts, earning her black belt and instructor status five years ago. She had promised her parents that none of them would be victims ever again, and had training started, including firearms and obtaining her gun license. She wasn’t taking any chances. Not after that night with Jordene. She swallowed hard and submerged the emotions that came along with those thoughts. His death had been considered a clean kill by the police, as Jordene had fired upon them as they approached the vehicle.
Later on, the investigation of the previous inflicted gunshot wounds she had caused had determined they were not what killed him. The police and investigators believed that there had been a robbery, where drugs and money were stolen because money and drugs were found in the glove compartment, on the floor, and the ground around the scene, including toward the building she’d run to. It had all worked in her favor, especially as the ballistics report and coroner’s evaluation concluded that the multiple bullets from the police officers who’d shot Jordene had been what killed him. The other three were from his own gun, believed to have been used by the thief or thieves who robbed him. No fingerprints other than his own had been found on the gun. What a relief. Those Hail Marys had paid off, and she had not been the same person since.
“Pina, I would like you to meet Tougher Jerrico. Tougher, this is my CFO, Pina Leonie.”
She checked out the man as he took in the sight of her, sweeping his eyes along her body, smirking, and then licking his lips. What a player. She plastered on her smile as she offered him her hand to shake. Dark blue eyes held her gaze as his tan complexion, streaked blond hair, and super-good looks had an effect on her. She was only human after all, and the man could have been a model.
“Such a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Jerrico,” she said, pulling her hand back.
“The pleasure is all mine, Miss Leonie. I’ve heard such wonderful things about you from Nolan.” He winked.
“That’s very kind. Are you enjoying the venue?”
He looked around the place and made an odd expression. As she glanced toward where he looked, she saw he was in a dead stare with the Mondave brothers, and Jonah simply smirked and took a sip from a glass of champagne. My God, Jonah was gorgeous with jet-black hair, a black well-trimmed beard along his jaw and such mesmerizing eyes. The sound of her boss clearing his throat pulled her away from the sight of him and back toward Tougher.
“It’s a very large venue, yet the setup is kind of small for viewing such fine art,” Tougher stated.
“Interesting that you bring that up, Tougher, as one of the positives of my art school and museum is the size of the building. Very high ceilings, large rooms, and enough space to sit and enjoy the art,” Nolan told him.
“Sounds like a mausoleum,” Tougher snapped at him, and Pina couldn’t help but turn away and nearly chuckle.
Tougher was going to make Nolan beg. Well, she sure as shit wasn’t going to do that for him.
“Perhaps Pina could show you around and point out some of the finer art
I hope to display at the school? You know I already have several influential business people contributing to a scholarship program to enable less privileged students to attend the school.”
“Hmm, perhaps Pina would be able to explain a little more as we walk through the gala.” Tougher placed his hand at her hip and began to walk her away from her boss. One look over her shoulder and she could see Nolan winking and then rubbing his hands together before he gave her a thumbs-up.
She exhaled, rolled her eyes, and locked on to Niall Mondave as they passed by. He squinted at her, and she felt as though she’d been caught doing something criminal. Then she reminded herself that the Mondave men weren’t exactly a hundred percent up-and-up business men, so la-di-da to you, she thought, giving him the once-over before paying attention to Tougher.
Tougher kept a hand on her hip as they walked through the first room of sculptures, despite her trying to remove it. When she sensed him sniffing her hair, then sliding his hand along her waist to her belly, she panicked right before he shifted to the other side and placed his hand on her other hip.
“These are some interesting pieces Nolan has in mind. Is he planning on having several rooms geared to certain types of art and eras, or will he have art from different countries in all forms?” he asked her.
She turned to look up at him and that tanned complexion, blond hair, and blue eyes.
“We’ve discussed some ideas. I think he is leaning toward an extensive range of modern twentieth-century art.”
“Well, there are so many movements of that time. Analytical and Synthetic Cubism, Expressionism, Abstract Expressionism, the Bauhaus, and Surrealism.”
She smiled. “Of course and I believe he is hoping to feature works by famous painters such as Pablo Picasso, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, and Barnett Newman if he can gather those pieces from men like you, Mr. Jerrico, who have the connections to such fine art.”
He chuckled. “Oh, he gives me way too much credit. Sure, I have access to many pieces from those artists. The problem is dealing with the owners of them. Some may accept payment or a rental fee. That’s where they lease the work out to you to display at your museum and school. You’re solely responsible for the security of that artwork of course, or there would be legal ramifications.”
Tequila Sunrise [Love on the Rocks 4] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever) Page 3