Total pages in book: 17
Estimated words: 15173 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 76(@200wpm)___ 61(@250wpm)___ 51(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 15173 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 76(@200wpm)___ 61(@250wpm)___ 51(@300wpm)
“It’s really none of your business,” my angel argues.
“I’m making it my business.” I lean close and inhale, dragging her sweet scent into my nose. Her sweet, delicate fragrance nearly brings me to my knees. I forget everything happening around us and concentrate on her.
“Dr. Girardi? What are you doing here?” Another asshole interrupts us. I glance over and see one of our regulars standing way the fuck too close to my beauty. He’s the hospital administrator who loves to spend all his family’s money on hookers and coke. And those are two things I keep out of my club. I don’t care if patrons partake elsewhere, but I’m not about to have our barely-covered-under-the-law backroom gambling exposed by allowing working girls and dealers in here.
“Mr. Elton, I’m here to meet a friend.” My little angel doesn’t seem surprised to see the other man here, and she doesn’t seem too scared of the fucker either. Then it hits me what he called her.
Ignoring the other man, I glance down at my curvy little beauty and raise an eyebrow. “Dr. Girardi? Are you old enough to be a doctor?”
“Aren’t you too old to be getting into bar fights?” she returns without missing a beat, and my cock grows impossibly harder. I reach down and pull my jacket closed to hide the evidence of what she’s doing to me.
“Oh, little beauty, I can see you’re going to give me a run for my money.” It’s fucking true. The curvy little doctor stole my heart the first second I laid eyes on her beautiful body, and I couldn’t be happier. I haven’t felt this alive in years.
“Uncle Dante?” Dmitri walks up and mumbles under his breath, “Can we take this into the back room?”
I finally pull my head out of my ass, realizing we’re the center of attention in this packed bar. Fuck. Meeting my little beauty has turned me into a moron. She blew my years of conditioning to hide my emotions right out of the water within seconds.
I rub the back of my neck, realizing I need to get control of my emotions. I have all the time in the world to convince my little doctor to give me a chance, but I have to do it strategically. I have everyday “business” issues as well as cartel problems on my plate already. If I’m going to make this work, I have to keep her safe. The only way to do that is to plan my wooing.
“That’s a good idea,” I tell Dmitri and place my hand at the base of my little beauty’s spine. “Why don’t you come with us.” It’s not really a question so I don’t give her the opportunity to refuse. I feel her spine stiffen as we head through the packed strip club, leaving the little weasel standing at the bar behind us. As we enter the private back hallway, I signal for one of my enforcers to remove the trash.
Dmitri uses his fingerprint to open my office door and holds it open for us to enter. Once the door closes behind us, my little beauty turns to me. “I don’t remember agreeing to come in here with you,” she sputters, and I see anger flash in her honey-colored eyes. It’s refreshing to find someone who doesn’t seem to be frightened of me.
“I made that decision for you because I want to talk to you in private,” I tell her simply, but there’s nothing simple about the feelings coursing through me. Plus, my biggest priority is keeping her safe.
“I can’t imagine what we could have to talk about.” She slams her hands down on her curvy hips, and I barely resist the urge to smile at the defiant tilt of her chin. I glance over at Dmitri and find him standing next to the door with a smirk on his face. The fucker is enjoying the show.
“First of all, I’d like to know your name. We can start with the basics and move on from there.” My voice drops as I make my intentions clear. “Then we can really get acquainted.”
“I’ll give you the basics.” She lifts her chin and glares at me adorably. “Annabelle Girardi, twenty-eight, ER doctor, moved to Silver Spoon Falls for a job in the Emergency Department a few months ago, no family except for a distant cousin in New York.” She spouts off those details before adding, “And I can’t imagine there’s any reason for you to have me back here. I have every right to be in this bar, and I’m not causing trouble.” Oh, little beauty. You are causing trouble. You’re changing my entire future.
“Annabelle.” I hold out my hand to her and give her the same basics about myself. “I’m Dante Arakas, forty-five, businessman, and I also moved to Silver Spoon Falls recently. I have a niece and nephew in town. And you and I are going to get very well-acquainted.” I see her eyes widen when I confirm my identity. It’s not a shock that she recognizes my name. There probably isn’t a person in the entire state who hasn’t heard of me. And ninety-nine-point-nine percent fear me. It’s a reputation I’ve cultivated over the years to maintain control of my business empire while keeping the fucking cartels at bay. Too bad, the leader of a newer cartel decided to take his chances and challenge me on my territory.