Page 58 of Sex, Lust & Lingerie

CHAPTER 34

Jaime

Catching my breath and rubbing my stinging hands, I traipsed up the steep crescent-shaped driveway to the entrance of the hotel, hoping that the goon would no longer be there. My mind spun with questions. I’d seen him before—first, when dining with Gloria in Paris and then the other night at Shutters with Victor. Who the fuck was he? And why was he after Gloria? The fear etched on her face had been real, bordering on panic. Was he one of Victor’s goons? A reporter? A former lover? My gut told me he meant her harm. Thank fuck, I was there to intervene and if I saw the asshole again, I was going to beat the shit—and the truth—out of him. In the meantime, I needed to know that Gloria was okay so I pulled out my phone and speed-dialed her. My call went straight to voicemail after only one ring. Rather than leaving a message, I hit redial and again the same thing. Finally, after my third attempt, I realized she’d blocked me. Cursing under my breath, I thrust my phone back into my pocket and tried to wrap my head around my upcoming meeting with the real estate agent Blake Burn’s mother had hooked me up with. Suddenly, I wasn’t sure if I wanted an office in LA. Gloria was locking me out of her life.

As I was about to head into the hotel, an unwelcome voice called out to me. Not the albino freak.

“Jaime?” I swerved my head. Vivien! Dressed in a body-hugging plum mini-dress, she jumped out of her black Mercedes convertible with her monstrous bag slung over her arm and ran up to me.

As if were best friends in the whole world, she flung her bare arms around me. My skin prickled at her repulsive touch, but I didn’t want to create another scene, especially with a woman who was likely a regular here.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Business,” I replied coldly.

“Me too! I’m here to meet Daddy’s new business partner.”

Victor was here?

“He’s introducing me as the next CEO of Gloria’s-Soon-to be Forever-Vivien-Secret. The Board called for Gloria’s resignation this morning. By tomorrow, I’ll be in her office redecorating it in fifty shades of purple. Oh, and I hope you followed my advice. With me at the helm and all that Daddy has planned, the company’s shares are going to go through the roof.”

Fuck. Things were happening faster than I expected. The news of Gloria’s inevitable demise rattled me. I couldn’t let it happen. Somehow, I had to figure out a way to let her know what was really going on. And fast!

A knot twisted in the pit of my stomach as Vivien babbled on. “Then after my lunch, I’m going to the hotel salon to have my hair and makeup done for the gala tonight. It’s some stupid black tie affair honoring Gloria. Or should I say, poor Gloria. Daddy bought a table ages ago and it’s non-refundable. Anyone who’s anything is going to be there. And as the new CEO, I have to look my best. You should come!”

My mind processed her words like a food blender whose blades were spinning at three thousand RPMs. It would be an opportunity to see Gloria. An opportunity to…

Then Vivien laughed. “HA! It’ll be more like Gloria’s Last Supper after Daddy crucifies her!”

Her snake-tongued comment made me want to slap the shit out of her, forcing me to clench my fists by my sides. Get a fucking grip, Zander. Controlling myself, I told Vivien in my most enthusiastic voice that I’d love to attend and we both headed into the hotel. While she sauntered toward the Polo Lounge, I took a seat in the lobby waiting for the real estate agent. I was fifteen minutes early with time to kill. I immediately reached for my phone and made one call. A plan was activated. Yeah, it was going to be someone’s last supper if things worked out.

A few minutes later, the real estate agent arrived. She was a tall fifty-something redhead who seemed to know everyone as we headed to the Polo Lounge for lunch. A total walking encyclopedia of the who’s who of Hollywood. The restaurant’s maître d’ treated her like royalty and escorted us to our table.

And then as we sat down, I saw her. Him. Them. Vivien, Victor, and the albino bastard, who was holding an ice pack to his bashed in nose. He was Victor’s new business partner? What the fuck? But bigger, more pressing questions loomed. Why was he after Gloria? Why did he call her “mine”? And why was she so terrified of him? I held up a menu to my face so he wouldn’t see me. But it was too late. His sinister pink eyes made contact with mine, shooting bullets at me like rifles. I stared him in the face, deflecting his viscious glare. I wasn’t afraid of the ugly motherfucker. I knew damn well he wasn’t going to create a scene in this very public high-end place. He snarled; it must have hurt him like hell.

Half-grabbing my attention, the glib real estate agent wasted no time telling me about the LA commercial real estate market. For a cutting-edge advertising boutique like ZAP!, the Venice area was ideal. With the plethora of tech companies and start-ups settling there, it was fast becoming known as Silicon Beach. New clients would be at my doorstep and loft-like office space could still be obtained at a fairly reasonable price. I feigned interest, but I was still preoccupied with the freakazoid sitting with Victor and Vivien. Enraged, he was gesturing madly.

While my lunch date perused a menu and raved about the chopped salad, a waiter came by with a drink. From its colorless, odorless, slightly viscous consistency, for sure vodka. It was so cold it was smoking.

“I didn’t order this,” I said as he set it down in front of me.

“It’s courtesy of the fair-skinned man sitting in the booth in the corner.” He pointed at Victor’s table. “And he asked me to give you this note.”

A chill rippled through me as he handed me a small, sealed envelope. I tore it open and slipped out the contents. A note scribbled on hotel stationary: Revenge is a dish best served cold.

I swiped my eyes at the sender. Springing to his feet, he threw on his coat and shot me a look as icy as the drink. Without losing eye contact, he stuffed his hand inside his coat pocket. Fuck. Did he have a gun inside it? Was he going to shoot me in cold blood?

My heart beat like a jackrabbit’s and then it calmed when he slipped out a pair of sunglasses. I watched as he adjusted them on the bridge of his swollen nose, slapped on his hat, and then stalked out of the restaurant without looking back.

As he disappeared from sight, an unsettling thought flashed into my head.

Would he be at tonight’s gala? And have his revenge?

Another unsettling thought. Maybe it was going to be my last supper.

But at least, I’d be sharing it with Gloria.

---