Page 35 of King of Greed

“Honestly, my dream is to retire upstate,” he said. “I’m not a big city person. If it weren’t for business, I’d be in a cabin somewhere, drinking beer and soaking in the fresh air. Fishing, hikes on the weekend. The good life.”

“That sounds wonderful.” I hadn’t gone hiking in a while, but my brother and I used to go all the time during our summers in Brazil. I missed it. “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but when I first saw you, I thought you looked like, well…” I coughed, second-guessing my moment of truth. “Like a lumberjack.”

Aiden’s boisterous laugh turned every head in the tiny trattoria and cooled the blush heating my cheeks.

“Nah. It’s a compliment. And if we’re on the subject of honest first impressions…” He leaned forward, his face softening. “When I met you, I thought you were the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

In theory, his confession should’ve given me butterflies. In practice, it made me feel…nothing. He might as well be a robot reading me the ingredients off a can of soup.

I took a gulp of wine, trying to think of an appropriate response that wouldn’t lead him on.

“Aiden, I— ”

“Alessandra.” The deep, cold voice sent goose bumps scattering over my arms.

My glass froze halfway to the table.No.After six weeks of radio silence, this couldn’t possibly be the night I ran into him again. The universe wouldn’t have such a sick sense of humor.

But when I glanced up, there he was. My ex-husband in all his infuriating blond, chiseled glory. He wore a crisp button-down, an expensive watch, and a stony expression as he rested his hand on the back of my chair with an intimacy he no longer had rights to.

“Dominic.” I didn’t bother hiding my displeasure.

Across the table, Aiden flicked his eyes between us with dawning comprehension. I’d mentioned the divorce to him in passing, and I could practically see him putting two and two together.

“What a coincidence running into you here,” I said stiffly. “We’re in the middle of dinner, so if there’s something you’d like to discuss, we can do it later.”

“I see that.” A muscle ticked in Dominic’s jaw. “Camila found some of your books in the library the other day. You should pick them up.”

“I’ll send someone next week.” There was no way in hell I would step inside the penthouse again. The last time I had gone home with him, we’d…

A flush crept beneath my skin. I craved another sip of wine for courage, but I refused to let him see the effect he had on me, so I kept my hands planted on the table, where my ringless finger looked especially bare against the white tablecloth.

“There’s also the matter of your art and kitchen goods,” Dominic said. “You need to pick out which ones you want.”

“I don’t want any of them.”

“That’s not what your lawyer said.”

“My lawyer was overzealous.” I pasted on a smile. He was obviously stalling; if the home goods were so important, he would’ve reached out about thembeforetonight. “You can keep everything. I’ll buy new items. Fresh start and all.”

His jaw ticked again.

“Sebastian is waiting.” I nodded at where his friend sat a few tables down, watching us with a curious expression. The normally suave French billionaire looked a little worse for wear. The Laurent brand had taken a beating since Martin Wellgrew’s death at Le Boudoir. He’d been allergic to peanuts, and the medical examiner had officially ruled it death by anaphylaxis due to traces of peanut in Wellgrew’s supposedly nut-free dinner, which wasn’t great for the restaurant it had taken place in. “Like I said, we can talk later.”

I forced myself to meet Dominic’s gaze as he stared down at me, his eyes unreadable. Then, just when I thought he’d refuse to leave, he released his hold on my chair and walked away without another word.

My breath escaped in a painful rush.

“I’m sorry about that.” I faced Aiden again and attempted a smile. “He can be a little…intense.”

“That’s all right.” Concern and a hint of amusement glinted in his eyes. “I’m guessing that was the infamous ex-husband.”

“What gave it away? The rude interruption or the weird fixation on kitchen items?”

“I don’t think it’s the items he’s fixated on.”

I hated the tiny jolt that followed his words. I’d begged Dominic to let me go, and he had. In the long run, it was a good thing, but in the short run, part of me twisted uncomfortably at the prospect of him moving on. It was hypocritical, considering I was the one on a quasi-date, but emotions weren’t rational.

Aiden rubbed a hand over his mouth. “I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable with what I said earlier. I meant it, but I’m also not expecting anything from this dinner other than a nice evening out with someone whose company I enjoy. You just went through a divorce and I’m, well, I’m in no place to start a relationship either. Maybe things will change down the road, but for now, let’s take things at face value. How does that sound?”

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