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Ludvik raises both of his brows and swallows hard. “I meant no offense, of course.”
“I’m sure you didn’t. You will do as I ask. I must get going, or I’ll be late,” I tell him and walk past him, preparing to turn the corner for the hallway that leads out of the hotel suite.
“Boss, I know you’re on good terms with the Steele family, but I have something. I feel like I need to say something.”
I halt, waiting for Ludvik to speak up. “State what’s on your mind.”
“Even the ones on good terms, the ones closest to you, have the ability to betray you the most.” What Ludvik says is true. After all, my former right-hand man, Kirill, betrayed my family and me. I thought I could trust him with my life, with my family’s secrets, and instead, he was helping my traitor of a stepfather. Even now, it sickens me, but there was nothing I could’ve done to ensure Kirill’s loyalty to me. That’s something I have a hard time understanding, that the choices he made weren’t my fault.
“You should put that in a fortune cookie. Good talk,” I comment as I walk down the hallway, grab the keys to my Ferrari Roma, and head for the elevator. In a matter of five minutes, I’m pulling out of the parking garage and heading for the restaurant where I’m meeting Jordan.
It doesn’t take me too long to get there, and somehow, I’m lucky enough to find street parking in front of the restaurant. Though, it’s more of a café than a full-blown restaurant. As I open the door and walk inside, I’m amazed by the look of the joint. The floors are concrete, but they’re stained a medium gray. All the tables and the bar where you order are of honey-stained wood, and the chairs or barstools have black legs with emerald green seats. This even extends to the booths in the back. Throughout the place, there are tall plants. Some even go twenty or thirty feet in the air. The café must own three or four floors to have ceilings this high up.
I scan the area to see if Jordan’s here already, but I’m a few minutes early. He isn’t here, so I head for the counter and order a bloody mary and eggs Benedict. I’m given a number before heading to the back of the restaurant and texting Jordan where I am so he knows when he gets here.
Jordan arrives about ten minutes later, and he orders before he comes over to sit with me. “Lom, it’s good to see you again.” I’ve seen Jordan a couple of times, but mostly since Ruslan left to go back to Grozny.
“Likewise,” I tell him, and he takes a seat.
“So, what’s the meaning of this meeting?” Jordan inquires.
“I guess you could say I’m checking in on things. I want to verify your family’s happy with the progress we’ve made over the last few months and ensure we can continue our business dealings for a long time to come.”
As I finish speaking, the woman who took my order brings out my bloody mary, but there’s a second one with it. “Your food will be about another twenty minutes. If you two need anything else in the meantime, please let me know.”
“Thank you,” we both say simultaneously.
“Things are going as planned, and I see no reason to stop our business relationship as long as it’s benefiting both of our families,” Jordan tells me. Internally, my worries stop, but then another feeling takes over me: dread. Dread because this truly means I have no reason to stay in Atlanta. My brother expects me back in Grozny soon, and I’m running out of excuses to tell him. Everything is fine with the Steele family, and the last thing I want to do is have him know how important Emily is to me right now. Until things have settled between the two of us, I don’t want my brother to know I’ve put a label on my relationship with Emily.
Over the next hour, our food is brought out to us, and both of us get caught up a bit. Most of the time, I don’t want to meet with clients, but Jordan Steele is arguably our biggest client now, and he’s not bad company either. As I finish up the last bit of my eggs Benedict, he asks a question that catches me off guard.
“I am curious how things are going now that your brother’s been in position for some time. It couldn’t have been easy turning the tides in your favor, though. Your brother’s position was his birthright. Certainly not Anzor’s.” Jordan keeps eye contact with me, and I nod.
“It was rough in the beginning. People saw Anzor as the face of our family for a very long time, but one thing he was not was an Umarova. He was a fraud, ruling in our father’s name. Something I will guarantee our father would’ve hated more than anything. The truth is, we should’ve taken over years ago, but we didn’t.”
“I’ve heard your brother’s giving duties to your half-brother and half-sister?” Jordan questions, and I’m curious to know what his angle is now. I wonder if he’s heard rumors about an uprise, and this is his way of warning us. Or could there be people loyal to my stepfather who want Nazyr or Eset to turn against us?
“Yes, because they’ve been burned as badly as we have by their father.”
Jordan nods a couple of times. “I see. Well, I’d advise you to be certain of your role within your family. You all know what your brother’s duties are. It’s best you know where the rest of you stand.”
“We’ll stand wherever Ruslan tells us to, as it’s our job,” I tell Jordan, and he smirks at the tone of my voice.
“Many people strive for power, Lom. I’ve heard about what Kirill did, and I don’t have to beat a dead horse here. He would’ve betrayed you for power, and I’ll guarantee that’s what your stepfather was promising. Cut those off ahead of time before they hurt your family any longer. Tell your brother to give you all some sort of power because that will be what keeps your family as a united front. I hope you know I’m only saying these things to help you in the long run. I’ve been the head of my family’s organization for a while now, and it’s only because I’ve made my siblings and family members feel valued and powerful.”
“I appreciate your insight and words, Jordan,” I reply, and I’m not full of shit. He’s given me another perspective to think about, and it’s something I’ll pass along to my brother when the time comes.
Jordan looks at his watch and fishes his wallet out of his pocket. “I have to get going, but I’ll—”
“Your money is no good here. I’ll foot the bill today,” I say to him, and Jordan stops, then puts his wallet back in his pocket.
“All right then. Until next time, Lom.” Jordan extends a hand, and I take his. We both shake, and then he’s on his way.
I open my wallet and put a hundred-dollar bill down on the table, figuring it’ll cover more than our meals and give a decent tip to the waitress.
I leave the cafe and get into my Ferarri Roma. I head back to the hotel and am back upstairs in no time. Only, I find Ludvik sitting on the couch. “Is Emily still asleep?”
Ludvik nods. “Yes. I came home early in the morning.” Ludvik doesn’t have to say anything else. His gaze tells me I tired the poor woman out, and she needs her rest. “How did the meeting go?”
