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My phone alarm dinged, bringing me back to the present and reminding me it was time to get going. I stood up and gazed out at the ocean for another minute as I gulped down the last sip of coffee. That was how I’d become the new financial advisor to Feliks Dryga.
It took nothing at all to meet him, spreading the word that my brother and I were setting up an office on the East Coast and had chosen Miami for the sun, sand, and great social life over stuffy New York City. Setting up a new branch is the one thing that Sergei is on board with. If I can make my father proud at the same time as increasing our already huge fortune, not even he can complain about that. Although, he still did, and plenty.
In fact, as I headed down the strand toward the private island where Dryga lived, Sergei’s name flashed on my car’s console. I was too close to want to deal with his words of caution, so I ordered my phone to send him a message saying I’d call him back. I got an eye roll emoji in reply and laughed as I pulled through the gates leading up to Dryga’s house.
Compound was more like it. As a bachelor who spent three-quarters of his time at work and most of the rest out partying, I didn’t need anything nearly so showy, so the mansion I kept in LA was just for the occasional dinner party to impress clients. Dryga’s place was one of the biggest, gaudiest displays of wealth I’d ever seen and made my place look like the guest house behind the pool.
Three sprawling, pink stucco houses were spread out over acres of lushly landscaped property, all with pristine, white gravel driveways snaking up to them. Tall palm trees waved in the wind high above the russet tile roofs, and the blazing Florida sunshine glinted off all the windows behind the rows of wrought iron balconies. I pulled my rental up behind the glossy black Rolls Royce parked in front of the main house and nodded to the man who hurried over to take my keys.
Feliks Dryga and I had already played golf at his club and had several dinner meetings in swanky restaurants, but this was the first time he’d invited me to his home. Even though I was sure I had his money in the bag for my investment proposal, I considered this invitation a sign of trust.
His daughter greeted me at the door, as coldly polite as usual. Around twenty years old, she was tall, though she only came to about my shoulder, with a face that could have rivaled any of the thousands of models that Miami was infested with. Her willowy, curvy body was a distraction I had to fight not to gaze at for too long as she gave me her tight little smile and ushered me through the long foyer toward the back of the house. She was definitely someone I’d take home if she gave me a glance at one of the many clubs I’d been frequenting since I arrived, but I made sure to keep my face neutral and not openly stare at her ass swaying only a few feet ahead of me.
“It’s nice to see you again,” she said, barely turning back to say the words in her quiet, melodic voice.
She’d been present during one of our dinner meetings, and it had been just as much of a fight to keep my eyes off her then. She’d barely spoken, only answering direct questions from either me or her father. It was clear she was intelligent, just cold as ice. If she wasn’t the enemy and I didn’t think her father would put a hit out on me, I’d definitely be interested in breaking through all that frost to see what kind of heat I could bring out.
While she accompanied her father to that one business meeting of ours, that was straight investment talk, so it was impossible to know how deeply she was involved with what had truly made Feliks so rich.
“Thank you,” I said, just as impersonally. “You’re looking well, Karine.”
I was gratified to see a slight blush rise up the back of her neck, exposed now that her long, pale blonde hair was up in a knot atop her head. I remembered how it had been in a smooth, silky braid down her back at the dinner meeting, with a few loose strands falling down her shoulders.
“Thank you,” she murmured, not taking the opportunity to offer a flirtatious compliment back. This girl was clearly not interested, and it piqued my stubborn gene.
That’s not what you’re here for, I reminded myself.
We went through a vast patio to a large garden with several covered seating areas and a big fire pit surrounded by an outdoor kitchen. On the opposite side of a hedge, a twenty-foot-high waterfall thundered into a pool half hidden by tropical foliage. As Karine led me along the path to where her father sat at the far end of the pool, I noticed a lazy river system leading from the opposite side of the waterfall and meandering off through the property. The pool itself must have easily been a million bucks or more.
Under the cluster of palm trees, Feliks waved to us as we approached, half rising from his lounge chair. He waved for me to make myself comfortable after we shook hands, and I stroked his ego at how amazing his backyard was.
“Shall I have Esther bring the refreshments?” Karine asked her father.
“That’ll be fine, sweetie,” he said, smiling at her with the benign pride of any father.
“She’s really lovely,” I said, nodding my thanks to Karine as she walked away. “You must be so proud.”
He made a rumbling noise as his mouth twisted in a grimace. “Ahh, yes,” he sighed.
I laughed as if he’d told a hilarious joke. Early on, I’d learned that Dryga either didn’t see through sycophantic actions or just plain liked having his ass kissed. “What, having a beautiful, accomplished daughter is a bad thing?” I asked, laying on more compliments like I was spreading spackle with a trowel.
“No,” he said slowly. “It’s just that it’s past time for her to get married, and I can’t find anyone in my organization that’s suitable, or anyone on the outside, either.”
“Whoa, well, sign me up if arranged marriages are on the table,” I said, thinking we were still joking.
Feliks became deadly serious, leaning closer to me across the frosted glass table between us. “That’s how we do things in my family,” he said. “It’s the only way I can make sure she ends up with someone I trust.”
My heart raced as a new direction was suddenly opened up to me. My objective was to infiltrate the Dryga organization enough to find out their secrets, a weak point, anything to help the Morozovs run them out of Miami with minimal bloodshed. How much closer could I get than to be set up with Karine? There was no possible way I’d pull that off.
I sighed, nodding. “I wish I had someone looking out for me that way. Maybe matchmaking is the way to go.” I shrugged, leaning back. “I certainly want to settle down, but I never know who’s only interested in me for my wealth and position.”
“Then you get it,” Feliks said. A servant came with a pitcher of something ice-cold and bright red. Margaritas? Nothing like a bit of tequila to grease the wheels. I waited until Feliks poured us each a glass and took a small sip to his giant gulp. “You don’t know who to trust.”
“That you don’t,” I said. “That’s why I’ve pretty much given up on dating, even though I’d love to find a good woman and start a family soon.”
Half of that was true, because no one would consider the revolving door of different women in my life dating. As for the family? Maybe one day in the distant future. The very distant future. But Feliks didn’t have to know that.
“You’re good people, Roman,” he said. “Even though you can’t speak it for shit, I appreciate that you’re Russian, too.”
