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I almost wanted to melt into a puddle of embarrassment. I’d been so desperate to escape the car, I didn’t grab my stuff. I took it from him with a grimace, pawing through it to grab my compact to fix my makeup.
“Thank you,” I mumbled.
The dimples came back as he gave me a lopsided grin. “So, is it all cars or just SUVs that freak you out?”
Flashing him a flat look, I focused on covering the smattering of freckles that was starting to peek through my makeup. Stupid foundation never set right.
“Not that it’s any of your business but I don’t like driving in the winter. It’s not safe. I prefer to take the train when I can. Had I known the meeting would be moved, I would’ve come straight here instead.”
Either he was incredibly observant or he was never taught that staring is rude because Jaime’s eyes never left me. I smoothed down my clothes, draping my jacket over my arm and grabbing my briefcase before gesturing towards the door. He grinned and held the door open for me before leading me towards the elevators.
ChapterThree
Now that Iwasn’t in a dead panic, I had the chance to look around. The building was in the middle of the city and one of the tallest I’ve seen. Even with the all-glass exterior, it was warm and bright, which was surprising given that everything looked like it was under construction, new drywall lacking even a coat of paint and tools scattered in different areas. The back wall of the elevator was all glass, letting you look over the city as it made its climb upwards. And by upwards, I mean nearly fifty floors upwards. I gripped the bar on the side, staying as far away from the window as possible.
“First cars, now heights. What aren’t you afraid of?”
I snapped my attention back to Jaime and glared at him. “Most people consider it rude to point out things like that.”
He only chuckled, his attention on the climbing numbers. When the doors slid open, he gave me a challenging look, holding them open for me. In an attempt to seem unaffected, I exited a lot slower than I wanted to, my chin lifted. I heard him snicker behind me but he didn’t follow me into the next room. He stayed by the elevator, his hands folded in front of him like a bodyguard watching the exit.
I stopped, frowning at him. “Aren’t you coming?”
He shook his head with a grin. “I’m just the delivery boy, remember? Go on in, they’re waiting for you.” He jerked his chin to the massive double door in front of me. Glancing back at it, I considered once again turning tail and running. I was basically meeting with the enemy right now and I wasn’t entirely sure what was going to happen next. I summoned my courage, putting on my game face. I’m Rebecca freaking Sloan. I will not be intimidated by a man, mafia boss or not.
The doors opened to an absolutely massive open space that was mostly barren except for three desks, one on each side, all facing the center of the room. The walls were entirely glass with not even a railing to let you know they were there. A red carpet sprawled out in the middle of the room was the only bit of decoration I’ve seen in the entire building and it really didn’t suit the space.
Standing over by the windows stood three men, deep in conversation. One of them I recognized and when he noticed my arrival, he turned, beaming at me.
“Sloan! You made it!”
He crossed the room in a few strides, eating up the distance easily with his long legs. I stuck my hand out for a shake but in true Mateo Ramirez fashion, he bypassed it and pulled me in for a hug. He’s always been easy going, which was one of the reasons I was surprised at his recommendation. We couldn’t be more different if we tried and he often commented that I worked too hard.
Doing my best to keep a straight face even though I was fighting off a grimace, I stood stiffly until he released me before stepping away from him.
“Yes, well…”
The other two men had come to join us and I finally looked them over. The one on the left was Liam O’Connor. I recognized his face from the newspaper articles. Dark blue eyes, well groomed beard, and a sense of foreboding that almost made me want to take a step back. The other I didn’t know, and he made Mr. O’Connor look as tame as a kitten. He was absolutely massive, towering over all of us, his eyes more icy blue and terrifying, narrowed on me. He had a scar above his eyebrow and when my gaze shifted to his hands that were clenched into fists, there were tattoos along the knuckles.
What did I get myself into?
“Let me introduce you to my partners. This is Liam O’Connor and Dmitriy Volkov.”
I balked. “Partners?”
He nodded, still beaming at me like he hadn’t said he was teaming up with a known criminal and someone who looked like they murdered someone before breakfast each morning. What exactly had Mateo gotten into since we last worked together? I know people say he likes to get his hands dirty but he never struck me as the mafia type.
Refusing to be intimidated, or at least show that I was, I stuck out my hand, shaking with both of them before stepping away.
“I was told you needed a lawyer.”
Mateo seemed to take the lead, which I appreciated. The other two haven’t spoken yet and I honestly didn’t know what was more intimidating, them speaking or them staying quiet.
“Yes, the lawyer we were working with had to leave suddenly and we were in the middle of a big project. We would benefit from an on staff lawyer while we are still under construction and working through the kinks.”
“Mr. Ramirez–”
He made a noise, waving his hand. “Please, we have worked together before. Call me Mateo.”
