Black Kat Read online

  Then something happened. It’s not clear what it was that caused the change in Kat, but shortly after she graduated high school and started working at a coffee shop, she abruptly quit. Apparently she disappeared from sight, rarely leaving her apartment. Did her memories catch up with her? Alexander doubted she just one day woke up and realized she was afraid of everything. This behavior continued for four more years until, again, Kat swung to the other end of the spectrum.

  This was around the time when she began training with Dane. There was a gun registered to her during this time as well as a new dog, a highly trained dog. The Rottweiler Alexander had seen her with at the gym. She also started working again, this time as a cocktail waitress at The Garden of Eden. If there was a sleazier casino in this city, Alexander didn’t know about it.

  What was happening in her life every few years to cause her behavior to so drastically change? Of course, because of what had happened to her, a case could be made for simple mental instability. But the woman who had locked eyes with him across the gym seemed incredibly stable.

  As Alexander read on, he found the answer to his question. Maybe not the what that had prompted her to act as she did now, but definitely the why. Gil’s sources had relayed several reports of Kat asking questions around town. Questions that indicated she was picking up the investigation the police had so easily dropped.

  He may not understand the motivations of women in general, but Alexander did understand the need for revenge. Kat Rossi was looking for the man who hurt her, and he doubted she planned to turn him over to the police when she found him.

  The rest of the file contained data on her financials. It seemed she made decent money for a cocktail waitress, no doubt because of her looks, but she spent very little of it. Aside from the basics as well as payments to Dane for training, Kat didn’t spend frivolously. Peering at the monthly payments to Dane, Alexander frowned. Either he was getting shafted, or Dane had a soft spot for damaged young women.

  The one thing Alexander took away from her financial information was that she could afford to move away from the neighborhood where her pain lived and breathed, but yet she stayed. Was that part of her plan to find her attacker?

  Alexander stowed the file in his bottom desk drawer and leaned back in his leather chair. Dane and Luke had been right. She was likely more trouble than she was worth. And given her history, she was unlikely to accept the sort of arrangement he had planned on proposing. There was no record of her dating anyone, even casually, so the probability of her jumping into a casual yet intimate relationship with him was extremely low.

  He should shred the file and forget he had ever heard the name Kat Rossi. But there was something about her that he couldn’t let go. The way her bright alert eyes had held his gaze, unwavering and not intimidated in the least. Now that he knew what she had gone through and that she was seeking her own justice, she was even more appealing. Glancing down at the drawer that held the sordid details of her short life, Alexander knew he had to know more. To know her.

  Exactly thirty minutes after he had his calls held, his intercom buzzed. Janice was nothing if not punctual.

  “Mr. Petrovsky?” Janice’s clipped efficient tone echoed through his empty office.

  “Yes, Janice.”

  “I need to confirm your attendance at the Mayor’s charity gala on Saturday. Will you be attending? And will you be taking a date?”

  Alexander paused before replying, a plan already formulating in his head. “Yes, I will be attending. And, yes, I will be taking a date.”

  “Yes, sir. Who would you like for me to arrange to accompany you?”

  Events such as these required Alexander to have a companion who clearly understood it was a business arrangement and not a romantic evening out. There were a few women who would gladly take what he could offer without becoming too attached.

  “I’ll take care of this one on my own, Janice. Thank you,” Alexander replied smoothly.

  “Yes, sir,” Janice replied, ever the consummate professional.

  “Oh, Janice?”

  “Yes, Mr. Petrovsky?”

  “I would like to play poker this evening.”

  “Of course, sir. I can let our poker room know, or I can make reservations at the Bellagio if you prefer.”

  “Actually, Janice, I would like to play at The Garden of Eden.”

  There was a pause, and Alexander could imagine her raising her perfectly groomed eyebrows at the phone.

  “Sir? The Garden of Eden?”

  “Yes, Janice. Around ten o’clock will be fine.”

  She cleared her throat before responding. “Yes, sir. I will make the arrangements.”

  Noting the time, Alexander was glad he had several hours to fine tune his proposal for Kat. He had to give her something she wanted above all else, or she would walk away. Then, of course, there was also the issue of Agent Lewis. He was like a dog with a bone when it came to his work, and Alexander had been his work for two years now. Not that Alexander was worried. He had people in all levels of government on his payroll.

  But now Agent Lewis posed another, more personal, problem. What exactly was his relationship with Kat? And to what lengths would he go to keep her from him? These were the questions on Alexander’s mind as he looked out his office window on the twelfth floor of his casino.

  A quick knock on his office door signaled that Luke had returned. No one else but Luke and Alexander’s sister, Natasha, was allowed in without prior approval through Janice. Not even his cousin, Dimitri, which was still a sore point with Dimitri. He was always accusing Alexander of not trusting him, which was actually true. He was too much of a hothead to be privy to the inner workings of the business.

  “Come in,” Alexander called.

  Luke took one look at his friend's serious expression and sighed. “You’re not going to leave her alone, are you?”

  “No.”

  Even when he disagreed, Luke knew better than to push his opinion on Alexander. He was always able to voice his opinions freely, but once Alexander had made up his mind, it was useless to try to change it. It had been that way as long as Luke had known him, which was a long time.

  Luke had grown up in foster homes, never really belonging anywhere. He met Alexander when he was fifteen. Although Alexander was only four years older than him, he was far ahead of Luke in life experiences. Having immigrated from Russia with his younger sister when his parents were killed, Alexander had done whatever he had to do to take care of himself and Natasha.

  Alexander had given Luke a job, albeit not one he could claim on his taxes, and a purpose. He gave him protection and a sense of family. They had been working together ever since. Alexander had brought Dimitri to America a few years earlier, and he and Luke constantly clashed. Dimitri had the idea that he should be Alexander’s right hand man because they were family. But Alexander knew that family wasn’t determined by blood alone. Luke and Alexander were as close to brothers as if the same blood ran through their veins.

  “We will be visiting The Garden of Eden this evening,” Alexander said.

  “What time are we going? Maybe we can borrow some clothes from Dimitri, so we don’t look out of place,” Luke joked. Dimitri’s sleazy gold chain style fit in much better at the Garden of Eden than at The Onyx, which like its owner was sleek and modern. Sharp edges and dark surfaces, much like Alexander himself.

  “Ten o’clock. We’ll go late so we don’t actually have to eat the food there,” Alexander replied.

  Luke shook his head as he left. His boss must really have an interest in this girl to set foot in a place like The Garden of Eden. Where The Onyx had expensive boutiques, world class spas and sold out shows, The Garden of Eden had adult toy stores, a tattoo parlor and strip clubs. Night and day.

  Luke wondered what exactly Alexander’s interest in this girl was. He had read her file, and she wasn’t going to go for Alexander’s usual no strings arrangement. Maybe he had finally met a girl he wanted more than one
night with? Anything was possible.

  Chapter Four

  Kat peered at her reflection in the mirror of the dressing room at The Garden of Eden and dabbed some extra concealer under her eyes. She never slept well, but the last two days had been even worse than usual. After receiving the latest note, she was afraid to close her eyes even during the day. Turning her head from side to side, she made sure she was wearing the required amount of makeup and her hair was curled and fluffed.

  Her coworker, Larissa Robbins, sat in the chair beside her. She blew out a ring of smoke before snuffing out her cigarette on the counter.

  Kat glanced over. “Those things will kill you, you know.”

  Larissa rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I know. But smoking keeps my appetite down. I don’t have freakishly high metabolism that lets me eat whatever I want like some people.”

  Kat applied another coat of lip gloss. “I’m not a freak. I just exercise…a lot.”

  “That’s an understatement.”

  “How’s Zeus?” Kat asked, attempting to steer the conversation away from her. She and Larissa had worked together for three years, and she was the closest thing Kat had to a friend, though they had never actually done anything socially outside of work. Not for lack of trying on Larissa’s part.

  “I think he’s cheating on me,” Larissa sighed.

  Of course he’s cheating on her thought Kat. With a name like Zeus, which couldn’t possibly be his real name, and his career choice of drug dealing, of course he was cheating on her. She might not have many friends, but she knew when to lie.

  “I’m sure he’s not cheating on you. Look at you, you’re gorgeous.”

  Larissa smoothed down the ruffles of her costume over her hips. “Yeah, I am, right? Maybe I’ll dump him. Find a nice guy who wouldn’t dream of cheating on me.”

  Kat stood up and straightened her own costume, which consisted of a bra top and low slung, short ruffly skirt made out of green fabric designed to look like leaves. High heeled green suede boots completed the look, which no one in the world would describe as classy.

  Kat adjusted her top to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be. Wearing this tiny costume and having scumbags stare at her ass all night made her skin crawl. But she made good money, and she kept her ears open. The customers started to talk after a few drinks, and the kind of guys who frequented The Garden of Eden were the kind who might just have the type of information she was looking for.

  Without bothering to knock, their boss, Ron, stuck his head in and said, “Get your sweet asses out here. We’ve got thirsty customers.”

  Larissa fluffed her platinum blonde hair one more time and walked past Kat. “Showtime, doll.”

  It was just a few minutes before 10:00 pm, and Kat’s shift would run until 6:00 am. This was her preferred shift, though she sometimes had to work the 4:00 pm to midnight. Sleeping at night was not something that came easily for Kat, so she liked to work in the dark and sleep during the day.

  Kat and Larissa always worked the poker room, and there were several regulars that often asked for them. They knew by now that Kat was hands off, but the new customers could get grabby, especially after a few drinks. Ron frowned upon her injuring the customers, so she had become an expert at sidestepping ass grabs.

  She was in the process of doing just that when the door opened and two well dressed men walked in. Kat froze when she saw a pair of dark eyes locked on her. So dark they looked black in the dim lighting.

  She had been by The Onyx but had never been inside. Still, just from the outside she could tell it was worlds away from this dump. What was Alexander Petrovsky doing in her poker room? Why did she have the feeling he wasn’t here to gamble? Probably because he entered the room like he owned the place and everyone in it, including her. There was no way this was a coincidence.

  Kat’s surprise at seeing Alexander there threw her off her rhythm, and she stood staring until she felt a big sweaty palm sliding up the back of her bare thigh. Instinct kicked in and she grabbed the hand, twisting the fingers and wrist back at a painfully unnatural angle. The guy squealed in pain and looked up at her with wide eyes.

  “Don’t touch me,” Kat hissed before releasing him and walking quickly back to the bar. Thankfully, Ron was busy greeting his VIP guests and didn’t notice her manhandling the customers.

  Larissa joined her and started filling her tray with a round of beers for table number eight.

  “Did you see who’s here?” Larissa asked with an excited gleam in her eyes.

  “Mmm hmm.”

  “I hope Ron seats him in my section. I would love to get my hands on…”

  “Okay, I get it,” Kat interrupted, not wanting to hear exactly what part of Alexander that Larissa wanted to get her hands on. Normally she would tune Larissa out when she started drooling over some guy, but this time she didn’t want to hear it - for reasons other than disinterest. Reasons she didn’t fully understand.

  When Larissa left to deliver bottles of beer, Kat took her time ringing up the drinks in the computer. She let her hair fall over her shoulder, shielding her face so she could peek in Alexander’s direction without detection. Ron was practically falling all over himself to show Alexander and his companion to “the best table in the house”. Kat rolled her eyes. There were no good tables in this dump.

  The guy who was with Alexander was dressed in a black suit with a light blue shirt, open at the collar and no tie. He was handsome with brown hair, and the way his eyes constantly drifted around the room gave him away as security. The five o’clock shadow and slight scowl on his face made him look a little rough around the edges.

  Alexander, on the other hand, was polished and put together in a dark gray suit, white shirt, and dark red tie. There was nothing casual about him. His face was clean shaven and his black wavy hair was perfectly styled. But the gleam in his dark eyes gave him away. Kat had become an expert at recognizing danger, and it was there in his eyes. The thing she didn’t know was what kind of danger he posed and to whom.

  Ron waved Larissa over to their table, and Kat could hear him telling her to give the gentlemen whatever they wanted. And she might just do it too, if the price was right. Looking away, Kat snapped herself back to the present. She had a job to do, and she couldn’t waste any time on Alexander Petrovsky. Her tips from waitressing were what kept money in the bank.

  Crossing the room to take the orders from table four, which seemed to be a bachelor party already in full swing, suddenly Kat wasn’t sure which was the lesser of two evils - drunk, horny ex-frat boys or…Alexander Petrovsky. With a sigh, she braced herself for being leered at and grabbed for and headed toward the table.

  Across the room, Alexander watched Kat. He watched how she had nearly broken the wrist of a man nearly three times her size because he had touched her leg. He watched how she visibly squared her shoulders as she went to serve a table of rowdy young men. He watched her as she had watched him.

  Ron Branson had clearly known who Alexander was, and had gone so far as to pimp out one of the waitresses. But there was only one waitress that Alexander was interested in, and it wasn’t the one currently setting his drink down in front of him.

  The blonde smiled seductively and cocked her hip out. “Is there anything else I can get for you, Mr. Petrovsky?” It was a loaded question.

  “Yes, there is,” he replied.

  Her brown eyes lit up. “What’s that?”

  Alexander leaned forward and lowered his voice. “I would like Miss Rossi to serve us for the rest of the evening.” Hurt flashed briefly through her eyes before he continued. “For your troubles,” Alexander said as he pulled a thick wad of cash from inside his jacket.

  The light in her eyes was back. She snatched the money from his hand and tucked it inside her top. “Sure thing, sugar. I’ll send her right over.” She sashayed away with one last wink.

  Luke took a swallow of the whiskey in his glass and looked around. “This place is disgusting. Kat do
esn’t look like the type who would be working here.”

  “Hmm, no she doesn’t. I think her reasons for working here are strategic,” Alexander murmured. He continued to watch Kat for her reaction when her coworker relayed his message.

  Kat was getting her tray ready for the bachelor party when Larissa came up to the bar with a huge grin on her face. Kat raised one eyebrow, but Larissa started jabbering before she could ask what was up.

  “It is your lucky day, girl! Not only did he specifically ask for you - by name - but he gave me a big fat tip for serving him just one drink.” Larissa pulled the cash from her bra and fanned through the bills. “There must be almost a grand here, Kat! I guess it’s my lucky night too,” Larissa squealed. She grabbed the tray of drinks Kat had just fixed. “I’ll trade you one sexy Russian for a bachelor and all his friends.”

  Kat blew a strand of hair out of her face and looked at Alexander out of the corner of her eye. Of course, he was staring at her. Well, she thought she might as well get this over with. Only twenty minutes into her shift and it seemed like she’d been here for hours already.

  With as much confidence as she could muster, Kat strolled over to table ten, where Alexander sat with his unnamed friend. As she approached, both men stood as if she was a guest at their table instead of a waitress wearing half of an outfit.

  Alexander held out his hand to her. Kat looked at his hand and back up to his dark eyes. She did not make a move to put out her hand in return. Luke looked from her to his boss and seemed surprised when the corner of Alexander’s mouth quirked up as he lowered his hand.

  “Miss Rossi, allow me to introduce myself…” Alexander began.

  “I know who you are. What do you want?” Kat bluntly interrupted him.

  Alexander cleared his throat. He was not used to being treated this way, but for some reason he expected nothing less from her. “This is my associate, Mr. Wells,” Alexander said, gesturing to Luke.