Maddox could not believe his own eyes. What was he doing? He never went on dates. He never does dates.
Closing his eyes, he pinched his nose and reminded himself that it was nothing but two people going out to eat and hang out. Two friends. That sounded even more foreign. Why was he even excited about meeting up with someone he fucked the night before? He even dressed up! Crazy.
Maddox thought of Charlie and her charming smile that managed to keep him on chokehold. But last night, in his bed, she was an exquisite partner. He remembered the feel of her soft body against his and how responsive she had been to everything he did. If he had not thought with his head, he would have made her his.
Moving back to New York came with one goal; to live a simple life. That involved making money, debauching himself every chance he gets, doing nothing illegal and raising that kid.
Speaking of kid, Maddox eyed the girl raiding his fridge. Hailey made herself sandwich and uncorked the bottle of wine he repeatedly told her not to touch. He did not even have the energy to be mad at her. If he could at least be a sense of reasoning for him, maybe he could call the whole thing off with Charlie. Then he would spend the night with other people who did not pique his curiosity.
"Oh my!" Hailey exclaimed once she looked at him and cackled. "Don't you look pretty?"
"Don't." He closed his eyes and swallowed down his embarrassment. "I look like this every day."
Maddox wore black slacks and a black dress shirt. He made sure to unbutton the first two buttons to show he didn't try too hard when he actually did. He groomed his hair and tied it up in a manbun. If he must say so himself, he looked good.
"Are you planning on getting laid today or something?"
Hailey was only fifteen. Should he be having this conversation with her?
"I'm going out with a friend."
Chowing down her food, she shook her head. "You don't have friends. You don't make friends. Where are you really going?"
"I am meeting up with someone. She offered to buy me dinner."
"She?! Dio Santo!" She squealed, growing amused. "So it's a date."
"Porca miseria." For God's sake. Maddox shook his hands as he explained. "Hailey, please don't do this. I'm not going on a date. And why are you here? I bought you a house for a reason."
"It's so lonely there. Carla doesn't get me like you do."
"You're just saying that because of the freedom you enjoy here."
"So, can I stay?"
"No. You better get back home before I get back."
"Fine. But you have to spend with me this weekend. You promised last week and cancelled last minute, Papa."
"No problem, Hailey. And I told you not to call me Papa."
Giggling, she asked, "Would you rather Padrè?"
"No, Hailey." His Italian accent slipped as he eyed the girl.
"Alright, Signore Black." She took one long look at him and nodded. "You don't need to worry. You look good in anything."
"I'm not worried." He tugged at his shirt. "Don't stay playing on that Play Station, Hailey. I mean it. Dont stay too late. It's a school night."
"Yes, Papa. Now go before your date gets pissed and leaves."
Maddox does not bother arguing and takes the main exit to the elevator. He took in Hailey three years ago before he moved to New York and established his empire. Placing her under the care of Carla, an old nanny he hired on his move, was one of his best investment. Hailey did not seem like much now but she was his lifeline, the heir to all that he owned. He only wished she grew stronger with her fists like she was with her mouth.
The elevator touched the ground floor. He stepped into the busy lobby, tugging on his gloves and checking if his bluetooth sat well placed in his ear. When he stepped outside of the building, the evening air blew against him along with the New York smell. The city was so crowded, it was a miracle anything got done.
A sedan pulled up by the sidewalk. The driver's door opened and Charlie stepped out with that charming grin of hers. She rushed over to the passenger's side and opened the door.
"What are you waiting for? Come in!"
For the first time in his life, Maddox Black let himself be swept up in a woman's chivalry. Heavens forbid he admit he liked that. He climbed in and quietly watched her close the door then rush to enter the vehicle at the driver's seat.
"I'm sorry for being late," Charlie apologized as she sped down the road.
"Two minutes," he stated.
"You didn't stand there long, did you? Work and traffic had me swamped. I even had to rent this baby."
"We could have taken one of my cars."
Her brows raised as she glanced at him. "What are you talking about? I asked you out so I should deal with everything."
"It's not a date," Maddox remimded her but mostly himself. He wondered what sort of trap he had set for himself by accepting this and melting into a puddle he barely recognised. He didn't dare look at her for fear he might get lost in her brown eyes and do something he shouldn't since they were 'friends' now.
"It's not. We already established that this morning."
Yes, this morning.
When he first woke, he had been glad she was not in bed with him only to find her dressed and about to leave. Her scent lingered on him even after she left and he had the mattress and bed sheets replaced. There was nothing else that could explain this magnetic pull he felt with her. Perhaps if he fucked her again, all the lust he felt for her would be spent up.
"We are… right in front of my nightclub," Maddox noted dryly when the sedan pulled to a stop.
The neon lights on the establishment name, Sin City, shone on his face as if taunting him. This was going to be a weird friendship outing. Was she really looking for a do-over at the place where they first met? This girl is hella weird.
"Yeah but that's not our destination." She reached over and turned his head to the other side of the street. "That is."
"Oh." He blinked, reading the sign above the restaurant.
"They have great reviews. I promise, their food is good. We're going to have the best night."
He tried to mirror her expression, feeling dead inside. How would his employees feel if they saw him right across the street?
Jake gave her an ultimatum. Well, he did not say so explicitly but after that call with Galloway, Charlie had to find a way to kill two birds with one stone. Ever the helpful, Jake reminded her that they were on a job to catch a murderer who may or may not be in an international gang, and to use a condom. Despite her many thanks, Jake did not seem pleased with her 'newest project' as he called it. She rented a car and had driven down to Mr Black's place, nervous. When she picked him up, her anxiety grew. She could not tell if it was excitement, the need to please him or his uncharacteristically handsome that made her want to fold. When she pulled up across the street, Charlie picked up on the disbelief in his tone. Perhaps it was a terrible idea to take someone to dinner opposite the nightclub they had first encountered. But she had to compromise. One eye out for Joel Peters and the other eye on the beautiful Mr Black. Even she had to admit she fucked up. What was she thinking asking
"That's your 'friend'?" Maddox looked up from his table after he paid for dinner. Charlie had been too flustered by his request, that she dashed out of there like a thief caught. Her saved contact sat expectant on his bright screen, bringing a smile to his lips. He was well on his way to leave for Sin City when he found Hailey spying on him. "What are you doing here?" He hissed under his breath, leading her by the arm out of the restaurant. "I told you to go home.""I was curious." Hailey hugged him, giving him a pout. "Are you satisfied? Now, go home." He peeled her off him, growing annoyed with her giggles."Can I have your number?" She mimicked. "I can't believe you plan on getting me a mom that way. If you must know, she's way out of your league.""I'm not getting married. I'm not getting you a Mom and what do you mean she's out of my league? If you don't go home, I'll cancel your cards.""And if you cancel my cards, I'll be stuck with you even more."Maddox closed his eyes, ho
"Are you okay? If you frown deeper, you would give the puffish a run for its money."She rolled her eyes at Jake's comment as he drove down the street. Charlie could not get Maddox and Hailey out of her head. She expected a lot of things but him being a father was not one of them. He did not even look like one, no offense. Biting her nail, she thought harder. She would have seen the signs if he had been married. He didn't wear a ring and she doubted married men wore rings to nightclubs. Maddox Black could be separated or divorced for all she knew. Besides, his home was void of familial pictures. It lacked the feel and comfort of a home but he lived in it. It was weird. Did he expect to move out of his penthouse soon or was it a personal preference? And his daughter, oh, was such a pretty girl. She swept her hair in a ponytail, mirroring her father. Hailey barely reached his shoulder and the only similarity was the black hair and a fit figure. The teenager had bright brown eyes, a st
Charlie knocked on the door of the trailer and waited. She heard shuffles of feet and a grunt. The curtain in front of the window slid to the side and Charlie waved, giving a small smile. "Who goes there?" A throaty voice bellowed. "We are detectives," Charlie fibbed. "Came to ask questions about Peters next door.""I don't know any Peters. Go away." "We won't take much of your time. Just a couple of questions and we will get out of your hair," she pressed on. "Fuck off!"Sighing, she thread a hand through her hair. This was exactly why she always came on nice to people. It's been a surprising day and Charlie was not having any bullshit this dude might want to throw her way. Besides, it looked like he had something to hide."FBI! Open up!" She rammed the door with incessant, rapid knocks. "What the fuck do you mean FBI?" The man yelled from inside. "Open up or we break down the door." Jake placed a hand on her shoulder, easing a bit of the frown from her face. "We just want to
Charlie can tell what is going through Jake’s mind as they make their way from Lulu’s home. Those kids deserve a better home but maybe now isn’t the time to let childhood traumas cloud one’s judgement and cause a distraction to the case. They met Lulu with a bunch of guys drinking in her trailer and her kids were outside left to their own devices. When Jake had asked if they were in school, they had replied that they were home schooled but from the looks of things, there was little or no schooling going on at all. Her oldest who seemed to be around twelve couldn’t communicate properly and they all looked slightly malnourished. When Jake made a comment on how underfed they looked , a drunken Lulu waved it off with a comment on genetics and how that was how they were built. Even if it was the afternoon, Lulu and her company were already quite drunk and Charlie knew that getting any information from her would be futile and they decided it would be best to come back the next
Charlie Brown looked up at the wall clock and saw that the time was thirty minutes past one.she sighed. Sometimes, life at this old place seemed to drag on for hours. She looked around her office and was once again hit with the knowledge that this place told a story of it’s own. There were tales of secrets and lies, hidden crimes and deaths. Innocent victims put through suffering at the hands of the perpetuators who were currently free men and a menace to the city because of the numerous unsolved cases that were now piled up. That was why she felt so passionately about her job which was making sure those sick bastards were eventually locked up behind bars and their victims set free or at least their families got some closure in the case of murder. The crime rate had recently reached an all time high and the office of the FBI was flooded with unsolved cases and deep dark mysteries. Charlie Brown knew what was going through everyone’s minds - the sudden rise in crime in this
Charlie had finally being able to get through her musings and was now fully concentrating on her work, apart from the regular breaks to reply Mr.Black’s messages and stops to think of a witty reply, operation get through the pile of paper work and maybe get off early or just in time was underway.She most times would have to stay back and work overtime, but today wasn’t going to be like that.She smiled. Maybe she now had something going on with her apart from work or maybe not.Charlie mentally rolled up her sleeves and continued with work. She was deeply engrossed for about an hour when she heard a knock on the door.Before she could even mutter a “come in”, Agent William Kleinman had already opened the door come in and was sitting in the chair opposite hers.She looked up and was met by his intense gaze.His green glistening eyes stared right at her and she noticed
Maddox Black kept staring at his watch, he knew how long the meeting would last but he wished time would magically fly by.When Bryan had called him that there was an emergency meeting with some investors, he should have known that it would be some long boring hours of some proposal which would involve him spending his money on something which he wasn’t interested in.But he knew that the end result would yield more money or maybe account to loss.He grumbled under his breath and the grumpy look on his face made Sara Bill- the young lady who had been tasked with the responsibility of making the presentation to look a bit more startled.He hated losses.Mr. Maddox didn’t like loosing money and he didn’t do well with bad business.That’s why he hired the best accountants and statisticians.He paid them money to make sure he didn’t loose money or maybe lost a