Page 22 of Keeping My Enemies Closer: Pt. 1

Nobody.

“Everything’s ready as far as security and the rest of the hotel,” I announced as I made my way across the room to the faux stage that’d been erected yesterday.

Stephanie stopped what she was doing, and when she turned to face me, she smiled like we were the best of friends or something, which we weren’t.I’d just met the woman a couple of days ago when I had escorted Aurora to the hotel to iron out some remaining details.It was then that she had introduced me to Stephanie Alvin, and no matter how much Aurora sang her praises, I couldn’t care less about the woman.

The girls should be arriving in about an hour,” she replied.“I’ll lead them to the dining area to fill out their limits card, and then once that’s done, a suite has been reserved for the girls to finish touching up their makeup or whatever.”

“Who’s in charge of escorting the participants?”I asked, that minor detail having slipped my mind.

“That would be Dehlia,” she answered.“Very tall, very svelte, and every man has a weakness for sultry brunettes.”

Now, while I had nothing against brunettes, my mind couldn’t stop thinking about a very petite auburn-haired woman who hated me.Granted, without Zoya in the picture, I didn’t have a preference when it came to women; I liked them all, and in my opinion, no one woman looked better than the next.All women had something special to give to the right man, though that wasn’t to say that I was the right man for any of them, because I was not.

“Will one of the men be standing with her as she greets these participants?”I asked, the answer not mattering because I’d make sure that one was.

“I hadn’t thought about that, but I can find someone if you want me to,” she replied casually, and you’d think that she’d have more care when you considered her choice of lifestyle.Stephanie Alvin was one of our regular prostitutes, and she worked closely with Aurora.

“Yes, I want you to,” I told her.“In fact, I’ll find someone to stand with her in the lobby.”

She smiled again.“Thank you.”

“Is there anything else that you might have missed?”I asked.“Any questions for me about security or the rooms upstairs?”

Stephanie shook her head.“I think we’ve got everything.”

“Okay, I’ll check in with Aurora in case she has any last-minute requests,” I informed her, reminding her that Aurora was still in charge, even if she wasn’t here.

Then, the woman set the paddles down before walking over to me, and not for nothing, I recognized that look in her eyes, and before this past week, I might have appreciated it a little bit more than I did right now.My last name had women hitting on me all the time, so I knew what she was going to say before she even said it, but little did she know that I wasn’t about to piss off my sister-in-law by muddying up the waters where she swam.

“You know, the entire hotel has been rented out for the event, so there are going to be plenty of empty rooms upstairs once the auction is done,” she said, and it was hard not to appreciate the confidence that came with being a blonde.It was like they knew that men had a weakness for their fair looks, and they flung that advantage around like a weapon.

“I’m here to make sure that my sister-in-law’s auction is a success,” I clarified for her.“Nothing more, nothing less.”

She cocked her head coyly.“C’mon, Aurora won’t mind.”

“I’llmind,” I replied coolly.“And even if I needed to get my dick wet, I don’t need to pay for it, though I assure you that I’m not judging you either way.”

“I wasn’t going to charge you,” she fired back.“I just thought that we could both have a good time, what with all the empty rooms.”

“Those rooms have been reserved for safety purposes, Stephanie,” I reminded her.“They were not reserved for the staff to engage.This is an auction, not a swingers’ club for a night of debauchery.”

The woman bristled a bit.“That’s not what I was implying.”

“Well, whatever you were implying, I’m not interested,” I told her.“I’m here to make sure that the auction goes off without a hitch, and that is all.”

The tone of my voice must have conveyed how serious I was, because she quickly backed down.“I understand.”

With that taken care of, I turned to leave, and as I walked out of the conference room, I called Aurora to tattle on Stephanie.

“Kasimir, is everything okay?”Aurora asked as soon as she answered the phone.

“So far, everything seems to be on point,” I answered.“However, your girl just hit on me, wanting to make use of the empty rooms upstairs.”

“You sound offended,” she chuckled.

“I am,” I informed her.“I thought you said that she could handle everything professionally.”

“I never used the word professionally,” she replied evenly.“However, I understand your point, and you can rest assured that I will be speaking to her about this.”