Ruin Me (Savage Bosses)

Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

K ent

“What the fuck is going on?” My chief operating officer, Mal-chin, slid a tablet across my desk after stomping into my office.

I glanced at the screen. The headline, Another Unidentified Body Found At Billionaire Mogul, Kent Luxe’s Headquarters, glared at me. I tempered the urge to smash the device that turned my hectic day into another waking nightmare on top of the many emergencies I had to handle.

“The fuck if I know. This is the sixth body in two months. I’ll have to call Hal and my personal attorney because there’s no way the cops won’t show up on my doorstep.”

Hal was the general counsel for my company, Luxe Locations. He handled all legal issues, including anything that might paint my organization as a criminal entity. He was a fucking genius, able to sanitize our connection with the local arm of the DeLuca crime family. And I needed to call on him again to handle what was coming my way.

No sooner had I gotten off the phone with my attorney, Quarren, did Douglas PD appear on the floor. The glass walls facing the office floor allowed me to watch as the two men marched toward me. Detective Glass led the way. Annoyance and suspicion dragged their mouths into unpleasant frowns that mirrored my own.

As they stepped into my office, I activated the special feature that convinced me a glass bowl office was worth sacrificing my privacy for. The invisible walls frosted over into an opaque landscape, barring onlookers from seeing inside, but not the other way around.

“Detectives,” I greeted them, stiff and unwelcoming.

Glass’s partner, a young man who seemed incompatible with the more experienced, stubbled cop, reintroduced himself. “I’m Detective Salinas. We have a few?—”

“I know the drill. This is your fifth visit here, after all.” I turned to Mal-chin and nodded toward the door.

He shook his head. “Don’t mind me. I’m an independent bystander making sure the police don’t overstep their authority.” He dragged a heavy chair meant for wooing new business partners beside my desk and angled it to best watch me and the detectives. “By the way, the name’s Mal-chin Kang. Please, continue as if I’m not here,” he finished with a mime of locking his mouth and throwing away the key.

Independent bystander, my ass. With a sneer, I gave him the middle finger. I shouldn’t have. Mal-chin grinned and winked at me. If he were anybody else, he would be on the streets living the Trading Places life. His sense of humor rankled on the best days. I wished I could chop it up to him being the youngest CFO in Douglas, but the brilliant asshole was too successful at his job. He didn’t have to work for me, and he knew it.

“Now, Mr. Luxe, where were you two nights ago?” The older detective took the lead.

“He was probably fucking some model, actress, or social climber looking to live the good life,” Mal answered for me.

“Aren’t bystanders supposed to remain silent?” I gritted.

Glass and Salinas shared a glance. “Is what Mr. Kang said true? You have an alibi?”

“I’ll wait for my lawyers to arrive before I respond to your inquiry. You know how it is.” I smiled at them because this wasn’t my first visit, nor did I expect it to be my last. “While you wait, may I offer you some refreshment?”

They both requested coffee. I relayed their desires to my assistant. A few minutes later, he entered the office with Hal and Quarren dogging his heels. I sat through the men reacquainting themselves and waited for my assistant to leave.

“Now where were we?” Detective Glass asked, pulling out a notepad and pen.

“Confirming Mr. Luxe’s alibi for two nights ago,” Detective Salinas responded, following suit. “The body of Jane Engleman was found abandoned on the property line this morning. Her time of death occurred between ten and midnight Saturday night.”

The woman’s name sounded vaguely familiar, but I wasn’t sure. While married, and for years after my wife died, I hadn’t expressed interest in other women. That all changed about five years ago, but the women I saw fulfilled one purpose: to scratch an itch.

With few exceptions, I never saw them more than once. The memorable ones earned a second night of fucking to convince me otherwise. To this day, my longest streak was two dates. The women I saw rarely sparked any interest outside the bedroom, and I never pretended they had a chance at something longer than one night.

Salinas pointed a pen at Mal. “Mr. Kang offered a possibility that could clear you of suspicion. Was he right?”

I conferred with both attorneys, who nodded their approval for me to respond. “No, he’s wrong, a state he’s not used to being in.” I glared at Mal from the corner of my eye. “My social calendar has seen a lot of cancelations recently, which is why I worked late last night.”

“Did anyone see you leave?” Glass tapped his pen against his notebook, not attempting to record my account.

“No, not that they would. When I pull long hours, I usually stay in the penthouse apartment on the top floor. The only access is through my office.” I pointed at a discreet panel hiding the elevator keypad.

The elevator had four stops, the parking garage where I kept a half dozen cars at my disposal, my office, and the two penthouse levels above. The top was for my use and the second was for important visitors from any of the international markets where Luxe Locations did business. From looking at the wall, no one would recognize the seamless blend of mahogany wood paneling and mirrors as a ploy to hide the secret access.

“Did you have a history with the victim?” This time, Glass pressed his pen against the pad.

“I’m not sure. I’ll have to ask my assistant if this woman, Jane Engleman, ever met with me.”

Salinas rubbed his neck, an aggrieved grimace hinting at an unwelcome exchange. “Mr. Luxe, you’re not giving us anything to work with. We want to clear you, but with each new body, you’re looking more like a suspect. It’s bad enough that the bodies keep showing up on your properties. When we add your intimate relationships with each woman to the mix… Well, at some point you have to agree, these aren’t mere coincidences.”

“I don’t do relationships, intimate or otherwise.” I stared down the detectives, not for one second concerned about the tension growing in the room.

Quarren cleared his throat and stepped forward. “Although we agree these incidents aren’t from happenstance, that’s all we agree on. My client is another victim of these crimes. He’s done nothing wrong. Yet the person maliciously murdering women with a loose connection to him continues to damage his reputation and that of his company. And that’s assuming the latest victim is someone my client knows.”

“We’re just trying to do our jobs. Someone is making the streets of Douglas unsafe and all the signs point to Mr. Luxe being at the center.”

“Really? My client is at the center of your investigation? With what proof? That he knew the women? Please be for real. Unless you want me to call up the new Chief of police and ask him to explain why you’re harassing my client with this flimsy accusation.”

Hal, Mal, and I watched the exchange in silence. My input was unnecessary and nothing the police officers said had anything to do with the company, but unease skittered along my nape.

Glass stood and snapped his notepad shut. “There’s no need for that. Before we approach Mr. Luxe again, we’ll be sure to present you with evidence.”

“If another body doesn’t show up first,” Salinas added as he glared at me and my team.

When they left, Hal and Quarren took the evacuated seats.

Hal glanced at his watch and sighed. “It’s too early for a drink, but I swear every time that detective comes around, your bar calls to me.”

Mal rested his leg over his knee. “Didn’t you hire a crisis manager who’s supposed to handle things like this?”

“I did,” I said as I folded my arms and pressed against my chair.

“Then where is she?”

“She’s late,” I bit out, furious about my current predicament.

“How did you find her?” Quarren asked.

“Ife made me hire her.”

The men broke into gales of laughter at my expense.

“Of course, only your daughter has that kind of control. But since she’s a pity hire, you can fire her with cause. Late on the first day.” Hal shook his head.

I pierced him with a scowl. “Would you fire the person who rehabilitated that prince’s image? The one from Ras Al Najib.”

“You mean Emir Javed ibn Al-Kamran? The Arab prince accused of genocide?” Quarren straightens in his chair.

“I remember that.” Mal retrieved his tablet and typed something into it before turning it to face the rest of us. “I knew I heard something about that being a hoax. The genocide thing was a campaign orchestrated by internet trolls to discredit him from the line of succession by one of his uncles.”

“Still, if Ife’s friend can sanitize his image, she’ll have our man in line for sainthood in no time.” As exaggerated as Hal’s observation was, I had to agree.

My company was losing investors in the most lucrative markets. With ten high rises in various stages of construction, I needed to stop the hemorrhaging. Unfortunately, I didn’t like who my savior in the wings was. I loved my daughter and respected her insight, but I would never forget how Madison disrespected my wife and my marriage. Having to trust my life’s work to her felt like having my skin punctured by invisible splinters. No pore was safe from the aggravating presence.

“Do you think she’ll find you a famous rockstar like she did with the Arab prince?” Quarren asked.

I shrugged. “I doubt any woman she finds would work. And few women have the all-around appeal of the lead singer for Liquid Obsession. Not that I would be interested, anyway.”

Mal leaned forward in his chair to scrutinize me. “Speaking of your interest, or lack of, how is it you didn’t have an alibi? And don’t give me that bullshit about cancelations. There’s a long list of women biting at the chance to be photographed beside you in the society pages.”

“Mal has a point,” Hal mused. “You haven’t been with a new woman in… damn near eight months.”

“Has it really been that long?” Mal began mumbling and counting down with his fingers. “I can’t believe it, you’re right. You’ve shown up single for every fundraiser and office function in the past eight months.”

“Are you ill?” Quarran stood and approached me.

I blocked his hand from touching my head with a glare. “Fuck off. I don’t pay you to be intrusive.”

“Maybe it’s the type of women you’ve been going out with. Ever since Oyinlola, your type has gone in the opposite direction. The number of blondes you kept on your arm had me concerned you were trying to expand the Aryan race.” Quarran shuddered. “Thank God they never last more than two dates. I had Children of the Corn invading my dreams because of you.”

To calm myself, I clenched my fist and imagined crushing Quarran’s face in it. “Isn’t it about time for you all to leave?” I deactivated the privacy setting on the glass walls to shut down the conversation. “I have work to do.”

“Well, damn! Who is she?”

Mal’s outburst caused us to face the office floor. The head of our human resources department led a tall, full-figured woman from desk to desk. From the welcoming smiles of my employees, the newcomer was making a positive impression. I pressed my lips together to prevent a harrumph of disapproval from escaping.

Although I couldn’t see her face, I knew who she was. And based on the suit she wore, nothing changed my opinion about her. She dressed to seduce, but she was wrong if she thought her wiles would succeed with me.

“I hope she isn’t an employee because she’s a sexual harassment suit waiting to happen,” Hal said. “And I’ll be the first one to put the company at risk.”

“Get in line. A sistah like that will be all over what I have to offer, without the conflict, since I don’t work here.” Quarren straightens his tie.

“Like you stand a chance. I’m the only one out of the four of us that’s closest to her in age. The rest of you are old enough to be her father.” Mal patted his hair as if a stray strand would rebel against the product he used to tame his locks.

“Still… I wouldn’t mind her calling me Daddy.” The seriousness in Hal’s voice drove me to end their back and forth.

“She’s off-limits,” I pronounced.

“You’re shitting me,” all three men said in concert.

“Wait! She isn’t even your type. And all jokes aside, you shouldn’t be in the public eye flaunting your new flavor of the week right now.” Hal turned a concerned frown on me. “We’ve lost the trust of our investors in the Asian markets. No need to give them more reason to doubt Luxe Locations.”

“You’ve got the wrong idea. She’s Ife’s best friend, Madison, not someone I’m staking a claim on. And neither can the rest of you.”

“You’re pulling one over on us. Just admit it,” Mal said.

“I’m not and I won’t stand in Ife’s way when she murders you for your dirty thoughts, either.” Of course, as I made my pronouncement, Madison turned to face us.

We all groaned though I kept mine silent.

The eight years since I last saw her were more than good to her. Even her vitiligo complemented her beauty. Her skin, a beautiful patchwork of dark brown and light areas lacking pigmentation, enhanced her slanted brown eyes and full lips. As a teenager, she had the foundation to surpass most women who met society’s beauty standards. As an adult, she had no competition. Seeing her now posed a serious problem for me.

The reason I hadn’t dated for eight months wasn’t by choice. My body rejected every available woman. Until now.

Blood rushed to my cock, reminding me in the most fucked up way possible that I was a man with a healthy sexual appetite, and my new craving was off-limits.