Nicco

Ch. 17: The Gravinski Account

NICCO

Pale morning light drifts through my bedroom windows. Groggy and half-asleep, my hand stretches across the mattress in search of her warmth and softness. To my dismay, I find nothing. The sheets are cool to the touch. Her spot is vacant.

That is when disappointment hits.

My eyelids open fully, and I am instantly awake as I come to realize that—I am alone in bed. Fuck. I roll off of the mattress and shuffle out of my bedroom. A gloomy, gray London sprawls before me as I pass by a panoramic windowed view of the city. The gloom and grayness reflects my mood. It is soon confirmed by the emptiness of my apartment that Aria left without saying goodbye. Disgruntlement coils around my heart, but her flighty disappearance is not a surprise to me. It is actually predictable. I likely pushed too hard last night, and Aria withdrew from me as she typically does.

Frustration courses through me. Frowning, I drag a hand through my hair. Just when I thought Aria was about to trust me a little more, she retreats. It is always one step forward and two steps back with this girl. I do not know why I keep wasting my charms and efforts on her. Yet, all of my very valid arguments to stay away from my assistant seem to fade with each passing day. I did not know it was possible to feel so much for someone in such a short amount of time.

I wonder if this was how my father fell for my mother?

Was it love at first sight for them?

Or did their affections burn, long and slow, over time?

Either way, I miss Aria when she is not with me. Like right now. She makes every minute at Jackson & James all the more bearable. I must give credit where credit is due. As of late, I may be putting in more effort as manager, but everything in my department is running smoothly thanks to her. She is so fucking incredible. Each time Aria enters my vicinity, I find my gaze drifting toward her. She is the moon to my tide. Her mere existence calls to me. I have become far too invested to turn away at this point. I am beginning to care about life in a whole new way, and I am not only talking about this troublesome infatuation with my beautiful gray-eyed assistant.

Last night, Aria told me that people can change only if they want it bad enough. I must agree. Because I have become one of those people. Yet, it is not tragedy that fuels my transformation. For reasons that I have yet to comprehend, the shift extends beyond my feelings for Aria. Believe it or not, over the past few weeks, I have been delving deeper into the behind-the-scenes operations of Jackson & James.

In fact, whenever I am not preoccupied with Aria, I have been busy working in my office and at home. And, when I say "working," what I really mean is—investigating Ted Manning. Mamma always taught me to study my enemies before I strike. I started looking into Manning's connections and dealings since Aria's ill-fated run-in with him on her first day. At the time, I was only preparing to put the man in his place for behaving like such an asshole in front of my girl. But Ted Manning is turning out to be far more than a nuisance at work. He may very well be a threat to mia famiglia. I have discovered a bit more than I bargained for where Manning is concerned.

Mamma's warning has been lingering on my mind: Your papà is right. Do not take our privileges for granted, mijo. There may come a time when it will be up to you to stand against everyone who wishes to strip us of our good fortune...

Cappuccino in hand, I sit down on the couch and pull out my laptop. I check my emails and scroll through the latest reports from Todd. The ones detailing the Gravinski deal. Upon closer inspection, I have discovered that the Gravinski deal is not really tied to anyone named Gravinski.

The cash that has been flowing into this account can be traced back to several inconspicuous sources. Sources that, I believe, are shell companies. Sheep farms. Beauty salons. Restaurants. All fake businesses that have probably been housing profits from illegal sources. The bulk of their financial transactions seems to originate from offshore accounts.