Broken Saint by E.M. Gayle

17

Nova

The next day came and went with no more word from Ronin or Rock. I dropped my phone into my purse. I was done staring at it, waiting for the damned thing to come to life.

I'd worked through the day until almost midnight and returned to work before the sun came up. Now, fifteen hours later, I still couldn't sleep. Not with my entire life hanging in the balance. Between the upcoming fashion show, Ronin not responding to my texts and Rock pulling an abrupt about face, I was feeling low.

Rock had apparently decided to give me space. If he was trying to prove I would miss him, he'd accomplished that. I didn't just miss him, I ached for him. Then there was the confusing kiss Ronin had left me with. That bastard wasn't playing fair at all. Hell, neither of them were.

On top of that… As predicted, the word about my engagement had hit the internet and set the town on fire. My team was doing their level best to field all the calls, emails, and social media messages requesting an interview or an official statement, which I had so far declined to give. Everyone wanted details about the man I was planning to marry. My friends weren't much better. They were pressing me for the juicy deets and desperate to get together. If not for the fashion show, I would not be able to avoid them.

"Do I want to know what's making you frown like that?" Gabe took the seat next to me at the bar and motioned toward the bartender. Within seconds he had a glass of amber-colored liquor in front of him and all of his attention squarely on me.

Clearly, I should have skipped the nightcap and gone straight to my room. I wasn't ready for twenty questions from my boss, either.

"It's not a frown per se, it's just sheer exhaustion from the long hours I've been working. Guess it's bringing out my resting bitch face."

Gabe laughed. "Yeah, right as if. You wouldn't know RBF if it stood up and slapped you. But I get it if you don't want to talk about it. You've had a lot going on lately."

I wasn't sure if it was my overactive imagination or not, but I suddenly had a feeling that Gabe knew everything. That was both impossible and irrational, but he definitely knew something.

"Been burning the midnight oil lately getting ready for the show. So many details to finalize before the big night. Now I'm just too excited to sleep."

"I've heard really good things about your new designs. There's a lot of buzz around your show and what you will debut."

For a second, I just looked at Gabe, blinking. Then I started laughing. "Nina?" I asked.

He smiled. "Is it that obvious?"

I nodded. "It's the buzz that gave it away. That sounded straight out of her vocabulary, not yours."

He took a swallow of his drink. "Busted. I honestly don't know jack about women's fashion. Although I can definitively say that the Nova pieces that Nina has worn thus far are stunning.”

I felt the heat of a blush crawling up my neck. That felt like high praise coming from someone like Gabe. He might know fashion, but he had spectacular taste in everything. It might also have something to do with the fact I was on my third martini in an hour. My only defense being I was parched when I arrived.

"Your wife looks stunning in anything she wears."

He nodded. "This is true. But that doesn't diminish what I meant. From what I've seen you are extremely talented."

"Well, good thing you snapped me up while you could." Although, I might be out of business before I could establish the latest line if Ronin didn't let me off the hook. Mafia wives, according to their men, were better in the background than in the public eye.  A fact I'd grown to resent more than ever.

"Nova," he said gently, but with a clear reprimand in his tone. I'd picked up on the fact that Gabe Michaels was as alpha dominant as the other men in my life. The difference, though, was the pure devotion and protectiveness he had for his wife. I'd officially declared them couple goals shortly after meeting them.

"I know.I don't take compliments well. Although I truly do appreciate them. Thank you."

Gabe tipped his drink toward mine. "I'll drink to that, as well as your upcoming successful new line. I have no doubt it's going to go over like gangbusters."

"From your lips to God's ears," I responded, touching my glass to his.

After we both took drinks, Gabe returned his to the bar top and his face twisted into a look of concern. I wanted to ask what was on his mind, but I had a feeling it had to do with me and that this would be the part of the conversation that would make me squirm.

I nursed my drink a little longer, hoping I was wrong, when Gabe spoke again.

"You've got a lot going on, and Nina and I want you to know that we are here for you." He swiveled on his seat and met my gaze before I could avert my eyes. The genuine concern I saw there disarmed me. He wasn't trying to attack or insult me, he simply looked worried.

"Thanks," I said, not quite trusting myself to say anything else.

He lightly touched my hand and that genuine warmth nearly did me in. I had gotten really damned lucky when I was chosen to open my shop at The Sinclair. The people here had become more my family than my real family. And sometimes that wasn't such a bad thing.

"We were a little surprised to find out you were engaged to be married. I thought you might have been getting serious in a totally different direction."

Oh my God. Was that his way of saying he knew about Rock and me? I dropped my head onto my hands and groaned. In the back of my mind, I'd known that privacy was limited living in a casino hotel, but I hadn't allowed myself to examine what that meant when it came to what Rock and I had going on. At the very least, I figured no one would care.

"It's not that big of a deal." He said with a pat on my hand. "There may be eyes and ears all over this resort, but that doesn't mean we're not discreet. You have nothing to worry about in that regard. But I thought maybe you'd want to talk about it."

"Does Nina know, too?"

"Normally my wife knows everything I do, but in this case, I won't violate your privacy like that. So, if you need to talk about what's going on, and you don't want anyone else to know, I'm here for you."

I managed to hold in another groan, although barely. I still couldn't hide the fact I was mortified. Although he was right about one thing. It was no one else's business, unless I made it their business, including him.

I lifted my head and turned to face him. My face felt hot, but it wasn't shame I was feeling. "I'm actually not onboard with the marriage my family arranged for me. I'm currently trying to negotiate my way out of it." Whoa. That is not at all what I had intended to say. I pushed my drink away. That was enough of those for one night.

"An arranged marriage is pretty old-fashioned. I didn't think many cultures in the US still used them."

"So I keep hearing. My family is pretty old school. We definitely don't see eye to eye on a lot of things."

"I kind of figured that, since you've never mentioned anything about them. Do they live here in Vegas too?"

Crap. I had opened the door to this conversation and now I didn't know how to close it again without insulting my boss. "Close enough," I said, hoping that would be sufficient.

"Don't worry. I get complicated family. I could tell you about mine, but then you might run screaming."

"I thought you were close to your brothers." I blushed. "Nina might have mentioned them a time or two, and I think I met one of them at a party not too long ago."

"Yeah, Levi. He's in charge of the security systems here. He makes frequent visits to check up on things. Tucker and Mason are a little different. But yeah, I guess you could say we're close, all things considered."

I didn't know what that meant exactly, but I could hear the affection in his voice. Gabe and Nina didn't have any kids of their own yet, but I could see he was already one hell of a family man. Which made him worlds apart from the kind of man that had raised me.

"I—"

"Am I interrupting?"

My entire body went rigid at the sound of Rock's voice behind me. I let the deep bass of it wash over me for a second before I gave up and gave in. Leaping from my stool, I flung myself into his arms. When he wrapped his arms around my waist, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Wow. I guess I should have come sooner."

I reluctantly pulled myself free from our embrace. "Yeah, you should have."

A wide grin split his face. "Good thing I'm here now, then." He tipped his head towards Gabe. "Gabe."

"Reed." Gabe returned the greeting, but his voice had changed. It had a chill in it I'd never heard before. He turned to me. "I guess that's my cue to head home. Just remember what I said. if you need to talk, my door is always open."

"Thank you." I gave Gabe a quick hug and then returned to Rock. Gabe left the bar without saying anything else, which left me wondering what his deal with Rock was.

"Do you and Gabe not get along?" I asked.

"We get along well enough.”

"That's a little cryptic."

Rock laughed and squeezed my waist. "It was meant to be. My history with Gabe is kind of a long story, and the nitty gritty details would certainly bore you."

I highly doubted that, but I would let that go for now. I was just really glad he'd shown up. I didn't want to spend what little time we had together trying to analyze him.

"Do you want to join me for a drink?" I asked, pulling at his hand in the direction of my seat.

"I want to join you, but not for a drink." The low growl that came out with those words caused a tingle to work down my arm.

"What did you have in mind?" I couldn't hide the smile playing at my lips. We both knew exactly what he was referring to and I was absolutely not opposed. I couldn't think of a better way to take my mind off the stress and decisions I had to make.

"Let's go for a ride."