He felt himself smile even though he knew that he should be more irritated. Victoria made him feel so comfortable that he temporarily forgot that he was a powerful billionaire. He even had moments of feeling like a schoolboy trying to awkwardly navigate his way into the heart of his first crush. She made him feel like having a family again was well within his reach-and not only because she was searching for Claire.
He missed that feeling.
“I’m happy to see you, too,” he said softly. He turned to look at Alonso and opened the door to invite the two of them into his office. “Well, come inside and tell me what you have. I’m assuming you want something in return for your help.”
Alonso nodded as he stepped forward shakily with his cane. “Of course I do, friend. I’m not in the business of charity,” he said mirthfully. “Though, given the story behind these events, I almost wish I could give you this for free. I would do anything to find my children as well.”
Malcolm raised a brow and glanced at Victoria. She smiled at him kindly and walked over to the bed, casually sitting down.
“You boys can talk business while I do the classic woman thing and just look pretty,” she said sardonically.
“I bet you can’t last two minutes before you have to share an idea,” Malcolm challenged.
“You’re on,” she grinned.
Alonso looked more than a little confused as he watched the pair interact. “Senor Cage, before I tell you what I know, I need your assurance that you can do all within your power to save my life.”
Malcolm pulled his eyes away from Victoria’s sensual form. “Stage IV lung cancer, right?” he asked casually.
“You’re as informed as I expected you to be,” Alonso said with a twinge of hope. “Senor Cunningham just runs my treatment in circles, keeping me alive long enough to be useful, but soon I know he will dispose of me.”
Malcolm crossed his arms as he stared at the ghastly form of the man in front of him. He could see that Alonso took care of his appearance to appear healthier than he was. The older man idly touched his hair as if he was selfconscious of his hairline, indicating a high quality toupee.
“I’m not even sure what you’re looking for will save you. Brantford has stalled a long time by the look of it,” Malcolm said sadly. It was a disgusting practice of his former brother-in-law. “You should have come to me sooner. I’d have helped you.”
“But only for a price. A price I couldn’t afford until now,” Alonso rationalized.
“Don’t compare me to my ex-brother, Vega. I help those I can,” he said with a pause as he looked over Alonso’s frail body. “Now tell me what you know.”
“Look at you, champ. A kind heart after all,” Victoria chimed in. “And it’s been two minutes and one second.”
Malcolm shook his head, doing his best to fight off a grin. “You win. Now what do you really want to say?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” Victoria said with a light laugh. “Elizabeth was only in Chile to distract you and force you to spend resources looking for her there. She is in South America, however.”
Malcolm looked at Alonso, who nodded in conformation. “Where? It’s a big continent.”
The Consular General shifted his eyes nervously. “I’m not entirely sure, Senor Cage, but I can confirm that she boarded a plane heading to Buenos Aires three weeks ago. A friend of mine there has reported seeing her within the last week. I am positive that she is still in Argentina.”
Malcolm leaned back against a wall and let his head fall back against the smooth mahogany paneling. “She always loved Argentina. She’s probably somewhere in the Northwest studying the indigenous flora.” “What makes you say that?” Victoria asked with interest.
“She was studying botany in college,” Malcolm said softly. “That’s how we met. We used to work together.”
Victoria’s full lips pulled into a frown. “Well, this gives us a place to start.”
Malcolm nodded and turned to face the Consular General. “Thank you for your help, Vega. Stop by my office in the morning and tell my technicians that I sent you. Don’t speak to anyone else about this.”
Alonso nodded in understanding. “I owe you my life, Senor Cage,” he said with hope in his eyes.
Malcolm raised a hand and shook his head. “Don’t thank me yet, Consular General. You just picked sides in a war between Brantford and me. Things could get messy, so keep security tight.”
“Of course, Senor Cage,” Alonso said as he took a step forward to shake Malcolm’s hand. His lips pulled into a thin smile. “I hope you find your daughter, and I want you to know that you have my full support against Brantford.”
“I appreciate that,” Malcolm replied, taking the Consular General’s frail hand to give it a gentle shake. “Good luck with your treatment. I can’t make any promises, but I’ve seen worse cases in the clinical trials go into remission.”
“I have to take my leave now. I would enjoy the pleasures of your club, but alas, I’m not the man I used to be,” Alonso said with a small grin. “Until we meet again, Senor Cage.” He glanced over at Victoria and nodded in gratitude. “And you as well, Senorita Chase.”
Victoria, who had been silently taking notes on her phone, looked up and smiled. “Goodbye, Vega. Sorry I tried to break in,” she said with a sheepish grin.
“No worries,” Alonso replied good-naturedly. “You’d have made it if I hadn’t been tipped off by Brantford’s new security.”
Victoria frowned deeply. “Speaking of that, do you know what company installed it? I’m going to run down their financials and see where the money came from. Trying to track Brantford’s money is like trying to find el chupacabra.”
Alonso Vega released a wheezing laugh. “As a matter of fact, I do. I’ll have my people send you the details and try to assist in any way I can. It’s been a pleasure working with you Senorita Chase.”
“Likewise,” she said, grinning from ear to ear as Alonso exited the room.
Outside the office was one of Malcolm’s security guards, waiting to escort the Consular General out of the club.
Malcolm was relieved when Alonso left. He had watched the exchange between them, and it stirred a hint of jealousy in his stomach. It was odd to see her speaking to another man, and in such a casual manner. Malcolm had to fight with himself to shove the feeling aside as he stared at Victoria. “It’s good to see you,” he said softly.
She stood up from the bed and crossed the distance between the two of them with a few short steps. Her eyes had a hard edge in them, as if she were attempting to slice him in half with just a glance. “That’s all you have to say after this?”
He reached out to touch her shoulder softly. The look in her eyes was enticing and stirred the fire of longing in his loins. “You’re so damn beautiful when you’re angry,” he said smoothly.
She swatted his hand away and narrowed her eyes sharply. “I’ll add that to my list of positive qualities when I sign up for eHarmony,” she said in exasperation.
“As if I would allow you to do that,” Malcolm said with a dark chuckle. “Never in a million years. You’re mine, Victoria.”
“You lost the privilege to say that the moment you took my freedom.” She turned away from him to yawn deeply. “Dammit; I’m way too tired to be having this conversation. The point is that you shouldn’t be saying how good it is to see me when I’ve delivered you the key to finding your daughter. How about a ‘thank you,’ or a ‘let’s go’?”
Malcolm’s brow furrowed as she spoke. “To say thank you with words wouldn’t be doing the depths of my feelings justice,” he said sensually. He took a step forward to touch the straps of her red gown. “I would much rather show you my gratitude.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but Malcolm cut her off with a passionate kiss. His tongue slipped between her open lips, massaging her tongue with his. He moaned at the taste of her as he allowed her flavor to penetrate every fiber of his being. She resisted him for a moment before her body melted against his, and she responded with similar need.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off her feet, pushing her against a wall so he could ravish her body with his lips. Their kiss broke and he pressed his teeth into the nape of her neck, and she moaned at the contact.
“Malcolm,” she said breathlessly. “I can’t.”
He stopped and looked at her with dark eyes. “I can feel how much you want this,” he said as he reached out to cup her breast. “Let me take care of you.”
Her chin fell forward limply. “Sorry, champ. I’m exhausted and there is still so much work to be done.”
“Shh,” he said soothingly. “You’ve done more than I ever hoped for, and I want to make you feel good. You may have given me a second chance to raise my daughter, and there is nothing I could ever do to repay you.” “You can start by setting me free,” she said quickly.
“I can give you your financials back; your social security and everything else, Victoria, but you’ll always be mine.” He grasped one of her breasts in his hand and firmly kneaded the flesh while he lifted his knee beneath her dress to press into her slick folds.
“Malcolm,” she moaned as her back arched against him. “Stop.”
“Why would you want me to stop when we haven’t even begun?” He kissed her neck and whispered into her ear while he began to remove her dress. “I can bring you satisfaction…”
“No,” she whispered, pushing him away. “No! Jesus, are you deaf?”
Her words penetrated his lust, clearing it away like annoying cobwebs. He pulled away from her, panting as if he had just run a marathon.
“Alright,” he said in a wounded voice.
“Malcolm,” she said as stood against the wall, fighting against the dizzying lust. “I’m way too tired for this right now, okay? I know you’re amazing at seducing me, but you need to learn to cool your jets.”
He lifted his lips into a thin smile. “That dress makes it difficult. You look divine.”
“Forget me. There are dozens of ready and willing wealthy women who would kill each other for the pleasure of being your plaything tonight,” Victoria told him reassuringly. “Please go bother them and leave me alone. I just want to go home and feel safe and comfortable-I’m not in the mood to get fucked by someone who clearly doesn’t care if I’m passing out where I stand.”
Malcolm looked away, feeling guilty and unsure of what to say. Perhaps he sometimes pushed too much-but he was not used to any women actually wanting to resist. She was right; he usually didn’t give a fuck about anyone. He had forgotten how to treat women as actual women and not adoring fans completely at his disposal. “I do care, Victoria,” he said with an earnest look. “I care more than you will ever realize.”
“Really?” she asked with a lifted brow. “That’s hard to believe, Malcolm. The way you’ve been behaving since you gave me this assignment-rather, forced this assignment on me-has been despicable. Every time I’ve made some kind of progress in finding your daughter, you’ve responded in trying to fuck me.” She took a step forward and lifted her chin to meet his gaze. “That’s not very professional, is it? You haven’t been respecting me in the slightest since you took my freedom and I’m sick of it. Give me my life back, or else I will go to the press about your club, your deals with foreign officials, and all the other dirt I’ve dug up on you this past week.”
Narrowing his eyes, he took a dangerous step close to her, looming over her like a giant. His temper flared violently, his teeth audibly grinding against one another. “Are you threatening me?” he asked in disbelief. “Don’t push your luck, Victoria. I’ve been kind to you.”
“This is kind?” she asked incredulously with fury building in her eyes. “I’m not threatening you, Malcolm. I’m making a promise,” she said, poking him hard in the chest. “And if you think there is a damn thing you can do to stop me? Just try it. You’re powerful, but you can’t stop information from hitting the internet. You’ll have so many IRS auditors crawling up your ass that you will never be able to afford the time to search for Claire. Not that you seem to care much about that anyway. You’d rather fuck me instead.” She pushed him away and began to walk toward the door. Reaching for the doorknob, she turned around to glare at him one last time. “I let this club slide after meeting you, but I shouldn’t have. It’s against the law and people have a right to know that there are those who think they are above consequences here. Acting like gods while they make lesser people scavenge for scraps like dogs.”
The door slammed loudly behind her.
Malcolm’s mind was flooded with a thousand ideas. Victoria had just walked out on him. He stood in silence as he struggled to think of what to say. Painfully, he had to admit that she was right, but she hadn’t given him any chance to respond.
Growling, Malcolm took a step toward the door, intent on following her to get the last word. As his fingers grasped the cool metal, he froze. He knew she was right; he often let his desires get the better of him and allowed himself to indulge too much. He had to come to acknowledge his faults and come to terms with the fact that he had put sex above looking for his daughter. That was the worst feeling in the world. Maybe I’ve never looked hard enough. Maybe I’ve always put things ahead of finding her.
He could feel the doubt creeping through his body and it was numbing his senses. Now wasn’t the time to allow himself to become depressed; it could cripple him for days. He took deep breaths, focusing on his meditation techniques to calm himself and find his center. Soon, Claire is going to be in your arms. She’s going to know that her father loves her and everything is going to be alright. You’re going to do whatever it takes to resolve things with Victoria and make her an important part of your life.
The positive thoughts helped his body relax and recover. He took one final deep breath and pulled out a seat to rest in. His determination to make things right on all fronts in his life was empowering. While he sat alone, his mind raced with different plans to accomplish his goals.
With renewed vigor and a mind free from anger, Malcolm stood up and walked over to the door. He threw it open and raced out of his room to chase after Victoria. The underground halls flew past him as he sprinted through them. He pushed past the grand doors leading to the main room with the rest of the Club Luxe patrons. They turned to look at him as he burst through the doors, but he ignored their questioning eyes.
His eyes scanned the occupants for any sign of Victoria. He found none and cursed under his breath. She must have already exited the club. He turned toward the hall leading up the surface and ran toward it. With singleminded determination, he raced toward the one woman that had managed to open his eyes in over half a decade. There was no way he could lose her now.
No, this can’t be how the story ends.