Rapture & Rogue Read online

  “Why isn’t any of this in the company financial records?”

  “It is, which is why you found the discrepancy, but for the most part, it’s off the books until we open it.”

  “Why all the secrecy?”

  Gi reached over the desk, pulling Taren’s left hand up. “You tell me,” she replied, looking at the glistening ring.

  “My personal life is off the table,” Taren sneered.

  Gi dropped her hand and shook her head. “So is mine.”

  “Why are you bringing me into the meetings?”

  “Because the new business is going to be under R&R until it gets established, then I’ll cut it loose. So, you’ll need to know what’s going on financially.”

  “I’ll need access to the accounts before the next meeting.”

  “You already have it, which is why I’m surprised you haven’t come asking about everything, but I see you’ve been busy.”

  Taren folded her hands in the middle of her desk, refusing to take the bait.

  Gi reached over, placing her hand on Taren’s as she stood.

  “Are you happy?” Gi asked softly.

  Taren tried to pull her eyes away, but she couldn’t. Gi walked away before she could answer.

  ***

  A week later, Taren turned the corner to enter the elevator and the three suited men were waiting to go up as well. She took a step back, feeling uncomfortable around Gi’s mobster family members. The youngest one, who looked like Gi, grinned at her as his eyes ran down her body. She made sure her engagement ring glistened as she moved her left hand to her face.

  When the doors opened, the oldest man stepped aside and waved for her to enter. “Beautiful ladies first,” he said with a smile.

  Taren forced a smile and walked to the back of the elevator. “Thank you,” she murmured as they stepped inside.

  The doors closed and parted once again at the next floor. The men strolled out, followed by Taren.

  “Ms. Revisi is expecting you,” the receptionist said.

  The youngest one turned around and offered his hand.

  “I’m Mario,” he stated with a big grin.

  “Taren,” she replied, shaking his hand.

  “Mario, muovilo!” the older man barked, shaking his head.

  “I hope to see you again soon,” the young man said, before hustling to catch up with the other two.

  Taren rolled her eyes as she walked over to her desk. She’d barely sat down when her phone rang.

  “Taren Rauley,” she answered, wondering who was calling her before eight in the morning.

  “Did you forget the meeting?” Gi asked on the other end.

  “No. I thought the meeting was at eight. I just got here.”

  “You know Italians are always early and two steps ahead. Didn’t you wonder who those guys in the elevator were?”

  “I figured those were your family members, but they look like the mob,” Taren answered.

  Gi laughed and hung up.

  ***

  When Taren walked into Gi’s office, she noticed Gi and the older man were sitting in the chairs and the two younger men were on the couch. A large blueprint was laid out on the coffee table.

  “This is Taren Rauley, my new Financial Director,” Gi said as she stood and waved her into the room. “Taren, this is my uncle, Bruno Revisi,” she added, pointing to the older man. “And these are my cousins, Sergio and Mario.”

  “We’ve met,” Mario said with a wink in Taren’s direction.

  Gi raised a questioning eyebrow, and Taren simply shrugged as she sat down next to him.

  “Mario is the new Operations Manager I told you about.”

  Sergio stuck out his hand and introduced himself.

  “I’m sorry it’s taken so long for me to get everyone on the same page,” Gi stated. “This is Gentlemen’s Rook,” she spread her hands over the blueprints. “It’s going to be a bi-level cigar bar and whiskey lounge when it’s finished.”

  “Wow,” Taren said.

  “Not what you were expecting?” Gi asked.

  “I never really know what to expect with you,” she laughed.

  “Sounds like she knows you well,” Bruno said.

  “Something like that,” Gi answered. “Anyway, I have everyone together today because we’re less than two months away from opening the doors to GR. I’m getting the licensing taken care of this week. Taren will need to know every product that moves in and out from this point forward, as everything will be under R&R Enterprises. She needs to a part of the approval process for everything from here on.” She paused. “Taren, Sergio will be the manager of the new bar.”

  “I am happy to meet you and look forward to working with you,” Bruno said, holding his hand out to Taren, which she shook.

  “Thanks. It’s nice to meet members of Gi’s family.” Finally, she thought.

  “Oh, that’s a pretty rock. You must have a lucky man on your arm.” Bruno grinned, noticing the diamond glistening on her other hand.

  Taren smiled graciously.

  “All right,” Gi stated, changing the subject. “Over the next three weeks, we’ll be finishing the renovations; plus stocking the humidor and the bar, and hiring staff. Uncle Bruno has been working with various agencies to get highly talented wait staff and Sergio has already lined up the best vendors to stock everything. We’re waiting for the interior to be finished so we can get the place inspected and ready to go in time. The ad will start running two weeks prior to the opening. The next three weeks are going to be pretty crazy.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Bruno agreed.

  “Mario, make sure you get all of the vendor information to Taren by the end of the day. She’ll need to have them in the system so she can balance the supply invoices.”

  “No problem,” he replied.

  “Sergio, don’t forget you’re meeting with tile guy this afternoon. Check our sample against his and make sure he has the correct batch this time,” Bruno scolded. “That fuckhead showed up with the wrong one yesterday and tried to install it.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “If that’s it, I’ll check in with you guys later,” Gi said, standing and hugging each of her family members.

  Sergio and Bruno shook Taren’s hand and Mario hung back, giving her the once over again and smiling as he also shook her hand.

  Gi watched the interaction, smiling when Taren looked at her and rolled her eyes. As soon as the guys were gone, Gi closed the door and turned back to Taren, who was standing nearby.

  “Were those the mobsters you kept accusing me of laundering money with?”

  Taren bit her lower lip. “They look like the mob, with their expensive suits and gelled hair.”

  Gi laughed. “Come here,” she said, walking over to where the old photos hung above the couch. “This is the real mob.” She pointed. “That’s my great-grandfather, Giancarlo Revisi with Al Capone during prohibition.”

  “Are you serious?” She stepped closer, easily recognizing the famous mobster in the photo. “I guess that’s where you get your name from.” Taren said.

  “Yep,” Gi replied. “This one here is my grandfather, Vinny Revisi and Sam Giancana in the late 1950s. The little boy with them is my dad, Franco.”

  Taren looked closely at all the different pictures. “I know you said your family was connected to the mob, but I figured that was something all Italians said.”

  “No,” Gi laughed. “It’s very real.”

  “So, what about now? Is your family still connected?”

  “Oh, no. My grandfather died of a heart attack when my father was a teenager and my father never wanted anything to do with the Outfit as he got older.” She stepped away from the couch. “Uncle Bruno and my cousins will be the first to tell you all about the Revisi mob connection. They still act like mobsters,” she laughed.

  “What is your father doing these days?” Taren asked. “I remember him visi
ting and taking us to dinner.”

  Gi sighed. “He always liked you,” she said with a thin smile. “He was diagnosed with cancer when I was living in Paris, about a year after you left. I came home to spend time with him. He died about two months later.”

  “Oh, Gi…I’m so sorry,” Taren stepped forward, wrapping her arms around the taller woman without thinking about it.

  Gi wrapped her arms around Taren’s waist, reveling in the closeness. The feeling of Gi’s body against hers sent a familiar shiver down Taren’s spine. She closed her eyes, slowly breathing in the essence of the woman in her arms until she realized where she was and who she was with and pulled away.

  Taren looked up at the questioning blue eyes staring at her. Unable to speak, she simply put her hand softly on Gi’s cheek and walked away.

  Chapter 11

  The following week, Taren walked towards her car in the side parking lot, when a dark sports car rolled to a stop in front of her. She stood with her hand on her hip. Gi’s smiling face appeared when the dark window was lowered.

  “Where are you headed?” Gi asked casually.

  “Lunch.”

  “Me, too. Hop in.”

  Taren raised an eyebrow. “What makes you think I want to go to lunch with you?”

  “Because I’m buying. Besides, I want to show you something.” Gi said. “Unless you have a lunch date with your old man?”

  “Not funny and no,” Taren muttered, shaking her head as she made her way to the passenger side. “I thought you were a BMW person,” she said, buckling her seatbelt.

  The luxury car had black leather interior with carbon fiber and brushed aluminum trim. Taren barely got a look before Gi put it in gear and drove away.

  “I guess my tastes have changed over the years,” Gi replied without looking over.

  “Uh huh,” Taren murmured. “I see you’re still into Pink,” she laughed, nodding her head to the faint music playing on the sound system.

  “Some things will never change,” Gi added, finally looking her way.

  A few minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of a popular restaurant. “You still eat sushi, don’t you?” Gi asked with a hint of playful sarcasm.

  Taren ignored the jab as she got out and walked inside without looking at her. They were shown to a two-person table in the back of the small establishment.

  ***

  They spent the next half hour eating and sharing an array of sushi rolls. Taren managed to keep R&R their main topic. The bill arrived, and Gi changed to subject.

  “Do you remember that hole-in-the-wall place we used to go to in L.A.?” Gi asked, placing her bank card in the billfold.

  “Yeah,” Taren laughed. “I used to think that had the best food, but this was excellent.”

  “Yeah, I come here a lot.”

  Taren nodded. “I can’t remember the last time I ate sushi, actually.”

  “Seriously? It’s your favorite food.”

  “Ken doesn’t like it.”

  Gi rolled her eyes and smirked, wanting to say something else. She shook her head instead. She had a hard time believing this reserved and passive person was the same tenacious and unrestricted Taren who got what she wanted, always on her own terms.

  “Thank you for lunch,” Taren said.

  “Sure. I’m calling it a business meeting anyway, so you’ll get the bill,” Gi replied, signing the slip.

  “You said you wanted to show me something,” Taren stated when they stepped outside.

  “We’re going by the new place,” Gi replied, removing her sunglasses and sliding them into the inside pocket of her suit jacket once she was behind the darkly tinted glass of the car windows.

  Taren checked her email on her phone as they drove down the road. When they came to a stop in another parking lot she glanced around, looking for the new bar, but they were sitting in the parking lot of a rundown shopping center.

  “Where are we?” Taren asked, stowing her phone in her purse.

  “We have a little time to kill,” Gi replied. “Do you still eat cannoli?”

  “Not much anymore.”

  “Let me guess, Ken doesn’t like sweets.”

  “He eats cheesecake like it’s going out of style,” Taren said.

  “Yuck,” Gi grimaced. “Come on. This bakery has the best cannoli in town. I’ve been coming here since I was a kid.”

  Taren nodded and followed her into the small place. A bell over the door rang loudly and a little, old Italian lady came out, wiping the flour from her hands.

  “Gianna Revisi, dove sei stato nascosto, giovane donna? Where have you been hiding, young woman?” she said sternly. She then ran around the counter to give Gi a big hug, careful not to get her dark suit covered in pastry flour.

  “Qui e là, ma soprattutto dietro una scrivania. Here and there, but mostly behind a desk,” Gi replied, She turned to Taren. “This is Carlotta Fiore. She knew my grandparents well.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Taren said with a smile.

  “This one treats you good, yes?” Carlotta beamed and pointed to Gi.

  Taren laughed and nodded.

  “What can I get for you both?”

  “Two cannoli,” Gi answered.

  The older woman removed two fresh pastries from behind the counter, set them on a plate, and handed it to Gi. Taren followed her over to a bistro-style table.

  “Oh, my God, this is good!” Taren exclaimed, chewing her first bite. Eating the Italian dessert brought back a lot of memories for Taren, which was why she rarely ate it anymore.

  “Best in town,” Gi replied with a mouth full of food.

  “Do you remember the time I tried to make these for your birthday?” Taren snickered.

  “Yeah,” Gi laughed. “They were horrible!”

  “You still ate one!” Taren giggled.

  Gi looked in her eyes. “Because you made it for me,” she replied.

  Taren smiled softly and finished the dessert.

  “It’s on the house,” Carlotta replied when they stepped over to pay.

  “You don’t have to do that,” Giargued, knowing she’d already lost this battle.

  Carlotta winked at her and said, “Mi ricordo di essere in amore.”

  Gi hugged her again.

  “Thank you,” Taren added. As they walked out, she said “That was nice of her.”

  “She thinks we’re in love.”

  Taren smacked the side of her head on the top of the car, forgetting to duck as she slid into the seat. “Son of a bitch!” she yelped.

  “Are you okay?” Gi asked, trying not to laugh.

  “Yes,” Taren growled, rubbing the side of her head. “What made her think that?”

  Gi shrugged. “I’ve never brought anyone here with me, so she must have assumed I’d finally settled down. Who knows? I haven’t seen her in six months, maybe longer.”

  ***

  When they arrived at the new bar’s location, Gi parked, away from the construction trucks.

  “Are you sure your head is okay?” she asked, getting out of the car and putting her sunglasses on.

  “I’m fine,” Taren answered. “How old is this building?”

  “It was built in the 1980s, but the idea behind Gentleman’s Rook is an old speakeasy. We completely refaced the outside to match the period décor on the inside.” Taren walked in.

  “Wow,” Taren said, impressed. The bar still had a month before the grand opening, but it was coming along nicely. “This is nothing like your other two places.”

  “This is all Uncle Bruno. I’m funding the operation until it takes off, then I’ll hand it over to him.”

  “I still can’t believe you are in business with your family. You always told me you didn’t trust anyone enough to have a business partner,” Taren said.

  Gi shrugged and sighed, “I guess I’ve changed, too.”

  “What do you think, huh?” Bruno said, wal
king up to them. He smiled at Taren and hugged his niece.

  “It’s impressive.” Taren replied.

  “Come, let me show you around.” He held his arm out.

  As soon as they’d walked away, Gi went in search of Sergio.

  “What’s going on with the fire permit?” she asked, finding him in the back room.

  “Hey,” Sergio said. “I don’t know. The marshal was here a few days ago and said we need to add more sprinklers or upgrade the entire system.”

  “Are you kidding me?” Gi shook her head. She’d built Rapture and Rogue from the ground up, so she’d never run into the issues that come with bringing an old building up to code. “It’s too late to put in a new system. Call the company that worked on the insulation and see if they know someone. Did the marshal say how many more we need?”

  “He wrote it down,” Sergio explained, walking towards the manager’s office. “Here,” he said, handing her the pink review sheet.

  Gi read the marshal’s notes. “He’s looking for a minimum of five new units or a replacement system that has at least fifty units. How many units do we have now?”

  “Sixty-five.”

  “Why the hell do we need a newer unit with fewer sprinkler heads? That makes no damn sense.”

  “The upgraded unit has more pressure, so the heads spray further.”

  Gi shook her head. “When you get someone in here, ask how much work is involved in upgrading, but keeping the heads we have now and adding ten heads. Let me know what you find out.” She started to walk away and turned back to the men. “Has the electrician finished?”

  “Yes. All we have left is the sprinkler situation and then we can start getting the fixtures brought in. The guy doing the woodwork on the bar is almost finished. It should be done by the end of the week.”

  “Did Mario get the supply order in to the vendors?”

  “I’m not sure. I know he was working on it.”

  “Is he still here?”

  “I think he was headed over to Rogue,” Sergio replied.

  Gi nodded and walked away. She was about to call Mario when she heard Taren’s laughter nearby. She moved further into the room and found her laughing with Mario standing close, a huge smile plastered to his face and his hand on her shoulder as he told her the punchline of his joke. Gi’s teeth ground together.