Chapter 35

 

“Would you like something to drink, Miss Belmonte?” The flight attendant smiled down at Caprice who was staring out of the window.

“Miss Belmonte?” she asked again.

Caprice turned her head, stared at the flight attendant. “Scusami?” she asks, irritated. She wanted to be left alone.

“Something to drink?” the flight attendant politely asked again.

“No grazie,” Caprice replied, waving the flight attendant away.

Caprice turned back to the window, stared down at the clouds. She thought about how different this flight was compared to the last time she flew to London. Oh, how she hated flying commercially, sitting next to people you’d rather not be sitting next to, even in first class. Not to mention the lack of privacy. Caprice closed her eyes, the delicious memory of fucking Sergio in the back of his private jet playing over in her mind, remembering the pleasure he had given her. She could feel the tears welling up, and quickly slipped on a pair of black Gucci shades, concealing her eyes.

Get it together, Caprice thought. You’ll be in London soon. No time for crying.

Caprice didn’t like to cry and tried not to. It accomplished nothing, and only made you look worse than how you felt – red rimmed swollen eyes, puffy face, tears that ruined your makeup. Caprice dabbed her eyes, smoothed her hair. She took a deep breath, exhaled, trying to get her emotions under control.

The plane finally landed at Heathrow Airport. Caprice, anxious to get to her hotel, quickly went through customs, claimed her bag, and stepped outside to hail a cab.

Two hours later, Caprice stood in the middle of her hotel room, looking around at the drab furniture, the muted gray-blue paint, the office-like carpeting.

It’s not the Bulgari Hotel, she thought.

No matter. She was here on business. And the sooner she took care of business, the better. Caprice took out the slip of paper with McCall Enterprises’ phone number and address scrawled on it. It was too late to contact him tonight.

Caprice lay back on the bed. The cheap, lumpy mattress made her scowl – Caprice was used to at least a queen size bed, a mattress with pillow top padding, and silky satin sheets.

Caprice looked at the piece of paper again. She would call McCall Enterprises first thing tomorrow morning. Alex McCall would know what in the hell this was all about.

He better, thought Caprice. Or else I’m fucked. And not in a good way.

 

 

“I’ll see you later, darling,” Alex said, bending down to kiss Katherine goodbye. He had spent the night at her flat. It was the first time he had spent the night at her place, and he had slept like a baby, his arms wrapped around Katherine all night long.

“Okay,” she murmurs, still in bed, half asleep, her body tangled in the sheets. Alex decided to get to work a couple of hours early today. He needed to finalize a few things regarding the Cosmo Hotel.

“Make sure you lock the door behind me, okay?” He looks down at Katherine, making sure she heard him.

“I will,” Katherine says. “I promise.” She flutters her eyes open, giving Alex a sweet smile. He loves seeing her smile.

Alex leaves her flat, walks outside, a bounce to his step. The morning is bright and sunny, not a cloud in the sky. Antonio is waiting with the Range Rover. Before Alex climbs in, he walks down the sidewalk, stopping at the spot where the black Fiat had been parked. It was gone this morning. Alex frowned. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but there was something about that car that didn’t set well with him. Alex glances over his shoulder, back at Katherine’s place. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, the building quiet in the early morning.

“Antonio, I need you to return to collect Katherine after you drop me off. I’ll text Katherine so she’ll know you will be here.” Antonio nods, knowing exactly what his boss really wants him to do.

Alex takes another look, scanning the area surrounding the building. He then gets into the vehicle and Antonio drives off. Alex stops by his place, takes a quick shower, and changes into a suit. Alex always wears a suit to work, no matter what.

He arrives to the office, switching on lights and opening his office window blinds. Alex sits down in his brown leather chair, turns on his computer. He likes arriving to work before everyone else. Gives himself time to think without any interruptions or distractions.

Alex pulls out his phone, texts Katherine to let her know he’s made arrangements for Antonio to collect her later this morning. She responds with “That’s very kind – thank you.” He smiles at her text. He likes taking care of Katherine – not that she needed taking care of. No, Katherine was quite capable of taking care of herself. It just made him feel good doing things for her that helped her out, made her life a little easier, and hopefully better.

Katherine had certainly made his life better. In the months they’ve know each other, she has become everything to him. He couldn’t imagine his life without her now.

Alex gazes out of the window, leaning back in his chair. He was itching for the Cosmopolitan Hotel to open, and he was going to do everything he could to push it. Since Katherine agreed to return to the country with him after the opening, it was all he could think about. Finish the hotel. Have the opening celebration. Return to the countryside with Katherine. He had it all worked out in his mind.

The office phone suddenly rings, jolting Alex out of his reverie. Alex checked the time – 6:42 am. It was still early, with no one at the office yet. Strange to be getting a call at this time, he thought, frowning.

Alex picks up the phone. “McCall Enterprises.”

A brief silence. “Alex McCall,” the voice on the other end said. The voice was female and Italian.

Alex knew instantly who the voice belonged to. Caprice. Caprice Belmonte. A blast from his wild past.

He clears his throat, wondering why in hell Caprice was calling him. Whatever the reason, Alex knew it wasn’t going to be good.

“Alex speaking,” he replies, all business.

“Alex. This is Caprice, Caprice Belmonte. We spent time together in Rome, a couple of years ago. You remember?”

Alex gets up from his desk, taking the phone with him. He sticks his head outside the door, looking around. The office was still empty, much to Alex’s relief. He closes his office door quietly. “Yes, I remember.”

“We need to discuss something,” Caprice says, her voice shaking slightly. She clears her throat, trying to keep her composure. “And we need to discuss it in person, not over the phone. Please.”

Alex raises an eyebrow. “In person, you say? Why is that?” He can tell in her voice something is seriously wrong. Caprice was trying to cover it, trying to sound cool, but he knew. His gut told him.

“Just meet me today, and I will tell you what I know. This involves you, otherwise I would not be bothering you. It’s imperative that we meet. If not, I can come to your office.”

Alex narrowed his eyes. He absolutely did not want Caprice Belmonte showing up at his office. And she knew that, he was sure. “I can meet you today at noon, St. Fredrick’s Tavern.”

“Perfect. Thank you, Alex.” He could hear the relief in her voice.

Alex hung up without another word. Shit, he thought, sitting down. He knew this day would come. His past finally catching up with his present. Alex just didn’t think it would come in the form of Caprice Belmonte.

He cast his mind back, recalling the week he spent with her. At the time, it was great. Alex was in Rome, Italy, on business. He was bored one night, decided he’d spend an evening at a gentlemen’s club –just killing time with some tits and ass.

Caprice Belmonte was there, dancing. Every man in the club was drooling all over themselves watching her. Alex was mildly interested, her gorgeous body a pleasure to admire, her fantastic breasts certainly captivating enough to keep him entertained for a few hours. Caprice made a beeline for him. They spent the entire night together, she pushing her tits in his face while he showered her with bills. Caprice left the club with him that night, and spent the rest of the week with him. They talked some, but mostly fucked. At the end of the week, Alex kissed her goodbye, and returned to London.

Alex never thought about Caprice Belmonte again. Until now.

Caprice couldn’t have popped up at a worse time in his life. Just when he thought things were turning around for the better, when he finally meets a woman who he can be serious about - Katherine - Caprice Belmonte turns up.

Alex would meet with Caprice, find out what she wanted, and send her back to Italy. No one was going to get in the way of his and Katherine’s happiness. No one.

 

 

Antonio Berra drove back to Katherine’s flat, glancing in the Range Rover’s rearview mirror. He spent a lot of his driving time checking the rearview mirror, mostly out of habit.

Antonio pulled up to Katherine’s building and parked the SUV. Before he got out, Antonio pulled a tiny security camera out of the glove box. He examined the camera, made sure it was functioning properly and was connected to Alex’s personal smartphone and computer systems. Antonio had a knack for technology, and had extensive knowledge of security systems. In fact, it was he who had installed all of Alex’s security systems at McCall Enterprises and in Alex’s own home.

Antonio enjoyed working for Alex McCall. They went way back, having met at MI-5. Alex was an undercover field operative and Antonio worked in the technology department, a computer and security systems analyst. The two had worked together over the years on various cases and investigations. Antonio had been sorry to see Alex quit MI-5, but knew it was what Alex needed to do to get on with his life.

He hadn’t seen or spoken to Alex in years, when, out of the blue, he’d gotten a phone call from him. Antonio had been happy to hear from his old friend and co-worker, and glad that Alex seemed to have been able to move on from Michelle’s tragic death. They met up at a pub, had a couple of beers, caught up on each other’s lives. Alex had just started McCall Enterprises and was looking for someone who could basically be his right hand man. Alex asked Antonio if he would be interested.

Antonio went home that night and thought about Alex’s offer. He awoke the following morning knowing he would take the job. Antonio had put in almost fifteen years at MI-5 working for the British government – he was tired and burned out. It was time for a change. That was five years ago – Antonio had been working for Alex ever since.

He got out the Range Rover, slipping the tiny camera into his jacket pocket. Antonio scanned the area, looking for anyone or anything. Just like Alex, he had been trained to always assess your environment. The white washed brick building appeared just as calm and quiet as when he had arrived to collect Alex this morning.

Antonio looked up at Katherine’s window. Her window drapes were closed. Good, he thought. He walked to the front door of the building, stood under the blue awning and punched in the code to the building. The door buzzed allowing for entrance. Antonio skipped the elevator, and instead took the stairs to Katherine’s flat. He walked down the hallway, looking for security cameras the building already had installed. He didn’t see a single camera anywhere.

Antonio stood outside Katherine’s door, listening. He thought he heard the sound of the shower running. Antonio quickly looked over his shoulder – no one in sight. He reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out the security camera. It was the size and shape of a tiny screw. Antonio worked fast, installing the camera into Katherine’s door. He screwed the camera in tightly, fitting it just below the door handle, where it was not visible.

Stepping back from the door, he could see the tiny pinprick of a camera, just barely. He tapped on his smartphone, and then suddenly he saw himself on the screen, crystal clear. The camera was working properly.

Antonio exited the building, returned to the Range Rover. He sent a text to Alex with a link to log into the security camera system. A few moments later Alex text back with “Well done.”

Fifteen minutes later, Katherine steps outside, walking towards the SUV. Antonio hops out to open the door for her. Katherine smiles and says hello to Antonio – he could understand why Alex was so smitten with her. Kind and genuine, with a kind of beauty that was warm and approachable. Antonio could also understand why Alex would do everything he could to protect her.