apocalyptic.

Alexandra thought he looked quite handsome with what he was wearing. Sure, it was simple and not a from a luxury brand like what most of the people here were wearing but even with that in her eyes he looked better than most. Plus it truly didn’t matter to the young heiress what he was wearing of if he was here as work and not a guest. But that did prompted a question in her mind of what was her own goal here? Yes she was very attracted to him and she also found him quite interesting and also refreshing to the guys that she was used to, but what happened next, was she only bored with things she knew so well and wanted a distraction? Maybe for once do something a bit more on the reckless side? And what would happen the next day, after all she had given him her phone before and he had never contacted her, so really maybe this could be the last time they saw each other.

But what if he did? Would they start to date, okay now she was getting way ahead of herself and right now all those questions weren’t even important she could think of all that later, maybe, depending on what happened. She however was sure of one thing, she wasn’t going to sleep with a guy that she had met twice no matter what he made her feel, so if he thought that was a possibility then he’d be very disappointed, and well it would show that he wasn’t as nice as she thinks if he ended up being upset about that fact.

Him getting closer pulled her out of her ramblings. Once again she stopped breathing as he placed his hand on her lower back and got closer to her, she already could feel his body heat and when he whispered in her ear, small shivers ran down her back, intrusive thoughts of wondering how would his lips feel or his hands all over her flashed in her mind for a moment. She bit her lips and released the breath she had been holding, “Sounds quite right yes.” She said smiling as she turned to face him, moving her hand to rest on his shoulder as she gracefully fixed his collar with the other, her fingers down the side of his neck for a moment.

She moved away from him slowly though taking his hand at the last moment, his hand wasn’t as soft as the hands of guys that had never had to move a finger but she didn’t mind, in fact she actually kinda liked it. Soon enough she had led him to a big enough balcony, the fresh air felt great against her skin after being inside for so long. The music from inside could still be heard but now you didn’t have to raise your voice to talk all in all, it was a great spot. “I think the view from this one is the best of all really..” She said mainly to say something. 

For the second time he felt her breath hitch as he rested one of his large hands on the sweet little curve of her back, she wore her heart on her sleeve and he was able to read her emotions as plain as day. It was endearing, adorable even, it made him want to see what other kind of reactions he could entice out of her. He couldn’t stop thinking about how innocent she was compared to the other girls that he was used to, not that there was anything wrong with the honeys he picked up in bars or even down on side streets when they took note of his motorcycle. She was pure in the same way that Arielle was, untouched and almost virginal in her innocence, but his attraction to Lexie was obviously unlike anything that he had ever felt towards his baby sister. She was into him, that much was clear, and while with any other dame he would have already pinned her up against the nearest wall and had his way with her---after gaining her consent, of course---he found himself taking it slow with the sheltered heiress, slow for him anyway. He wasn’t supposed to touch her, he knew that 100%--could even lose his so called ‘job’ if the Bratva became suspicious that he was making trouble---but what sort of problems could one night spent with the most beautiful woman he had ever seen bring up?

She surprised him by reaching up with one of those graceful hands of hers to fix his collar, Elijah let out an approving hum as her cool fingers brushed over his warm skin. How would those pretty hands have felt elsewhere, trailing down his body and between his thighs? Scratching up and down his back as he showed her what kind of man he really was? He would have taken care of her too, he wouldn’t have let her leave until she was trembling and all but begging him for a break from the sheer amount of pleasure he was inflicting on that small frame of hers. She took hold of his hand of her own accord, shocking her again, and while he had never been the hand-holding kind of guy, it was sweet that she wanted it and he couldn’t lie, there was something to be said for how delicate and fragile her tiny fingers felt tucked into his calloused palm. 

She laughed shaking her head gently, of course she wasn’t a saint-really who was, she didn’t think even the actual saints had a perfect record- and though she had never gone out of her way to hurt anyone and she did try to be good to people and do good things, she knew that she had done things that may have not been great. Mainly on her teenage years, but she supposed those years weren’t great for anyone, and she would admit to herself that she may have been a spoilt entitled popular girl back then who  may have lowkey terrorised some teachers, though nothing too bad she didn’t think and she had come such a long way from there. That said she did liked when he called her angel. “Well the gloried juice is quite nice thank you..and I would never think such things of you… Though i have been here for a while and there has been a lot champagne going around.” She wasn’t remotely drunk.

“Yes exactly” She laughed. “ But hired help sounds bad though.” She knew that he was joking and maybe it was just her own ideas but calling the people working here the help just sounded so…antiquated. Something that people that thought they were above those working would say. She actually stopped breathing when he got closer, her eyes having a hard time remaining on his eyes and not dropping to stare at his lips, yeah she was stupidly attracted to this guy and she wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to actually spend time with him but well she found that she didn’t really care about any problems that all this may cause if any. “Yeah that vest is terrible, even if you do manage to pull it off.” Not really wanting to, she moved away and stood up as she waited for him to take the vest off and leave the bar “And it hurts their feelings if you call them damn rabbits.” She teased him “But fine, there are many more things to do.” She said offering her hand to him.  

He was already proving to be a terrible influence on young Alexandra Rothschild, apparently, but he wondered just how many opportunities she was given where she was actually allowed to do as she pleased without worrying about the tile of ‘heiress’ hanging over her head at all times. He was surprised she didn’t already have a dozen different suitors trailing after her in an attempt to get her hand in marriage, Elijah wouldn’t have even bothered throwing his own hand in the ring due to his piss-poor upbringing, but if she was looking for a boy from the wrong side of the tracks to waste time with until she was forced into an engagement ... he wasn’t above that. He wasn’t above that at all. He listened to her ramble about champagne, the wry grin on his face never leaving as he merely focused on the sound of her sweet, chiming voice. She spoke with all of the poshness he had come to expect from the Upper East side, but on her it was more innocent---less calculated and full of snark. How had she managed to remain so pure and uncorrupted?

It was a curious thing for her, the way that when she was around him everything else just seemed to be background noise and her main focus was on him, she found everything he did quite captivating, and well of course he was gorgeous and had many of the models she had worked with wished they had honestly. Maybe part of the charm was that he was part of something that she was very unfamiliar with, she didn’t care that he was here working while she was a guest, she had never had the thought that anyone was better or worse than others just because of the amount of money they had. “Not at all” She replied laughing and really right now there wasn’t a place she rather be, even if she was at a great party with many of her friends and even her family around. “I will have you know that I don’t drink that much and even when I do I can handle alcohol quite well..more often than not I am the one having to look after people.” She said nodding, 

She watched him make her drink, smiling once it was done. “Thank you..and you look you even guessed that I like cherries.” She picked the drink and took a small drink, it was great, it didn’t taste too much of alcohol which was something she really appreciated, yes she was one of those that would rather have fruit cocktails that hid the taste than other stuff most of the time. “I am yes…”She stopped as he began to talk again, she had received many compliments tonight, but when Elijah said she looked good she just felt elated for a moment.. “Thank you.” She said catching her voice, she licked her lips and took a breath “And are you having fun? Because I was thinking of getting some air or going to the zoo again…would you like to come?” She hoped he would since she really wanted to spend more time with him but then she remembered he was working. “I mean I understand if you can’t but…I hear they have rabbits.” She said with a small laugh. “And if someone catches you I’ll take the blame.” 

He wasn’t used to girls like her --- the kind of dames he was used to were the ones he picked up in the corner of smoky bars or even off in back alleys when he was out on his motorcycle, they weren’t soft and sweet and demure and they certainly hadn’t spent their lives in the lap of luxury. Lexie Rothschild was as pure as they came, the only thing tainted about her at all was her father’s money. Elijah knew those type of men better than he wanted to after dedicating his life to paying off his debt to the Bratva, men who cared more about wealth and power than they did anything else in the entire fucking world. That was why he hadn’t called Lexie after she had given him her phone number, maybe she saw him as a fun, dangerous distraction from her silver-spoon life, but he couldn’t risk getting mixed up with more trouble than he already had, even if she was beautiful as all hell and he couldn’t keep his eyes off of her. “So you’re just a saint, aren’t you, angel?” he teased her with a grin when she protested having any sort of affinity for alcohol whatsoever, he couldn’t imagine her tipsy if he was being honest with himself, what a fucking sight to behold that would have been. “Well don’t worry --- all I’ve given you is glorified fruit juice. Don’t think I’m trying to lower your inhibitions or anything like that.” Smirk. 

The party so far was amazing, everyone seemed to be having fun and there were so many people she liked and hadn’t seen in a while that she was truly having a great time, actually maybe the first time in a but of time that she was having so much fun at a party, it wasn’t like she had a bad time at parties she had been attending lately, after all she made friends easily so even if she didn’t know anyone she was sure to find people, it was just that all the parties she had attended were either after some big event and most attendees were either too tired or they were getting too wasted for her to even want to spend time with them. But she always would like parties that she knew most of the people around her already.

Yet in a rare moment that she found herself alone, she decided she may get something to drink and maybe go to one of the balconies to get some air, approaching the bar she didn’t really pay much attention to the bartenders until she was there but once there it was instant. Elijah was there and was it normal for someone to look so attractive while they were making drinks? Her eyes were glued on him, and his arms until he spoke to her and she smiled “Elijah… You’re here!” She felt her face get slightly warmer and hoped she wasn’t blushing, really, she wasn’t a teenager anymore what was wrong with her. “Oh you can give me anything you want..I mean.. why don’t you surprise me I think i’ve been having the same things all night.” 

Should she mention the fact that he hadn’t messaged her after they had met on this very hotel not that long ago? No, for what? Besides it wasn’t a big deal, maybe he was busy or maybe he didn’t want to, it was, fine.

He wasn’t at all surprised to see her here, in all honesty he had been hoping to catch a glimpse of her dainty doe limbs and gleaming golden hair and she was the exact sort of VIP guest to be expected at an event with enough money poured into it to fund small countries for years at a time. After they had first met at the Garden Hotel not so long ago, she had given him her phone number but he had yet to call or message her and he wasn’t really sure why, she was beautiful beyond measure and sweet as can be but maybe that was the reason he hadn’t reached out to her. To say that she was out of his league was a massive understatement, he was here working the party that she was attending as a guest and he doubted that she would find him half as appealing if he touched her with his rough hands that were more used to fixing up engines beneath cars than they were handling fine things. Still, he saw the way she seemed to brighten as she realized who it was offering her a drink, it was adorable as all hell and he couldn’t stop the boyish grin from spreading across his face in response. For fuck’s sake, she was cute.

It was only fitting that he was working the Golightly gala, he might have been good enough to do the Bratva’s bidding on any given day but nowhere near as important as he needed to be in order to be actually invited to such a prestigious event. He knew very little of Bunny Golightly aside from what he had heard from Arielle in passing but clearly she was from a family with the sort of money that put Saudi princes and Wall Street bankers to shame. Tonight, he was tending bar, his baby sister had been asked by Dimitri fucking Valentina of all people to attend as his date, and this was Elijah’s way of keeping an eye on her while also making a bit of extra cash to help out with next week’s rent. Arielle had offered her services as a waitress for the evening as well, of course, but she had seemed so excited to wear a pretty dress and behave like a princess for one night only, even the thought of taking that away from her made him feel like a jackass.

So he was keeping an eye on his baby sister and her date that he didn’t at all approve of and he was working, slinging out beers and preparing ridiculously pretentious cocktails for the party’s over-privileged guests, he was midway through prepping yet another frozen rose beverage when a sudden gleam, a wisp of a girl really, came into his view. Ah. How could he have forgotten a face like that, let alone a body so fine that he hadn’t been able to stop himself from admiring it the moment they made? Alexandra Rothschild, in a glittering gold dress that would have brought any man to his knees, himself included. 

“Lexie,” he said with a grin as he greeted her, he should have called her ‘miss’ or even ‘Madame Rothschild’, but her actual name was so much sweeter and he liked the idea of sharing a more personal discussion with the blonde heiress. He handed off the drink to the patron that had requested it before leaning forward against the bar, elbows resting against the marble top with the sleeves of his shirt rolled up and his forearms in plain sight, toned and muscular from years of hard, honest work. “What can I get you, dollface?” 

If Alexandra was honest with herself in that moment, she was nervous right now, Not in a bad way, she didn’t think he’d hurt her,  but something about him just made her feel that way, it wasn’t a common thing, she met so many people all the time, and a lot of them were very attractive men but she couldn’t remember one that had made her feel nervous and wanting to be near them as she felt right now, And yes she could feel his eyes on her backside, and well she found that she didn’t mind having his eyes there or anywhere on her. Honestly she was being quite ridiculous, maybe her hormones were acting up because she may be reaching that time of the month that was all. His voice took her out of her thoughts and she looked at him. “The hotel has many things to offer, aside from the gardens, there are a few bars and lounges, a nightclub, gym, spa.. pools..really I think there is almost anything you could think of here.” She laughed softly “Ah well we wouldn’t like that would we.” She smiled at the nickname, before she bit her lower lip as she thought “Ah..maybe my father has his number or the number of his assistant, I mean is like almost midnight where he is but I can call him.”

Gabriel had little time or patience for people around him; if he could simply immerse himself into art across various mediums, from still life to literature and music, he would gladly do so. It was the matter of reaching out and engaging in lengthy conversation with other people where Gabriel felt truly lost and out of his element. He’d been raised to understand the importance of social etiquette, but that certainly didn’t mean he enjoyed the company of others.

“You’d be surprised what manner and breed of minor inconveniences I consider interruption,” Gabriel countered smoothly, flipping the page in his book before glancing up at the man underneath dark, full eyelashes. Tall, blonde, looked disproportionately out of place here. With a heavy sigh, Gabriel slid the book closed and placed it next to his cooling coffee, taking a sip from his beverage before standing and plucking the paper out of the young man’s hand. 

“Oh non, non, is she only just starting out with Tolstoy?” Gabriel countered, giving the young man the paper back as he headed through the aisles, towards the general fiction department. “You’ll often find Tolstoy wedged in general literature and fiction, though in antique and specialty stores, he might be assigned to an international subsection of a shop for his status as a prolific Russian author.” He abruptly turned down an aisle in the corner of the floor he’d been reading in, thumbing through the letters until he came to the surnames beginning with T. He deftly plucked out a white leather-bound copy of Anna Karenina with red edging and sprayed gold pages, placing it in the stranger’s hand before also selecting a smooth blue paperback book with Tolstoy’s pensive portrait brushed across the front.

“Tell your sister to analyze his shorter fiction first before moving on to Anna Karenina,” Gabriel said simply, standing and brushing back his hair. “War and Peace after that. Think you can manage to keep all of that stored up in here?” He asked smoothly, resting a finger against his temple.

Elijah ... wasn’t quite sure just what type of company he had inadvertently stumbled upon. The man chastising him for interrupting his leisure time was clearly rich, he had done enough jobs for wealthy folk to spot one the moment he saw them, even when they weren’t dripping laviciouously in jewels and gold. No, this man’s opulence was much more muted---old money then, he knew that it was considered tacky to flaunt it but still gave off the air of pretentious elegance nevertheless. Elijah snorted when he commented on minor inconveniences, fully prepared to walk away and search for the book on his own, but one mention of the classic Russian tome he was looking for and the man was ... on his feet. Heading down the aisles. Alright then.

“I ... believe she’s just starting out, yeah. Wants to eventually learn how to speak Russian for some godforsaken reason, I guess she felt like this was a good place to begin. Are you saying she’s too stupid to start off with the big one?” Elijah’s eyes narrowed at the stranger and he squinted at him suspiciously, the man who, just moments before had been waving him away like a bothersome fly, was now quite enthusiastically providing him with literary advice. Still, he warily accepted the---admittedly quite thick---copy of Anna Karenina that he had come to purchase, drawing it beneath one of his arms as if he was worried the flamboyant man was going to snatch it back if he didn’t say a holy prayer before he accepted it. 

She laughed and made a face at the thought of the hotel owner naked. “Yeah that is something I don’t think anyone wants to see… I mean I want to believe he’d be using a bathing suit bit still, I rather see him fully clothed.” On one hand she trusted the man to be sensible and care enough for the hygiene of his hotel to not use the place naked, but then again it was his so she supposed if he wanted to be naked…no one could tell him no. “I do hope it makes up for it” She said with a smile, she was actually enjoying his presence quite a bit and it wasn’t just because he was very good looking. “Nice to meet you Eli, you can call me Alex or Lexie if you like.” She said as she began to walk down the path in front of them that would lead to a spot that he heard Leon quite liked because it had a nice view of the city. “No, I live in the city I just like to come here because of all the gardens and well all the things the hotel offers…but mainly the gardens.” By now it was pretty clear he wasn’t a guest here so she looked at the envelope “I suspect that envelope is very important?”

“Oh Leon yes he does like to come here whenever he can, I think is his way to take a break from everything without actually having to go anywhere.” She had run into the hotel owner many times here, plus she did run into him many times in other events and parties, actually if she remembered correctly her father and Mr. Derosier even played golf together sometimes. “Sure let’s take a look. You know he may be at the sauna” And she hoped the hotel owner wasn’t the type to lose all his clothes while using it, though if he was at said sauna she didn’t intend to look inside. “If not then maybe at some of the other gardens.” She looked at the envelope he was carrying, now she knew that he was more than likely a messenger of some sort, though the envelope had to be important if he had to give it to Mr. Derosier personally. “Alexandra.” She said as she offered her hand “And you are?”

She chuckled slightly embarrassed, well actually she was more than just a little embarrassed but as she had been thought she shouldn’t let other see it because well if you showed that you were embarrassed then you didn’t show confidence and confidence was something that she should portray at all times according to her mother. And sure she really was, very few things shook her but her getting jumpy over the sound of boots was a pretty stupid thing. It would have probably been fine if the person that had made the noise hadn’t been the man that was in front of her. He was extremely attractive and had an edge about him that she couldn’t quite get but that she really didn’t see in most of the men she knew.

“I’m just being silly. It sounded like something fell over but maybe it was just the acoustics of the room.” In all honesty, he didn’t look like someone that you’d expect to see around here, of course that meant nothing, if anything it peaked her interest. “As far as I’ve seen yes, but there is part further down that I haven’t been to yet.. Are you looking for someone?”

She didn’t seem at all out of place on a beautiful rooftop garden, that was for damn sure, in all honesty she seemed right at home---like a little faerie stopping to smell the flowers. There was an understated sort of glamor about her, not at all obvious or overdone, that made it even more clear to Elijah that this girl was high class---old money, more than likely, if his time spent running errands for the mob was enough experience to go by. She was pretty, too pretty to touch, too pretty for him to even look at, but right now she was also the only form of information he had to go off of. “I think the only falling to do up here is off,” he said with a wry smile as he nodded towards the edge of the roof, she seemed embarrassed but he couldn’t pinpoint as to why.

Arielle had only just begun working as an errand girl for the Russian mob, and while the only reason she had chosen to do so had been in an attempt to sooner pay off her parents’ ongoing debt, she would be lying if she tried to insist that there wasn’t a part of herself that had offered up her assistance for more than just that. The Russians had been a part of her life for as long as she was capable of remembering - Dimitri especially - but Elijah had always tried so desperately to keep her as far away from it as possible, even if it meant working himself to the bone just so that she wouldn’t have to be involved. She was older now, though - definitely not just a little girl anymore - and she couldn’t bear the thought of him carrying the weight of their parents’ debt on his own anymore…even if he still considered himself fully responsible for it. 

“I’ve already finished my homework! It was done the moment I came home from school - what, do you think I’m some sort of slacker?” Arielle questioned with a challenging arch of one delicate auburn brow, pushing aside her almost-finished plate of food in favor of looking up at Elijah stubbornly. “What do you mean, I won’t like where you’re going? If you’re heading somewhere dangerous, Eli, then you shouldn’t be alone. Let me go with you. I can be - backup. Right?”

He didn’t like this at all, involving Arielle in anything to do with the Russian mafia had never been part of the plan, and it definitely hadn’t been his idea to have her start running errands for them either. He knew that all she wanted to do was help but combining that with her … crush on Dimitri Valentina, prince of the Russian mafia, made for a dangerous combination that worried Elijah to no end. She was a good girl, had always been a good girl and she didn’t deserve half of the shit they had been forced to live through ever since the death of their parents. Eager, bright, curious, and endlessly talented, she deserved more than Elijah had ever been able to give her.

“No. Absolutely not.” Elijah was firm as he shook his head resolutely at the tiny redhead sitting across from him at their small dinner table, in their cramped apartment it was all but pressed up against the stove. Arielle had just arrived home from school, and the first thing she had asked was if she would be allowed to accompany on his patrols later tonight. He already wasn’t happy about the fact that she was running errands for the Russians---he was the foot soldier, not her, and he’d spent his entire life trying to keep her out of harm’s way. Now, she was deliberately placing herself in the general direction of it. Small, young, and far too pretty for her own good, she was a walking target if Elijah had ever seen one. “You’re going to stay here and finish whatever homework you were given at school today, are we clear? I’ll be back around midnight. Besides---you won’t like where I’m going, Arielle. Not tonight.”