Los Angeles

　　Irena's POV

　　We left for Los Angeles the next morning and arrived there late in the afternoon. The trip back was also twelve hours long, and it was tiring. Carlos was at the airport, waiting to drive us back.

　　"Welcome back Madam, welcome back Magnus," he greeted. He was smiling brightly and he looked genuinely happy to see me back. He and Magnus did a bro handshake they came up with between themselves and I rolled my eyes at them.

　　"Missed me?" I asked Carlos when they were done.

　　He scoffed, "you wish, you look even better, certainly the break from the hustle-bustle of work did you well, didn't it?"

　　I sighed, " it was a tiring, unnecessary and annoying meeting,"

　　" Word around is that Pompeii is dead?" It seemed to be a question, but it was more of a statement.

　　I shrugged, "there you have it," Rumors spread quickly, but a rumor about the death of a man like Pompeii spreads even faster. And it'll probably affect the thoughts of the people, as Pompeii had been a council member for a long time and had influenced the actions of the people as we council members do.

　　We got into the vehicle and Carlos drove off. We dropped Magnus off at his place and headed to mine.

　　Immediately I got home, I called Lesley to inform her that I had arrived. She had been running Sodom's City in my absence and been giving me reports and updates via texts and emails. Thankfully, I had no meetings for the past few days that I was away and it was relieving.

　　Fray had prepared something nice by the time I got to my place. He was aware that I don't eat airplane food and knew how to prepare something in time for my arrival. I took a shower, ate, and then I fell asleep, wondering what the date with Alexey was going to be like. I was a little bit excited and much more curious.

　　I spent the rest of the evening sleeping and the next morning, I woke up to a text from Alexey that said he'll be picking me up late in the afternoon so we could catch the flight. I was glad that it was scheduled for later because I had planned on stopping by my club to see how it has been

　　I dressed up and drove off to the club. My girls were excited to see me and I ended up spending most of my time with them, listening to how work has been for them and many other things which were actually satisfying. Apparently, August had kicked one of the clients in his balls and he ended up with a shattered pelvis. He had tried to do something that was against August's will, and she had to defend herself. No sex for that man for the rest of his life I guess.

　　I told August and Lesley about my date and they were both excited for me. Lesley denied telling Alexey about my trip to Russia but I could tell that she was lying. While I was at the club, I called Curt and ordered outfits for my date, which were to be delivered at the club. When they arrived, I tried them and they were perfect. I quickly drove back to my place, dressed up, and informed Alexey that I was ready.

　　I was sitting by my window, all dressed up undeniably excited and continuously looking out of the window for Alexey's arrival and also checking the time like a young girl on her first date, which was very unlike me.

　　Many minutes later, he finally arrived in a black Mercedes Benz S-class. I could tell that he was the one driving. I was surprised because I had expected a driver since we were taking a flight and he would need someone to drive his car back to his place.

　　I checked out my appearance in front of the mirror once more before I left the house. I was wearing a belt wrap floral dress that showed off the skin of my pale neck, a pair of tight black pants, and blackstrap sandal heels that made my long legs seem endless. My hair was done in a low ponytail with two locks of red hair framing my face. I wore a small stamp earring and the little make-up I did was on par with my looks. I looked elegant.

　　And I would say Alexey would agree to that and even say more from the way his eyes darkened when he saw me.

　　"You look breathtaking," he breathed out as soon as I was within hearing range. He opened the door to the front seat for me like a gentleman, which left me surprised and then he took my bag from Fray and placed it on the back seat of his Mercedes.

　　"You look ravishing," he complimented again, staring at me.

　　I smiled, " I know,"

　　He laughed and started the car, "of course you do,"

　　"I thought you said we'll be traveling via flight, since you are driving, how are you going to take your car back to your place?" I asked him curiously.

　　He laughed, " don't worry your pretty head, it will be fine, I have it all covered,"

　　" I'm not worried," I said back subconsciously pouting slightly.

　　"Of course, you're not," he replied teasingly.

　　For the following minutes the ride continued in a comfortable silence except for Alexey asking a few questions about how my day had been, I answered a few that I thought were worth answering and I equally asked about how his day had been and how his tech invention is going. He answered all my questions, telling me how excited he was that his security tech invention was topping the tech world and I was genuinely happy for him.

　　I was confused when Alexey took a route that led to the outskirts of the city, rather than the route that led to the airport.

　　Instinct made me bring out the knife I hid in my jeans and held it to his neck in self-defense. I was so foolish to have trusted him, I'm ashamed of myself and that's an understatement.

　　"This isn't the route to the airport, tell me where you're taking me to now or else," I threatened with so much fury.