Chapter 4

Chapter 4

{CATERINA}

I watched as my target, Alessandro, stood up with his eyes locked onto mine. I had been watching him from the moment he stepped into the lounge, waiting for him to notice me. The plan was for him to notice the gorgeous woman in the gold dress and approach her. I didn't want to do the approaching so I wouldn't attract much attention to myself and make him suspicious. I was determined for this mission to be a successful one, and I was well-equipped for it.

“He's really approaching you. I can't believe the plan is working so smoothly!” My partner on the mission, Shadow, spoke through the earpiece embedded in my stud earrings.

“Of course it is. Now stop talking. I need to focus.” I whispered sharply as I whipped out my phone and acted like I was doing something important on it.

A few seconds later, I saw Alessandro's imposing frame standing on the other end of the round table. He was dressed in black tailored pants and a black shirt with the first couple of buttons undone, and the sleeves were folded with tattoos peeking out.

“Hi, Gorgeous. Can I join you?” He asked, his hands in his pockets, and I looked up at him.

“That depends on why you want to join me.” I responded as I dropped my phone, crossed my legs, and gazed up at him.

He smirked, his hazel eyes gleaming under the club lights. “I want to get to know the gorgeous lady who's been stealing glances at me since I walked in. Is that a good enough reason?”

“I guess it is. You can sit.” I replied, gesturing towards the chair on the other side of the table.

“Thanks for giving me the honour of joining you.” He said as he took my right hand and planted a kiss on it. I almost rolled my eyes at the exaggerated display.

“It's my pleasure, Mr…?” I trailed off, waiting for him to tell me his name like I didn't already know.

He raised a brow in amusement. “Alessandro Rodriguez. But you can call me Sandro.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Alessandro. Why did you decide to join me? Do you always walk up to any beautiful woman you see sitting alone in a club?” I asked as I leaned back in my chair, and his eyes widened slightly.

“Not always. I was just wondering why a gorgeous woman was sitting alone. So tell me, what's a woman like yourself doing all alone?” He asked in response as he leaned forward.

“If you must know, I came here to wind down after a long day of work. I tend to feel calmer when I'm drinking in a club.” I responded, and he smiled.

“That's nice. You're my type of person.” He said, his smile widening.

“Are you trying to hit on me, Mr. Alessandro?” I quizzed as I raised a perfectly carved eyebrow, and he chuckled.

“Maybe...” He drawled teasingly. “Can you tell me your name? Or should I keep calling you Gorgeous?” He asked, and I feigned a giggle as I took another sip from my almost empty glass.

“My name is Caterina, but I wouldn't mind you calling me Gorgeous. It has a nice ring to it.” I said with a grin.

“Caterina…” He muttered, like he was testing how my name sounded. And as much as I hated to admit it, I loved how my name rolled off his tongue. His deep, velvety voice made me fall in love with the name all over again. “A beautiful name for a beautiful lady.”

“God, this is so corny.” I heard Shadow grumble through the earpiece, and I felt the urge to respond, but I couldn't break character.

“Can I buy you another drink? It looks like you need a refill.” Alessandro spoke, pointing at my glass, and I nodded.

He waved over a bartender and told him to get a bottle of my drink and another glass. The bartender returned with what he asked for a few minutes later, and we started drinking.

“So… Can you tell me more about yourself? I'll like to know my newfound friend.” I said, and he smiled.

“Sure. Like you already know, my name is Alessandro Mateo Rodriguez. I deal with import and export, and I have companies all over the country. I also have a chain of clubs, and I'm actually the owner of this club.” He said with an air of pride, and I pretended to be surprised. I already knew he was the owner of this club when I went through his file, but he didn't know that. I also knew he had companies all over the place. It was actually impressive for someone his age.

“Wow. That's very impressive. It sounds like you work so hard.” I said, trying to feed his ego, and it worked.

“I really do. It gets tiring sometimes, but I just have to keep going.” I responded, and I bobbed my head, acting like I understood what he was saying.

We spent the next couple of minutes talking and drinking. Alessandro was the one mostly doing the drinking, with me pretending like I was drinking as much as him. The goal was to get him drunk and then seduce him and convince him to take me home with him, and it seemed like I checked one box off the list.

We were still drinking and talking when one of the men Alessandro was with approached our table. He sent a small wave my way before facing Alessandro. “We have to go, Boss. We have something important to attend to.” The man said to Alessandro, but he just shook his head in response.

“You guys can go on without me. I'm not done here.” Alessandro said, his words coming out slowly. He was clearly tipsy.

“It's really important, Boss…” The man was talking when Alessandro cut him off.

“You can go. I'll deal with it later.” Alessandro spoke, his words firmer this time, and the man nodded before walking away.

“You must really like me a lot for you to skip something important to be with me.” I uttered with a smirk, and he grinned.

“Of course I like you. I'll leave anything behind to be with you.” He responded, and if I weren't on a mission, I would swoon.

“Gotta love an intentional man.” I stated and he laughed; a rich, baritone melody I would've loved to listen to every waking moment of my life.

Things were quiet between us for a few minutes, the only sound being the music playing in the background.

Suddenly, Alessandro said something that surprised me. “Will you like to come home with me?”

I froze momentarily. I had been waiting for those words all night long, but it still felt foreign to me.

“Yes, I'll love to.” I responded with a small smile after breaking out of the initial shock.

This mission was proving to be way easier than I thought.