Page 16 of A Good Girl's Guide to Dominance
Mr. Giovanni nods his head, his gaze icing over as he glares at Sierra.
“Wait,” I say, finally speaking up with a raised hand. “Who is it owned by?”
Mr. Giovanni hesitates before sighing and answering, “Nix Malone.”
My eyebrows raise to the top of my face while gasps and muffled moans fill the room with indistinguishable noise.
“Nix Malone?” I answer, my brows sky high. “The same Nix Malone who is a very known affiliate of Solomon King, the biggest, most violent gangster in the city?”
“Yes,” Mr. Giovanni says.
“Sir,” I say with a chuckle. Mr. Giovanni stiffens at the word, making me think he doesn't like it, so I correct myself. “Mr. Giovanni, you said you're from Philly, right?”
“Rome,” he snips. “Call me Rome. That goes for everyone who works here. Now, yes I am from Philly.”
“So you know who Nix Malone and Solomon King are?” I ask.
“Yes.”
I wait for a second to see if Mr. Giovanni … Rome … understands exactly what he is saying. I watch his face, wondering if he truly gets it, but he never wavers.
“Rome, everyone in the city—police, politicians, judges—they all know that Nix and Solomon are gangsters who have never been caught red-handed. Their money is not good money. They make it illegally. Are you sure you want to work with people like them?”
He eyes me carefully, sucking his bottom lip into his mouth as he scans me. “What’s your name?”
“Nia Washington,” I answer. “I’m the director of marketing.”
“One of two,” Simon quickly chimes in. “I’m the other.”
Rome glances over at Simon with a fiery glare before returning to me.
“Nia,” he says, and I try not to shiver at the sound of my name on his lips. “Nix Malone has never been charged with anything, at least not since he was a teenager. Rumors do not dissuade me.”
“But are they really rumors?” I go on, undeterred. “This is aknownthing. They’re just so good at what they do that they haven't been caught yet.”
“Say that again,” Rome demands, his eyes never leaving mine.
“Say what?” I question with a frown.
“The last sentence you said.”
“They’re so good at what they do that they haven't been caught.”
“They haven't been caught doing anything,” he says, driving his point home. “If they haven't been charged with a crime, then what you speak of are just rumors. Club Asylum is owned by Solomon King, and it’s one of the biggest nightclubs in the city, is it not? So big, in fact, that I feel safe in assuming that even you've been there.”
My jaw tightens as I'm forced to answer. “Yes, I have.”
“The companies who do business with Solomon King and his club are not going up in flames, are they? There are no shootouts or police raids at any of his places of business, are there?”
Heat fills my limbs and begins burning toward my heart. “No.”
“Right. And have any of you heard of a five-star restaurant in Center City called The VP?” Rome asks, this time addressing the entire room.
“I have,” Loretta, the brand director admits.
“Good. Do you know who owns it?” Loretta shakes her head. “Nix Malone. He has been the owner of that restaurant since it opened in 2017. It has never been shut down. It has never been found to be involved in any illegal activity. The VP hasn’t so much as failed a health inspection since its doors opened with Nix Malone cutting a giant gold ribbon with photographerssnapping shots for the media. Maybe they are what you say they are, but when it comes to business, they clearly know what they’re doing.
“So, Club Asylum and The VP are owned by twowell-known criminals,” he continues, eyeing me directly now. “Yet, neither of those establishments have been named in an indictment or found to be a hub for criminal activity. That’s interesting, because the only company thathasbeen named in an indictment that I’m aware of is the one you work for.”
