Chapter 236: Chapter 20 Floral Offensive Launch
Dominic’s POV
Monday morning found me meeting my brothers at a small café in our territory, wondering what scheme our Don had orchestrated this time. The early hour made me question agreeing to this gathering when I could have been planning my next move with Gemma.
"Alright Caleb, what operation pulled me from my surveillance reports at dawn?" I asked, settling into the corner booth with espresso strong enough to wake the dead.
Our Don’s eyes gleamed with calculated mischief. "We’re launching a floral offensive, gentlemen. Nothing demonstrates serious territorial claims like an overwhelming display of power."
Finn nodded with military precision. "Perfect timing. Zoe’s been freezing me out since the warehouse incident, and I need every advantage available."
"What caliber of arrangements are we discussing?" Jude inquired, ever the strategist.
Xavier leaned forward conspiratorially. "Each man selects his weapon of choice, but it must be spectacular enough to show these women we’ve claimed them completely."
After finishing our coffee, we headed to the twenty-four-hour florist operating under family protection. The shop owner pulled up various elegant arrangements on her tablet, but Xavier’s attention wandered to a colossal display commanding the corner.
"Gentlemen, witness perfection itself!" Xavier announced, gesturing dramatically at the massive creation.
The arrangement towered before us, a breathtaking collection of pink blooms nested in an enormous crystal vase. The thing measured three feet across, absolutely magnificent in scale.
The florist cleared her throat diplomatically. "That particular arrangement is designed for Don weddings, sir."
Xavier’s grin widened dangerously. "Even more appropriate! These women will understand our intentions when they witness something this commanding."
I shook my head. "Xavier, that monument could dominate an entire safe house. Don’t you think it’s excessive?"
"Excessive like our devotion to them!" Xavier practically vibrated with enthusiasm. "Total dominance or nothing, my brothers!"
Something about his ruthless romanticism infected us all, and before I knew it, we were nodding agreement to his audacious strategy.
Caleb surrendered first. "Fine, that’s our template. Mine will be red and white tulips in that exact configuration."
The decision felt surreal, but I found myself caught up in the madness. "Long-stemmed Colombian roses for me, in the deepest crimson available."
Xavier scoffed playfully. "Blood-red roses, Dominic? Could you be more predictable? That’s intimidation tactics one-oh-one right there."
I clapped him on the shoulder with dark amusement. "My friend, everything about claiming this woman follows the classic conquest playbook, and I make no apologies."
Grabbing one of the small cards, I wrote my message carefully: "I envy everyone who gets to see you daily." The shop owner accepted it with barely concealed nervousness at our group dynamics.
"If traditional intimidation works for you, then pink peonies are calling my name," Xavier declared, completely obsessed with his Ruby.
Jude stepped forward decisively. "Purple hyacinths will serve my purposes."
Finn surprised us all with his sophisticated choice. "Pink alstroemerias paired with lisianthus, please."
We stared at him like he’d just decoded enemy intelligence. The exotic flower names rolled off his tongue effortlessly.
"Alstroemerias and what now?" we chorused in confusion.
Finn shrugged casually. "They’re Zoe’s absolute favorites. Essential reconnaissance, gentlemen."
I groaned dramatically. "Show-off! I’m memorizing those names for future operations when I inevitably miscalculate with my complicated target."
The florist promised delivery by morning, and I headed straight to our headquarters afterward. Arriving early gave me time to reorganize my afternoon surveillance schedule, specifically carving out time for coffee with Gemma. I also sent an encrypted message to my nephew, arranging for him to join us since he’d been instrumental in my romantic intelligence gathering.
When Zoe walked into the command center and discovered me calmly reviewing territory reports, her jaw dropped.
"Well, well, Dominic. Color me impressed!" She applauded slowly. "I didn’t expect domesticating you would be this straightforward."
"Don’t get cocky, Zo!" I laughed, feeling surprisingly satisfied with the morning. "And keep your hands off my operational schedule. I’m meeting my target for coffee this afternoon."
"Oh really?" Zoe settled into the chair across from me, predatory curiosity sparkling in her eyes. "How are things developing with your acquisition?"
"Stop pretending you don’t already monitor every detail," I replied knowingly.
"You’re missing the point, slowpoke," she complained with exaggerated patience. "I want to know if you’re as pathetically whipped as Xavier is with Ruby."
I groaned at the reminder. "Don’t mention Xavier’s lapdog behavior. A Consigliere acting like that is painful to witness."
"I think it’s endearing to observe."
"Endearing, Zoe? Come on. We’re feared enforcers with international reputations, and Xavier’s behaving like a lovesick civilian with his first crush," I protested.
"Better than acting like a player who only wants to get her into your bed!" Zoe shot back with a pointed glare.
Her accusation hit its mark, and I felt compelled to defend myself. "Listen, Zo, I absolutely want to possess Gemma completely, desperately so, but that’s not my only objective. She captivates me entirely. She’s conquered my thoughts, made me restructure my entire operation just to spend time with her, eliminated my interest in other targets completely. Since claiming Gemma, I haven’t touched another woman, and it’s been quite some time! I haven’t even gotten her into my safe house yet, as you well know."
"Sounds like someone’s been thoroughly conquered, wouldn’t you say, Dominic?" Zoe’s observation struck me like sniper fire.
"I honestly don’t know, Zo. But I know I want to possess her, and not just physically. Gemma is extraordinary, brilliant, witty, entertaining, dangerously sexy. She’s just everything, absolutely everything!"
"Wow! You’re just as conquered as Xavier!"
"Oh please, Xavier is embarrassing!" We both started laughing because Xavier really was completely under Ruby’s control.
We settled into operational mode, and right on schedule, I heard Zoe’s delighted gasp as her delivery arrived. I wandered to her office where she stood nearly in tears.
"Look at this, Dominic, and take notes! This is how a real soldier behaves! My prince is absolutely perfect. He remembered my favorite flowers flawlessly."
"Yeah, Finn really is something special!" I smiled while examining the arrangement closely. The massive size made me wonder if we’d gone completely overboard with our territorial display. My encrypted phone rang, sending me back to my office.
"Good morning, my beautiful target!"
"Good morning, handsome!" Gemma’s sultry voice made my pulse quicken. "I just returned from my workout and walked into a botanical paradise in my apartment."
"Did it meet with your approval, my goddess?" I asked, grinning stupidly.
"I absolutely loved it! They’re gorgeous. Though perhaps slightly overwhelming in presentation?" I could hear her smile through the phone.
"I might have gotten carried away with the power display."
"I loved every petal! Thank you so much!"
"My pleasure entirely. Listen, I cleared my afternoon surveillance for coffee with you. I want you to meet someone important, so wait for my signal."
"Absolutely! But who is this mysterious person you want me to meet?"
"You’ll discover that this afternoon."
"Alright then. I need to shower now. See you later."
"I’ll make a video call so you can take me into that shower with you."
"Absolutely not, you have operations to manage. Kisses, handsome."
Gemma disconnected, leaving me grinning like a complete fool. That’s when Hurricane Zoe stormed into my office with thunder in her expression.
"Did you soldiers decide to corner the entire city’s flower market or something?" Zoe’s cheerful mood had completely evaporated.
"What’s wrong, Zo?"
"Don’t play innocent with me, Dominic!" Zoe was practically snarling. "When exactly did you men coordinate this floral assault?"
"You didn’t appreciate the gesture?"
"I adore alstroemerias and lisianthus, what I despise is being manipulated, and you’re corrupting my prince!"
"Oh, Zo. Our intentions were purely honorable. We just wanted to claim our women properly."
"You met this morning, didn’t you? I know you did because my prince left our safe house at dawn."
"Yes, we met and organized the flower operation. But everything was done with honorable intentions."
"The road to hell," Zoe made quotation marks with her fingers, "is paved with good intentions! And red roses, Dominic, seriously?"
"I’ll tell you exactly what I told Xavier, my conquest of my target follows every classic intimidation rule in the book." I felt pleased with my choice. "And they weren’t ordinary roses, they were long-stemmed Colombian roses."
"Long is going to be your suffering if you hurt Gemma, consider yourself officially warned!" Zoe threatened before storming back to her intelligence station. This woman was absolutely lethal when protecting her assets!
