by Bella J.
“Lorik.” I took hold of his elbow, but he didn’t move an inch. I placed my other hand on his arm and tried my best to urge him back. “Lorik, please.”
At first, he didn’t budge, but then he relaxed a little and took a tiny step back.
“Well, I never thought I’d see the day Detective Stone backed away from confrontation.”
Everyone turned simultaneously, and there stood this creepy-looking guy with a beer in his hand, a smug grin showing off a gold filling between his two front teeth.
Enzio’s eyes widened as he looked at Lorik. “Detective?” Then he looked at me with knowing eyes. I ignored it and tightened my grip on Lorik’s elbow.
“Fuck off, Gio.” Antonio stepped forward. “Take your cheap-ass beer and move the fuck along, you low-life piece of shit.”
Enzio didn’t say a word, but I noticed him nodding slightly at this Gio guy before the weirdo disappeared into the crowd.
“Dating a detective now, hey, Karina?” Enzio sneered while he straightened the collar of his gray suit.
I was just about to correct him, to tell him Lorik and I weren’t dating, when Lorik loosened his elbow from my grip and placed it firmly around my waist, pulling me against his side. My breath hitched, and I almost stumbled over my own damn feet.
“What happens between me and Karina is absolutely in no fucking way any of your business, Mancuso.” Lorik tightened his hold around my waist. I tried my best to ignore the heat that flared where our bodies touched. It spread all the way up to my chest, and I felt my neck and cheeks flush almost instantly. Flusher.
Enzio narrowed his eyes as he glanced from me to Lorik, and then down to where Lorik’s hand rested on my hip. I didn’t know if it was just the tension and angst that currently swirled all around us, but I was pretty sure I saw Enzio’s nostrils flare, his lips moving like he was biting the inside of his cheek.
Was he jealous? Of course not. The thought was completely absurd, since Enzio Mancuso was incapable of feeling anything for anyone. And for him to be jealous would mean he had to feel something. Again, absurd.
Enzio looked back up at me and smiled maliciously. “I guess once you’ve experienced the thrill of breaking the rules, you’ll always crave that exhilaration, won’t you…little lamb?”
The moment those words came out of his mouth, it felt like every drop of blood drained from my body. Shudders wracked through me as my legs grew weak. If it weren’t for Lorik gripping me so tightly against him, I would have been flat on my ass on the floor.
Little lamb. Hearing him say those two words was more painful than I ever could have imagined. And the way he said it, the amusement in his tone, was like he was out to remind me how easy it was for him to trick me—to hurt me.
At that very moment, I was so consumed with hate, and hurt, and disgust, that every ugly emotion this man had stirred inside me drove me to do the unthinkable. I loosened myself from Lorik’s grip and stepped right up to Enzio, keeping my gaze locked on his like I was somehow able to convey my hate for him simply by looking him in the eye.
That damn arrogant smirk remained on his wicked, cruel face, and all I could think about was how much I despised him.
“Why don’t you do the world a favor, Enzio, and go fuck yourself.” As if my words weren’t enough, I slapped the son of a bitch right across the face.
Gasps erupted all around me as his face jerked to the side, but I didn’t give a shit. I didn’t care that I just bitch-slapped Enzio Mancuso. All I cared about was somehow letting him feel just a shred of the pain he had caused me so many years ago.
Enzio placed his palm over his cheek and glared back at me. The threat in his eyes was clear. I had stepped over the line, and there was no way he’d let that go unpunished. But I didn’t even see it coming. It happened so fast—Enzio lifting his right hand and aiming at my face.
“Karina!” Antonio grabbed my elbow and pulled me back.
Lorik lunged forward, grabbed Enzio’s arm, and twisted it around his back before slamming him face first against the wall.
The entire club had come to a standstill as they watched the chaos erupt.
Enzio’s idiot squad all reached for their guns, but then Dante, who appeared out of nowhere, and Antonio both pointed guns at them. Dear God, complete anarchy had broken out in a matter of minutes. Weapons were loaded and aimed, and Lorik had Enzio’s face pushed against a wall.
The music stopped abruptly, and all I could hear was my heart rampantly beating inside my chest. Everyone was looking at us, but no one dared to make a move, to challenge our family or the Mancusos. This wasn’t the kind of war anyone wanted to be a part of.
Enzio struggled against the grip Lorik had on his arms, but Lorik just pressed harder against him. My heart was a millisecond away from exploding.
Lorik leaned closer to Enzio’s face. “You listen to me, you worthless cocksucker. You better stay the fuck away from Karina, or you’ll have me to deal with.”
“Are you threatening me?” Enzio spat out with his cheek glued to the wall.
“You bet your ugly Italian fucking ass I am. If you value those tiny shriveled balls of yours, you’ll pretend this woman doesn’t even exist. And if I suspect you’re anywhere near her, I will cut out your testicles, shove them down your throat, and then piss on your goddamn forehead. You feel me?”
Oh, Jesus Christ. What the hell was Lorik doing?
Dante grabbed Lorik by the shoulder and pulled him back. All I could do was stand to the side and watch as Lorik dragged himself into the middle of my mess. Why would he do that? Why would he defend me? Against Enzio Mancuso, of all people. I had no idea if I found that unbelievably foolish, or extremely hot. By the way Lorik’s brown eyes turned a dark, gloomy black as he continued to glare at Enzio, I’d say it was the latter. About ten minutes ago, Lorik was a very attractive detective. Now he was an incredibly sexy, hot as hell man who would cause my panties to hit the floor in record time. What was it about men getting all protective and turning into alpha males over a woman that had females swooning and dropping underwear like they were on fire?
Enzio dusted off his jacket and straightened his collar while the rest of his entourage flocked around him. Funny how a man with a crew of minions still got face planted against a wall by one very determined man. And by the way that Enzio glowered at Lorik then turned his stare of death on me, he knew he was about three seconds away from getting his ass handed to him.
Good news—now Enzio knew to be more careful about just tossing his arrogant comments around. Bad news—Enzio wouldn’t let this go that easily. I was one hundred and sixteen percent sure Enzio would want Lorik’s head on a stick by this time next week.
Shit.
Enzio’s stare settled on me, and I could feel it slither over my body. “A detective, Karina? That’s a new low, even for you.”
Lorik jerked forward, but Dante kept a tight hold on him. All I could do was look back at Enzio without saying a word. It was my own fault. I brought this all onto myself by falling for his lies years ago. Even though I’d like to, I couldn’t put all the blame on Enzio. Yes, he was an asshole with no heart, but I had my own damn stupidity to blame too. I guessed I should be thankful he hadn’t used my past against me—yet.
Enzio let out a maniacal laugh before walking off. With his back toward me, I finally managed to take a breath.
When Dante let go of Lorik, I walked up to him. My initial intention wasn’t to lash out at him. But the minute I got close and stared into his eyes, I couldn’t help myself. I started poking my finger right in the middle of his chest as I stepped forward, forcing him to step back. “What the hell were you thinking? Do you have a goddamn death wish, Detective?”
“Are you kidding me?” Lorik pointed in Enzio’s direction. “That fucker was basically begging me to kick his ass.”
“So what, you just go around kicking every arrogant prick’s ass who happens to come your way?”
He paused and narrowed his eyes. “Is th
at a trick question?”
“Oh, my God! You are the most stubborn, hot-headed guy I have ever met.”
“Compared to who?”
“What?”
He rubbed his jaw. “You said I’m the most stubborn, hot headed—”
“I know what I said, goddammit.” Why am I so damn angry?
“So, who are you comparing me to when you say that?”
“Jesus. What does it matter?”
“Karina?” Lorik kept his gaze locked on mine.
“What?”
He arched a brow. “Why are you acting so crazy right now?”
“I don’t fucking know!” I pulled my palm down my face.
And then the corners of Lorik’s mouth started to slowly creep up into a smug grin. The darkness in his eyes disappeared, replaced with an impish glint as he stared at me. It was like he just realized he knew something I didn’t.
“Can I get you a drink?” He was still smiling, and all my focus was drawn to his mouth, full lips making me wonder what they would taste like. How they would feel pressed hard against mine. What was I thinking? A few minutes ago, we were in the middle of a situation which could have ended in mayhem and bloodshed. Yet here I was, thinking about how it would feel to have Lorik’s tongue down my throat. Nice.
A voice came from behind me. “Karina.”
Fuck.
I turned slowly, knowing there were two very protective and probably very angry Italian men waiting for me to explain what the hell just happened.
“Antonio,” I started, but he held up his hand, silencing me like a damn child.
“Get your stuff. We’re leaving. Now.” He turned and stomped off.
Dante glanced over my shoulder at Lorik then his gaze settled back on me. “A cop?”
I shook my head. “It’s not what you think, Dante.”
“What am I thinking, Karina, huh?”
“Enzio was being an asshole. Lorik was just—”
“Just what? Acting like the jealous boyfriend?”
“No. Of course not.”
“It sure fucking looked that way.”
The second Lorik stepped up behind me, I felt him. All my senses tuned in to him, and my entire body reacted. My fingers craved to touch him. My skin hungered to be touched by him. And my thighs longed to be wrapped around his waist while my body welcomed him inside. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to get my racing hormones under control. It wasn’t exactly the right time for me to be horny.
“Listen, man,” Lorik started, but I spun around and held up my hand.
“Just…please. Leave it alone, okay? You’ve done enough.” I didn’t look at him. I didn’t even breathe because I was too afraid my body would betray me by showing exactly how he affected me. His scent, his presence, those damn eyes—it all teamed up in a bid to lure me in like a damn fish on a hook. It was embarrassing, really, to have a man affect me like this so damn easily.
He didn’t say a word—thank God—so I turned and stomped past Dante, heading up the stairs to get my stuff as per instruction by my control-freak brother.
This night literally got sucked into a big black hole of giant fuck-ups. I should have listened to my instincts and stayed at home. And I needed to stay away from Detective Stone—far away.
Chapter 9
LORIK
That certainly went well. Not. Clearly, this entire night did not go according to plan. My plan was to sit at the far end of the bar and quietly observe the Valentis. All I wanted was to try to get a new piece to the puzzle of what the fuck was happening in this town.
Ending up watching Karina—and only her—for bulk of the evening was not part of the plan. And neither was talking to her, or almost kissing her in the middle of a damn nightclub filled with hundreds of people. But I couldn’t help myself. She demanded all my attention the second she walked through those goddamn doors.
There was something about her that made me want to be close to her. And that something left me no choice but to approach her. The moment I was near her, feeling her breath on my skin, I fell under her spell.
And her scent? Dear Lord, that sweet smell of honey and vanilla made me crave to taste her. Fuck a nibble, and fuck just a sample of her full lips and sensual body, I wanted to completely devour her until there was nothing left. All I could think about when I stared into her dark eyes was how badly I wanted to take everything she had to offer and make it mine by marking her, by fucking her until my name was engraved into her goddamn soul. And something told me that was exactly what she wanted too—to be claimed. Until that jackass Enzio decided to show his ugly face.
What I really didn’t plan on doing was shoving Enzio Mancuso’s face into a damn wall. But the son of a bitch pressed all the wrong damn buttons. And what really got to me was seeing the effect his assholery had on Karina. It was clear as fucking daylight every word that came out of Enzio’s mouth rattled her, and for that reason alone I wanted to tear the fucker apart.
The question was, why would I feel the need to do that? Why did it bother me so much that Karina seemed to have a history with Enzio? Obviously, something happened between them. It didn’t take a detective’s intuition to figure that one out. But whatever happened caused some pretty deep scars for Karina, that was for sure.
And because I had to act all chivalrous like a knight in shining fucking armor, I managed to get my ass right in the middle of this mess. A cop associated with a mafia princess might as well walk around with a big, red flashing sign over his head saying, “Here I am. Kick my ass, fuckers.”
And why the hell had she acted that way? Like I was the one who did something to piss her off?
“Fuck!” I almost knocked a tray of shooters out of a waitress’s hands. “Shit, sorry.” I helped steady her and ignored the stare of death she shot me.
My sweeping gaze found Karina on the top floor. Antonio and Dante were already descending the stairs, and it was painfully obvious Antonio was extremely pissed off. And why wouldn’t he be? The first thing you learned in Mafia 101 was never to fraternize with the enemy, which in this case was Enzio Mancuso. And then there was that shitty rule of not having any kind of relations with a cop, and after what went down, I was pretty sure Antonio and Dante were under the impression there was something going on between me and Karina. Which there wasn’t…was there?
My gaze was glued to Karina as she made her way down the stairs. I knew I should let her leave, that I should back the hell off. But there was a very insistent idiot inside me who kept pushing me, gnawing at my goddamn spine to pursue her until I was buried balls deep inside her.
Everything about her triggered an uncontrollable animalistic urge in me to spread her legs and feel her pleasure gushing down my thighs. I wanted to make her shudder and scream. I wanted her clawing at my back as my cock forced her to come violently, until all she could see was fucking stars.
I pushed my hand through my hair and took a deep breath, trying to convey the message to my cock that now was not the time to stand at fucking attention. There was more important shit right now than creaming some Italian princess’s pussy.
I continued to watch Karina, my gaze moving to the exposed insides of her thighs as she took each step. The closer she got, the harder I got.
Seriously, I needed to focus. I needed to forget about this woman and the raging lust she managed to stir in my pants whenever she was near me. I needed to ignore this crazy, intense sexual attraction I had for her. But as she came within two feet of me, our eyes met, her dark irises telling me everything I was feeling was mutual.
Fuck this shit. I couldn’t let her go. I needed more of her.
I reached out and grabbed her wrist. It all happened so damn fast there was no time for her to fight the hold I had on her.
She yelped, and I dragged her behind me through the crowd, thinking I loved the way her hand felt in mine. Finally, we were around the corner out of sight, and the second her back hit the wall, her wild gaze locked onto mine. With one ha
nd planted firmly against the wall above her shoulder, and the other hand gripping her elbow, I leaned in and brought my lips mere inches from hers.
“Mind telling me what’s going on between you and Mancuso?”
“There’s nothing to tell.”
“Judging by what just happened, I’d say that’s one hell of a lie.”
Her delicious-looking mouth turned up into a tiny grin. “Detective Stone, are you jealous?”
“No.” Yes.
She bit her bottom lip, and I was about three seconds away from losing my shit and fucking her right there against the damn concrete wall, giving a whole new meaning to kinky exhibitionism.
Karina arched her back, bringing her chest closer to me, and not even God himself could stop my gaze from dropping to her cleavage. Two full, round, beautiful pieces of flesh pushed up from her dress, giving me a glimpse of what lay hidden beneath. Now I was the one biting my lip, since I couldn’t help thinking what it would feel like to push my cock through that slit between her tits.
“You’re staring.” She stated the obvious.
“I am.”
“At my breasts.”
“Yes.” I didn’t even try to deny it. She could have punched me in the face for my brutal honesty, but I didn’t care. It would so be worth it.
“Lorik?”
I tore my gaze away from those glorious globes of perfection, and her dark chocolate eyes locked onto mine. “What are you doing, Lorik?”
“You know what I’m doing.”
“You should stop.”
“Why?”
She let out a breath. “Because it’s wrong.”
“Says who?”
“Says me.”
I dropped my hand to her hip and squeezed slightly. “Karina, you can’t tell me you don’t feel it too.”
She lifted her chin. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
I tightened my grip some more. “So, your pulse isn’t racing right now with me standing this close to you?”