by Huss, JA
Well, used to be. I guess that’s over now.
I really hate him for ruining our good thing. I’m seriously pissed that he’s fucking all this up.
But I take a deep breath and absently wander towards the edge of the dining room. And who the hell do I see?
Tony Dumas. Having… dinner? With Soshee Ameci.
“What the fuck?” I mutter.
They’re both laughing. Staring into each other’s eyes from across a table near the window. Two wine bottles and a dessert plate between them with remnants that look like they might’ve been the famous Ameci Chocolate Lava Cake.
Tony leans across the table and swipes his finger over Soshee’s lip, like she had a drip of chocolate there, and then he licks his fingertip.
I gag and turn away.
Vann is wrong about Tony and me. We actually do hate each other. It’s just… hate sex is… hot.
I’m not jealous of Soshee. I’m not. He can flirt with her all he wants. I do not care.
But the reason I don’t care is because I know he wants to fuck me. He followed me home last night. He kissed me. And we would’ve fucked—right there, against the garage—if I hadn’t stopped him.
And if I wanted to, I could walk over to that table and make Tony ignore Soshee Ameci.
The front door jingles and I turn to look.
Vann walks in.
“I thought you weren’t hungry?” I ask.
But his eyes immediately dart to the table near the window where Tony sits with Soshee. He stares at them for a moment, frowning. And I can’t tell if he’s frowning about Soshee or Tony.
Then, for the first time since he dropped me off on Mulberry Street, he looks at me. “What the fuck is going on there?” He nods his head towards Tony and Soshee.
“Don’t know, don’t care,” I say, turning my back to him and walking back to the takeout counter. “Why are you here, Vann?”
“Because I came out of the fucking shop and saw them staring at me through the window. I think she’s trying to make me jealous.”
I scoff. “You don’t even like Soshee. What do you care?”
He doesn’t answer me right away. So I turn back to him, trying to get a look at his arm, curious about the tattoo he’s been working on all afternoon. But he’s got the whole inside of his forearm covered in Saniderm and the edge of his long-sleeve thermal shirt has slid down to cover it.
He’s not looking at Soshee and Tony anymore. He’s looking right at me.
He says nothing. I say nothing. And the moment becomes awkward immediately.
“What?” I finally ask.
He glances at Tony and Soshee, who are now looking at us, then glances back at me with electric-blue eyes all lit up with… what? Anger? Excitement? Longing? “I think you two deserve each other,” he says.
“Really? Why’s that?”
“Because you both like to play games.” Then he takes a step towards me. Several steps, actually. Until he’s so close I have to tip my head up to keep our eyes locked. Suddenly his fingertips are threading through my hair, gently touching my scalp.
And then he leans down and kisses me. Right on the lips.
I’m stunned, and embarrassed, and unable to pull away.
So I kiss him back.
His mouth opens and I respond by opening mine. And the next thing I know our tongues are twisting together, and we are making out in the waiting area of Anna Ameci’s Restaurant.
He pulls back first. Grins at me. Touches his lips with the tip of two fingers as he smiles.
“What the hell was that?” I whisper.
“You’re gonna make a big mistake, Belinda.” He whispers this back at me softly, no anger in his voice. “Very fucking soon. I just want to make sure you know what you passed up when that happens.”
He turns away and walks out of the restaurant.
“Here we go!” Annabelle says, plopping a brown takeaway bag on the counter. “Sorry for the wait. You’re all set, Belinda. I’ve put it on the Sick Boyz tab.”
I look over at the dining room and see Tony glaring at me. He gets to his feet.
And I’m like… nope. No fucking way am I in the mood for the fight that’s coming. I’m not able to process what just happened and if Tony Dumas thinks he can force me into some kind of public emotional outburst when he confronts me, he’s mistaken.
I grab the bag and head for the door, calling out, “Thank you,” to Annabelle as I push through it. And then I head across the street.
But there’s a brand-new crowd of freaking college girls blocking the doorway, all of them gazing up at Vann Vaughn like he’s some kind of hot Colorado tattoo god, so I head into the alley, walking fast, trying to buy myself some time to figure out what just happened.
I round the corner to the back alley and duck into the little alcove that houses the back door to Sick Boyz, press my back against the bricks and… breathe.
Wow. That kiss was…
Wow.
And that’s when Tony Dumas comes into view. His mouth a flat, angry line. His eyes dark with heat. His chest heaving through his tight t-shirt as he breathes through whatever feelings are coursing through his blood. “What the fuck was that?”
“What are you doing here? Won’t your new girlfriend wonder where you’re at?”
“Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?”
I scoff. “You wish. I don’t give one flying fuck about who you have dinner with, Tony.”
“It wasn’t dinner. It was lunch.”
I scoff again.
“That’s right,” he says, coming into the alcove towards me, getting way too close to me. So close that I can smell the familiar, sexy scent of his body. “We spent the entire day together. Laughing and talking like normal people.” He lowers his voice. “Flirting.” He’s so close now he reaches up and rests his hand against the side of my face. “She won’t turn me away when I try to fuck her later.”
“Good for you,” I say, pushing him back. I clap my hands together. Slowly. Like he’s special and deserves this mocking accolade. “She’s in love with Vann, by the way. So whatever you get from her is just sloppy seconds.”
“Hmm.” He smiles at me with tight lips. “I’d believe that. If I thought he was fucking her. Which he isn’t. So no, sorry. She appears to be all mine.”
“You can have her. No one cares, Tony.”
“Except you.”
“No.” I laugh. “I do not care who you fuck.”
“No?” he says, once again taking a step forward. His fingertips reach for the edge of my t-shirt and he pulls me towards him until my breasts bump up against his chest.
“No,” I whisper back. And it’s the truth. I do not have room in my head for Tony right now. That’s not what’s on my mind in this moment. At all.
My thoughts are consumed by Vann.
But, for some reason I can’t quite articulate, this time, when Tony kisses me on the mouth the way he did last night… this time I do not push him away.
CHAPTER SEVEN - TONY
Soshee is a love-game mastermind. I bow to her.
We get lost in conversation as we sit across the street from Sick Boyz Ink waiting for the night to be over so we can stalk our respective targets and bully them into something yet unknown.
I’m pretty sure she’s picturing herself fucking Vann Vaughn tonight.
I know I’m picturing myself with Belinda. I want to do deliciously dirty things to her. Not romantic things. Nothing about what I’m doing here has anything to do with romance.
It’s pure hate-fucking.
I want to put my hand up to her throat and feel her swallow.
I want to yank her jeans down to her knees and fuck her up against a brick wall.
I want to bite her lip when I kiss her and make her whine.
I want to bang her and then walk away, satisfied that I got what I came for.
And then I want to go home a free man. Forget all about Belinda Baker just like I forgot all about Rosali
e Thompson ten years ago.
My obsession with Rosalinda will be over. Tonight. I’m going to make sure of it. And Soshee has agreed to help me.
So when we see Belinda come out of Sick Boyz and head towards Anna Ameci’s we make a plan. I will confront Belinda as she waits to pick up her food. And then Soshee will slip across the street and confront Vann.
What we didn’t expect was for Vann to follow Belinda over here.
And that kiss he gave her, in full view of both me and Soshee? We didn’t see that one coming either.
My body is hot with rage and anger when he kisses Belinda. They share some kind of moment. Here, in front of everyone. Vann leaves. Belinda watches him… and the look on her face?
What the fuck is that look? What does it mean?
She glances at me and I get to my feet. But she’s out the door before I can move.
“We’re on,” Soshee says. Then she points to the window and we both watch Belinda cross the street towards Sick Boyz. But Vann is standing out front of the tattoo shop with a group of college girls, so Belinda darts into the alley to avoid him.
“You take the back,” Soshee says. “I’ll take the front.”
And like a dream team in the game of let’s-use-each-other-to-get-what-we-want, Soshee and I exit Anna Ameci’s and cross the street. Vann is inside now, and she follows him through the front doors, glancing over her shoulder at me just long enough to wink.
I slip in the alley, wondering if Sick Boyz locks the back door. Wondering if Belinda will be in the break room or already back at her station in the waiting area.
But I don’t need to wonder long, because she’s not inside when I round the corner to the back of the building.
She’s leaning against the brick wall like… like she needs a moment to catch her breath.
Is she swooning?
I just stare at her, my body numb with feelings I’m currently unable to describe, but for some reason the word unraveling comes to mind.
I ravel back up and say, “What the fuck was that?”
Belinda shoots me a face of pure contempt. “What are you doing here? Won’t your new girlfriend wonder where you’re at?”
“Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?” I laugh.
She scoffs back at me. “You wish. I don’t give one flying fuck about who you have dinner with, Tony.”
“It wasn’t dinner. It was lunch.”
And even though she tries to play it off, she doesn’t quite manage it.
“That’s right,” I say, walking forward into the little alcove. I get close to her. Way too close. So close I get the urge to lean in to her neck and smell the sweet scent of her botanical shampoo. But I’m not unraveling. I’m in control now. So I say, “We spent the entire day together. Laughing and talking like normal people.” I lower my voice to a throaty growl. “Flirting.” I’m so close now I can reach up and rest my hand against the side of her face. “She won’t turn me away when I try to fuck her later.”
“Good for you,” Belinda says, pushing me back. And she starts to clap. Slowly. In a mocking way. “She’s in love with Vann, by the way. So whatever you get from her is just sloppy seconds.”
“Hmm.” My lips press together as I force a smile. “I’d believe that. If I thought he was fucking her. Which he isn’t. So no, sorry. She appears to be all mine.”
“You can have her. No one cares, Tony.”
“Except you.”
“No,” she huffs. “I do not care who you fuck.”
“No?” I ask, getting even closer to her. My fingertips reach for the edge of her t-shirt and I pull her towards me until her breasts bump up against my chest.
“No,” she whispers back.
And even though I am the one who commands her full attention right now, I can just tell her mind is on something else.
No. Not something. Someone.
She’s thinking about him. That kiss. The way she… swooned. Because that’s what I just caught her doing.
She didn’t dart behind the building to avoid Vann at the front door to the shop. She went to the back door so she could have a moment to herself. To relive that kiss in her head before she shook it off and had to join the rest of us in the real world again.
I snap my fingers. “Eyes up here, Rosalie.”
“Don’t call me that.” Her eyes blaze as she spits these words up at me.
I press my body against her with a little more force, grind my hips a little. “Changing your name won’t change who you are, Belinda.”
“I didn’t just change my name. I changed my life, Tony.”
“I don’t really care what you call yourself. I’m happy to go along with the lie. But when I’m standing in front of you, I need your attention on me.”
“What do you want? Do you even know why you’re here? I didn’t invite you. I didn’t lead you on back in Key West, I didn’t flirt with you, I didn’t hang around like a lonely little puppy waiting for her master to take notice.”
“No. You left.”
“And that pisses you off, doesn’t it?”
She’s got me there.
“Hmm.” She smiles, averting her eyes. As if not looking at me can hide the smirk.
I take a step back, let go of her shirt. She glances up at me with a tight frown. “OK,” I say. “You want me to go home, Rosalie? I can do that.”
“Oh, can you?” She scoffs. “If that were the case you wouldn’t be here in the first place. If that were the case, you wouldn’t be following me around like a creepy stalker. If that were the case—”
“So why don’t you just let me fuck you, get it all out of my system, and I’ll be on my way?”
“Oh.” She laughs. “Oh.” She points at me. “You are the biggest douchebag I’ve ever met.”
“Then why are you still standing here? Hm? That bag of food is getting cold. Be a good Girl Friday and take it inside to your masters. Such a fucking amazing career you have going here. I’m so proud of you.”
She slaps me. “Fuck you, Tony.”
My hand comes up to my cheek to feel the heat and sting of the slap. I grin at her and she makes a face. But she doesn’t push me away and she doesn’t go inside. She stays right where she is.
So I step closer once again. My fingertips find the edge of her shirt. But this time, I don’t hesitate. I palm the soft skin of her stomach and slide my hands up to her breasts, grabbing the edge of her bra and pulling it down so her tits bounce out.
She sucks in a breath. But that’s the only signal she sends me.
It’s enough. Practically a “yes.” Pretty much a “keep going.”
I lean in to her neck and whisper, “You like this, don’t you?” Her shoulders bunch up like I just gave her a chill. “You like this sick game we play. You can’t get enough, can you?” One hand slides down to lift the edge of her skirt. I pause for a moment, my fingertips caressing her thigh, my head slightly cocked so I can see the side of her face.
I wait for her to stop me before I move forward.
She doesn’t stop me. She bites her lip and begins to breathe faster, staring straight ahead, eyes fixed on some unknown point across the alley.
“Mmm-hmm,” I hum. “You like it.”
“It’s got nothing to do with ‘like,’ Tony. It’s…” But she doesn’t finish.
“It’s OK,” I say, nibbling on the edge of her ear. She bunches her shoulders up again. Shakes her head. “I feel it too. I’m not here because I want you, Rosalinda. I’m here because I need you. You’re my sick obsession. I weaned myself off of you almost a decade ago. Had you sent away. Got over it. Forgot about you. Rosalie who?” I laugh a little and she turns her head away from me, exposing her neck. I kiss it. Softly. Tenderly. I can be that guy. But with this girl, it’s just another trick I’ve learned over the years. “But then you came back. And it was like… taking that first drink after being sober and the addiction coming back unwanted. Trust me, I’m not here for you. I’m here for me.”
He
r jaw clenches as she takes in these words. She presses her lips together and inhales a breath through her nose. “So I’m your fix? Is that it?”
“That’s it.”
“And you’re gonna… what? Fuck me right here? In the alley?”
“Well, I would’ve gotten over it last night in a more private place, but you stopped me.”
“You’re not going to leave me alone until you get what you came for?”
I kiss her neck again. This time she doesn’t fight it. She drops her head to her opposite shoulder in an act of submission. I kiss my way down her neck until I reach her clavicle. I nip the tender skin and she hisses in a breath.
“Just give in completely,” I whisper. “And then it will be over.”
“You promise?” She turns her head to look at me. We’re so close I can see the little swirls of green and gold in her hazel eyes. I lean in and kiss her mouth. It becomes soft and pliable immediately. A completely different reaction than the one she had last night.
I don’t promise her anything. The time for talking is over now. We’ve gone past the point of no return.
My fingers leave her thigh and slip between her legs. I massage her pussy through her panties for a moment, getting them all wet.
She leans back into the brick wall of the alcove, closing her eyes and enjoying it.
I smile. Got you.
And then I push her panties aside and slip two fingers into her pussy. She arches her back and raises her chin like she’s about to pray to some unknown god to make her come.
“Look at me, Belinda. I’m the god in control of your orgasm now.”
She takes a deep breath. I continue to play between her legs. And then she opens her eyes and stares straight into mine, her hand in motion now too. Popping the button on my jeans and dragging the zipper down in two quick movements.
I laugh. I can’t help it. I knew she wouldn’t be able to resist me.
A moment later she’s got my cock out, pumping it with a tight fist. I withdraw my fingers from her pussy and grab her ass, lifting her up and pressing her against the wall. Her legs wrap around mine immediately. Like they belong there. Like we’ve done this hundreds of times before.