I let myself into the house and toss my keys onto the table in the foyer before kicking off my shoes and heading toward the bedroom. I stop in the doorway and lean against the wall, a slow grin lifting my lips when I see her lying on top of the sheet, stroking her breasts. She doesn’t break her gaze as her hands travel down her torso, halting right above her pussy.
“Don’t stop,” I grunt, stepping inside and stripping off my clothes as fast as humanly possible. “Let me see you touch yourself. I want to see you make yourself come.”
A sexy smile lifts her lips. “So you do want to watch. Good.”
She has no idea how sexy she is, how fucking turned on I am by the fact that she’s never done this before and wants to please me by giving herself to me in this way. I inch closer to the bed, unbuckling my pants as I walk. I climb on top of her, sitting on my heels. I put my hand over hers and slide it over her pussy. I grit my teeth, fighting every carnal urge to plow into her slick opening with my hard cock. A little more torture won’t kill me, although the ache runs very fucking deep, and I crave the release only she can give me.
I guide her finger over her clit, rubbing it slowly at first, letting the intensity build. Her body quakes with each flick, and I dip two fingers inside of her, sliding them in and out of her wet heat, soaked with her desire. Her breath hitches, and a tiny moan escapes her lips as she rubs it harder. I grasp my dick with my free hand and pump, squeezing and stroking as I watch her come undone. Her body quakes and quivers as the orgasm tears through her. She writhes under me, screaming for God. Fuck, I need to be inside of her right now. I want to feel that wet pussy blanket my dick. Precum glistens on my tip, and I rise on to my knees, clutching my throbbing cock.
Her eyes flutter open, and I drown in the lust-filled pools of blue. A deep pink stains her cheeks as her hand moves slowly toward my cock, her fingers snaking around the shaft. Every movement is tentative, as if she’s taking me out for a test drive. I just want her to jump into the driver’s seat and slam on the gas, but I need to be patient. She leans forward to take me into her mouth, gripping my ass as I thrust against her lips. They’re so tight around my dick, sucking and moaning and squeezing. She takes me deep, so deep that my swollen head hits the back of her throat...over and over and over. I slide three fingers into her pussy, the soft folds clamping around them. She pulls harder with those devious lips, teasing my slit with her tongue. She may not have done this before, but she’s a natural talent. I wonder what other hidden skills she’s saving for me.
I slide my hands down her slim torso, caressing her hips as I rock against her face. Her teeth nip the tip of my cock, and I let out a yelp.
“I’m so sorry!” she rasps.
“Just took me by surprise, babe. Don’t ever say you’re sorry. You’re fucking amazing,” I growl. “God, Shaye. I don’t know where you learned how to do this, but it feels incredible.”
She lets out a breathless giggle before taking me into her mouth again. My balls tighten, and I clench every muscle, desperate to keep the release from exploding out of me like Old Faithful. “Baby, I need to be inside of you. Now.”
My cock slips from her swollen lips and she gazes up at me, a sexy smile on her face. “Take me, Nico.”
I grab a condom packet from my nightstand and rip it open before rolling it on. I straddle her body with my knees, the head of my cock hovering at her entrance for mere seconds before I slowly push inside of her. She digs her nails into my back as I fill her, inch by inch. “Does that hurt?” I whisper against her hair.
She shakes her head, but her fingertips are still pressed tight into my flesh. I pause for a second and ease the rest of the way inside of her. My cock throbs with each thrust deeper. Her walls are so fucking tight around me, and she locks her ankles around me, urging my body to plunge farther.
It’s so damn easy to lose myself with her. I could let myself drift away so easily right now, never to return. She’s all I want, all I really—
“What in the ever-loving fuck are you doing?”
The crack of something hard against something decidedly harder makes me jump and roll off of Shaye. I cover her with my body and twist around to see Max holding the baseball bat I keep hidden by the front door. Occupational habit and all.
“Max, what the hell are you doing here?” I’m still covering Shaye, although judging from the menacing look on his face and the murderous look in his eyes, it’s pretty damn clear he spotted her car in the driveway.
“You motherfucking, backstabbing, sonofabitch!” Max creeps into the room, his hair sticking up in a million different directions as if he’s been tugging at it, trying to decide exactly how to murder me and make it look like an accident. He swings the bat, and Shaye screams, her fingernails digging into my arms.
Crash!
I let out a deep sigh. Fuck, I really liked that lamp. It was a commemorative one we’d gotten years ago at Shea Stadium for opening day. They’d beaten the Dodgers…actually, they crushed them. That made the lamp shine that much brighter.
Until tonight.
“Max, before you—"
And there goes my television. At least this one isn’t a wall-mounted plasma screen. I need to get that bat out of his hands before he wanders into my living room, or before he realizes my head is still fucking attached to my neck.
“Stop it, Max! You’re acting like a crazy person!” Shaye pulls the sheet up to her neck and pushes past me.
“Liar! You fucking lied to my face before!” He points the bat at her. “You haven’t seen anything yet, baby sister. Get the fuck out of that bed. Now! We’re leaving!”
“No.” Shaye doesn’t move. “I’m not going anywhere, Max.”
Max lets out a low growl that morphs into a scream, a sound that I’ve never actually heard a human make before. And the sound of the ceramic planter in the corner of the room shattering into a million pieces does nothing to drown it out. I need to get him out of here before that bat targets my skull.
I grab my boxers and slide them on under the sheet. I rise from the bed, hands up, and I move slowly toward him. He tosses the bat from hand to hand, his eyes narrowed, his chest heaving.
“Let’s go into the kitchen and talk.” I try to keep my voice calm as I inch closer to him and the bat.
“There isn’t much to talk about now, is there? The damage has already been done. You are gonna pay now.”
“Listen,” I drop my voice and place a tentative hand on his shoulder. “She’s a big girl, and she can make her own decisions.”
Max snickers and rakes a hand through his hair again, fisting it this time. He’s about ready to blow, which isn’t going to bode well for me or Shaye. “Oh, that. You think your little fuckfest is the reason why I’m here. Well, think again, cocksucker. I’m here because you betrayed me, brother. I’m here because you set me up to look like a complete fucking asshole to the entire organization. I’m here because you turned me into your little bitch, and now I have to stand by and watch that bastard Lucchese take my place and become your right hand!” He circles me, smashing the bat against the hardwood floor with each step. “I know everything. I know Santino came crying to you before, to give Rocco a chance to prove himself and how you said you’d take care of him.” He stops circling and faces me, his face only inches from mine. “After everything Rocco did, after Grandpa sent him packing, you’re just gonna erase all of that and help him get back on his feet? What the fuck are you getting out of this, Nico?”
My mouth opens, but no words come out. How in the fuck did he know any of that, unless…
The Bluetooth headset. It had been on my desk when Santino and I were talking. The switch must have been on, and Max would have heard every word if his earpiece had been in. Goddammit! That explains his mood at the club. I knew it was more than just Sloane.
“Max, I was going to tell you, but it’s not what—"
“It’s exactly what I think. I heard every fucking word, asshole. But I couldn’t beat the shit out of yo
u at your own club.” He slams the bat against the wall, smashing a hole into the sheet rock. “Not like I can here.” He swings the bat into a Bose speaker. “You don’t give a shit about anything but yourself! You make it look like you’re doing favors for people, but you know damn well why you do the shit you do. It’s all to line your pockets and protect your interests. You care about you. Period.”
“You have no fucking idea what you’re talking about.” I clench my fists, my chest tight. Of course, he doesn’t. His tirade proves that I’ve played my role so well, even my best friend can’t see through the smoke and mirrors. It means I’ve been hardened enough to focus on my goals and ignore anything that can distract me from reaching them. It means that I’ve successfully cast aside the things that mean the most to me. It means I’ve been successful, and I have absolutely nothing of value to show for it.
And the Oscar goes to…
“Don’t I?” He lets out a sinister laugh. “And you know what’s worse? Coming here to confront you and finding you fucking my little sister. She’s not one of your whores, dickhead. You can’t have her! You can’t have everything!” He swings the bat around toward me, and I duck just in time for him to connect not with my jaw but with a framed picture of the two of us on the desk. The frame crashes to the floor. But in true Max fashion, he doesn’t stop there. No, he pounds the fuck out of it, smashing the glass into tiny smithereens. “You’ve always had it all, and you’ve never been happy. It’s never enough. You always want more, and I’ve watched you take it, over and over again. I’m sick of watching, Nico. I’m done. I don’t want a goddamned thing from you ever again.”
He tosses the bat onto the floor and stomps out of the room. His feet pound on the hardwood, and the front door slams shut so hard the walls shudder. At least I still have most of my walls…always look for that silver lining.
I push back my hair and sink onto the edge of the bed.
“Nico,” Shaye whispers. I turn my head to find her clutching the sheet to her chest, her blue eyes wide. “What the hell was that all about?”
“He knows.” I fall backward onto the bed, my fingers pressed to my temples. “He fucking knows.”
“Uh, yeah. He definitely knows about us, Professor Obvious.” She creeps toward me, her eyes narrowed. “But there’s more, isn’t there? What was Max talking about? What do you have going on with Rocco?”
I peer up at her through my fingers. Christ, I hate like hell to admit to any of this shit. It goes against the code. But I can’t have her thinking that I’m fucking over her family. I’m not. If Max had just given me a chance to explain…I have a plan, a good one, dammit.
She inches closer, her fists clenching tighter. “And what does all of this have to do with the accident the other night? Who was in that car, Nico? Tell me the truth. I need to hear it from you.”
I let out a groan. “You think you do, but trust me, you don’t.”
“If you can’t be honest with me—"
“Shaye, do you really think I like carrying this shit inside of me? Not being able to talk to anyone about it because there are expectations I have to fulfill? Responsibilities to maintain?”
“I’m always here for you, Nico. Don’t shut me out.”
I lean on my elbows. “But I can’t bring you inside, babe. You think you know…but you don’t. You can’t.”
“I know enough. I’m not an idiot, Nico.”
“No, you aren’t.”
“So why can’t you just level with me? What the hell is going on and how are you involved?” Tears pool in her eyes. “We’re talking about my family, Nico. Don’t shut me out.”
She has no idea what she’s asking me to do right now. She thinks she’s gathering intel so she can protect her family, but if I tell her what she thinks she wants to hear, it’ll fuck everyone, myself included. “I can’t, Shaye. I’m sorry.”
“You’re a fucking asshole,” she seethes, the tears spilling over and streaming down her cheeks. She pushes me away and slides out of the bed in search of her clothes. “I can’t believe I trusted you for even a second. Max was right. You always come first. Tell me, how did you get so fucking good at talking out of both sides of your slimy mouth?”
I jump off the bed and grab her wrist. “Shaye, please. You have to understand my position. I’m trying to get shit in order before it all implodes.”
“What the hell does that even mean?” she shrieks, pulling her shirt over her head. “You know something about my family, and you won’t tell me how I can protect them!”
“Because you can’t, babe.” I put my hands on her shoulders. “You have to trust me. I’ll take care of everything.”
“That’s just the thing. I don’t know if I can. I can’t just sit around in the dark, waiting and wondering about every move you make, not with our families at odds like this. There’s too much bad blood, Nico.” She shrugs off my hands and runs a hand through her hair. “You’ll never put me first. My family will always be at the bottom of the food chain with you on top. I can’t…I can’t…” A sob explodes out of her mouth. “I can’t do this. I thought we could figure things out and find a way to make it work, but you’ll never walk away from your responsibilities. It’s not the kind of guy you are. You always do what’s expected of you. And the people you’re going to look out for…they’re not my people, they’re yours. You asked me to trust you but trust works both ways, Nico.”
“Don’t do this.” My voice drops, cracking a bit. Another fucking sign of weakness. Each word twists the knife in my chest, slicing away at what remains in the hollow space where my heart once was. For a fleeting moment in time, I had it all.
And now I’m back to square one where I have nothing that matters.
Respect, money, houses, expensive toys — yeah, great. It’s nothing that I want and everything that I have.
I stand back while she zips up her black boots, unable to say anything to make her stay. I can’t. I need to fix this organization. That’s my job. There is no out for me. I am the job. It’s my legacy to fulfill. I didn’t ask for this life, it was given to me. I have to accept it or die. Those are my options, and as much as I want Shaye by my side, I have to do my job, a job she’ll never understand. A job she’ll always fear. A job that will always come first.
The hurt and devastation in her eyes pierces my soul. With a final, pained glance over her shoulder, she grabs her handbag from the hall table, and walks out of my house.
The door slams shut for the second time, closing the chapter on a love story that was never meant to be told.
Shaye
Great. Exactly the way I planned to spend New Year’s Eve. Pissed off and alone.
I press my foot on the gas pedal, the engine roaring as my car gathers speed. I pull onto the entrance of the New Jersey Turnpike, not knowing where I’m even headed at this hour. I can’t go home. Max will probably be there with a knife, waiting to skin me alive for getting involved with Nico.
And my parents... God, what the hell is going to become of us? This life, so full of superficial bullshit, it’s toxic to the touch. And once you get sucked in, there’s no path out. Not unless you’re in a body bag.
They think I don’t know. And Lord, I wish I didn’t. But when you listen a bit too long, watch a little too long, and hear a bit too much, it’s not too difficult to piece together the complex jigsaw puzzle of this all-consuming existence. I don’t have it all figured out, but it’s enough to remind me that danger is lurking in every corner. Grandpa Vito had things under his tight control, but now things are at risk of falling apart.
That’s all I need to know.
Nico is on the hook for making sure that doesn’t happen, and my family is the enemy. He’s pretending to help Max, but it’s only to keep him close and under control.
I’m not stupid. I know how this game is played.
Hell, he probably fucked me to get me close, too. Maybe to give him leverage against my dad.
I slam my hands on the steering
wheel as the car flies past the next exit. He told me he loved me. I gave him everything I have, and he gave me lip service. Literally and figuratively.
Well, that and an inordinate number of mind-numbing orgasms. Shivers of pleasure ripple through my insides despite the anger bubbling in my veins.
I remove my foot from the gas and pull off the next exit. My car slows at the red light off the ramp, and I squeeze my eyes shut for a brief second. I need to find my brother. He may not be the most stable of people, but things can go downhill very fast if he’s left to his own devices.
Nico has plenty of security people watching over the club, and I’m pretty sure Max wouldn’t go back into the city at this hour. My phone buzzes on the passenger seat and my eyes fly open.
It’s Nico. Well, fuck him, I’ve got bigger fish to fry right now. Like how I’m going to stop the demise of my family.
The phone buzzes again…and again…and again.
My fingertips are almost numb from clutching the steering wheel so tight. But I know the second I loosen my grip, they’ll be tempted to stab the Accept button on my screen. Traitors.
The light finally turns green, and I turn right down an unlit service road. Northern Jersey has its fair share of these types of roads because of all of the factories and delightfully scented refineries that occupy the upper part of the state. I realized a bit too late that I’d ended up in kind of a crap hole area because I was more focused on the salacious memories of Nico’s lips all over my body.
I glance at the clock on the dashboard. 11:15 PM. Dammit, I should be back in Nico’s bed, cuddling under the sheets, drunk on champagne, and pure, unadulterated ecstasy. Not the drug…the sensation, of course.
A sensation I fear I’ll never experience again since our party is officially over. Over before it ever got in full swing.
I squint in the darkness and flick on my brights, illuminating at least some of the pavement in front of me. I ease my foot off the gas since I can’t see anything on either side of the road. It’s damn-near pitch black, and you never can tell when an animal is going to prance across the road.
Screwing the Mob Page 14