by Mia Knight
“Um, no,” Lyla said and shot a look at Steven who didn’t react to his brother’s barbs. Was he transgender?
“Your name?” the attractive brother asked.
“Lyla,” she said without extending her hand. She didn't know what to think of these brothers.
“Lyla, you’re beautiful.”
"You’re not so bad yourself,” she said curtly.
Rafael grinned roguishly. “I try. You here with someone?”
That brought her back to reality with an unpleasant jolt. “Yes.”
“Pity,” he said and finally let his eyes roam over her. “You’ll give me a call when you’re free?”
When he reached into his pocket for his phone, she shook her head. “I don’t have a phone and... I have to get going.”
“You don’t have a phone?”
She shrugged as she grabbed the drinks. “That’s the honest truth.” She spotted Carmen making her way to the restroom and smiled at Rafael. “Thank you for the drinks.”
“Anytime,” Rafael said.
In the bathroom, Lyla was mortified to find that her white dress was nearly see through. A moment later, she shrugged. She was more covered up than most of these women and this was Vegas. Innumerable people touched her ass on the dance floor, so who cared if they got an eyeful of her body? Lyla was sipping her drink when the brunette she sent to Gavin bustled into the bathroom and squealed.
“He’s so nice!” she said as she rushed towards Lyla. “He offered me a job.”
Lyla choked on her drink. “What?”
“He said I have a good face and body. He wanted to know if I had a job and if I wanted to be a hostess at one of his restaurants. You didn’t tell he me he’s Gavin Pyre. Oh. My. God.”
“Wait, so he didn’t hit on you?” Lyla demanded.
The brunette gave a one shoulder shrug. “He said I was beautiful, but it was more like he was sizing me up. He asked if I had references and gave me the number of a restaurant manager. I have an interview tomorrow!” At Lyla’s dumbfounded expression, the brunette said, “Well, maybe he’s not a cheater anymore. Why would you want him to be? He seems like a great guy.”
No, no, no! Lyla glared at Carmen who was laughing her head off. Lyla downed her drink and wished the brunette luck before she made her way back to the bar to order two more frothy drinks. Rafael and Steven were nowhere to be found.
“You trying to get drunk?” Carmen asked without judgment as she knocked back identical drinks to Lyla. She believed that whatever pain Lyla went through tomorrow that it was her job to go through it with her.
“Hunting for more women for Gavin,” Lyla said distractedly as she scanned the crowd. “Maybe he doesn’t want a brunette. Maybe he wants an Asian chick. I saw him with a black girl that day...” Lyla shook her head to shake away the images. “She was pretty before I broke her nose. Anyway...”
Carmen mumbled under her breath as she followed Lyla onto the dance floor. Lyla chose a handful of women that Gavin wouldn’t be able to turn down. Each woman was more than willing to test Gavin’s restraint. Some were aggressive while others played hard to get. One thing was certain. Each of them gained Gavin’s attention for a time, but none of them stayed by his side. Some came back to her to report that he offered them a job or asked if they were trying to get back at an ex.
“What the hell? Is he the Santa Claus of jobs in Vegas?” Lyla growled.
Carmen laughed hysterically. Lyla was in the middle of talking to an exotic woman of Indian descent when a hand wrapped around her waist. She didn’t need to look back to know who it was.
“You have excellent taste in women,” Gavin said in her ear, “but your parade is interrupting me from doing business.”
Lyla turned from the Indian woman who tugged down the neckline of her gown to give Gavin a better look at her cleavage. Lyla turned in Gavin’s arms in time to see him wink at the woman before he led Lyla off the dance floor. He didn’t go back to their booth, he led her behind the bar and into a small hallway off the kitchen. He backed her against the wall and stared down at her.
“What are you playing at?”
“Playing at?” She was drunk enough to give him a mystified expression even though she’d been caught red-handed.
“Are you interested in threesomes now?”
His question made her sober instantly. She dropped the act. “I don’t do threesomes.”
“Then why are you sending me all these women?”
“So you can pick one.”
“For what?”
“For yourself!”
“I have you.”
She stared at him, astounded by his boneheadedness. “You don’t have me, jackass!”
The predator in him rose and reflected in his eyes. “I will have you again, Lyla.”
“You will never have me,” Lyla said, the drinks in her system making her reckless and not giving a crap about the consequences of pitting herself against Gavin Pyre. “You hurt me!” She slammed her hand against her racing heart and then brushed over the bruises on her neck. “I don’t trust you and I never will.”
Gavin said nothing. His face was expressionless.
“I want a normal life with a sweet guy,” she said forlornly, her anger fading as suddenly as it swept through her. She stared up at him, imploring. “There has to be someone else for you. These women want you, would do anything for you—”
“I don’t want them.”
She thumped his chest with her fist. “You’re mad that I left you, that I was happy without you—”
He cupped her face and leaned down so their lips were centimeters apart. “You weren’t happy without me.”
“What?”
“You weren’t happy without me,” he stated with complete certainty. “You can’t be happy without me.”
“I was!” she insisted and shoved at him.
He lifted her so they were at eye level and plastered their bodies together. Servers rushed in and out of the revolving kitchen door. No one paid them any mind and they were too locked on one another to notice the pandemonium behind the scenes that made the club such a success. Gavin’s finger traced the curve of her cheek and then her throat. When her breath hitched, Gavin’s eyes glinted with triumph.
“If you were in love with that boring fuck you were living with, you wouldn’t respond to me.” He pressed against her core, letting her know he was fully aroused. “You’ve been living a safe, boring life, baby girl. You missed this, missed me.”
“No, I—” Lyla bit back a moan as he rocked against her. “Stop it!”
“You’re soaked for me, aren’t you? Just like in your sleep. You want me, need me, Lyla. The moment I touch you, your body responds. It’s still mine.”
Lyla was stunned. How had this backfired so badly? Her plan to incriminate Gavin imploded as he turned the tables on her and showed her how susceptible she was. What the fuck? “Let me go.”
“No.”
Gavin seemed content to keep her pinned against the wall with his cock nestled between her legs. Lyla wriggled and froze when the bulge in his pants pressed against her clit. She hissed through her teeth and thumped his shoulder.
“Back off, Gavin!”
“So you can send more women to me? I’m content right here,” Gavin said and squeezed her ass.
Lyla bucked and they both groaned. It took more effort than she wanted to admit to remember why she was holding him off and why she didn’t indulge in the lust roiling through her. “You’re doing this for Manny!”
“I’m giving myself a hard on for my dad?”
“Don’t get smart with me, Gavin! You’re oversexed. We both know it. You don’t know how to commit to one woman. You cheated on me the whole time we were together. One of those women,” she jabbed her finger towards the club, “won’t care that you fuck around. They won’t say a thing. Just give them an unlimited credit card and they’ll do whatever you want. I'm not that girl, not anymore. The sooner we find you a girl, the sooner y
ou get over your ego trip and I can go back to—”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Gavin interrupted and rocked himself against her core again, making her mouth fall open on a gasp. “I’ve been looking for you for three years. You think now that I have you back, I’m going to fuck around again?”
“Why not? You did the first time. By the way,” she prodded his rock hard chest, “you didn’t use a condom the other night.”
Gavin stilled. “You aren’t on anything?”
“I have an IUD. I’m more worried about an STD,” Lyla said without tact.
Gavin looked murderous. “You think I’m that careless?”
“I don’t know what you use when you fuck your whores,” she said.
“I’m not fucking anyone.”
Lyla didn’t believe him. They had sex almost every day when they were together and he still had women on the side. Thinking of an abstinent Gavin was ludicrous. “So you’ve been tested recently?”
A muscle moved in his jaw. “You’re really trying to piss me off, aren’t you?”
“By asking you justified questions?” Lyla sighed and shook her head, feeling weary all of a sudden. “If Manny hadn’t thrown me at you, you wouldn’t have looked twice at me. How many women did you have at that time?” He didn’t answer and her stomach twisted. She shoved against him, but he didn’t move. “I’m not interested in replaying our history, Gavin. Manny’s not going to disown you if you let me go. He knows we’re not meant for each other.”
“Do you want to go home?” Ricardo appeared beside them. He didn’t look surprised by their intimate position.
“Yes,” Lyla pushed at Gavin, but he didn’t move. She met his glittering eyes. “Let me go, Gavin.”
“For now,” he said and released her, deliberately sliding her down his frame.
Lyla grimaced against her body's reaction. She was ashamed that her legs quaked as her feet touched the ground. Gavin stepped back and then scowled.
“Your dress is see through!”
Lyla shrugged. “You picked it. I thought that was the point. No one cares. It’s Vegas.”
“I fucking care,” Gavin snapped and slid out of his suit jacket and draped it around her.
She didn’t want to be encased in his scent or heat. “I’m hot,” she said as she tried to shrug off the jacket.
“You wear it to the car,” Gavin decreed.
She couldn’t spend another second with him. He was such a bullheaded ass. Nothing she said made an impression on him. He was intent on replaying their history. On top of the fact that their relationship had been based on Manny’s approval and Gavin’s infidelity, she had to remind herself about the guard who lost his life in the basement. He wasn't the first or last. Gavin was dangerous. Period. She was determined to get away from him and his propensity for violence. She wanted a simple life. She wanted a man who loved her more than anything in the world, who provided and cared for her. Once upon a time, she thought Gavin was that man. What a fucking reality check it had been to realize that she was living a lie.
They made their way through the club. Gavin tucked her under his arm and ignored her when she tried to get away from him.
“What about Carmen?” she shouted.
“She’ll go home with Vinny,” he said and walked her out of the club.
He took her hand as they walked through the casino with Ricardo several paces behind them.
“Did you like the club?” Gavin asked.
Surprised by his attempt at civil conversation she said, “Yes. The music is great, the bartenders are fast and the people that get in look like they should be on a magazine.”
His mouth curved. “Well said. It’s the most successful nightclub on The Strip. You sent me a good array of girls tonight. I hope they come to work for me.”
Lyla rolled her eyes. “What positions did you offer them?”
“Front desk, dancers, bartender. Doesn’t matter to me.”
Lyla was relieved to reach the hotel entrance. While Ricardo went to talk to the valet, Gavin turned her towards him with a grip on the jacket.
“You still want to be at my father’s house?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said emphatically.
He sighed. “I’ll send some of your clothes over.”
“How gracious of you,” she drawled, “since you threw away what I brought with me.”
“It’s an insult to your body to wear such shoddy clothes.”
Lyla glared at him. “Bank tellers don’t have the budget to wear Armani or Prada.”
“If you stayed with me, you wouldn’t have to work at all.”
“I don’t mind working.”
Gavin surveyed her for a moment. “You could always work for me.”
“No thanks,” she said quickly.
“Come, Lyla,” Ricardo called as the car pulled up.
Ricardo got into the driver’s seat. Gavin walked her to the car. Before she could slip out of his jacket, he gripped the lapels and jerked her against him. His mouth covered hers before she had time to defend herself. His tongue stroked hers while his hands splayed on her bare back and caressed. She staggered back, breaking the kiss. He grinned and gave her a chaste kiss before he tucked her into the back of the car.
“Me wanting you has nothing to do with my father,” Gavin said as he buckled her in, hand brushing deliberately over her breasts. “And if you think I’ve waited three years to let you leave me again, you’re dead wrong.”
With that threat hanging in the air, he stepped back and slammed the door. He strode into the hotel without looking back. Lyla tried to steady her breathing and saw Ricardo watching her in the rearview mirror.
“He’s an ass,” she said.
“Yes, ma’am,” Ricardo said with a grin.
Chapter Seven
The following morning Lyla descended the stairs wearing a form fitting jersey dress that flirted around her ankles. It was a dress from her old wardrobe that Gavin delivered.
Manny sat at the large dining table, surrounded by an assortment of breakfast foods. He set the newspaper aside, face lighting up as if his day didn’t start until she joined him. A streak of pain darted through her chest. She recognized the feeling. Love. Even as she tried to reassert common sense, she rounded the table and went to Manny. He held his arms open as if she was really his daughter. Her eyes stung with tears as she fell into his embrace. Manny’s love surrounded her and washed away the fact that she was being held here against her will.
“You slept well?” Manny asked when she drew away.
“Yes,” she said and sat beside him. “What are you up to today?”
“I thought I would go antique shopping. Interested?”
“Yes.” Anything to distract her from her bizarre circumstances. She was a captive of the Pyre men who had different wants from her. Although she missed Jonathan and felt guilty for whatever pain her leaving caused, she couldn’t deny that she enjoyed spending time with Manny. Her own parents were too self-involved with each other to care what happened to her, so being around Manny was the closest thing she had to a parent. It just sucked that Manny was connected to Gavin.
“How did you like Lux?” Manny asked.
Lyla gave him a similar answer to what she told Gavin the night before. Like Gavin, Manny seemed pleased.
“Ricardo tells me that you tried to find Gavin a replacement.”
Lyla paused in the middle of nibbling on a piece of bacon. While Manny’s voice was mild, his eyes sparkled with mischief. Lyla sniffed and lifted her chin defensively. “What of it?”
Manny smacked the table, making her jump. “That’s great!”
“It is?”
“The woman he wants doesn’t want him and offers to help him find another. That’s rich!” Manny howled with laughter.
Lyla forked up hash brows. “I don’t think it’s funny.”
“I do.” Manny shook his head. “I know my son. What you did last night will only make him more determined to have y
ou.”
Lyla’s fork clattered to the table. “What? Why?”
“Lyla, you need to know something about men,” Manny drawled, spreading his bejeweled hand over his chest. “We don’t like being told no.”
“I didn’t tell him no. I’m letting him do whatever he wants. I want him to follow his natural instinct and leave me alone—” Lyla stopped because Manny was laughing hysterically. “Seriously, Manny, what’s so funny?”
“Baby girl,” he said, wiping tears from his eyes, “Gavin has been looking for you for three years.”
“I know that.”
“And why do you think he’s done so?” Manny asked curiously.
“He’s doing it for you,” Lyla said accusingly.
Manny blinked. “Me?”
“He craves your approval. You practically demanded he marry me on our first date.”
Manny cocked his head to the side. “And you think that Gavin would date a woman he didn’t like because I told him to?”
“Yes,” she said without hesitation.
“I told him to marry you many times.”
“I know,” she said.
“If he wanted my approval, why didn’t he marry you to please me?”
“Because he doesn’t want to tie himself to me permanently. He was just... indulging you.”
“Gavin wants my approval and he loves me,” Manny conceded, “but Gavin wouldn’t fuck one woman for four years to please me.”
“He didn’t fuck one woman, he fucked many,” Lyla said crisply.
Manny’s face softened. He reached out and ran a hand down her hair, which hung loose around her shoulders. “That wrecked you, didn’t it?”
Lyla wasn’t sure where the tears came from, but she valiantly shoved them back into the darkness where they belonged. “Finding out that it wasn’t a one time thing, that he’d been cheating from the beginning destroyed me. The only thing that makes sense is that he kept me for your sake. He had no intention of marrying me or really committing himself to me.” Lyla blew out a breath and was relieved to feel the tears recede. “I want a man who loves me more than anything, especially other women. Gavin made me feel like nothing.” And he wouldn’t get the chance to make her feel like that again.