Finally Home (Home Series)

by Vaughn, Ann

  "Yeah," Riley replied.

  Mike gave them one final look then headed out to find Colt, who was in the foyer with three of the Adtkisson security guards. A teenager stood in between them, an almost terrified look on his face when Mike walked up.

  "What's going on?"

  "Are you Casiano?" the kid asked.

  "I am," Mike confirmed.

  "I was told to give this to you," he said, handing Mike an envelope.

  "Who gave this to you?"

  "Some guy at the mall. Came up to me and said he'd pay me one hundred dollars to deliver this to you here. Gave me the money but said he'd know if I didn't give it to you. He was kinda scary looking so I thought I'd better do what he wanted...and a hundred bucks is a hundred bucks."

  Mike took the print out of Conroy's picture from his jacket pocket.

  "This the guy?"

  "Yeah, that's him."

  Mike asked the kid a few more questions, but he really didn't know much more. He stepped away and opened the envelope.

  Casiano - stop hiding her from me.

  A grim smile settled over Mike's lips. Frustration was setting in since they'd been keeping Lainey hidden. It would only be a matter of time before Conroy came out of hiding to try to get a glimpse of her. Hopefully they would be able to wrap this up soon. He tucked the card into his pocket and went back into the ballroom, seeing Lainey back at her table with Kacee.

  Kacee met Lainey at the table after she'd walked away from Nick, handing her a glass of champagne.

  "If you need something stronger, just let me know," Kacee told her.

  "This will do for now," she said, taking the glass and downing the champagne as if it were water.

  "What did Nick want?"

  "For me to help him rebuild his relationship with Mike," she said, seeing Mike step back into the room. "His family really doesn't understand him at all. I only spoke to his father briefly when we went to dinner over there, but...Mike is nothing like him."

  Kacee nodded. "Lorenzo Casiano is very old-school. He has family members who are very much involved in La Cosa Nostra. Lorenzo is not, which is why he chose to move here to Jeannette's hometown, but he still has ties to his family. Mike's Uncle Giovanni? Makes John Gotti look like an amateur. None of them understood when Mike decided to join the Navy."

  "Nick told me that with Mike being the first born twin, he was regarded as his father's heir, things were made even worse."

  "And Nick had some resentment issues regarding that as well. I mean, they are twins. More emphasis should not have been placed on Mike just because he was born first, but that's the way the old-school families are."

  Connor came and claimed Kacee, taking her out to the dance floor. Lainey sat quietly at her table, watching her friend, catching glimpses of her parents as they danced. She felt a bit like the girl who went alone to her high school prom, waiting for someone to ask her to dance. A waiter came and offered her another glass of champagne. As she took it from the tray, she saw Mike out of the corner of her eye and couldn't help the pang of longing that shot through her. She wanted to be in his arms on the dance floor, to feel his hand on the bare skin of her back.

  Kacee's twin, Keith came and asked her to dance, making her smile as he led her to the dance floor.

  "You look too pretty to be sitting there watching all the action," he said when they began to dance. She'd always loved Keith; he reminded her a lot of her cousin, Trevor, thicker and more heavily muscled than the rest of his brothers, always smiling.

  "Thanks," she said.

  "Kacee said things have started up between you and Mike?"

  "Some," she admitted, "He's been distracted with getting the security ready for tonight."

  "What's he doing to find the guy who's been stalking you?"

  "Nothing yet. His priority has been keeping me out-of-sight while we prepared for this, but I think he and Riley are figuring out how they can flush him out after tonight."

  "That's good, I-"

  He stopped when Kevin came up.

  "Go dance with your wife," Kevin told him, "She was looking for you."

  "Yeah, yeah. Thanks for the dance, Lainey," Keith said, walking away.

  She glanced nervously toward Mike as Kevin took Keith's place, seeing that icy gaze was locked on her.

  "Relax, kid, I don't bite," Kevin said.

  She cut her eyes to him. "You aren't helping and you know it."

  He feigned an innocent look. "What? I'm just dancing with my friend," he said, his hand lightly stroking her back as they danced.

  "Knock it off, Kevin," she snapped.

  "Mike Casiano has always had a stick up his ass, ever since we were kids. Do you really want to be with someone like him?"

  "It's none of your concern."

  His hand on her back kept drifting lower, causing her blood pressure to spike and her eyes to continually shift to Mike to gauge his reaction and hopefully convey to him that she wasn't meaning to encourage Kevin.

  "Are you sure you don't want to give us another chance?" Kevin pressed. "We were good together."

  She couldn't help but laugh at that.

  "You cheated on me, Kevin. That does not constitute being good together and if your hand goes anywhere near my ass you will regret it," she said when his hand started drifting down to her lower back.

  He laughed. "What's the matter? Afraid to make Mikey mad?"

  She stopped dancing then, trying to step away from him.

  "Let me go, Kevin."

  "Come on, I'm only messing with you. Finish the dance." He pulled her back to him, his hand settling on her lower back, fingers pushing slightly onto the top of her butt.

  She'd decided then that she'd had enough. Slyly, as if she'd missed a step in the dance, she brought her foot down on his instep, and when he jerked in reaction, she gave him a slight shove and stepped away. In a huff, she turned to storm off, and collided with Mike as he came striding toward them. He gripped her elbow to steady her, but his eyes were on Kevin.

  "Keep your hands off of her," Mike warned Kevin.

  "Why? Is she yours? No? Then back off."

  "Guys," Lainey said, trying to diffuse the situation, but they both ignored her.

  "She sure as hell isn't yours," Mike growled.

  She saw Kevin send her an odd look, then take a step closer to Mike.

  "I was her first, and if I've judged right, her only...that makes her more mine than anyone else's, especially..."

  Mike took a menacing step closer to Kevin and Lainey could feel his muscles tighten under her hand. Kevin, to his credit, didn't back down, glaring right back at Mike, both men speaking in low, rapid Italian. She pulled on Mike's arm to get his attention and was relieved when that icy gaze turned to cut into her.

  "Let's just go, Mike, please? It isn't worth the drama."

  She saw him study her face a moment, then felt his muscles relax. He hurled a final insult to Kevin then put his arm around Lainey to lead her away.

  "'Bout damn time you opened your eyes," Kevin shot back at him, "you're welcome, Lainey."

  Infuriated, Lainey ducked out from under Mike's arm, swung around to Kevin and in a move she learned from Riley and her other cousins, slugged him in the jaw, knocking him off-balance.

  "We're done, Kevin," she told him before walking away, purposefully ignoring the ache in her hand punching him had caused.

  She glanced at Mike as she turned back, seeing an approving gleam in his eyes. He took her arm and led her from the dance floor and out of the ballroom.

  "Have my truck brought around. Now," he growled as they walked.

  Riley and Colt joined them, both wearing disapproving looks. They stood in silence until his Escalade was brought to the front and then surrounded her to escort her out the door. Colt opened her door for her while Mike rounded the front and got in on his side. Before she even had a chance to consider getting in, Riley picked her up and put her in and with a warning glare, slammed the door. Why were they mad at her,
she wondered. She hadn't done anything.

  Mike took off, tires squealing as they left.

  "Mike, ple-"

  "Quiet," he snapped. "You don't want to be talking to me right now, trust me."

  Her eyes widened. "I didn't-"

  "Hush," he warned her.

  "You have no right to be mad at me," she snapped back.

  "A lot is going to happen tonight, any number of them giving me the right and if you have any sense of self-preservation, I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut the rest of the way home."

  Complete shock settled over her. She had no clue why he was angry with her; she hadn't done anything wrong! She'd stayed in the ballroom the whole evening, except for when she was with Tessa. Kevin cut in on her dance with Keith. It wasn't like she'd intentionally sought him out! Nothing she had done warranted him being angry with her!

  When he parked in his garage, he got out and rounded the SUV to help her out. Her heart was pounding as he gripped her elbow and escorted her to the elevator. He glared down at her, holding her gaze until the elevator stopped and then he pulled her through the door into the living area. He made her stand near the couch while he did an initial sweep of the house, making sure it was empty, then he took her arm and led her up the stairs to the bedroom. Slamming the door behind them, he released her and then to Lainey's utter shock, he grasped her dress at the top and ripped it in two, tearing it from her body and sending beads and sequins flying.

  "Mike!" she gasped.

  "Adtkisson had his hands all over you in that dress. I never want to see it again," he growled.

  "Nothing happened!" she cried, standing before him in only her lingerie. "That was..."

  He cut her off by fisting his hand in her hair and yanking back to tilt her head up, crushing his mouth over hers, taking her mouth in a no-holds-barred kiss. After her initial shock, Lainey clung to him, meeting his tongue stroke-for-stroke.

  "You are mine, Lainey," he growled against her lips. "Say it."

  "Yes," she breathed.

  "Say the words," he ground out between clenched teeth.

  "I am yours," she confirmed breathlessly.

  "Damn right, you are," he said.

  To her further surprise, he backed her into the chair in the corner of the room and then stepped away to pace before her, all the while mumbling to himself in Italian. She couldn't make out all that he was saying, but the gist of it was that he was trying to calm himself down, and failing miserably from what she could see.

  "Mike," she began but those eyes slashed over her, stopping the words in her throat.

  "Not. One. Word," he growled, then resumed pacing.

  "But..."

  He was before her in two strides, hands on the armrests of the chair, leaning over her so that only a few inches separated their faces.

  "Do you know how hard it was for me not to pummel the shit out of him right there in front of everyone? He had his hand on your ass and all over your back! You think I wanted to see him touching what is mine?"

  Lainey flexed her hand. "I think I took care of that myself."

  He stood and started pacing again. For several long moments, she just sat gaping up at him, her heart racing. What was happening here was more than just him seeing her dance with Kevin. She had a feeling that he may have also seen her dancing with Nick and some of that residual hurt and anguish over Nick and Carolina was coming into play here. Slowly, she stood and walked to him, well aware of the waves of anger and lust rolling off of him.

  "Mike," she whispered, coming to a stop just before him. She reached out to touch him but he pulled back, stopping her.

  "Don't," he warned.

  "Why not?"

  "I'm too upset right now. My emotions are too raw. If I touch you right now, I'll hurt you."

  "No, you won't," she said, her eyes locked on his.

  "Lainey..."

  "Contrary to what everyone seems to think, I am not made of glass."

  "And I am not made of steel," he countered. "Don't play with fire, little girl."

  "God! So burn me, Commander!" she cried. "Touch me! Love me! Just don't put up another wall. I want you so much it's a physical ache and I'll take whatever you want to give."

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Mike stood staring down at her for several long moments. She could actually see his eyes icing over; could see those walls that she thought she'd finally breached start rising again. A huge lump formed in her throat when he turned away from her, heading toward the door.

  "Mike, please," she implored, her voice a strangled whisper. He hesitated briefly as he put his hand on the doorknob, then wordlessly opened it and left her, shutting the door behind him. Lainey stood trembling for a few moments before her legs gave out and she sank to her knees, a strangled sob escaping her lips.

  For a moment, she allowed her sorrow to consume her. It was too much; these feelings for him were crushing her. How could she get through to him? He took so much on himself, took care of all those around him. When would he let someone take care of him? Her heart was breaking for the man who gave to so many and took nothing for himself.

  Mike heard her sob as he headed downstairs and cursed himself for walking away from her but he knew he had to. Just being around her, seeing those huge emerald eyes looking up at him, seeing that delicious body on display had him unbearably turned on, throbbing with the force of his need. He was afraid that if he were to touch her now, he'd hurt her. He hadn't lied; his emotions were too raw. When he'd ripped the dress from her, all he'd seen was her in Kevin Adtkisson's arms, heard Kevin telling him that he'd been her first and her only and God help him he wanted to mark her. He wanted to claim her in such a way that he was all she knew...to lose himself in her heat and...

  He shook his head. He thought if he could just walk away from her and come down here and focus on work for a while, on the tedium that was paperwork, then he'd be able to get a grip on his libido and be able to face her again without fear of devouring her. It wasn't working. He kept picturing her in the bathroom at Melissa's, in the tanning room at the Adtkissons...and seeing Adtkisson's hands on the bare skin of her back and his fingers on her ass.

  Getting up from the desk, he went into the kitchen and poured a glass of Jack, downing it in one gulp, welcoming the sting as it burned through his chest. He heard his bedroom door open, eyes immediately drawn to it as Lainey stepped through, her robe covering her. He poured another glass and downed it as he watched her walk down the stairs, her eyes locked on him.

  He stayed where he was, leaning back against the counter, watching her walk right up to him. For several moments they stood in silence, staring at each other. God, he felt like they were two scorpions waiting for the best opportunity to strike. Her make-up was streaked, her face tear-stained. That struck a blow to him as sure as if she'd hit him.

  "Cara," he breathed, reaching out to lay his hand on her cheek, stroking his thumb over her tear-stained cheek. He saw tears pool in her eyes again and cursed himself a fool for putting them there.

  "Please don't pull away from me," she whispered. "Don't put those walls between us again. I can't take it. You're breaking my heart, Mike," she said on a strangled sob.

  With that one short speech, she gutted him. He pulled her into his arms and held her tight, burying his face in her hair. She was trembling in his arms and he knew she was crying again and it made him feel about an inch tall. He kissed the side of her head and rubbed his hand over her back as he held her, cursing himself a fool for doing this to her.

  "I'm sorry, cara mia," he murmured.

  She raised her head from his chest and looked up at him and he was undone. The sight of her tears wrecked him. He cupped her face in his hands and leaned down to kiss her brow. She reached up to hold his wrists as he kissed each eyelid, each cheek, before touching his lips to hers.

  "He cut in on my dance," she said softly, eyes on his.

  "I know," he replied.

  "I don't want him or anyone else. I on
ly want you. Touch me, Mike."

  He leaned down and sealed his lips over hers, claiming her mouth in a kiss so thorough and breathtaking, all she could do was clench her hands in his lapels and submit. After a few moments, he lifted her in his arms and carried her upstairs to the bedroom and laid her gently on the bed. When he straightened, he pulled his jacket and tie off, tossing them to the foot of the bed.

  He stood admiring her for a moment, then placed one knee on the bed and reached for the tie of her robe, gently tugging it loose and parting it to reveal her deliciously nude body to his view. With an appreciative groan, he leaned down to run his tongue around her left nipple, causing her to bury her hands in his hair to hold him to her.

  "Mike," she whispered, arching her back to give him better access.

  He lifted his head to taste his name on her lips and then trailed kisses from her lips, down her neck to the valley between her breasts. His hands filled with them, squeezing and kneading them and pushing them together so he could begin laving attention on first one and then the other, licking and suckling until she was writhing beneath him.

  His lips began skimming lower, down her abdomen and lower, hands gripping her thighs to spread them, one hand drifting down to stroke her. Lainey gasped when his lips skimmed over her hip and to the inside of her thigh. She looked down to see those translucent icy eyes watching her as a finger slipped deep inside to stroke her.

  "Mike," she panted, then whimpered when he stood up.

  For several moments, he stood beside the bed just looking down at her. She wasn't sure what was going on in his head, what she should do, but instinct told her to remain still and silent. After a few more moments, she saw him take a step back, removing his shoes and her heart leapt.

  "Come here, cara mia," he ordered and she instantly obeyed, getting up to stand before him. "Take my shirt off," he said. She pulled it from his pants and then her hands went to the buttons, working them free as fast as she could, smoothing it from his shoulders. She undid his cuff links so the shirt could fall to the floor, then reached for his undershirt. He placed his hands over her wrists, making her stop and look up at him. "No one has seen my scars other than my men and my doctors."