Roman: A Triple Threat Novel

by Josephine Jade

  Before he could respond—well, before his mouth could respond, because his cock had responded the moment she’d mentioned belonging to him—she continued. “Then there’s just the matter of paying you back the hundred thousand dollars? He said it was just a small shipment, and he didn’t think you would notice it had gone missing.”

  “I notice everything, but especially when it’s the first time I entrust something to a new associate.” He cupped her jaw, not gently, and swung her face up to force her to look him in the eyes. “So let me make sure I understand. You’re offering to whore yourself out to me in exchange for your brother being given leniency?”

  Those blue eyes widened. “No!”

  She tried to jerk away but he wouldn’t let her. “I just thought maybe we could be seen in public a few times. You could tell people you had taken me to satisfy Robbie’s debt. That I paid it off in other ways.” He cheeks burned. “I don’t have a whole lot of money, but I can sell the jewelry my grandmother left me and cash out my retirement. I could probably scrape together at least seventy thousand now, and then work out an arrangement for the other thirty thousand, if you’re agreeable?”

  He dropped her chin. This conversation was definitely not what he’d thought it would be. “What do you do, Sarah?”

  She cleared her throat. “I’m a kindergarten teacher.”

  He chuckled. “Of course you are. Let me get this straight, you want to… what, pretend to be my girlfriend in public while you pay me back privately for your brother’s crime? In return, I don’t kill him. Is that what you want?”

  She nodded, her eyes gazing into his, obviously hoping there was some decency in him. “I know it’s a lot to ask, Mr. Rinaldi, but you appear to have a generous side too. I researched a bit before I came here tonight, and I know you donated a wing to the hospital, and you also provided a grant to the Head Start program.”

  He shook his head “No, that was the Rinaldi Foundation, which was founded by my mother. I support their work, but my brother Lukas heads up that. I had nothing to do with those directly.”

  She seemed to shrink in on herself a little. “Even still, you support the deeds, so you must be a good person deep down.”

  Roman stared at her, letting his mind wander for just a minute to all the things he could do to her. She had such an ingrained innocence about her. Roman wanted to plunder that. Take her in all the ways he knew how. Debase her.

  Strip her and spank her and plug her and fuck her.

  Oh the little kindergarten teacher with her frumpy clothes had no idea what a not-good person he was.

  He chuckled starkly. “If I’m a good person, it’s so deep down I don’t know that I recognize it anymore, Sarah. Would you like to hear my counteroffer to your proposal? See if we can make a negotiation satisfactory to us both?”

  “Yes, Mr. Rinaldi.”

  Roman’s cock grew hard. Or harder. He wanted her naked on her hands and knees begging him to fuck her and using that same sweet tone while calling him Sir.

  The way her nipples kept pebbling against her shirt, her body wasn’t opposed to the thought of intimacy between them. He would have to see if the little kindergarten teacher’s mind would be willing to accept it also.

  “If I’m prepared to indulge this insanity—and I haven’t committed to the idea yet—there will be nothing pretend about it. You would be my mistress, not girlfriend. It’s an old-fashioned word, but applies reasonably well to our arrangement. A woman everyone knows I keep nearby for my pleasure. Whenever and however I want it.”

  She gasped, opening her mouth to protest, but he pressed on before she could speak.

  “I’m not going to take your retirement or your grandmother’s jewelry, but if we negotiate an arrangement, what I will take is every inch of your body at my bidding. You do what I say, when I say, and for how long I say.”

  Her eyes widened, and she licked her lips. “Basically, you want me to be your sex slave for however long in exchange for letting my brother off the hook?”

  He scowled. “Robbie isn’t off the hook under any circumstances. There’s nothing you can negotiate with me to make that happen. But what I’ll do, out of respect for our negotiation, is send him far away, probably to Sicily. He’ll get another shot with a different branch of the family, which is far more than he deserves, but will also be watched like a hawk. He fucks that up, he’s dead. You’d better emphasize that to him.”

  Her hands were fidgeting in her lap, eyes downcast again. “What will you do to me if I agree to this, Mr. Rinaldi?”

  He crossed one leg over the other, and picked an imaginary piece of lint of his trousers. He wasn’t into rape, so he wanted to make sure Miss Hastings knew what she was getting into. What her body would be paying for.

  “You have this whole innocent sweetness vibe going on. Kindergarten teacher makes it damn near perfect and I have to admit I find it very sexy.” He reached over and grabbed her chin again, forcing her eyes back to him. “I especially love the idea of ruining it, wrecking you, and turning you into a wanton slut instead of this virginal persona you project. One who begs for my cock anywhere she can get it: mouth, pussy, ass.”

  He heard her shocked intake of breath, but saw the heat flare in her blue eyes. She wanted this, at least some part of her, although he doubted her angelic lips would admit it right now.

  “But, Mr. Rinaldi—”

  “One hundred nights of submitting your body to me, for whatever purpose I please. A rather good deal for the theft of over one hundred thousand dollars, not to mention the much less tangible but more expensive cost of Robbie’s disrespect.”

  “I-I can’t just go off with you for three months. I have a job.”

  “You can keep your teaching job. This will be nights and weekends only. And I will make sure the word gets around to people in my circles that you are my fuck toy as payment for your brother’s insubordination.”

  “How will you make sure word gets around?” she whispered.

  He wondered if she would run screaming from the room.

  “Maybe I’ll have my men watch while I fuck you. That will get the word out easily enough. Or perhaps I will have you serve me and my friends drinks naked when they come over. It’ll only take once to make sure the word is out about what happens when someone disrespects me or my brothers.”

  Although she flinched, heat in her eyes flared once again at his words. She shifted her hips in a little restless movement on the couch.

  Little miss innocent was turned on. And definitely wasn’t running from the room.

  This plan was growing on him. The ability to have a woman like Sarah at his beck and call? To use her only when he had an itch and not have to worry about keeping her happy or emotional entanglements? He’d probably get her out of his system way before they hit day one hundred, but who cared?

  It would solve both their problems. The perfect negotiation. And Robbie, that little fucktard, wouldn’t get off scot free, Roman would see to that. But Robbie wouldn’t die. Thanks to his lovely sister.

  “So what do you say, Teach? Ready to get all dirty or want to walk out of the room while you still have your self respect?”

  Chapter Three

  Sarah slid back from him and grabbed her wine from where he’d placed it on the side table and gulped it in a single breath.

  She should walk out of the room—she should run out of the room—but she knew she wasn’t going to. And she had to accept it wasn’t just to save her brother’s life.

  Roman Rinaldi was making her crazy. Making her body crazy, for sure. Why else would these things he was saying, not to mention frisking and groping her, turn her on rather than make her want to escape as quickly as possible?

  She’d known he wouldn’t go for the pretend situation, but had to try. And if he’d been willing, she would’ve gladly pretended that he owned her. To pretend that she was allowing herself to be used in whatever manner he saw fit for the crimes her brother had committed.

  But i
t looked like he would just use her. No pretense to behold.

  Now, sitting so close to Roman Rinaldi, with her nipples pressing against her sturdy white bra, and her panties damp at the idea of having the dark and dangerous man beside her stripping all vestiges of innocence from her, she was utterly convinced she could do it. He wanted to dirty her and although a part of her was bone-deep terrified, another part of her wanted to let him do whatever it was he wanted to do to her.

  But she wasn’t an idiot. She was giving herself over to a stranger. To a mobster. There had to be some boundaries.

  “I’m sorry, but there would have to be some balance. A contract or safe word or something. Some limits. There are some things I just won’t agree with at all. Like…” She trailed off, having a difficult time trying to think of something really kinky. She wasn’t completely naïve, but she was uneducated about strange things people did to each other.

  The corners of his mouth turned up. “I don’t think I’m into anything too unusual. Whips, chains, sex toys…”

  “Whips?” she whispered.

  He reached forward to take the empty glass of her hand, his fingers tracing hers in a gentle pattern as he did so. His touch was a marked contrast to his words. “Spankings and restraints will happen for sure. You can expect to find yourself regularly tied up in my bed with my hand or belt paddling your bare ass.”

  She couldn’t help her intake of breath. Nor could she stop the gush of moisture leaking out of her core.

  “I like rough play,” he continued. “The idea of leaving some marks on you gives me the hard-on from hell. It won’t be sweetness and light if you make this agreement. I like dark.” He put her glass back on the table.

  “And I have to do anything you say?” Her anxiety bled through. She was turned on at the thought of putting herself at his mercy, but didn’t want the price to be permanent damage. “No matter what? I don’t think I can do that. It would be completely stupid of me to agree to giving up all my control in the situation.”

  If she was going to end up just as hurt or dead as Robbie, they’d be better off just taking their chances going on the run. Roman Rinaldi had at least eight inches in height and probably sixty or seventy pounds on her.

  “A punch from you might kill me,” she whispered.

  He sat up straighter and for the first time she felt like she could almost see tenderness in his eyes. “You’re right. And you won’t have to worry about anything like that. I might spank you, but I won’t be beating you. Nor will I do anything that will leave a permanent mark or scar on your body. No cuts, no burns. Nothing like that.”

  “Okay.” She nodded.

  “But don’t think you won’t cry. That you won’t want to beg me to stop what I’m doing. There’s going to be plenty of mornings where you’ll be too sore to move. Times that you sit down hours or days later and your tender ass will remind you of me. But I have no interest in seeing you physically damaged.”

  She had one more hard limit and wondered if this would be a deal breaker. “I won’t… service your men or your friends. I won’t have sex with them.”

  She could tolerate his men watching she and Roman have sex, but not touching her. She wasn’t going to get passed around. She would not be gang raped by members of his mafia.

  He gave another little half smile and put his finger up to her lips. “No, nobody but me will be touching you. I won’t be sharing you with anyone.”

  He slipped his finger in between her lips. Sarah felt her eyes widen as she automatically began sucking on it as it probed her mouth a little deeper.

  “Just mine,” he said before trailing his finger out and down her bottom lip. “If we negotiate a deal, you belong only to me for the duration, so if there’s somebody in your life, you’ll have to get rid of him. Got it?”

  The darkly possessive way he spoke sent shivers down her spine, and they weren’t all fear-inspired. “There’s nobody.” There really had never been anybody.

  “Except me.” His laugh held a hint of darkness. “I can’t believe I’m prepared to overlook your brother’s blatant dishonesty and disrespect just for having you in my bed for a while. This can’t possibly be worth it.”

  Sarah didn’t know what to say. If he didn’t find her attractive enough then there wasn’t any way she could save her brother.

  “Strip,” Roman said.

  She stiffened. “What?”

  “You heard me.” All the tenderness she’d thought she saw in his eyes earlier was gone. “Strip now. I want to see if this is worth it. See if you can follow directions. See if I’m out of my fucking mind.”

  Sarah stood up. She had to be willing to do this if she was going to be willing to do all the other things he would demand of her. She moved to the spot about three feet in front of him where he was pointing for her to stand.

  She slipped off her black flats and scooted them over to the side. Without looking at him she unbuttoned and unzipped her khaki pants, sliding them down her legs. Was he expecting something sexy? A show? Well that was too damn bad because she couldn’t do it.

  He wanted to see her naked? Fine. But she didn’t know how to put on a damn strip tease. She could feel fire burning in her cheeks as she dropped her pants on top of her shoes and began unbuttoning her shirt.

  She snuck a glance at him and half expected a ridiculing grin, but he was just staring at her through hooded eyes, face expressionless. Her shirt joined the other articles on the ground.

  “All of it,” he muttered when she hesitated at her bra and panties. She wished she’d worn anything but serviceable white undergarments. Her bra had a little bit of lace, but nothing that could remotely be considered sexy.

  If she’d known she’d be stripping for her brother’s life she would’ve picked the garments with a little more care.

  She reached behind her back and unhooked her bra. She could heat building up over her cheeks and down her neck and chest. Damn her fair skin and its inability to hide any embarrassment.

  “Underwear, Sarah. Now.” His voice was rough. She couldn’t bear to look at him.

  She hooked her thumb into the waistband of her panties and pulled them down to her knees. From there they fell to the ground on their own.

  “Are you a virgin?” he asked. “You sure as hell blush like you’re one.”

  She turned her head to stare to the side. She hoped he wouldn’t see that even though she was appalled at standing there naked, she was still a little turned on. By him. “No.”

  She didn’t elaborate that she’d had sex once in high school. It hadn’t been anything that wanted to make her want to repeat the experience.

  “Good. I have no use for virgins.”

  He stood up and came to stand right in front of her, gripping her chin with his thumb and forefinger.

  “Alright, Miss Hastings, we have a deal. One hundred nights of my choosing in exchange for your brother’s life. We won’t be dating, so make sure you’re not the type to get attached and begin demanding my time. You will be my fuck toy and I will call you when I want you.”

  Her heart pounded as she faced the reality of what she was doing. She might lose her job when if it got out to her circle that she was involved with a member of La Cosa Nostra, but she would have to take that chance. Robbie would be safe. That was the most important thing.

  And it would allow her to experience what it would be like to be… fucked by a man like Roman Rinaldi. His fuck toy. Why didn’t that make her want to run away from here as fast as she could? It did the opposite.

  “Yes, Sir.”

  His eyes darkened with passion, and his mouth crept closer to hers, but he didn’t kiss her. “You can call me Roman since that’s the name you’re going to be screaming as I bring you to orgasm.”

  She could feel liquid pooling between her thighs at his words. She was more turned on by this man who hadn’t so much as kissed her than she’d been by the entire act of sex in high school.

  She threw out the first words that w
ould help her feel more empowered. “Yes, once we have an agreement. In writing.”

  One eyebrow raised. “You know that won’t hold up in any court for any purpose.”

  “Let’s just say I’d feel better about the whole thing having the security of knowing there’s proof somewhere documenting our deal.”

  He studied her with eyes narrowed. “Fine. Get dressed.”

  She did so in rapid time.

  He handed her a piece of paper. “Give me your address, and I’ll come to you tomorrow with your damned contract. After your name is on the line beside mine, our deal is in effect. One hundred nights. No backing out.”

  She nodded, putting as much confidence into her voice as she could. “I’m here to make sure my brother is safe, and it looks like we’ve come to an agreement.”

  He walked around her, and she knew he was remembering her without any clothing. She forced herself not to cross her arms over her chest.

  He stopped directly in front of her and before she knew what was happening, his mouth fell on hers in a hungry, possessive kiss. His tongue surged into her mouth and he seemed to be both tasting and branding her at the same time. His fist wrapped in her hair at the nape of her neck and pulled her more forcefully back so she had no choice but to submit.

  Not that she wanted to do anything else. She greedily sucked on his tongue as it invaded her mouth. Everything about this man turned her on. His power. His dominance. If she had to whore herself to save her brother, at least she would enjoy it too.

  He pulled back, then kissed her once more in a surprising gentle caress, before stepping away completely and crossing his arms over his chest. “You have no idea how much I’m looking forward to defiling that innocent air permeating you. You’re protecting him, but who’s protecting you, Sarah?”

  She shivered, overwhelmed by the intensity in his gaze. Was she making the biggest mistake of her life? “I can protect myself.”

  She half expected him to laugh, but he didn’t.

  “Tomorrow afternoon,” he said. “You turn over your brother and he will go under my protection. Then you turn over yourself for anything I want.”