by Mia Taylor
But no amount of logic could dispute that she believed he was incapable of what Duggan accused him.
And you know this from the entire three minutes you’ve spent with him? a caustic voice in her head asked. You’re here to do your job and get justice for your cousin. Now do it!
She wracked her brain for a story and cover to give him a call.
No sobbing, fall-to-pieces crap. You need something better, something—
Suddenly, she had it.
Without hesitation, she picked up the phone and dialed.
To both her relief and chagrin, the call went directly to voicemail.
“Leave a message.” The outgoing message was blunt and to the point, but the sound of his voice sent chills through her.
It’s the Florence Nightingale effect. He saved you and now you think you owe him something. But you don’t. He owes you something—your cousin.
Angela cleared her throat nervously.
“Uh… hi, Mr. Gallo,” she breathed, trying to still her shaky breaths. “This is Teresa Milano. You—I—we met last night… you… well, I’m the girl from La Perla. I’m sorry to bother you, but I was hoping you might be able to do me a favor. I—well, it’s…”
She abruptly stopped talking, wondering if she was playing a part or actually acting like a jackass.
No, I am sincerely being an idiot. Spit out what you’re trying to say.
Inhaling quickly, she finished the rest of the message in a rush of breath.
“If you could call me back, I would appreciate it.”
She left the number to her undercover phone and hung up, tossing the cell aside as if it was contaminated.
Pathetic. You’d better up your game when he calls back. If he calls back.
But she knew he would.
After all, he had gone out of his way to find her and leave his card.
Maybe he was worried she would go to the cops.
The irony made her laugh aloud.
There really never is a cop around when you need one, is there?
Angela knew there was nothing left to do but wait, so she settled onto the sofa, grabbing the remote control to flick on the small flat-screen mounted on the wall.
No sooner had she settled on a channel than the phone rang, causing her to jump.
He’s calling. Christ. He’s calling back.
Gulping back the stone in her throat, she accepted the call.
“Hello?”
Her voice escaped in a shadowy whisper.
“Teresa?”
“Yes?”
“It’s Luca Gallo. You left me a voicemail. Is everything okay?”
Okay, she told herself. You’re on.
“Oh, hi,” she said quickly. “Yes. Thanks for getting back to me.”
There was an awkward pause as she tried to remember what she was going to say to lure him back again. Suddenly, her mind was oddly blank.
“Are you okay?” he asked again and there was an unmistakable note of concern in his voice. “Do you need something?”
“I feel stupid calling you…”
“Don’t. That’s why I left you my card, remember?”
“It’s just… I realized after everything that happened last night that… that I didn’t pay my tab at the bar and I don’t really want to go back there alone. I don’t know anyone in Miami or I would call them to go with me, but…”
Another long silence ensued.
“Are you kidding me right now?” he growled. Angela tensed at the dubious question.
This was a bad idea. He can see right through me. I should have thought of something better. I should have—
“You’re worried about your bar tab?” he demanded.
“I had a few drinks,” she insisted. “The bartender shouldn’t have to cover my bill. I know how it works—management will take it out of Tanya’s check. I’ll pay it, happily, I just don’t want to go by myself.”
“Screw your bar tab,” Luca growled. “The owner can afford to eat it.”
“I’d rather—”
“No.”
There was a finality in his voice and Angela exhaled slowly.
Well, so much for getting him back here to take me. Now I have to think of something else.
“And don’t worry,” Luca added. “Tanya isn’t paying a dime either. You don’t have to worry about that.”
“Okay,” Angela mumbled. “If you’re sure…”
“What are you doing right now?”
“Me?” Angela choked. “Uh, nothing.”
“Good. I’ll be there in half an hour. I’ll take you for dinner.”
The statement caused her jaw to drop open and she was glad he couldn’t see her shocked expression.
“Dinner?”
“It’s the meal following lunch.”
“I… I don’t…”
“Don’t worry. We’re not going to La Perla. Wear something nice.”
The line went dead and Angela stared at the phone in her hand for a long moment, trying to make sense of what had just happened.
Well, that didn’t go as planned, she thought apprehensively. Now I have a date with a potential murderer.
But as she ambled to her feet, Angela could not deny the spark of excitement she was feeling about seeing Luca Gallo again.
I can’t reconcile that the man who burst into La Perla last night is capable of harming any woman. He didn’t have to save me. There was no reason for him to do that.
Angela was sure she had never been more confused in her life than she had been in the past twenty-four hours.
She had expected some level of clarity when she entered the realm of undercover work, but she was finding the reality much more complicated.
Examining Teresa’s wardrobe in the bedroom closet, she suddenly remembered something.
Is this place wired or not?
She hurried back into the living room and stepped onto the arm of the sofa, reaching to pull out the smoke detector.
There was no indication of a camera there, nor was there one in the cable box.
She scoured through the unit, checking under lampshades and couches, looking in every corner she could find for any piece of surveillance equipment, but with each cupboard she opened, her heart filled with more dread.
Where else could they have hidden mics and cams?
She had no answer.
Slowly, Angela retreated to the bedroom to select an outfit for her date, a sick feeling of understanding washing through her.
At that point, she trusted Luca Gallo more than she did the FBI.
Chapter Seven
Date with a Killer
She’s beautiful and so vulnerable. What am I doing here with her? Am I out of my mind?
Luca was sure he was.
He had blown off a meeting with his soldiers that evening, a much-needed regrouping after what had happened with August, but somehow that didn’t faze him in the least.
But when Teresa had called, the plaintive note in her voice was enough to make him drop everything and run to her.
I used to want to do that for Mara too, he thought with some acidity. He wished Mara wouldn’t keep popping into his head so often.
Luca knew it wasn’t fair to compare Teresa to Mara, that they were two completely different people, ones from different walks of life. Teresa had an innocence that Mara never did.
Yet he couldn’t let go of the idea that they were somehow connected.
They are connected because they both have some odd spell over you which you can’t seem to shake.
“You’re looking at me weird,” Teresa told him nervously. “Is something wrong?”
Luca shook his head quickly.
“I’m just trying to figure you out,” he replied and her complexion paled at his confession.
“Figure me out? How? What do you mean?” she asked quickly, reaching for her water. “There’s nothing to figure out. I’m just a normal girl from Virginia.”
“Tell me about that,” L
uca said, sitting back in his chair to fold his arms over his chest. “What brought you to Miami?”
She stared at him for a moment and he realized she was trying just as hard to figure him out as he was her.
I can’t really blame her for being suspicious. She has every right to wonder who I am. She’s not from around here.
He wondered what she would say if she knew the truth about him, about his history, his family. The fact that he was a dragon didn’t seem to bother her in the least and he considered that perhaps that was their connection.
Is she my mate?
The question was unbidden and odd, one that he’d never asked himself of any woman before, not even Mara.
Teresa was saved from having to answer when the waiter brought their meals to the table.
“You like osso buco?” he asked as she reached for her fork. Teresa nodded eagerly.
“Are you kidding?” she asked, her eyes brightening as she stared at her plate. “I live for meat.”
She seemed embarrassed by the words as they tumbled out of her mouth and she glanced at him through her peripheral vision.
“Uh, I mean…” she faltered. “I like food.”
The pale of her face was replaced with an endearing hot flush and Luca found himself moving closer to study the lines of her face.
“Hey, I’m Italian. I love a woman who appreciates food. Around here, all the women are worried about gaining an ounce. It’s refreshing to meet a lady who will order veal once in a while.”
Their eyes met and Luca noted with some amusement that she blushed deeper, despite her attempts to hide it behind her silken tresses.
“So?” he asked as she took a mouthful of her food.
“It’s really good,” she replied, nodding, but Luca chuckled.
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Her beryl eyes met his questioningly.
“What?” she asked.
“What brings you to Miami?”
Teresa continued to chew and Luca wondered if she wasn’t stalling for time on her answer but he didn’t push.
“Adventure,” she answered finally and he snorted at the response.
“I see. How’s that working out for you?”
She eyed him speculatively, reaching for her glass of wine.
“I’m still here,” she replied. The answer was meant to be lighthearted but he could detect a note of gratitude in her voice. He leaned forward, wanting her to see the sincerity in his eyes as they locked on her. She didn’t look away.
“That guy is being dealt with,” he told her in a low voice. “You don’t have to worry about him again.”
Something flashed in her eyes and for a second, Luca wondered if she had ever really been worried about August in the first place. Sure, she had been scared, but when he found her, she wasn’t crying or acting hysterical.
I wonder if she could have taken him.
It seemed farfetched, given her slender frame, but as he continued to study her face, he felt like the woman sitting before him might have the capacity to take care of herself.
Especially if she’s a dragon too.
A wave of arousal shot through him and he sat back, suddenly concerned that he might act on his primitive instincts.
Teresa cleared her throat and turned her attention back to her plate.
“What do you do, Luca?” she asked, scooping another forkful of pasta into her mouth.
“I’m in consulting,” he answered automatically, reaching for a piece of bread nonchalantly.
Her dark eyebrows raised with curiosity.
“What kind of consulting?”
Under normal circumstances, he would be wary of her questions. His experience in the family and his genetic makeup ingrained in him suspicion and caution with strangers.
But it was different with Teresa. He had sought her out, after all. He had been drawn to her.
“Business,” he replied, hoping she wouldn’t push him for more details.
She didn’t.
“How about you? Are you working? In school?”
Teresa chuckled.
“How old do you think I am?” she asked, cocking her head to the side. “School was a while ago for me.”
“Oh? Are you an old woman of twenty-five?” he chuckled but he found himself curious to hear her response.
She smiled enigmatically.
“Something like that.”
They ate in silence for a moment but there was nothing uncomfortable about the quiet between them.
No, Luca thought. I’m wrong about her. There is nothing about her which reminds me of Mara. I don’t know why I thought there was.
He wiped his mouth, determined not to think about his former lover again for the rest of the night.
After all, he had a much better place to focus his attention on that evening.
~ ~ ~
Teresa reached for her keys and toyed with them in her hand, casting Luca a shy look as they stood in the hallway in front of her apartment.
“Thanks for dinner,” she said, sweeping her hand through her shoulder-length hair. “I-it was really good.”
Luca shrugged, leaning a hand against the wall.
“That’s not the greatest restaurant. If I had known you liked osso, I would have taken you to Il Gabbiano. Next time, okay?”
Again, her cheeks flushed an endearing pink and she grinned.
“Next time?” she asked shyly. “Is there going to be a next time?”
Luca dropped his arm, his face turning serious.
“That’s up to you,” he replied quietly. “I wouldn’t mind seeing you again, showing you around town.”
He didn’t add that he felt responsible for her safety or that the attraction he felt toward her was mounting with each look they shared.
The last thing I want to do is scare her off, not after what she’s been through.
They stared at each other and Luca felt a rush of blood flow through him but he willed himself not to act.
Still, he couldn’t help but wonder what her luscious mouth tasted like.
The way she keeps biting on her lower lip is driving me crazy.
He knew she wasn’t trying to be coy, that she had a natural innocence about her, and that was what drove even more heat through his frame.
Luca stifled a groan.
I gotta get out of here before I do something which freaks her out, he thought, ripping his eyes away from her face, but before he could move, she moved first.
He hadn’t expected the abrupt motion, his back landing against the wall he had been leaning on as Teresa pressed her mouth to his, her body extended onto the balls of her feet.
She had seemed much taller to him, but in that moment, as she pushed her lithe form against his barrel chest, she was a waif.
A part of him thought of resisting her, wondering if she felt like she owed him something, but as her kiss increased in urgency, his mouth forced apart by her tongue, he realized that she was acting completely of her own volition.
Luca’s huge hands fell onto the small of her back, pulling Teresa’s frame closer, and she sighed as her legs scissor-crossed into his.
Their tongues clashed, his mouth suctioning to her, sucking back the fullness of her lips.
She tasted like wine and meat, the combination only fueling his arousal.
Her palms slid around the back of her body, covering his hands, and she pushed him down, the hem of her skirt catching along his fingers.
“Let’s go inside,” he murmured but she shook her head, pulling him away from the wall and dancing him back toward the stairwell, her lips still locked on his.
She’s freakishly strong, he thought, mildly impressed, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it as they crashed through the exit and he toppled backward onto the stairs.
His hands cupped her rear and she straddled him, her eyes fixated on his.
Her hips began to grind against his pants and Luca felt a burst of heat in his crotch, her fingers lacing
around his neck to guide his face along the line of her throat.
Luca grunted slightly, his lips meeting the sweetness of her skin, inhaling the scent of her perfume, and he bucked upward as she fumbled for his buckle.
Lower his mouth moved, meeting the swell of her full breasts against the low neckline of her sequined dress.
Somehow, she managed to slide off his pants, a rigid nipple finding its way into his mouth, and for a moment, Luca wondered how they had gotten to that place.
Is she feeling vulnerable? Am I taking advantage of her?
“My God,” she murmured, wrapping a warm hand around his shaft, and he groaned aloud, his hesitations dissolving as she slid his unit against the wet cleft of her center.
“You’re beautiful,” he mumbled, his mouth exploring the taut skin, teeth gnashing out, and Teresa mewled, slipping her panties aside to allow him inside her.
She pushed herself against him, using her heels as leverage to lower herself over him.
She gasped at the size of him but the time for restraint was gone and Luca jerked upward to fill her entirely.
She yelped, her nails digging into his neck, forcing his face further into her chest and suddenly they were in a frenzied rhythm as he bucked beneath her.
Her cries increased as she bounced along to his set rhythm, sweat forming at her cleavage.
He could feel her tensing beneath his thrusts, her body bracing for climax, but he did not slow, driving himself high and deep as she cried out.
“Oh my God! Oh God…”
He felt it, an outpouring of heat through her thighs, but he continued to plunge into her, his own release so close.
She cried out again and again as he drove himself into her almost violently, barely aware of her long nails drawing blood at his neck as they sunk into his skin.
Teresa almost seemed to be a rag doll as he met her height of pleasure.
“Holy shit!” he growled, pinning her waist against his hips as his body twitched. “God, you’re so hot!”
She seemed unable to speak as he finished, his hands gripping her rear firmly.
Next time, I’m going to take her like that, he vowed and the realization that there was going to be a next time almost brought him back to life.
He drew his head back from her chest, suddenly realizing that he was short of breath.