Because he didn’t hold back. He couldn’t. He was pounding into her, and she was loving every thrust. This wasn’t about the feeling. This was about the release. He needed it badly, but so did she. And he was determined to give it to both of them. But there was no patience. They wanted it, and they wanted it now.
They got it within minutes of his entry. He shot into her like a ball on fire, and Roz screamed out when it hit against her most sensitive spot, and took her over too. He continued to pound as her orgasm intensified. He continued to pound as his cum moisturized her like a broken faucet in a dry land. Until he was pouring down her sides and out of her. And he was still holding her tightly and fucking her. He couldn’t stop fucking her. Even when the intercom began buzzing, Mick couldn’t stop.
Roz was in that state of euphoria too, but she knew somebody had to answer or they would have their entire security team breaking down their front door. She managed to reach away from Mick, and press the button.
“Yes?” Her voice was barely distinguishable as Mick continued to fuck her.
“They have arrived, ma’am,” Archie Bloom, their front gate security chief, informed her.
Roz didn’t expect for them to come this soon, but it didn’t matter. “Tell them to wait downstairs,” she said. “We’ll be down shortly.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Archie said, and Roz moved back to Mick.
And Mick continued to fuck her. He continued to fuck her with such mastery that he began to experience a second round of cum, and she began having another orgasm. They fucked and fucked. The bed was bouncing as they fucked.
By the time they were finished, and all of the pulsations had finally made it to a place of rest, Mick was completely on top of Roz, and Roz was almost off of the bed itself. Mick pulled her back on, and got off of her.
It was only after that, after they had rested in place for another several seconds, did Mick even realize the intercom had buzzed.
“The children are here,” Roz managed to inform him.
Mick looked at her. He didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
“When I left my office, I called Teddy and told him to get Gloria and Joey and come over. I told him you needed them.”
The idea that Mick would need anybody, let alone his own children, was a crazy thought to him. Before he met Roz he would have kicked the ass of anybody who even suggested such a thing. Needing somebody meant accepting a weakness. Even now he couldn’t go that far.
“I don’t need any fucker on the face of this earth,” he said to her in that harsh tone Roz was all too familiar with. Then he swallowed hard, still staring at her. “Except you,” he added.
Roz didn’t expect him to admit even that. It was a pleasant surprise because she knew what it took for a man like him to go that far. She felt such a special warmth toward him that she reached out and squeezed his hand. And then she began to move her sexually overworked body. “We can’t just leave them sitting downstairs,” she said. “That’s a fact. So let’s get out of this bed.” She began to get up. “That is,” she added with a smile, “if I can walk at all.”
Mick had to smile at that. And then he laughed. He felt so fortunate to have a woman like her in his corner. A woman who understood him so completely. He got out of bed too.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
What Mick and Roz didn’t realize, as they continued to make love while the three siblings were being escorted into the home, was that their activity could be heard downstairs. For the final minutes of their intense passion play, Teddy, Gloria, and Joey sat smiling on the living room sofa as their father and stepmother did their due diligence.
“Damn,” Joey said, grinning, “Dad’s gonna break that thang!”
Teddy laughed. And they listened, and they listened.
As the bed shaking finally slowed and then came to a stop, Gloria shook her head. “It’s not that much love making in this world,” she said. “Good grief!”
“Speak for yourself,” Joey said.
Gloria looked at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It’s a man thing,” Joey said. “That’s what it means.” Then he looked at Gloria. “A real man thing. Not like those boys you date.”
“A federal agent isn’t a boy,” Teddy said. “At least not usually.”
Gloria looked at Teddy. “How do you know who I’m dating?”
“I saw you.”
Gloria was shocked. “You’re the one who told Dad. Aren’t you?”
“Hell no,” Teddy said. “I’m no snitch. You know me better than that, sis. But Dad found out?”
Gloria nodded. “Yeah.”
“How?”
“How should I know? One of his flunkies told him, I guess.”
“I’ll bet he cussed your ass out,” Joey said. “How could you date Fed shit?”
“What did he say?” Teddy asked Gloria.
“He told me to get rid of him. He showed me pictures of Marco, that’s the guy’s name, with his wife and kids.”
“Damn, Glo,” Teddy said. “He’s married?”
“Yup.”
“And you didn’t know?”
“I had no clue. Of course I didn’t know! The bastard.”
“That’s what you get for fooling with Fed anyway,” Joey admonished her. “You know Dad ain’t all legit. You can’t have no Federal agent up in our business. What’s wrong with you?”
“What’s wrong with you?” Gloria shot back. “At least I wasn’t out there trying to be a drug dealer.”
“That was a long time ago,” Joey said.
“It wasn’t that long ago,” Teddy fired back.
“Whatever,” Joey responded, and ended that line of discussion.
“So what is this about?” Gloria asked Teddy. “Did Roz say?”
“She said Dad needs us. That’s all.”
“I told y’all what it was about,” Joey responded. “It’s about Adrian and his dumb ass. He tried to ice Dad. Dad want y’all on the lookout for him.”
Gloria shook her head. “I still can’t believe Adrian would do a thing like that. I know he doesn’t like Dad, but big deal. None of us do. I mean, we love him, but we don’t like the way he was never there for us.”
“It’s deeper than that with A-train,” Teddy said. “Adrian is the first born. He was rejected before any of us were even born. And for a while after I was born he didn’t know I existed. He didn’t have any of us around that he could point to and say, ‘ah, I’m not the only one he doesn’t treat right.’ He was the only one for a while. He hates Dad.”
“But enough to want to kill him?” Gloria asked. “I don’t think so.”
“It doesn’t matter what you think,” Joey said. “It’s a fact. Dad told me so himself.”
Gloria still couldn’t believe it. Adrian had his share of issues, but they all did. The idea that he would put a gun to their father’s head, the way Joey told it, and pull the trigger, was too crazy for her. She’d have to see that to believe that.
By the time Mick and Roz made it downstairs, all three were on their cell phones, pouring over text messages. Mick wore a pair of spandex shorts and a pullover t-shirt. Roz wore a short sundress.
“There they are,” Teddy said jovially and rose to his feet. Gloria and Joey, looking up, stopped texting and stood too.
Roz smiled. She was always amazed at how Mick’s children looked at him. They would give her a glance, but their entire focus was always on their father, as if they were in awe of him. As if they still could not believe that this great looking, powerful man belonged to them. Their mothers undoubtedly hated this reaction. They were there for their children, through thick and thin, but Mick was the one they seemed to idolize.
“Hey, Dad,” Joey said as they approached the threesome. “Looks like you’ve been working out.”
Gloria pushed him in his back. “You so stupid!” she said.
“What did I do?” Joey asked, although he couldn’t stop smiling when he asked it.
“Hey, Dad. Hey, Roz,” Teddy said. “Don’t mind those two juveniles.”
Mick brushed it off, and Roz did too, although she was a tad embarrassed that they apparently heard what they had been up to.
“Have a seat, guys,” Mick said, and all three sat back on the sofa, with Gloria in the middle. Mick sat in the flanking chair, and Roz sat on its arm.
“Want anything to drink?” Roz asked them.
“We’re good,” Teddy said, and the other two seemed to agree.
“So what’s going on, Dad?” Gloria asked. “Is it true about Adrian?”
Mick looked at Joey. “I told them,” Joey said. “Sorry. I didn’t know it was a secret.”
“It’s not,” Mick said. And then he crossed his legs. “It’s true,” he said to Gloria.
But Teddy was still stunned. “So he did try to . . . kill you?” he asked.
Roz felt the pain when Teddy asked that question. She wanted to look at Mick, but was too afraid she couldn’t take it.
Mick nodded. “Yes,” he said. “He would have succeeded if I would not have emptied the chamber.”
“But why?” Gloria asked, a look of confusion on her brown face. “Why would Adrian do something that crazy?”
Mick knew why, and on some level his kids did too. Mick would have preferred to suppress it, but he wasn’t going to do that to them. They deserved the truth from him. “Hate,” he said. “He wants to destroy me.”
“But why?” Gloria asked. “I mean, I know you weren’t exactly close to any of us growing up, but you’re doing better now. A lot better. Why wasn’t that enough for him?”
“Because his hate ran deeper,” Teddy said, and Mick and Roz both looked at Teddy. Because saying that Adrian’s hate ran deeper, implied that the rest of them hated Mick too, but not as much. Teddy saw their looks. “I phrased that wrong,” he said. “What I meant to say---”
“They know what you meant,” Joey said. “And you’re right. A’s hate runs deeper than ours.”
Mick wasn’t going to verbalize it, but he appreciated Joey’s honesty. “The reason Rosalind thought it was a good idea that I meet with you,” he said, “was to make sure you keep me in the loop.”
“Concerning what?” Gloria asked.
“That Fed man you’re dating,” Joey said. “What do you think? He wants to stay in the loop concerning Adrian. If we see him, steer clear of him.”
“Call me if you see him,” Mick said. “If I’m not available, you call Rosalind. If she can’t be reached, you call Danny Padrone. He’ll handle it.”
“I don’t like him though,” Joey said. “He always walking around like he’s running something.”
“Don’t approach Adrian,” Mick said. “Don’t do him any favors.”
“You don’t think he’d do anything to us,” Gloria said. “Do you, Dad?”
“There’s no way of knowing,” Roz said. “He may attempt to harm one of you to hurt Mick. You have to be careful.”
It was only then did this craziness concerning Adrian hit home for all three siblings. They really didn’t know him as well as they had thought.
“Another thing,” Mick said, leaning forward. “I need you guys to phone my office tomorrow and leave me all of your numbers.”
Teddy frowned. “What kind of numbers?”
“Your cell phone numbers, your best friend numbers. Any and every number I can try if I need to get in touch with you.”
Teddy smiled. “So you gave up on having your flunkies follow us around?”
“We gave them the slip too many times,” Joey said with a grin. “I mean it’s easy!”
Mick nodded. “It’s not a practical solution, that’s true.”
Roz looked sidelong at Mick. “Oh, really now? Not practical? Then why do you still have an army of men following me?”
Teddy smiled. “Because you’re his baby. He’s not taking any chances with you.”
Teddy was smiling, but Roz knew that admission had to hurt. Mick knew it too. “You’re entitled to your freedom,” Mick said to his children. “But I’ll be happy to have a man on all of you, if you want.”
“No, thanks,” Joey said.
“No, thanks,” Gloria said.
“No, thank you very much,” said Teddy.
Mick smiled.
“But I still don’t understand how Adrian could do such a thing,” Gloria said. “It’s just mind boggling to me.”
“It is what it is,” Mick said. “You just stay clear of him.”
“I will,” Gloria said. “Don’t worry.”
Mick nodded. “Good.”
“I hear you aren’t the only one Adrian’s been trigger-happy with,” Teddy said. “I hear he’s the one who took out Mo DeLuca.”
Mick and Roz both looked at Teddy. How would he know anything about Mo?
“Who’s Mo DeLuca?” Gloria asked.
“Yeah,” Joey said. “Who is that?”
“Nobody for you to concern yourselves with,” Roz said. “I just want to thank you guys for coming by.”
“I still don’t know why Dad needed us,” Joey said. “Stay away from Adrian. He already told me that.”
“I’m telling you again,” Mick said. “You always need to hear it twice.”
Teddy and Gloria laughed.
“Very funny,” Joey said.
“I also want to make sure all three of you understand how serious a matter this is. If he calls you, you call me. If you see him, you call me. Understood?”
Teddy nodded. “We understand.”
“And if we don’t call you?” Joey asked.
“I’ll kick your ass,” Mick replied. And he replied in that completely serious way that made them know he was completely serious.
“Anyway,” Teddy said, rising to his feet. “I’ve got a hot date tonight.”
“With a dog no doubt,” Joey said, rising too. “You never date hot girls.”
“Whatever Joey,” Gloria said, rising also.
“I’ll walk them out,” Roz said, but Mick stood up too.
“No,” he said. “I’ll walk them out.”
Gloria, Teddy, and Joey all looked at their father. They were surprised.
“You wait here,” Mick said to Teddy. “I want to speak with you.”
“But he drove,” Joey said.
“He’ll be out in a few minutes,” Roz said, as his father escorted Gloria and Joey out.
“What does he want?” Teddy asked her.
“Why would you think I would know?” Roz asked him.
“Because he tells you everything. We all know that.”
Roz smiled. She knew. But it wasn’t her place to tell. “He’ll be back in,” she said. “I need to see what I’m going to prepare him for dinner.” She began heading for the kitchen. “Care to join us?”
“No thanks,” Teddy said. Then he smiled. “But I thought Dad already ate.”
Roz stopped in her tracks and looked at Teddy.
“I’m just messing with you,” Teddy said, laughing. “Please forgive me.”
Roz smiled and shook her head. She could probably forgive Teddy anything.
She wasn’t long out of the living room when Mick returned.
“What’s this about, Dad?” Teddy asked.
“How do you know Mo DeLuca?”
Teddy thought about it. “I don’t know him. I know of him.”
“How?”
“I just do, Dad. Why?”
Mick stared at his son. “What do you do for a living, Teddy?”
“I run this nightclub. I told you.”
“Yeah. What do you do for a living?” Mick asked again.
Teddy knew he wasn’t about to get one over on his old man. He exhaled. “I help people out.”
“What kind of people?”
“Powerful people,” Teddy said. “Mostly ladies.”
“You help them do what?” Mick asked.
“Whatever they need. I don’t do the work myself, but I have contractors who do.”
&
nbsp; Mick continued to stare at Teddy. He knew he was up to some underhanded shit, but his men could never put a finger on what exactly it was. “So you run a prostitution ring? Is that what you’re telling me?”
“I put the right man with the right lady,” Teddy said. “That’s all. What they do from there is their business.”
“That shit is illegal,” Mick said.
“And your shit isn’t?” Teddy asked.
Mick couldn’t answer that. He was nobody’s role model, and he knew it.
“I really need to run, Dad,” he said. “I really do have a hot date tonight.”
“Then go,” Mick said. “But call me if you see that brother of yours. And call my office tomorrow with those numbers.”
“I will,” Teddy said, gave his regards to Roz, and left.
Mick stood there. First it was Joey and his lame attempt at drug dealing. Then Adrian and his craziness. Now Teddy and his prostitution ring. The sins of the father visited on the children. He felt as if his life was going sideways fast.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
As the days came and went, and there was still no word of Adrian’s whereabouts, Mick and Roz made every attempt to return to normalcy. She went back to running her business, and he went back to running his. It was an uneasy normalcy, but they got through it. Mick even took Roz dancing one night, to take the edge off. And they managed to keep the craziness at bay. Until nearly two weeks after Adrian’s attempt on Mick’s life, word came from Danny Padrone that there had been another intercept of their cargo, this time it was their Cleveland shipment, but their men were ready. Their men knew the responsible party.
“I thought I told them no more shipments in,” Mick said.
“This one was already waiting for pickup. It was already in the pipeline. It couldn’t be stopped. But they know who was behind the intercept.”
Mick exhaled. “Who?” he asked. Mick was in bed, with Roz sound asleep in his arms.
“It was Lorenzo, boss,” Danny said over the phone. “It was Lorenzo Zatti.”
Mick Sinatra 3: His Lady, His Children, and Sal Page 11