Dating A Mob Boss (The Dating Series Book 2)

by Love, B. T.

  “Black, thanks. Well what if I have your carpets replaced? No one would steal carpet.”

  “Don’t be too sure,” I said, bringing him his cup and transferring it from my slender fingers into his large hand. “I wouldn’t put anything past the low-lifes in this neighborhood.”

  “Well what if I pay to have it shampooed professionally?”

  “Trent,” I stopped him, “that’s really sweet but I can handle it.”

  He took a sip of coffee and watched me, his mind reeling with something I wish I could read. After another sip of the warm brew he went over to the corner of the room and rubbed his foot back and forth on the floor. “Hmm.”

  “What? What is it?”

  He bent down and tugged on the carpet with his free hand. “This is an old building.”

  “Yeah, I know. You can tell that by the color of my toilet.”

  He chuckled and tugged on the ugly green fibers again until it finally broke away from the tack strip beneath it. “Ha, I was right.”

  “Right? About what?” I went over to where he was kneeling and saw what he was speaking of: hardwood floors. “Oh my gosh, Trent! You’re amazing! I didn’t even think to look under the carpet.”

  He stood up and took another sip from his mug. “I figured there would be some under this stuff. Now you can pull it all up and refinish what’s under here. I’m sure you could do that easily enough without drawing too much attention to yourself, especially since you’ll just be hauling this ugly stuff out to the dumpster and not bringing anything new inside.”

  “Yeah, I can totally do that. I can even cut it into small strips and take it out little by little so I don’t draw too much attention to myself like you were saying.”

  “You should. I can get you a sander and we could sand it down and then refinish it.”

  I smiled as I watched him looking down at my floor, talking excitedly about helping me with my newly discovered project. What a genuinely nice man he was turning out to be.

  He looked over at me, catching me in my admiration. His smile resembled a little embarrassed school boy’s as his eyes dropped down to the cup in his hand. “What?” he asked.

  “Nothing,” I shrugged. “You’re just doing a good job of changing my mind about you.”

  “Good,” he said with satisfaction. “My mission is accomplished then.”

  “Not quite. I said you’re doing a good job; I didn’t say my mind is completely made up yet.”

  He shook his head and took his cup to the sink. “At least I’m wearin’ you down.” His body relaxed against the counter as he turned around and locked eyes with me once again. “Can I help you with the floors? I really would like to do that for you.”

  “Why? I mean, you don’t even know me.”

  “But I want to know you.”

  I smiled at him before looking around the room. “If that’s what you wish.”

  “Wow, granting my wish without even being in the restaurant?”

  “Yeah,” I chuckled. “I guess so.”

  “Well, when do you want to start on this? Any time you want, I’ll do it.”

  “Any time, huh? Well, I’m not doing anything at the moment. How about now?”

  His eyes sparkled at my words. “I was hoping you would say that.”

  * * *

  We worked into the evening pulling up the pathetic excuse for carpeting throughout my apartment, Trent himself slicing it into manageable strips with his pricey-looking pocket knife. We started in the bedroom and worked our way into the living room, piece by piece cutting it up and hauling it over by the front door into a gigantic pile.

  Our conversations flowed with ease while we worked away. He told me more about his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend; I told him more about my ex-fiancé. He had completely dropped the tough-guy act for me and I was slowly falling into the web of sweetness that he was spinning. The fact that he was such a powerful man didn’t even occur to me during our story telling. He was normal, not at all someone to fear. And I found myself becoming sweeter to him as well.

  When we finally worked our way to the living room, Trent pulled up another strip of carpet, only to discover a giant stain on the hardwood.

  “Uh oh,” he said. “Looks like we have a problem.”

  I stared down at the giant blemish that was beginning to disrupt my vision of the perfect floors I was so excited about. “Jeez, did someone get murdered here?”

  Trent chuckled. “You know, I wouldn’t be surprised. We might be able to sand it out, though.”

  “Well,” I sighed, “at least it’s in a good spot. I figure my couch will be against that wall so a nice area rug would be in front of it and would cover the stain anyway.”

  “Oh yeah? How you figure you’re gonna get a rug in here unnoticed?” he jokingly hassled me.

  I lightly slapped his arm with the back of my hand. “Hey, when there’s a will, there’s a way.”

  “That’s very true.” He smiled that handsome smile of his, speaking to me in a way that words couldn’t. “Well, anyway, let’s get the rest of this stuff up.” He bent down and cut away at the carpet some more, focused on the task.

  I looked down at him as he worked. His hair was so thick and I couldn’t help but envision running my hands through it, even pulling on it as he . . . as he made love to me. I shook my head, trying to get the erotic fantasy out of my mind. This man, as sweet as he was, still scared me a little. He obviously had his hands in the drug market. And who knew what other illegal schemes. My mom had always taught me to stay away from men like him. But, I was having trouble doing that. Because at that moment as he was tearing away the strips of my old smelly carpet his dress shirt was clinging to his back, showing off the strength of his body. His arms were flexing with each tug and pull and with his sleeves rolled up like they were I could see the veins popping out along his skin. Stay away from him, I could hear my mom saying in my head. But I couldn’t. I was finally met with the realization that I wanted this man. I wanted Trent Falco.

  Six

  “I want to take you somewhere special,” Trent spoke deeply into the phone. “It’s my favorite place to go.”

  “Where?” I smiled, feeling giddy with excitement.

  “I think I’ll surprise you. You’ll just have to see it.”

  “Okay. What time?”

  “How’s three sound?”

  “Sounds great.”

  “Okay, see you then.”

  “I can’t wait,” I gushed, embarrassing myself with my obvious over-enthusiasm.

  I hung up and looked down at the picture of him I had taken when he gave me his number. Countless times I had stared at it, the sight of his masculinity driving me deep into fantasies about him.

  My eyes scanned the room. After we had pulled the carpet Trent came back the next night with two hand sanders and we spent the evening on our hands and knees sanding the floors down to the attractive wood they once were. The night after that we stained them, and now my entire apartment was filled with a cohesive wooden floor that filled me with happiness and the prospect of new beginnings, as well as my mind with images of Trent and our meaningful conversations.

  Clyde was stunned by the amount of times Trent had visited me. And every time he crossed paths with Trent he almost bowed down like he was royalty, which seemed to make Trent uncomfortable. I assumed he was uncomfortable because he was trying to impress me, and the reason Clyde was paying him so much attention wasn’t necessarily a flattering one.

  Much to my astonishment I found myself not caring about his work life. He didn’t like talking about it much, and I honestly didn’t want to know too much about it anyway. I was afraid I might end up learning something about him that would be a deal breaker for me, and I didn’t want that to happen.

  Now, after spending a few laughter-filled evenings together, Trent was taking me somewhere. A date. My body tingled with nervousness as I went into my hideous bathroom and fixed my hair and makeup, taking more time than usual so I woul
d show him a different look he hadn’t seen before. A more “put together” look, as my mom would call it.

  Three o’clock came and Trent was right on time, knocking lightly on my door with his powerful hand. I took one last look in the mirror and drew in a deep breath as I went into the living room and opened the door.

  I was stunned. He wasn’t dressed in his usual business shirt and slacks. Even the nights he sanded the floors with me he showed up wearing his semi-professional attire. But not today. He was in jeans and a T-shirt. Nothing entirely special, but boy did he look amazing.

  “Trent, you, you look—”

  “Different?” he said with a smile.

  “Yeah, but, it’s a good different. You look nice.”

  “Thank you. And so do you. I like your hair.”

  I ran my hand down my lengthy strands. “Oh, thanks. I curled it.”

  “I see that.”

  I stood back behind the door. “Come in. I’ll grab my purse and we can go.”

  He nodded happily and passed by me, sending a whiff of cologne in my direction. He hadn’t worn any up until that point. The smell was woodsy and masculine; it was completely knee-weakening.

  I closed the door and took a quick moment to marvel at him while he surveyed the hard work we had recently put into the floor. The short sleeves of his shirt were tight around his biceps, which looked flexed even though I knew they weren’t. His chest was also more apparent than I had ever noticed, and it looked like he regularly lifted weights. So, in other words, I really loved the shirt he was wearing. Or should I say, I loved what was under the shirt he was wearing.

  Someone tapped against the door as I grabbed my purse from off of the counter. “I wonder who that could be.” I went back and checked the peephole. “Oh, it’s my neighbor,” I said as I opened the door. “Hi Sophie.”

  “Hi,” she smiled. “I hope this isn’t a bad time.”

  “No, not at all. Come in.”

  I stood back and she took a step inside, her eyes immediately landing on Trent. “Oh, I didn’t know you had company. I can come back another time.”

  “No, it’s fine,” I assured her. “This is my friend, Trent. Trent, this is Sophie.”

  Trent smiled and came forward, holding out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you,” he told her.

  “Likewise,” she smiled, shaking his hand before turning to me and giving me a look of approval. “Wow, look at these floors.”

  “I know, they’re great, right?” I bragged. “Trent’s the one who pulled back the carpet and found this stuff underneath. He helped me sand and stain them.”

  “So that’s what all that buzzing was, huh? I was hoping it wasn’t something else, you know, battery operated.” It was the most awkward joke she could have possibly told in front of Trent. But I still laughed.

  Trent laughed, too. “If it were, then she would be completely destroyed by now.”

  “Oh my gosh you guys,” I laughed, my face heating up with embarrassment. “I’m not that lonely.”

  Sophie chuckled. “Well, anyway, I came by to tell you my friend Rhonda had a yard sale today and she has a couch that no one bought. She said you can have it for twenty bucks if you want it. I guess it’s not in the greatest shape; it was in their garage and was used for her teenage son’s little weekend parties or some crap like that. But anyway, I thought of you since you’re looking for furniture.”

  “Oh, wow,” I nodded happily. “Yes, I’ll buy it from her. I’ll just have to figure out a way to get it over here.”

  “I’ll take care of that,” Trent cut in. “Just write down the address and I’ll have someone pick it up.”

  “Trent, no, that’s okay. I can figure it out.”

  “I insist. And besides, you wouldn’t let me buy you a new one so this is the next best thing I can do for you.”

  I sighed out a breath of air in Trent’s direction and then turned my attention back to Sophie. “Okay. Thank you for thinking of me Sophie; I really appreciate it.”

  She crossed her arms and leaned against the open door frame. “You’re welcome. Oh, and I also have a bed for you.”

  “A bed? Where did you get that?” I asked reluctantly.

  “It’s my old one. I feel bad that you’re sleeping on the floor. Now especially, since it’s a much harder surface.”

  Sophie’s bed. A prostitute’s bed? How could I possibly sleep on it knowing what she did on it, or who she did on it? My OCD was kicking in big time. But, how could I say no? After all, it was really sweet of her.

  “I don’t know what to say,” I told her sweetly. “Thank you; that’s very thoughtful of you.”

  “Of course. We have to look out for each other here, you know? We’re neighbors.”

  I smiled warmly at her. “You’re absolutely right.”

  “Maybe you can come get it tomorrow. I’ll help you move it over. And I’ll get Rhonda’s address for you and give it to you then as well.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Sophie smiled at Trent. “Nice meeting you,” she told him as she stepped away from the door.

  “And you as well,” he said in return.

  Sophie went back to her apartment and I turned to Trent. “Well, are you ready to go?”

  “Absolutely,” he beamed. “Let’s go have some fun.”

  * * *

  The top was down on the Bentley and the weather was perfect. Clouds speckled the bright blue sky and the sun felt warm on my skin, reminding me of home back in California.

  Trent leaned forward and turned the radio down. “So, a bed from a prostitute.”

  “Yep,” I nodded. “I guess so.”

  “Well, I know you were just too sweet to turn her down. And since you can’t bring anything nice into your apartment, I came up with a plan.”

  “Oh yeah?” I asked, looking over at him with interest. “And what is that?”

  “We can rent a steam cleaner. We’ll just steam the STD’s right out of that thing.”

  I laughed loudly into the fresh air. “Let’s hope they aren’t resistant to steam. But actually, that’s a pretty good idea.”

  “Yeah, it’s probably the best way to handle that situation,” he chuckled. “We can do it to the couch, too.”

  “Yeah,” I nodded. “But at least I can strip that down and reupholster it. I’m actually really excited to do that, excited to go to the fabric store and pick out exactly what I want.”

  He glanced over at me with a smile. “There it is again.”

  “What?”

  “That tone in your voice that you get when you talk about flipping stuff.”

  “What can I say?” I shrugged happily. “It’s what I love.”

  “Well, I’m about to show you something else you’re going to love.”

  “And what is that?”

  “My family’s rose garden.”

  We turned down a long paved driveway that was dotted with weeping willows. “This place is beautiful,” I said, looking out toward the giant house in the distance that looked to be at the end of the road.

  “Yeah, it’s my grandfather’s place.”

  His grandpa? The head of the Falco family? My nerves began to rattle as I recalled what Natalie had told me about the man, how people tended to disappear when they were involved with him and the Falco family in general. But at the same time, who was I kidding? I was sitting right next to a dangerous man, apparently. Although it was still hard for me to actually believe. He was just so kind, I couldn’t imagine him bringing harm to anyone.

  “Your grandpa, huh?”

  His gaze drifted from the road to my face. “Yeah. I’ll introduce you to him some day. Not today, though. Today is about you and me.”

  I smiled at his charm. “Good. Give me a heads up at least before that meeting takes place.”

  “Don’t worry; you’ll always know when you’re being called to a meeting with the family.”

  Was that some kind of mob joke? No, there is no mob, so it couldn’t
be. They are just a wealthy family who, who does what, push drugs? My eyes widened. What the hell was I getting myself into? There I was, driving alone with an apparent drug lord, his hotness obviously blinding my sense of reasoning. Why did I let this happen? How could I let this happen?

  My hand flew to the door handle. “Um, Trent, maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”

  He looked over at me. “Why? What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, nothing’s wrong. Maybe we should just go for a walk at the park or something.”

  “Seriously? Is everything okay? Did I say something that upset you?”

  “No, just, just please take me somewhere else.”

  He looked back and forth between me and the road, his face riddled with confusion. “Okay,” he finally agreed. “I’ll turn around at the end of the driveway, where the garden is.”

  We rode in silence for a minute until the rose garden came into view. I couldn’t deny that it was absolutely beautiful, and gigantic as well; I could see myself getting lost in it.

  He turned the car around and stopped. “Are you sure you don’t want to walk through it? I think you’ll really appreciate it.”

  I looked out my window at the wall of roses beside us. “Okay,” I reluctantly agreed. “But I think we should go after I see it.”

  “Okay. Whatever makes you happy.” He jumped out of the car and came around to my side, opening the door. “I just wish you would tell me why you had the sudden change of heart. You seemed so happy just a few short minutes ago.”

  I got out and he shut the door behind me. “I don’t know, Trent. I kind of freaked myself out.”

  “Was it me?”

  “Yes. No. I don’t know; I guess it’s just complicated.”

  “What’s complicated?”

  “You and me. Your family. Your position. What you’re involved in, which I really don’t know much about. I mean, the list just goes on and on.”

  He crossed his arms and nodded. “Yeah, I understand; I’ve been through this before. I’m still trying to change your mind about me though. This is a part of that.”