by Unknown
"Welcome to your fashion house," Annabella announced, with a wave.
Tammy inhaled a breath and stepped back. She looked around with disbelief.
"What?"
"Your house," Annabella confirmed. "Even though my son said that you were a very talented designer, I had to see for myself."
Annabella reached into a briefcase and pulled out one of Tammy's sketch pads, and handed it to Tammy. Luca must have sent it to her!
"Young, sexy, provocative, classy, and very marketable," Annabella remarked.
Tammy had heard nothing past "my son." "Your son?"
Annabella looked at Luca with the love that only a mother could have for a son.
"Tammy, meet my mother, Annabella Caracciolo. Mamma this is Tammy."
Tammy covered her open mouth with her hand.
"Annabella Caracciolo is your mother?" Tammy asked, breathlessly. "The Annabella Caracciolo?"
"Yes, my mother, Anna. Now, do you want a tour of your design house?"
Tammy looked around the dusty room and used her imagination, picturing a beautiful and elegant boutique. The cathedral ceiling and open metal stairs were fresh and contemporary. Although it had surpassed her wildest dreams, it wasn't what she agreed to. Tammy pulled Luca into a corner.
"Luca, I know for a fact that the measly twenty thou that I got saved is like a raindrop in the ocean. You know that I can't afford this and I can't let you pay for all of this."
Luca gently caressed Tammy's face and placed a tender kiss to her lips.
"It is done," was all he said.
Well okay then.
He grabbed her hand and led her around for a quick tour. By the time the tour was over, Tammy was not only sold, but outright giddy. The store was incredible, and she couldn't wait to get started.
"We'll go see the factory tomorrow."
Tammy nodded, knowing better than to go back and forth with Luca. He wasn't the type to not get the last word in any matter. And, realistically, Tammy had no intention of arguing with him. He had just handed her, her dream on a silver platter.
They exited the store and continued down the famous street. As they walked, Tammy noticed right away that other pedestrians were openly staring at them. She glanced at Natasha, and she didn't seem fazed. Realistically, she shouldn't have been surprised by the attention. After all, she was walking down the street with a very famous fashion designer, two of Paris' most infamous club owners, and a team of bodyguards.
After a short walk, they reached the entrance to Annabella's. The doors were opened immediately, and when they stepped inside, all activity came to an abrupt halt at the sight of Anna. One of her employees grabbed a tray of champagne and approached them with a smile. Anna took two glasses from the tray and handed one to Tammy and the other to Natasha. She took two more and passed them to Gianni and Luca, before collecting her own glass. The young lady folded the tray under her arm and reached for Anna's briefcase.
"Merci beaucoup Chantal."
Tammy sipped from her glass, thinking of how different this reality was compared to her own. Luca slipped his arm around her waist from behind and kissed the top of her head.
"Are you hungry?" he asked.
"I could eat."
"We'll have lunch soon," Anna interjected. "But first... I understand that you'll be hitting the town tonight. So, Chantal is going to help you ladies find the perfect dress."
For the maybe hundredth time that day, Tammy's mouth flew open. She looked over at Natasha, who only smiled before knocking back her champagne. She turned back to Anna.
"Are you serious? I... I can't accept..."
"You can, and you will. Now, you don't want to get on the mother-in-law's bad side do you?" she remarked with a wink.
Tammy smiled at Anna, but she was stunned by the "mother-in-law" comment. She heard Luca and Gianni chuckle behind her.
“Thank you so much, Anna."
Anna, with a wave of her hand, sent Tammy and Natasha off to shop in what Tammy would equate with paradise.
*************
Tammy stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom at Gianni and Natasha's house. She admired her Annabella original—a red, knee-length dress with an attached corset and capped sleeves. She had given herself a smoky eye and wore her hair up in a messy bun. She turned and noticed the way the dress clung to her curves, it was Annabella's signature. She didn't design for stick figures, but women with ass.
"Yaaaas, honey! You did that," she said, to the sexy woman in the mirror.
Tammy turned back to the mirror and rubbed her hands down the front of her dress, smoothing out imaginary wrinkles. After giving herself the stamp of approval, she walked out of the massive bathroom, into an even more massive guest-room. She grabbed her clutch and stepped out into a never-ending hallway. She recited eenie, meenie, miney, mo in her head to decide whether to go right or left.
"My God you're beautiful," Luca said from behind her.
Tammy was grateful that she didn't have to navigate Gianni and Natasha's castle alone. But she didn't expect the sight of him to take her breath away. Luca was a tall, dark, and extremely sexy man. Tammy wanted to run her fingers through his hair. He was wearing jeans and a black blazer over a charcoal v-neck. Luca, obviously aware that Tammy was ogling him, smiled that sexy smile that only she was privy to.
"Luca, You're so gotdamn fine. You could make a woman change her religion."
"Hmm? Well, what is your religion?" he asked in a sultry voice.
"Well I'm from Louuu-siaana and I'm French Creole. Why I'm Catholic, of course," Tammy responded, in her best southern accent.
"Aaaand... you would change that for me?"
"Damn right!"
Luca laughed heartily and pulled Tammy in his arms.
"Let's go. Natasha and Gianni are waiting for us in the foyer. But Tammy, know this... I'm attacking that beautiful ass when we get to my place tonight."
His seductive words were setting Tammy on fire. Natasha and Gianni be damned, she was tempted to drag him back in the guest-room and bounce up and down on him. Luca, seemingly reading her mind, guided her toward the staircase with his hand in the small of her back. After what seemed like a thousand stairs, Tammy and Luca followed the sound of Natasha's laughter into the parlor.
Tammy froze at the sight of Natasha. She was undeniably gorgeous. The normally bashful, modestly dressed Natasha wasn't anything like the sex kitten standing in front of her. Her Annabella original was a sultry long red dress that fit like a molestation. Apparently red was Gianni's favorite color. The halter top draped low enough to show the entire curve of her breasts. She wore dark alluring eye makeup, contrasted by a bright red lip, and her sleek short bob was sexy and chic.
"Damn, Tasha! You sexy bitch!"
Natasha turned and modeled her outfit for Tammy.
"You like?"
"Like? I think I just turned gay," Tammy joked.
"We can't have that," Luca chuckled, swatting Tammy's bottom.
"No, seriously Tash, you look amazing."
"Thanks. And, as usual, you look gorgeous."
To Tammy's surprise, Luca handed out shots. She looked down at the clear liquid and asked, "What's this?"
"Tequila. In honor of our beautiful hostess. Apparently, she likes it," Luca said with a frown.
"Hush, Luca! It's good. Drink," Natasha instructed, lifting her shot glass.
"To..." She turned to Tammy. "What is the name of your design house?"
Tammy raised her glass to Luca.
"House of Giovanni."
Natasha and Gianni smiled, ready to down their shots. However, judging by Luca's knitted brow, he was not exactly pleased.
"Your design house should be named after you."
"No, Luca. It should be named after what inspires me. Your belief in me is inspirational. So... to the House of Giovanni," Tammy declared, before taking her shot.
"To the House of Giovanni," Natasha and Gianni repeated. They finished their shots and looked t
o Luca. Tammy watched his expression change from apprehension to appreciation. He raised his shot glass.
"To Giovanni's," he recited with that lopsided grin, that Tammy loved.
Gianni poured another round of shots.
“Okay guys, let's do one more and then get out of here."
"So Natasha…what's the plan for tonight?" Tammy asked.
“Okay, first we're going to La Tempete for dinner and then we're going to the club."
Tammy was extremely excited about her night out in Paris. From what she'd seen earlier that day, she fully understood why Paris was often referred to as the most beautiful city in the world. But she got even more excited thinking about after their night on the town. She thought of Luca taking her, drunk and horny, back to his place.
*************
After an amazing dinner at La Tempete, they walked across the street to La Tempete Rouge. Luca tucked her arm through his, and they walked past a line of patrons waiting to get inside the club. Once inside, Tammy looked around the huge nightclub. It was everything that she expected. The Storms and Savellis didn't do anything small.
They walked over to a guarded elevator and rode it to the next level. They stepped off, and into what Tammy assumed was the VIP section. Once they were seated, Tammy looked down at the rest of the club through a big picture window. She took a sip from the champagne a waitress sat in front of her and thought about all the things that she'd learned about Luca over lunch. Anna, to Luca's dismay and Tammy's delight, spilled the beans by revealing that Luca went into the entertainment industry because he used to sing and play the guitar. She had also asked why Anna's last name was Caracciolo and Luca's was Savelli, and learned that, sadly, Luca's father was murdered when he was fourteen. And even though Francis was only five years older, he stepped into the role of father figure. In addition to Francis, Gianni's dad, Jonathan also played a huge part in his upbringing. Anna later married Niccolo Caracciolo, a wealthy Italian real estate developer that she met through Jonathan.
"Where are you?" Natasha asked, snapping Tammy from her thoughts.
"I was just thinking about Luca as a little boy. Girl, I’ma need a picture as proof that he was ever a child," Tammy chuckled.
She looked around and couldn't believe that she was so consumed with thoughts of Luca that she hadn't noticed that the VIP section had filled up so quickly.
"Where did all these titties come from?"
"Girl, welcome to my world. As soon as Gianni and Luca walk in they seem to spring out of the floor and fall from the ceiling."
"How do you put up with this shit?"
"How do you?" Natasha smirked, looking past Tammy.
"Huh?"
Tammy followed Natasha's line of sight and found Luca relaxing on a sofa having a conversation with a man that Tammy had never met. The unknown man wasn't the issue, but the half-naked woman riding Luca's lap was disturbing. Now, being a stripper, Tammy had nothing against a lap dance. But this trick was no stripper, and this was no strip club. Tammy felt outright disrespected. She turned back to Natasha and smiled.
"I'll be back."
"Tammy!"
Tammy heard Natasha calling her name, but she was already headed toward the elevator. Thankfully, Luca and Gianni hadn't instructed the guard to contain them in the VIP section, because he pushed the button to open the doors, stepped aside, and allowed Tammy entry. She rode the elevator down a level and stepped out, into the busy club, and sauntered to the dance floor. And as suspected, she was being observed. By the time she made it to the middle of the dance floor, she'd had a dance partner. She turned into a tall, well-dressed, blonde, "surfer type," and started dancing.
"Hello beautiful," the blonde said, with a Midwestern American accent.
'Good, a tourist.'
Tammy smiled but remained silent. She let her hips do the talking. Blondie reached for her waist and closed the gap between them. He leaned into Tammy, grinding his skinny body against hers, and all she could think about was that he was no Luca.
"You come here often?"
Natasha almost laughed at the corny pickup line.
"Je ne parle pas anglais," she said, with a shrug.
"Oooh, you don't speak English. Even better," Blondie had the nerve to say. "I got me a little piece of French chocolate."
Tammy, still pretending not to understand, continued to dance. She turned her back to him and swayed her hips. Blondie was actually groaning behind her. She felt his hands on her hips, and she could tell that he was dancing terribly off beat. Suddenly, she didn't feel his hands anymore. Instead, one strong hand was gripping her arm. Tammy turned around and looked into the angry eyes of Luca. He was pulling her away from the dance floor. But Blondie wasn't happy about Luca taking away his "French chocolate." He grabbed Tammy's other arm and shoved Luca in the chest. Luca looked down at his chest and back to Blondie. And without releasing Tammy's arm, Luca grabbed Blondie by the collar and head-butted him, apparently hard enough to knock him out. The dance floor parted like the Red Sea as Luca pulled Tammy away.
Tammy shuffled trying to keep up with Luca, exactly like the night that he burst into her workplace and snatched her offstage. With everyone watching, he escorted her to the other side of the club and approached a door that was opened by a security guard. He ushered her inside and entered behind her, slamming the door shut.
"What in the fuck was that Tammy?!"
Tammy ignored Luca and looked around. There was a fancy sofa and a huge messy desk. They must've been in Luca's office. She turned her back to him and walked over to his desk. She'd started to organize the clutter when Luca grabbed her arm.
“Do you hear me talking to you?"
Tammy looked down at Luca's hand and then looked him square in the eye.
"Luca... get yo gotdamn hand off of me," she said in a hushed, but serious tone. "What is your problem?"
"What is my problem?! What the fuck were you doing with that guy?"
"Well, I was dancing. I figure you wouldn't mind since you were all up in VIP getting dry-humped like I wasn't even in the room."
"What? That was nothing," he dismissed.
"Nothing? Okay... well... fine Luca! You can take your double standard having ass back upstairs and do you. I'm gonna stay down here and do a little more dancing."
"Tammy, you can keep putting innocent men in danger if you want. You know that I don't mind hurting them. I just didn't realize that you were that childish and petty."
If Luca thought that Tammy was about to let him get her riled up, he was mistaken. As long as Luca thought that it was okay to grope and grind with any woman that bounced her tits in front of him, Tammy was going to do whatever the hell she wanted.
Tammy moved closer to Luca. With their bodies nearly touching, she looked up at him and whispered to him, "Now you know."
"Now I know? No Tammy, what I know is... If I hadn't stopped you when I did, I probably would have found you swinging on a pole."
Tammy recoiled at his hurtful comment. It completely knocked the wind out of her.
Chapter 20
VICTORIA
Victoria hugged Emily when she climbed into the back of the limo. Instead of going to the airport with Jack and his dad, she chose to ride with Katherine to pick Emily up. Since Victoria was on temporary lockdown, she hadn't seen Emily for over a month. She was extremely happy to see for herself that she had fully recovered. When the driver pulled away from Emily's condo, she asked, "So are you excited to see your very own island."
"Lady, I've been cooped up for so long that I'm excited to see the back of this car," Victoria quipped, causing Emily and Katherine to laugh.
Emily grabbed the bottle of champagne from the ice bucket.
"Well, then we should toast."
Emily popped the cork and Katherine passed Victoria a glass.
"I'll be toasting with water," Victoria announced with a smile.
Katherine and Emily looked over at her suspiciously, before brandishing smiles of t
heir own.
"Oh my God!" Katherine squealed. "A baby!"
Victoria nodded frantically.
"I'm pregnant!"
The woman celebrated with an embrace.
"Jack doesn't know. Promise you won't say anything."
Before the women could make that promise, Victoria heard the crack of metal and felt the impact of another car colliding into them. As the limo spun out of control, they screamed, holding onto each other for dear life. Suddenly the limo flipped over, and for Victoria, the screaming, and all other sound had begun to fade. But before the world went completely dark, Victoria was positive that she heard gunfire.
JACK
Jack impatiently paced the aisle of the plane after calling Victoria and getting no answer for the tenth time. His effort to appear calm for the sake of his father was fleeting. They were thirty minutes late, and Jack was on the cusp of panic.
"Dad, no word from Mom?"
Joseph looked up from his phone and shook his head.
"I can't get ahold of Emily either. Have you checked in with any of the bodyguards?"
"No answer."
Joseph's expression turned grim.
"Now what?"
Jack plopped down into the seat next to his father and dropped his face into his hands. After that first missed call, Jack knew deep down that something terrible had happened to his family. He should’ve insisted that they stay together, but he allowed Victoria and his mom to convince him that they'd be safe with the bodyguards. He should've followed his own instincts. He fucked up and put his family in danger. Jack was on the verge of a complete breakdown when he felt his father's hand on his shoulder.
"Son, now what?" He repeated, not allowing Jack to feel sorry for himself.
Jack roughly ran his hand down his face and pulled out his phone. He dialed the number and waited for an answer. "This is Aaron."
"Find my wife... now."
"Yes, Mr. Storm. Shall I put in a call to John?"