by Mia Knight
He took her hand, and she jerked.
He slanted her an amused glance. “Jumpy, are you?”
She scowled. “I’m not jumpy.”
He laced their fingers together and squeezed. His hand was warm and a little calloused. She was close enough to smell his cologne. It wasn’t the same one he wore yesterday. It was darker, spicier. Did he change his scent to match his suit? The hand-holding was odd, something high schoolers did. Why was this simple gesture more effective than a kiss? She tried to stifle the warmth in her chest. She didn’t want to like him. He was the new crime lord.
“I don’t even know you,” she muttered.
“You will,” he said as he led her to her car. “We’re not going to be able to avoid one another.”
“Why would we run into each other?”
“Besides Lyla and Gavin? I get the feeling you and I have a lot in common. Vegas isn’t New York. We’ll be seeing a lot of one another. It’s inevitable.”
He opened her car door. She started to duck inside and then paused. She looked up at him. He looked refined and invincible, but she knew he was as human as Vinny had been. A memory of Vinny’s lifeless body flashed through her mind, and her heart clenched.
“You need to be careful,” she said.
“I know.”
“No.” She searched for the right words to make him understand. “Vinny thought his name was enough, that Gavin’s support was enough, but it wasn’t. You don’t know these guys. They’ll test you, try anything to kill you to make another mark against Gavin. Even though everyone knows your family, even the lowest drug dealers aren’t gonna come running if you whistle. You have to start from scratch. You need as much help as you can get.”
Angel searched her eyes. “I’m not an easy mark.”
She knew he wasn’t but … “You need a second, someone who knows the players in the underworld, someone to watch your back. Gavin had Blade. You need a beta.”
He cocked his head to the side. “Are you volunteering?”
She blinked. “Me?”
“You know the players, and you say you can fight.”
“Hell, no.”
“Why not? You obviously get off on danger.”
“Dodging bullets isn’t my idea of fun.” The memory of clutching Nora to her chest as she ran for her life chilled her even though she was standing under the warm sun.
“What’s your idea of fun?”
“Anything that doesn’t include me running for my life. Just … get a beta, okay?”
“Worried about me?”
“Yes.” They lost Vinny and Manny to the underworld. She didn’t know Angel, but she didn’t want him to be the next victim.
His amusement faded, and a taut silence fell between them. It took a concentrated effort to break their eye contact. It was easy to fold into the car since her legs were a little weak. She didn’t look at him as she buckled herself in.
“You have my number,” he said.
She nodded and turned the key in the ignition. “Right.”
“Carmen.”
She mentally braced before she looked up. “What?”
“If you change your mind or want to hear what my version of fun is, call me,” he said and closed the car door.
She watched him saunter into his house and let out a long breath as she clutched the steering wheel. That man should be locked up. She could just imagine the havoc he would wreak on the city’s female population. Having a Roman take over as crime lord was definitely an unexpected turn of events. Thankfully, she had nothing to do with that. She would keep her promise to herself and live free of the worries of the underworld and the death and heartbreak that came with it.
When she reached home, she was disappointed to find her mother was out. The house felt cold and empty. She hated it, especially when she was keyed up. Restlessness prodded her between the shoulder blades. Thank God, she had the meeting with Alice to distract her or she might have taken Angel up on his offer of dinner. Being the wife of a COO fit her personality like a glove. There was always some event to attend, a party to host or contact to schmooze. Besides that, she grew up in Las Vegas and always had a list of friends to party with, but times changed. Most of her friends had settled down and were strapped with kids while she had nothing.
She stripped off the tangerine dress and showered before she sat on the counter in her bathroom to apply makeup. She was halfway through when the need for company forced her to fetch Vinny. She set him in the corner and stood in front of the mirror, hands on her hips.
She wore a thong and nothing else. Red hair spilled over narrow shoulders and pale skin. How long had it been since she had a spray tan? She cupped her breasts and glanced at the urn.
“I know you liked them big, but I’m kinda digging these little ones. I can wear whatever I want, I don’t have to wear a bra twenty-four seven, and my back isn’t sore.”
She perused her eyeshadows and settled on a berry color. She wasn’t feeling light and playful, so her makeup and outfit would have to do the work to raise her spirits.
“I saw Lyla today. She’s struggling with the whole killing her dad thing.” She pawed through the makeup strewn over the counter. “I mean, I get it, but it was him or us, and I’m glad I’m still here.”
Her hand shook as she applied eyeliner. She paused and closed her eyes. She understood where Lyla was coming from. It was over, but it didn’t feel over. The rage and discontent were still there, along with the depression and loss she couldn’t quite shake. There was nothing she could do except push through. She took a deep breath and grabbed her makeup brush and eyeshadow palette.
“Did I tell you that I’ve been calling Blade Daddy? He really hates it.”
She talked until the grip on her lungs eased. Her determination to move on didn’t mean the grieving episodes and panic attacks would magically disappear. This was life. She had to learn how to keeping moving forward while a part of her wanted to curl up on the floor and cry.
Carmen slipped into a crimson colored halter dress with two thin straps crisscrossing over her bare back and two high slits. Now that she had small tits again, she could wear dresses like this without fear of having a nipple mishap—not that that stopped her in the past. Her berry smoky eye was perfection, and she found heels in the same shade. Fiery ringlets highlighted her kickass makeup job. Seeing pops of color definitely improved her mood. She added a bracelet with rubies in the shape of hearts and put a ring on each finger. One could never go wrong with bling. The more jewels she added, the better she felt. Her massive wedding ring didn’t fit with her ensemble. She stared at the diamond ring for a long minute before she slipped it off. She glanced at Vinny before she placed it in the black velvet box he proposed with. Her hands shook as she placed the box at the back of her jewelry chest.
“What do you think?” she asked, turning to show Vinny her ass. He was back on the dresser where she preferred him to be, watching over her. She backed it up the way he liked it before she went to him. She went up on tiptoes to give him a kiss, leaving a berry outline on the shiny metal.
“I love you,” she said as she backed away and grabbed her clutch. “Don’t let me do anything too stupid.”
8
“Alice, the event is going to be perfect,” Carmen said as Alice scribbled in a notebook.
“I just want to make sure everything is perfect,” Alice said absently as her unicorn pencil scratched along the page. “If it’s not perfect, I have to answer to Mr. Pyre, and I don’t want to answer to Mr. Pyre.”
“You’ve been to his house and threw his wife a baby gender party and baby shower. I’m pretty sure you can call him Gavin.”
“I do,” Janice said as she settled in the booth. “The meeting went well. I think this animal adoption is going to be fantastic. It’s just what we need after what happened at the hospital last week.”
“Yes.” Alice pursed her lips and ran her finger down a two-column list. “After that incident, I need to make sure my events run perf
ectly. What if Mr. Pyre decided to fire me?”
Carmen nudged her. “Stop, Alice. What happened at the hospital wasn’t your fault, and it was phenomenal. I can’t believe you were able to pull this event together so quickly. You have more than enough volunteers, and everyone’s on the same page.”
“I know,” Alice said but still looked troubled.
They made quite a trio, Carmen thought, as several men paused to study them on their way to the bar. She was overdressed, but that was who she was. Two waiters already dropped trays after she winked at them. Janice was the epitome of a career woman with her power suit and cell phone in hand. She was a savvy shark with glittery pointy-toe Jimmy Choos. Although Alice could more than hold her own in the looks department, she stood out like a sore thumb in her deep purple velvet jeans and a button-up blouse. Carmen’s fingers itched to undo the buttons around her throat. How could she breathe?
A server delivered a round of martinis. Janice and Carmen took theirs gratefully, but Alice scowled and crossed her arms over her chest.
“What?” Janice asked when Carmen snickered.
“Alice is afraid I’ll get her drunk again.”
“You got her drunk?”
“I had to call in for two days,” Alice said irritably.
“Two days?”
“One day to recover and another to clean up my apartment.”
They laughed while Alice gave them a withering glare.
“I gave you two drinks, and you did the rest,” Carmen said and turned to Janice. “I had to cut her off for fear of alcohol poisoning.”
“I didn’t think alcohol would taste so good,” Alice muttered.
“Why were you drinking anyway?” Janice asked.
Alice opened her mouth, but Carmen beat her to it.
“I was trying to get her laid.”
Janice looked intrigued. “Did you hook up?”
Alice’s eyes darted back and forth between them and then away. “No.”
“Did you try?”
Alice played with her utensils. “Yes.”
“And?” Janice pushed.
“He said no.”
“How many did you ask?”
“One.”
Janice sighed. “Well, you can’t expect the one and only guy you ask to say yes.”
“How many should I have asked?” Alice asked.
Carmen bit her lip to stop herself from laughing aloud. Any moment now, she expected Alice to start making notes. She looked too serious by half. Alice was the most sheltered woman she’d ever met.
“I think five is a good number,” Janice said after a moment. “Carmen?”
She’d never had to ask even one to hook up. “Sure, five sounds good.”
Alice and Janice glared at her.
“What?”
“You’ve never had to ask, have you? Bitch.” Janice downed her drink and signaled for another. “I don’t have time in my schedule to get laid. I can afford to take care of a man. All he has to do is cook for me, keep my fridge stocked, and give me an orgasm when I ask for it. That’s not too much to ask for, is it?”
Alice flushed and dug through her purse. “I-I don’t know.”
“That’s not a bad idea, Janice.” Sex on tap. No emotions, just raw sex whenever she wanted it. That sounded amazing. This was Vegas. There had to be a business that catered to busy, successful women who could afford a full-time gigolo. What would be on their menu of sex services? Fifty dollars for every ten minutes of fucking? Surely, she could order—
“What about you, Carmen?”
She jerked her mind out of the gutter. “What?”
Janice bobbed her brows. “What about you and that hunk?”
“Hunk?”
“You and Kody Singer. Have you seen him since the hospital?”
“No, I haven’t.” He had left some voicemails, but she didn’t respond. She asked him to attend the hospital event in exchange for a date. That day, a bubble of frustration caused her to shove Kody into a bathroom and have a heavy makeout and petting session. Kody had been delighted. During their lunch date, she had been blindsided when he asked her to go to Europe with him while he shot a movie. Kody wanted strings, and she didn’t. She wasn’t looking for a full-time man; maybe a part-time one … one that didn’t talk. Maybe the gigolo service had a mute who was a god in the sack …
“He’s still in-house,” Janice said.
“Who?”
“Kody Singer.”
“Oh,” she said without much interest.
“Seriously, you’re not interested in him? He’s polite, prompt, and sexy as all get-out.”
“He’s a great guy, but I’d destroy him.”
Janice pointed her finger at her. “I get you, girl. Us woman beasts need a man who can dominate us in the bedroom if you know what I mean? In our daily lives, we got our shit going on, but when we come home … we need to know our man can make us submit.” She raised one brow. “So Singer’s out. What about Marcus?”
She tried to look casual even though her heartbeat sped up a bit. “What about him?”
“You gonna make a play for him?” Janice pushed.
“What are you talking about?”
“He’s all kinds of hot, right, Alice?”
Alice smoothed her hands down her buttons and shrugged, evading eye contact. “He’s attractive, I guess.”
“He’s sex on a stick is what he is,” Janice said passionately and immediately snatched up the second martini put in front of her.
“Why don’t you make a play for him?” Carmen asked curiously.
Janice was hot, blunt, intelligent, and dressed like she shopped on Fifth Avenue. What man wouldn’t want her?
“I don’t fuck co-workers,” Janice stabbed an olive and munched vigorously. “And I don’t fuck bosses.”
“Is that the voice of experience talking?” Carmen asked.
Janice gave her a deadpan look and sipped without answering. So Janice fucked a boss in the past. Interesting. Alice shifted restlessly in her seat, looking anywhere but at either of them. Poor girl had no idea what she was getting into when she started working at Pyre Casinos.
“Ladies.” A server set down three cosmopolitans. “Compliments from the men at that table.”
The server nodded to three men dressed conservatively in button-up shirts and sports jackets. They appeared to be in their forties, and she pegged them as businessmen on a work trip at a glance.
“Maybe my night’s looking up, after all,” Janice said and raised her glass to salute the men. “One’s a moose, but the other two aren’t bad.”
“Moose?” Carmen and Alice echoed in unison.
Janice frowned at them. “Moose, a cosmetically challenged man.”
Carmen slammed her hand on the table, rattling their glasses and making a commotion, but she didn’t care. She threw back her head and laughed uproariously. She laughed until her belly hurt and her eyes were wet, this time with happy tears.
“Oh, man, I needed that,” she wheezed when she could speak.
“Anytime,” Janice said, all business now. “So who gets the moose?”
Carmen hid her face behind Alice’s back and snickered as their food was served.
“Why don’t you take him, Carmen? Take one for the team?”
“Fuck, no,” she said as she straightened. “I’m not fucking a moose. I don’t care how much you pay me.”
The male server dropped the plate a little too hard on the table. Alice let out a nervous laugh and flapped her hands at them urgently, but they ignored her.
“Usually the moose is better in bed since he has to be. He can’t be ugly and bad in bed, you feel me?” Janice said.
“Why don’t you take him?” Carmen argued.
“I don’t need the guy to be good in bed. I’m good enough for the both of us, and I want something pretty to look at while I’m bringing it home, you know?”
“Makes sense,” Carmen said.
Janice looked at the server
who was frozen in place. “Can I help you?”
“Uh, no, ma’am,” he said smartly and gave them a little bow as he left.
“Carmen?” Janice prompted. “Moose?”
“Hell, no.”
Janice gave Alice a megawatt smile. “It’s your lucky day, honey.”
“I, uh, I have things to do,” Alice stammered and began to stuff her face.
It was obvious that Alice was planning to dine and dash to get away from them. Unluckily for her, the men made their way over before she finished her meal. Alice looked like a deer in the headlights. The men were tourists from Germany with great accents and not a clear reason for being in Las Vegas. Carmen added little to the conversation despite the men’s interest. She wasn’t tempted by polite, vanilla businessmen. Besides, watching Alice flounder was much more entertaining.
Carmen paid for the meal and hid her wince when Alice grasped her arm in a death grip. She gave the moose and his friend a polite brush-off as Janice disappeared with the best looking of the trio. Carmen silently wished her a happy fuck. She could feel the night coming to a close. She tried to bury her anxiety as she hooked her arm with Alice. She was wide-awake and ready for anything. The last thing she wanted was to go home to her empty bed and count the hours until daylight. The night was young, and she needed to do something to cure the restlessness thrumming through her body.
“Thanks for that,” Alice said and leaned into her.
“I guess you’re still a virgin.”
Alice straightened and gave her a frosty look. “Do you have to keep bringing it up?”
“Are you planning to be a nun?”
“No.”
“Then what’s the deal?”
“Men don’t look at me the way they look at you.”
“I beg to differ. That guy would have given you a one-night stand in a heartbeat.”
“The moose?” Alice tipped her nose up. “If I wanted a one-night stand, I could get one. Men don’t have to like a woman to have sex with her.”
“True. So you want the white knight?”
“I want a guy who likes me for me. What’s wrong with that?”
Men she dated in the past said they had a hard time keeping up with her. She was restless and manic and always into something, whether it was real estate, cooking, driving race cars, skydiving, or painting. She was a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. Most men saw her as arm candy and a body to fuck. She was much more, but no one cared what was inside her. Vinny was the only one who accepted her, flaws and all.