I clenched my fists because it was preferable to wrapping them around Queenie’s throat. The twenty minutes were up, and then Vinn tapped his watch and dragged me upright.
“This was fun.” Queenie beamed at a smirking Vinn. “I totally get why she likes you. We must have brunch!”
“Thanks. It’s been…illuminating.” He shook Queenie’s hand, ignoring everyone else. “Have a good night.”
Vinn palmed my hip.
I obeyed the pressure, my heart galloping ahead. A growing awareness pulsed behind my ribcage, clawing at me like a frightened animal as we crossed Boston’s deserted streets. Somehow, I preferred his outrage to the unpredictable silence that hummed between us. I climbed the staircase to my brownstone, refusing to acknowledge him, clinging to a desperate hope that he’d disappear.
I searched for my keys, and then dropped them twice. “You can go.”
The heat of his body warmed my back. His head hooked over my shoulder. “I’m coming inside.”
“Do I need a condom or a gun?”
His soft laughter tingled every nerve, and regret sunk into my stomach at the joke.
Vinn’s voice smoothed into a purr. “Well, I’ve got both.”
I fumbled with my purse, dropping it.
He stooped, picking it up. He’d taken control in the guise of helping me, and now he had my key. He slid it into the lock, opened the door, and strolled in. A fiendish expression lit up his face.
Terror stirred in my belly.
“Vinn, you need to leav—”
He grabbed my arm, yanked me into the apartment, and locked the door. Vinn cradled me, and a shudder heated my body. Darkness carved a vulgar smile between his cheeks.
My alarms blazed red as Vinn’s six-foot-something frame pushed me deeper into my home. I bumped into a wall and rolled into the kitchen. The expression in his eyes made me wish I were closer to the door. Vinn gripped the counter, caging me in his arms.
“You’ve given me an interesting night.”
“H-how so?”
“I came here to punish you. Again. Now I’m rethinking that. Spanking you didn’t work because you liked it,” he whispered, awed. “You enjoy my hands on you. Don’t you?”
I jerked my head in the negative. ”There’s nothing pleasant about being tied up and beaten.”
“Don’t exaggerate.”
“You hit me. It hurt.”
“Good.” Vinn grabbed my chin, staring me down. “Some lessons hurt worse than others. Especially when they’re given by someone you like.”
“I don’t like you. I find you revolting.”
“Really?” He passed a thumb over my bottom lip, showering my skin with sparks. “Is that what you tell your friend when you talk about me?”
The only thing more infuriating about being outed by Queenie was the fact I’d been completely off his radar. He’d needed someone to tell him about my feelings.
Pathetic.
And now he was throwing them in my face, humiliating me like a monster.
Heat lashed my mouth. “Get out of my house.”
“Oh, come on.”
“I mean it. You’re not welcome here.”
Vinn wasn’t in the listening mood. His touch fluttered across my waist, sending off a chain of electrical impulses that begged me to march us to bed.
“I haven’t gone to Michael,” I said, shoving his chest. “That doesn’t mean I never will.”
Vinn’s smile and raised eyebrows suggested he didn’t believe me, but
he allowed me to retreat. I left the kitchen. He followed like a giant shadow, barging into my bedroom like he belonged there.
It wasn’t much. A queen bed and desk covered with trinkets from my youth. Blasts from the past decorated the walls in the form of posters, things I’d never outgrow, the most important one standing in front of me.
Amusement flickered over his face as I stumbled into my desk. My ass hit the corner, and I hissed in pain.
His self-satisfied smirk seemed to mock me. ”Did you bruise?”
“Yes,” I murmured, hating him. “I took photos.”
“I’d love to see them.”
I ignored the thrill shooting down my belly. “I plan to send them to Michael after I tell him what you did.”
“Just what every brother wants—pictures of his sister’s ass.”
“Maybe I’ll put them on Tinder.”
“Do that, and I’ll bend you over. You’ll get another reason to hate me.”
I sat on my bed, arms crossed. “Why are you here?”
An unfathomable look smoothed his face. “I want you.”
I forced myself to settle down. I’d worked hard to cut Vinn from my life, and I couldn’t afford to be distracted by a fantasy. I wouldn’t fall under his spell.
“Well, I don’t want you, so it’s time for you t—”
“Li, I can’t go back to treating you like Michael’s little sister.”
His flat eyes prolonged the moment, my skin prickling as I gazed into their infinite depths.
“Put it behind you, and I’ll do the same.”
“That’s not an option.”
“Why not?” I clenched my jaw to kill the waver in my voice. “Why the fuck did you spank me?”
“Why did you grab my cock?”
I met his accusing eyes. “To mess with you.”
Vinn’s lips parted. He ripped open the first button of his shirt and glared as though I’d made him too hot. His possessive gaze bored into me.
“Well, it worked.”
Blood pounded in my temples. “Vinn, I’m not one of your goddamned floozies.”
He blinked. “My what?”
“The girls you see for a week and discard.”
Vinn smirked, reminding me that while he might’ve been a sweet boy, he hadn’t grown into a tender-hearted man. “You’re way above them, Li.”
“I thought I wasn’t special,” I sparred.
“I let you get away with a lot.”
“Well, you’re nothing to me.”
“Yeah, I’m not worth a damn.” Vinn’s tone sparkled with sarcasm. “Otherwise your friend would know my name.”
Screw you, Queenie. “She didn’t mean you.”
“Vinny is what you’ve called me since you were four.”
“Now it’s a nickname for someone else.”
That sucked the joy from his face.
The life drained out of him. He gave me a black look layered with bitterness.
I’d shot an arrow through his maddening arrogance, but it felt less like a victory when his features clouded over, transforming him back into the block of ice.
“Queenie mistook you for another man. That’s all.” My hand anchored on my hip as Vinn cleared his throat. “You share the same name, but that’s about it.”
His gaze bolted me to the floor as he lapsed into a stony silence. “Why haven’t I met him?”
“Because he left me a while ago.”
Not quite a lie. The old Vinn died. He’d abandoned me for war, and he’d never returned. His body had survived.
Everything I’d loved about him hadn’t.
“This Vincent,” he drawled. “Is he Italian?”
“I won’t talk about him to you.”
A hardness replaced the twinkle in his eyes. Apparently eager to change the subject, Vinn headed toward the desk. He picked up a photo of us as children. A shirtless, teenage Michael stood in board shorts beside Vinn, who’d slung his arm over eight-year-old me. I’d never grinned so hard, but I’d also never been plastered to his bare chest.
I fidgeted with my dress. “Do you remember those summers at Salisbury Beach?”
“A little.”
Disappointing. “I think about them often. You, me, Mom, and my brothers. All of us hanging out at the beach. The heat baking my feet. The waves.”
“Only you would reminisce about that place.”
“I like remembering a time when I was happy, and my family was whole.”
Vinn’s gaze locked on Daniel’s portrait. “It never gets easier. You learn to deal with the pain.”
The pain of losing Daniel—or killing him?
A crushing sadness squeezed my lungs. The seashell necklace burned my throat, like it contained a piece of Vinn’s black soul. Maybe wearing it every day, having the constant reminder, was less of a token of hope and more a torture device.
“I want you to leave. Now.”
My voice throbbed with agony.
Thankfully, Vinn must’ve decided he’d tortured me enough. He stepped past me, his fingertips brushing my waist, as though to remind me what he’d done.
“I’m your date for the gala.” He paused, halfway out. “I’ll pick you up at eight.”
My stomach clenched. “Why are you messing with my life?”
He offered no answer as he strolled toward the exit. Michael had probably filled him in on the dumb plan, and Vinn took it upon himself to save me.
“Vinn, I’m not going with you!”
“You are. Everyone will think we’re an item.” He curved his hand over the edge of the wood. “You’ll hang on my arm. You’ll smile. It’ll confirm rumors that we’re dating, which will get back to Nico.”
“Like a stupid game of telephone.”
“Exactly. He can’t give you away if you’re already mine.”
I crossed my arms and leaned against the wall, wishing I could tell him what an arrogant dickhead he’d turned out to be.
“You’re not the boss of me.”
“I am, and I don’t care how many summers we spent on that shitty beach. I’ll make you submit, and not in the way you hope, darling.”
Asshole.
“Do as you’re told, Liana.”
Six
Vinn
Why was she blowing me off?
Why did I care?
I cycled through my phone, swiping past Girl A through Girl E to banish Liana from my mind. I banged a handful of girls on a semi-regular basis, never giving anyone too much attention because I had no use for a clingy mistress. My tolerance for company dried up long before the cum on my cock. Luckily, Boston didn’t lack hot girls with low expectations.
Girl B had sent a nude photo, a mouthwatering shot of tits beading with moisture. It generally would’ve dragged me to her place. Instead I put her on read and paused at Liana.
I didn’t chase women.
That required effort, which was beneath me. And yet, I’d spent hours checking my cell, wondering why I didn’t have her wrapped around my thumb, annoyed that I’d ignored my mistresses because I’d assumed Liana would take up my time.
On paper, Liana and I made little sense.
She was too good for me. The girl never went outside without looking perfect. She’d never touched a drug. Unblemished, inside and out. Until recently, she’d acted like a teddy bear stuffed with cotton candy.
I’d climbed a mountain of bones to get where I was. I wanted nothing to do with marriage. I didn’t like people, so having one chained to my side for eternity seemed like a horrible idea. If I walked down the aisle, it’d be for political gain.
Never love.
We couldn’t be together. Liana would not like being a mistress, and I couldn’t do that to her. Michael would have a big problem if I fucked his sister, and I had nothing she’d want. The reasons to leave her alone outweighed getting involved, but I couldn’t stomach leaving her future to Michael. The idiot wanted to give her to a stranger like DiMaggio.
I wouldn’t let that happen.
Liana should’ve fallen in line, but she’d returned zero of my messages. I showed up at her doorstep as planned, only to have to field a call from Michael. She’d taken a taxi. And she’d come with another man.
I parked my armored car next to the waterfront museum and stormed inside, almost blowing off the mayor on my way to find Liana.
Michael waved from a balcony strung with lights. Beside him stood Alessio, a tight-lipped, broody asshole. He’d been acting-boss before I ousted him. I’d fucked him over, and he paid me back by disappearing from Boston, leaving us without his wealthy contacts for months. We were even, but Alessio still stared at me like he’d love to have my head on his wall.
I ignored them, looking for a brunette among the red, white, and blue decorations until I found her lurking near the catered food.
Liana wore a backless, sparkling, wine-red dress, the shiny bauble of this boring party. Her hair was pulled into a braid, and she’d put on dark eye makeup, her eyes popping like icicles against the black, her porcelain innocence transformed into savage beauty. A dimple shadowed her chin, but I couldn’t believe this was the same woman.
I tuned out a man who called my name, lost in a daydream that involved Liana hanging on my arm, her face tipping to mine. My hands clenched and released.
I wanted her.
Want was too subtle a word for the warmth that grabbed my balls. I needed to be inside her, my hands tangled in her hair as she moaned my name.
A man in a suit approached, embracing her from behind. My jaw clenched as he linked his arm with hers. His shaven baby face filled my stomach with fire.
The college boy. She’d brought him to the gala.
The possibility that kid had seen her naked infuriated me. My abs tensed as his palm roved all her skin. Suddenly, her going home with him was intolerable, like inhaling smoke. My throat tightened. Air was scarce.
I headed for them.
A body slid in front of me.
Convinced he was yet another politician with a grievance, I raised my head and schooled my tone, but my best friend blocked my path. His hawk-like stare narrowed as he followed my gaze to his sister.
“Vinn. What are you doing?”
I could’ve thrown him aside. “Getting my date back.”
“About that,” he snapped, setting his wine glass down. “You never asked my permission.”
“No, I didn’t.”
A muscle flicked in his jaw, and his lips flattened. His chest puffed out.
I held my ground, resenting the line in the sand he’d drawn. It shouldn’t have been such a big fucking deal to go out with his sister. Michael was being unreasonable.
“I’m interested in her. Why is that a problem?”
Michael said nothing for the longest time. Then he spoke in a tight, angry voice. “You’re my best friend, but I don’t want you dating Liana.”
I saw that coming, but it burned.
“Why not?”
“You’re an addict,” he explained, as though he wasn’t one. “You were kicked out of the military.”
“What the fuck does that have to do with anything?”
His body tensed. “You don’t do relationships. If I look in your phone, I’ll see Girl A because you can’t be bothered to use your mistresses’ names. You have no interest in kids, marriage, or a relationship beyond sex. Of course I don’t want you involved with Liana.”
“You think I’d do that to Li?”
“I never know what you’re thinking. All I can do is make a judgment based on the facts.”
“Who looked after her when she was little? Who slapped you around when you were too rough? You think I’m not good enough. You.” I spat the word like it’d poisoned my stomach. “The man who snorted everything in sight and knocked up a stripper.”
“Fuck you.”
If he dug up my past, I’d do the same with his. “Remember when you strangled a made guy to death?”
It happened during one of his coke binges when the hotheaded idiot reacted to insults by dialing everything to eleven.
’Course, I wasn’t much better.
“Lower your goddamned voice,” Michael hissed. “They’re still looking for him.”
“Let’s take a walk down memory lane to last year. You and Alessio murdered Anthony’s kidnapper and lied about it.” I smiled as a spasm of panic crossed Michael’s face. “Yeah, I’m aware of that.”
Anthony was Nico’s silver-spooned
, pain-in-the-ass son who’d never shouldered any real responsibility. He’d been a constant liability, so I didn’t give a fuck when he disappeared.
Unfortunately, his father cared. He threatened me daily for “losing” Anthony. The risk of my uncle’s wrath hung over my head every waking moment. The fear wafted from Michael as I talked. He’d gotten rid of the only guy with information on Anthony’s whereabouts. If Nico ever found out, he’d kill Michael.
“Honestly, Mike. If we hadn’t grown up together, you’d be dead, many times over.”
Michael’s foot tapped an erratic beat. He glanced over his shoulder, eyeing the exit. Motherfucker should’ve been worried. He’d made a severe error in judgment.
“I was protecting my wife!”
“Carmela was safe. You killed him because you felt like it. Now I have to deal with the consequences.”
Michael stiffened as though I’d struck him.
“You need to make this right.”
“How do I do that?”
Give me your sister.
It was on the tip of my tongue, but I didn’t want to be given Liana. If I wanted her, I’d have her.
“You’ll stop setting up Liana with other men. And you’ll step aside when I take her.”
“No. She won’t be Girl H on your fucking phone!”
I fisted Michael’s collar and dragged him out of sight, hurling him into the wall. My arm flattened his throat, a show of dominance more than anything. He wasn’t stupid enough to raise a hand against me.
“She’s not walking down the aisle with a biker.” I leaned in, increasing the pressure on his larynx. “And the next time you feel the urge to share your holier-than-thou bullshit, don’t.”
“I’m no pushover, Vinn.”
“Neither am I.”
I threw him into a table, which he caught and shoved. Glasses toppled, shattering over the marble. Michael balled his fists as though to stave off a violent impulse. Part of me wanted to let loose.
I’d love an excuse to beat his ass. My heart throbbed, anger pulsing through me in sickening waves. I’d never been so angry with him. I couldn’t figure out which bothered me more: his assessment of me or that I agreed with him.
His mouth twisted, and he straightened his suit. A staff member approached him with a broom. Michael moved away as they swept the broken glass. The action seemed to defuse the tension, but when Michael looked at me, his eyes filled with fire.
Faked: A Dark Mafia Romance Page 5