‘So how long have you worked here . . . as the hostess?’ Lexie asked. ‘It sounds like an exciting job.’
Tiffany beamed. ‘I suppose the term is a little outdated, but I like it. I greet guests and basically do everything around here that Rocco doesn’t.’ She smiled, displaying a smidgen of red lipstick on her teeth. ‘He’s the licensee and I’m the manager of the club. I’m his right-hand man – or woman, I should say.’ She giggled, then winked at Lexie conspiratorially. ‘You know what men are like . . . They think they run things but we do the hard work. Besides, Rocco has his good points. I’m good at running a business. He’s good for . . . other things.’
Was she referring to Rocco’s drug-dealing abilities, his sexual prowess or something else entirely? Lexie wondered.
‘You’re quite beautiful,’ Tiffany said, taking her by surprise. Was she trying to butter her up, keep her enemies close? ‘And I like your style.’
Instinctively, Lexie glanced down at herself. She was wearing black leather pants, a slinky green spaghetti-strapped top, silver sandals with a slight heel, and an assortment of silver accessories: chains, earrings, bangles. Her makeup was much heavier than usual, lots of black eyeliner emphasised her green contact-enhanced eyes, and her straight black hair hung loose to her waist.
‘Ah, thanks.’
‘Can I be straight with you?’ Tiffany asked, looking her in the eye. ‘I know Rocco well, which means I can tell he has the hots for you and I’d just like to say – woman to woman – be careful. He is a heartbreaker.’
Lexie was stunned for a moment by Tiffany’s front. And although her tone was cordial, her words held a hint of warning.
‘Oh, you don’t have to worry about that.’ Lexie waved her hand in the air as if she was totally off track. ‘I’m here to do business, that’s all. Besides, I have a boyfriend. You met Dylan.’
‘Yes, he is delicious. No need to go elsewhere when you have that to go home to.’ Tiffany’s eyes flicked over to where the men were sitting. ‘What’s your situation? Do you guys live together?’
Lexie shook her head. ‘No, we’ve only been together six months.’ They had decided to keep their cover story simple in case one of them slipped up, contradicted the other. Being together only a short time, they could plead ignorance as an excuse for any discrepancies in their stories.
Tiffany’s eyes stayed on Batman. ‘I love tall men. And he has a sort of boyish charm about him.’ She glanced back at Lexie. ‘Do you share?’
Lexie had just sipped some wine and nearly spat it all over the table.
Tiffany laughed, placing her hand gently on Lexie’s arm. Her fingers were surprisingly coarse. ‘I’m just joking,’ she said, not removing her hand. ‘Well, no, I’m not, but I’ll pretend I am. I promise I’ll only look, not touch.’
Lexie forced a laugh.
The door opened again and the blinding lights from the heart of the club illuminated a large silhouette in the doorway. Rocco.
Lexie’s first thought was that he had to be wearing heels or lifts, as he appeared much taller than when they’d previously met. Wearing a white T-shirt that broadcast his impressive collection of muscles, black jeans that hugged thick thighs and a smart top hat that covered his bald head, he was an impressive sight. Both arms were covered in various designs of black ink, and gold jewellery hung around his neck and adorned his fingers.
Risking a glance at Tiffany, Lexie noted the woman’s features soften as she gazed at Rocco. There was no doubt – she definitely had a thing for him.
A chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ rang out and he threw his hands up in the air and nodded his appreciation. Searching the room, Rocco found her. He rushed over.
‘I’m so happy you made it.’ He took Lexie’s hand and brought it to his lips. ‘Welcome to my club. You look beautiful.’
Lexie smiled. ‘Thank you,’ she said, and waited for him to release her hand. He didn’t.
Everyone had huddled around them, as though drawn by Rocco’s magnetism, and was watching their interaction with curiosity. Tiffany’s smile looked strained. Batman smartly stayed back until Rex did the introductions.
‘This is Lara’s boyfriend, Dylan.’ Rex gently pushed Batman forward.
Rocco looked put out. He glanced at Batman, gave him a good once-over. Lexie caught a faint smirk on Tiffany’s face. No one else showed any expression whatsoever.
‘That is a shame, for me. You are a lucky man,’ Rocco said, shaking Batman’s hand. ‘I welcome you also to my club. Tonight the drinks are on me, so enjoy.’ Rocco glanced at Johnny. ‘Make yourself useful and fetch us a taste of everything.’
Oh shit. Lexie’s stomach jumped into her throat. He had to be referring to drugs. Was this an initiation? A test? She glanced at Rex. His poker face revealed nothing. There was no way of telling what he was thinking or if he knew what to expect.
‘Now, what is your favourite, Lexie?’ Rocco placed his hand on her arm in a familiar fashion. ‘What takes your fancy? You are my guest. We are to do business together, so I want to spoil you. Whatever you want, it’s yours. Just name your drug of choice and it will appear.’
CHAPTER 13
Tonight was the night, Berni thought, smiling at her reflection in the bedroom mirror.
The slinky red dress she had been saving for a special occasion fell to mid-thigh and clung to her toned body in all the right places. With shoestring straps and a plunging neckline, it flattered her ample cleavage and muscular shoulders. Not being tall gave her the advantage of being able to wear ridiculously high heels that enhanced her legs. Today her auburn hair had been streaked with golden highlights and styled so it bounced about her shoulders. A spray tan gave her usually pale skin a sun-kissed glow and her makeup, which had taken her an age to apply, was absolutely perfect, if she did say so herself.
Yes, I’m more than ready to meet Rocco at his birthday party tonight.
In the kitchen, she poured a glass of champagne. She relished the sensation of bubbles slipping down her throat and wondered how long she could stretch out her sick leave. She commended herself on being smart, going straight to the medical centre when she had gone off sick. When Berni had told the doctor about the bombing, he’d insisted she was in shock, was displaying signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, and had written her a certificate for three weeks off work. She didn’t argue. It was a better result than she could have hoped for. Others used the PTSD excuse, so why couldn’t she?
A knock on the door cut through her thoughts. Placing the glass on the counter, she went to the front door.
‘Wow . . .’ TJ gasped as she greeted him. His reaction was perfect. ‘You look fantastic.’
‘Thanks. You don’t look bad either.’
For a guy who lived in jeans and T-shirts, he scrubbed up very well. Wearing black dress pants and a green patterned shirt, his blond hair full of product, and smelling deliciously of aftershave, she couldn’t help but be impressed. He was not Rocco – but he was hers.
TJ moved in for a kiss. Berni pirouetted out of his reach.
‘Don’t want to smudge the lipstick.’
TJ shrugged, pulled her against him and began kissing the side of her neck. Reaching around, he cupped her butt, pushed his pelvis into hers and began marching her backwards, until she came up hard against the sofa.
‘Not now, TJ, we need to go.’ Seriously, he was like a dog on heat. ‘We really have to go.’
‘We have plenty of time,’ TJ said, his hands moving to her breasts. ‘This time will be different, I promise. I am going to rock your world.’
Berni really wasn’t in the mood. ‘I’ll have to reapply all my makeup if we do it now.’ She tried to wriggle out of his grasp.
TJ’s face dropped and he gave her a look that worried her. Being preoccupied with her appearance for Rocco had made her neglect the needs of her man. TJ might not be ‘the one’, but he was the one right now.
‘I’m sorry,’ she said, compliantly kissing the side of his neck. TJ w
as a fast lover, she reasoned. This wouldn’t take long.
Smiling, he handed her a DVD. ‘Put it on.’ He gestured to the TV. ‘Don’t ask any questions. I have a surprise.’
Grabbing the remote from the coffee table, she inserted the disc into the DVD player and hit play. She was shocked when Rocco’s smile lit up the screen. Turning to TJ, she said, ‘What is this?’
The camera panned out to show Rocco naked to the waist just as TJ snatched the remote from her hand and hit the pause button.
‘I was helping Rocco set up for his party today. While I was cleaning up his office, I found a pile of DVDs in a locked cupboard. I know where all the keys are kept.’ He gave her a smug smile. ‘I was curious, so I took a few.’
‘You took something from his office?’ Berni was incredulous. ‘Are you crazy? What if he finds out? What if he has cameras set up in his office?’ She was just shy of panic. If TJ got the sack now, it would ruin her plans.
TJ waved his hands dismissively. ‘I know he doesn’t have cameras in his office, but he does have cameras set up in one of the rooms upstairs.’ He raised his eyebrows suggestively.
‘What do you mean? What rooms upstairs?’
Her eyes strayed to Rocco’s naked torso filling her television screen. His hairless chest was tanned and incredibly well defined. His biceps were spectacular, and inspired instant tingles in all the right places.
‘It doesn’t matter. I didn’t know what to expect when I watched it and . . .’ TJ was now looking a little embarrassed. ‘Rocco takes this stuff before he has sex, snorts it up his nose.’ He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle. ‘I’ve already sprayed it up my nose. I think it slows everything down.’
Berni frowned. ‘What?’ Was he telling her they were about to watch a Rocco sex tape?
TJ took her hand. Berni felt a mixture of emotions: excitement, confusion, dread, anticipation. How did she feel about seeing footage of Rocco, the man she fantasised about, with another woman? Surprisingly, she couldn’t help being curious and delightedly aroused. She had to be cautious, however. TJ must never guess how she felt about Rocco.
Walking her to the back of the lounge, he spun Berni around to face the television. He wrapped his arms around her waist but kept a respectable space between their bodies. ‘Just watch,’ he whispered in her ear.
Bernie was pleasantly surprised by TJ’s new assertive manner. Secretly, she loved to be dominated and felt the first stirrings of sexual anticipation she’d ever experienced with TJ.
He pressed play. Rocco’s smile faded as he turned, displaying a perfect profile. God he was hot. So good looking, even with a bald head. Now she could see he was wearing only black pants. The camera moved, panned out further to show a naked blonde girl standing beside him, all long, skinny limbs, small breasts and concave stomach. Her face was pretty as expected, model features with big doe eyes that were more than a little glazed. Berni felt a rush of jealousy towards the girl, but this was quickly replaced by a raw lust she hadn’t felt in a long time.
TJ pressed fast forward to speed through the lengthy foreplay. When he finally hit play again, Rocco was naked. The girl was lying on her back across a double bed in a bland room with no other furniture. The girl’s legs were being held in the air by Rocco, who was on top of her, pounding hard. As he turned his head to the side, Berni could see the look of concentration on his face. The girl was moaning, thrashing her head back and forth.
Berni felt heat spiral. Turning, she reached for TJ, wanting to feel his erection between her legs. But he stood at arm’s length away, still fully dressed.
‘Come here,’ she pleaded.
‘No, I want you well and truly ready.’ He pushed her gently back around. ‘Watch.’
The girl was now on all fours. Rocco was on his knees behind her. Berni glimpsed his engorged penis and gasped. He was huge – even bigger than TJ. And he certainly knew what to do with it. Mesmerised, she watched as Rocco entered the girl slowly and began to move in a controlled and agonisingly slow fashion. Her eyes were drawn to his washboard stomach, his butt muscles clenching and unclenching, his hands tightly gripping the girl’s narrow hips as he thrust in and out.
Berni was aching now, as she watched Rocco drive himself into the girl slowly. He upped the pace and at the same time reached around the front of the girl, rubbing his fingers between her legs. Within seconds, she was moaning loudly. Suddenly her back arched and she began bucking in front of him. Rocco kept going until she stiffened, let out a strangled scream and fell onto her stomach. Rocco went with her, clearly not finished.
TJ moaned. ‘Oh god.’
Oh god, all right. Berni could feel her heart pounding, could hear TJ’s heavy breathing behind her as she watched the crescendo play out. Rocco, now flat on top of the girl, continued to pump away until finally he grunted, threw back his head and collapsed on top of her.
The screen went black.
This was torture. The most sustained, intense, erotic and frustrating sexual experience she’d ever had. Berni was so incredibly aroused and wanted TJ to touch her so badly her hips began to undulate involuntarily.
She was about to turn to TJ when she felt herself being pushed over the lounge. Her elbows rested across the cushioned ledge and her head fell forward. She felt her dress being lifted and the skimpy piece of lace covering her most private parts was yanked to the side. TJ spread her legs and they both groaned as he entered her quickly.
‘Oh fuck, that’s good,’ he moaned.
Berni squealed in surprised delight as his hands gripped her hips and he drove himself into her, slowly at first, then increasing the pace, as Rocco had done, in a controlled, deliberate manner.
This was definitely a new TJ. He was learning from Rocco. She liked that.
‘Oh Ber . . . ni,’ he grunted, increasing the pace. His fingers dug into her hip bones. His breathing was ragged, in perfect synergy with hers. ‘Oh baby, baby . . . baby . . .’
Berni gripped the lounge. Feeling the tension build, she prepared herself to ride the waves of unexpected pleasure. Hoped TJ didn’t get there before her.
‘Don’t stop, TJ,’ she pleaded.
His hand reached around the front of her, to the junction of her legs. Again mimicking Rocco, his fingers quickly found what they were looking for.
Berni was slammed against the top of the lounge as he pumped to an increasingly punishing rhythm. She could feel the sharp contours of the wooden foundations beneath the padding dig into her rib cage. It hurt, but she didn’t care. This was the best sex they’d ever had.
Then, TJ’s fingers applied just the right amount of pressure and she couldn’t think anymore. TJ growled like an animal, slamming into her so hard and fast the lounge began to inch forward. Berni closed her eyes, arched her back and cried out as ripples of pleasure exploded through her body.
TJ followed her into ecstasy. Flexing his hips, he roared as the intensity of his release ripped through him.
He took a minute to catch his breath before pulling her to him. ‘That was amazing.’ He kissed her on the lips, then hugged her close.
‘It was,’ she agreed, still panting. Her ribs were aching, but it had been well worth it.
TJ released her and smiled, pleased with her compliment. ‘You mean that?’
Berni stared into his blue eyes. ‘I do. It was the best.’
‘I’m glad you think so.’ TJ sighed, relieved. ‘Now, go and tidy yourself up; make yourself presentable. I’ll rack us a line before we go.’ He pulled a small resealable bag half full of white powder from his pocket. ‘Oh, and so you know: we can do this again. There are many more tapes where that came from. A whole library, in fact.’
Berni froze, felt her heart drop. She stared at TJ. ‘What do you mean, a whole library?’ She didn’t stand a chance of getting close to Rocco if he had a line-up of women on tap. What did he have going on, a porn racket or something?
‘How many have you watched?’
‘I’ve watc
hed bits and pieces of a few,’ TJ said somewhat defensively. ‘And don’t worry, I’ll get them back before they’re missed. But the weird thing is . . . one of the discs is a recording of Lucky having sex with one of the prostitutes from the club.
‘Hang on . . . Hasn’t Lucky got a wife? A short insipid looking thing?’
‘Yeah, Erika. She’s horrible . . .’ TJ shivered and pulled a face in distaste. ‘It’s no wonder he sleeps with prostitutes. The thing is—’ He looked concerned, ‘a while back the police came to the club and questioned everyone about a girl who’d been found dead in a park nearby. They thought her death was suspicious and showed me a picture; asked if I’d seen her before. I told them, I hadn’t. But that’s the girl on the tape.’ He pointed to his bag on the floor. ‘I remember because she had this big mark – a birthmark, I think – on her arm.’
Berni had heard about the girl found near the club.
‘I’d never say anything because these guys, you don’t mess with them but . . .’ He shrugged. ‘That’s fucked up.’
Berni agreed. She gave TJ a grim smile. ‘Show me.’
CHAPTER 14
Lexie was only just managing to mask her concern, somehow keeping a calm demeanour despite her internal panic. Batman’s arm tightened around her shoulders as tension flew like invisible bullets through the air space between Rex and Rocco. If this situation escalated it could really harm the operation, not to mention get dangerous. If it came to a physical fight, one on one, Rex would pulverise Rocco; he was a man mountain. But this was Rocco’s club. He had the cocky assurance of having an army of backup on call.
‘Rocco, I thought I told you, my niece doesn’t go near drugs anymore, man.’ There was the perfect hint of annoyance in Rex’s tone. ‘Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate your hospitality, mate. I really do. It’s just that Lara had a bad addiction for a while. One that nearly killed her. It took her a long time to get clean and I’ve told her if she ever touches the stuff again, I’ll kill her myself. So I’m sorry, we have to decline your offer.’
Fatal Mistake Page 8