I ran my hand over my head, still taken aback. “Uh, okay. I assume the conditions are letting her know to stay by my side, and if she tries to run, she’ll be brought straight back to the yacht with no chances of getting off again?”
Roman grinned, his top lip going under his tiny white mustache. “You know me well, my friend.”
Before I could respond, Penny stepped out of the bathroom wearing a tank top and black cotton shorts. When she saw Roman, she stilled. Looking at Roman, though, his face softened and his grin widened.
“Ms. Santoro,” he said in a breathy tone. “Just who I was talking about.” He took a step forward but stopped when he realized I blocked his way.
“Hello, Mr. Vitale,” she replied.
“My dear, I was just telling Tag that we will be going off the yacht tonight to a little club I own. SanRisa will be meeting us there. You remember her. I felt it was time to get you off my yacht to enjoy a little nightlife on the island.”
Penny’s eyes bugged out of her head, clearly shocked at what he just said. I stayed still, not showing any reaction, my instincts kicking in.
“Uh, okay,” she stammered. “I don’t know what to say.”
Roman chuckled. “You just need to say thank you. I trust you will stay by Tag’s side and not try anything foolish? If so, it will upset me greatly, and you will no longer have any opportunities to leave this yacht.”
“I won’t do anything foolish, sir.”
He smiled again. “Wonderful. Be ready by six sharp. Theo will text you when he’s ready for you, Tag.” He walked off without another word or look behind him.
I shut the door and leaned back against it, stunned at this latest development. This was entirely out of character for Roman, and of course it made me even more suspicious of his plans. What the hell was he up to?
“What’s going on, Tag?”
Her quiet voice asking that question told me she was nervous. Walking over to stand in front of her, I took her hand in mine and raised it to my lips, pressing a gentle kiss to her wrist. “I don’t know, but it’ll be okay. This is very unexpected, and I’m not sure what to do with it.”
She started to tremble just a little, making me swear. I pulled her into my arms and held her close.
“I’m scared. I can’t stop thinking about what Fiona told me and the feelings I get when he’s around. He looks at me weirdly, and I hate it. I want to go home.”
Hearing her say Fiona’s name made me cringe, but I didn’t say anything. Instead, I just held her and told her everything would be okay. When she suddenly froze in my arms, I took a step back and looked at her.
“What is it, querida?”
Her eyes were full of fear. “What will happen to us once you get me off the yacht, Tag? What will happen to you? I can’t lose you. Please stay with me, please.”
My heart felt like a knife just twisted through it. I’d wondered when that would hit her and she’d ask. If everything went according to my plan, I was definitely going to stay with her. My life in the cartel would be over, and I’d be able to be free and move on, with her.
But…
I knew this life all too well, and the chances of escaping it were slim. If I survived getting her out, and my plan didn’t succeed, I’d be living a life on the run, and no way in hell would I drag her with me. I’d have to let her go, no matter how much it killed me.
I refused to tell her any of this now, so instead, I just pressed a short kiss to her lips and held her against me again. “Now that I’ve found you, sweet girl, there’s no way you’re getting rid of me.”
I felt her slump against me a bit, relieved, and I sighed, happy that she seemed to accept that with no questions. My girl was still naive, which I loved about her. She’d keep that innocence if I had any say in it.
“I can’t live without you,” she whispered against my chest, making me feel powerful and weak at the same time.
Pressing another kiss against her sweet skin, I held her tighter in my embrace. “You won’t have to, sweet girl. I’m here.”
Part lie, part truth. I was there with her at that moment, but I couldn’t promise her I’d be with her forever. I’d get her back home, even if it killed me, literally.
Chapter 23
The nightclub was flashy and crowded. People were everywhere, bumping into me, grinding against me. Tag kept a firm arm around my waist; otherwise I’d have been lost for sure. The fact that all I wanted to do was go back to my cabin on the yacht convinced me I had gone insane, but having not been around more than a few people in months had completely made this night unbearable.
We finally made it into the VIP area where it was calmer and somewhat quieter. Roman led us to a table in the corner that already had food and drinks set up on it. From what I could tell, there was caviar, cheese and crackers, artichoke dip, and a few other things I didn’t recognize. There was a cart with all kinds of booze next to the table calling my name.
We sat down around the table, Tag practically on my lap with how close he was. SanRisa couldn’t keep her hands off of Roman, and he didn’t seem to mind, though he kept glancing at me often, which I hated. I didn’t dare ask where Fiona was, especially after her odd visit to me, but I hoped she was all right.
“Are you doing okay?” Tag whispered in my ear, his hot breath sending shivers of pleasure down my spine. I turned to look at him, and his eyes told me he knew exactly what he did to me.
Leaning in so he could hear me, I replied, “Better now that we’re in here.”
He squeezed my knee under the tablecloth, his way of letting me know he was there. Since we couldn’t let on about our relationship, especially to Roman, we had to pretend we were just friends.
Or captive and captor.
The music was loud, and people laughing and shouting filled the club. Roman looked pleased with business and continued to let SanRisa maul him. When she stood up and offered him a hand, he laughed and accepted. She turned to me and Tag.
“Excuse us while I take this man out on the dance floor to shake his sexy ass!”
We gave the obligatory chuckle and told them to have fun.
Those at the club had no idea that the foursome at the VIP table was really an abductor, his employee, the abducted, and the clueless.
Since Roman was out of eyesight for the moment, Tag ran his finger up and down my arm, giving me goose bumps.
“Do you know how badly I want to rip that incredibly sexy dress off your body right now?”
I blushed a little, never getting quite used to the way he talked to me at times. I loved it, a lot, but it always made me a little embarrassed. I looked down at the dress. To me, it was just a simple black cocktail number that stopped right above my knees. The neckline did plunge down to show off some cleavage, but it was a simple dress.
His hand went around my neck, pulling me close. “I love it when you blush, querida. I wish I could press my lips to your neck, taste your delectable skin, feel you shiver when I run my tongue along that sweet spot behind your ear. What you do to me, Penny Santoro.”
I closed my eyes, forgetting we weren’t supposed to be doing this. They quickly opened when I felt Tag pull away from me, setting his hands down on the table. When I looked, I saw a server walking toward us.
“How is everything? Is Señor Vitale satisfied so far?”
Tag smiled and nodded. “Yes, thank you. Everything is good.”
The server gave a quick smile and nod and walked off, leaving us alone again. The lights suddenly dimmed, and a slow song came over the speakers. I felt his hand leave my neck and drop to my thigh, then run up my dress. I hissed in a breath, afraid of being caught, but so turned on, I thought I’d die of frustration.
“Hahahaha oh, Roman, you sure do know how to charm a lady.”
Tag’s hand quickly left my leg and returned to his side, hearing SanRisa’s voice getting closer. She and Roman appeared a second later, Roman’s brow damp with perspiration. When they sat back down, his eyes immediate
ly went to my face, looking me over.
“How are you doing, Ms. Santoro?” he asked, still staring.
Chills went through me. “Good, señor, I’m good.” I sat up straighter, the mood from just seconds before completely evaporating.
“I’m glad to hear it. I hope Tag has been taking good care of you.”
“Yes, sir, he has.”
Tag shifted next to me, doing his best to stay calm. I knew Roman asking me that would anger him, but he wouldn’t show it. He never showed it to him.
Suddenly Roman’s phone dinged, and he took it out of his breast pocket. His eyes darkened as he read the text, then he looked at Tag.
“I need to speak with you outside a moment,” was all he said as he stood up, heading outside.
Tag looked at me in confusion as he stood. “I’ll be right back.” He didn’t glance behind him to look at me as he followed Roman out the door.
What was that about?
SanRisa downed her wine in one gulp. “Wow,” she exclaimed, wiping her mouth with her hand. “That man sure can dance when he wants to.”
She didn’t seem concerned at all that they just walked out of here to talk. I, on the other hand, was beyond worried, wondering what was going on. The fear that Roman would send Tag away on a job or something made me feel sick to my stomach.
He can’t leave me.
“Don’t worry, dear,” she suddenly said, looking straight at me. “They’ll be back in a few minutes, and we’ll continue our evening like it never happened. You never question Roman Vitale, ever. Just relax.”
I did my best attempt at a smile and took a sip of water. She was crazy if she thought I’d ask him a thing. I’d just wait until Tag could tell me, which wouldn’t be much.
Tag and Roman came back a few minutes later, Roman still looking pissed and Tag concerned. That immediately heightened my worry, though I managed not to jump down his throat when he sat back down next to me.
“My apologies, ladies,” Roman said as he took a sip of his wine. “Something came up, but we’ve got it under control now.”
My eyes immediately darted to Tag, but he refused to look at me, only lightly shaking his head. I got the hint to let it go for now, and felt better when his hand squeezed my knee. He’d tell me when he could.
“I missed you, amore,” SanRisa chimed, blowing in Roman’s ear. While earlier he seemed to enjoy her flirting, the look on his face now showed a different story. His hands tightened on the table where they sat, and he turned his head away from her.
She apparently got the hint because she sat back in her chair, sighing and taking another sip of wine.
What had changed his mood so suddenly?
“Vitale!” a loud, deep voice sounded beside us, making me jump.
I looked up to see a giant of a man approaching our table. He was extremely robust, with a head full of dark curly hair and more bling on anyone I’d ever seen in my life. He clapped his hands together as he reached us and pounded Roman on the back a few times.
Suddenly Roman’s scowl disappeared and was replaced by a large grin. He stood up and the two men hugged, clapping each other on the back. Roman pulled back to look in his face, his eyes lit up.
“Mancuso, my friend, it’s been too long. What brings you to my little nightclub?”
The man named Mancuso pulled a chair from another table over and sat next to Roman. “I heard you were here, of course, and couldn’t waste an opportunity to come say hello.” He looked around the table then, pausing on SanRisa, then me. The smile that lit up his face was sinister, causing me to wince and turn away. Tag seemed to understand as I felt him slip his hand onto my knee under the table, rubbing his thumb along it for a few seconds before taking it away and setting it back on the table.
“Roman, you must introduce me to these lovely ladies,” Mancuso insisted.
Roman’s eyes turned dark when he saw Mancuso looking at me. The tension filled the air, making my stomach lurch. For some odd reason, I felt like I was abruptly the prize of a pissing contest between the two.
“My apologies,” Roman stated, still looking at me. “Mancuso, let me introduce you to the lovely SanRisa,” he gestured toward her, running a finger down her cheek, then his eyes turned back to me. “And this is my dear Penelope Santoro.” The way he said my name was like he was announcing some huge announcement to the man.
When Mancuso’s eyes bugged, it was obvious I’d been correct, but why?
“Santoro? My, my, my,” Mancuso practically hummed. I instantly felt Tag stiffen beside me, and my fear grew a notch.
“Your father is Raul, correct?” Mancuso addressed me.
My eyes widened, and the hair on the back of my neck stiffened. I looked at Tag, then Roman, then to Mancuso himself. “Yes, how did you know that?”
Mancuso uttered a deep chuckle, making goose bumps cover my body. This man was pure evil; I could feel it in my bones. I instinctively scooted closer to Tag, needing the warmth and comfort of his body.
“Oh, my dear, Raul is well known. In fact —“
“Enough,” Roman interrupted, making Mancuso’s eyes turn to slits. “Let’s take a walk, Mancuso.” Roman stood up and waited for the giant man to join him. After looking at me one more time, he silently stood and followed.
When they were out of earshot, SanRisa lit out a breath. “Who the hell is that? He’s huge!”
Tag stayed silent, only the sound of his fingertips hitting the table repeatedly coming from him. I looked at her and shrugged my shoulders. “I have no idea, but he definitely isn’t someone I want to get to know.”
SanRisa chuckled. “Oh, I’m not so sure about that. You know what they say about large men, don’t you, hon?”
Her meaning hit me and I blushed, lowering my head to try to hide it. She laughed harder, which told me I hadn’t. Tag put his arm around my lower waist, so no one could see and gently pulled me closer. I wish I could have just rested my head against him, but it couldn’t happen.
I couldn’t wait to escape this hell.
Soon enough, both men returned to the table, Mancuso avoiding looking at me. That made me wonder what Roman had told him. How did he know my father?
Getting some courage, I leaned forward a little and asked. “So, you never told me—how do you know my father?”
Tag tugged on my dress, and Roman’s eyes shot bullets at me. Mancuso coughed and leaned back in his chair. I knew right away my mouth should have stayed shut.
“I made a mistake, hon,” Mancuso told me, still not looking my way. “I don’t know your father.”
He was lying.
Why?
“Tag, take her back to my compound now. I’ll be there soon myself. I just need to take SanRisa back to her place. Mancuso, so good to see you,” Roman said, obviously ending the night and dismissing us.
Tag nodded and quickly stood, pulling on my hand. I barely had enough time to wish them all a good night before we were outside in the warm night air. Tag pulled me along the landscaped sidewalk, heading toward a long black limo.
“What’s going on?” I asked, my patience running out. “Why aren’t we going back to the yacht? Who the hell was that guy?”
Tag ignored me, just pulling me along until we got to the car. He opened the door and practically shoved me in the backseat with a grunt, then got in behind me. He leaned over to the driver and told him to drive, then pressed a button to raise the partition window between the driver and us.
Twisted Desire Page 17