by C. M. Steele
Red Hot Night
Trick or Treat
C.M. Steele
Copyrighted © 2019
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
Copyrighted © 2019
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, copied or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system without written expressed permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is purely coincidental.
Cover design: C.M. Steele
Cover Image: Deposit Photos
The use of actors, artists, movies, TV shows and song titles/lyrics throughout this book are done so for storytelling purposes and should in no way be seen as advertisement. Trademark names are used in an editorial fashion with no intention of infringement of the respective owner’s trademark.
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or if it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it to the seller and please purchase your own copy.
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior express, written consent of the author.
This book is intended for mature adults only. Contains sexual content and language that may offend some. The suggested reading audience is 18 years or older. I consider this book as Adult Erotic Romance.
Chapter One
Everett
The second I enter my hotel room, I switch my phone on and see texts from my uncle to call him immediately. “It’s about Dad.”
By “Dad,” he means his dad and my grandfather, who for all intents and purposes could be considered my adopted dad. I don’t waste a second in dialing him back. It may be midnight there, but hell if I’m going to wait for a decent time to call.
“What’s going on? Please tell me he’s okay.”
“I don’t know. All I know is Mom believes he had a heart attack.”
“What do you mean he’s had a heart attack?” My grandfather’s the picture of perfect health. I wipe my hand over my mouth as I wait for my uncle to respond. My mind spins out of control at the fear of losing my father figure.
It feels like forever before he answers, “He’s at St. Mary’s right now. I’m on my way there as we speak. That’s all I know.”
“Thanks, Uncle Frank. I’m leaving right now.” Shit. I pick up my suitcase and place it on the bed, opening it in a hurry.
“Good. Your mother’s on her way here as well.”
I freeze, staring at the ceiling. “Great.”
That’s not really good. They haven’t seen eye-to-eye in years. I doubt he needs the stress. My mother hasn’t learned her lesson when it comes to men. She’s on her third marriage, and this one is a piece of work. He’s lazy as shit and waiting for my grandfather to die. “I’ve got to go so I can get there as soon as possible.” I hang up and swing around to the desk where my laptop is to look up flights back to the States.
I have to get the first flight back. Now I’m wishing I’d taken my private jet. Fuck. I hope my grandfather’s going to make it. Tears well up in my eyes as I think about losing my mentor. The man who told me to go out into the world. He wanted me to be better than him—and my own father, who abandoned my mother and me.
My grandfather’s a great man in every way a man should be, so I’ve never felt like I’ve measured up. Going to college two years early, building a company from the ground up, and expanding into Europe and Australia should have made a dent in that divide, but I feel like the one thing missing is the one thing I’ve yet to find: a good woman to love and worship.
There are plenty of good women in the world, but they have one big checkbox to fill—I have to be attracted to them. And I don’t mean in just the sexual sense. I want to crave a woman like the way my grandfather craves my grandmother. One who steals my heart and soul and gives her heart to me willingly. I ache to wake up to a woman who I can’t exist without. As if the key to my survival rests in her hands.
Damn. It hits me hard that I’ve never felt that way about anyone. Not even a little.
At twenty-four, I’m a millionaire that works endless hours. My grandfather still works his tail off at the local bar in our hometown, so I must get that from him. I’ve tried to convince him to retire, but he loves it and unfortunately doesn’t really have anyone to leave it to.
I pull up the flights and book the next one to leave. It’s not exactly headed to my hometown, but I can take my jet from Chicago and fly into the small airport outside of town. I book it and then call for my driver as I pack in a frenzy.
As we make our way through the streets of London to Heathrow, I order my jet to be ready at the scheduled time. It’s going to take forever before I land. I’m all the way across the ocean. I take a deep breath and remember that he’s a strong son of a bitch and won’t give in.
I work out the details for the project we are working on and email it to my director in London, explaining my early departure. I wasn’t scheduled to leave until tomorrow night. We’re just about to take off when another man comes and sits in the seat next to me looking rattled as hell. He’s in his suit and tie, fidgeting with his cuffs, so I order the man a drink and one for myself. I shut everything off as the plane leaves the runway.
When the flight attendant brings the drinks, I hand him the scotch and ask, “Afraid of flying?”
He downs the glass in one long gulp before setting it on the table. “No. My wife’s been in an accident. I shouldn’t have left her. It’s bullshit. One short trip and all hell breaks loose.” He shakes his head, mentally chastising himself.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Is she going to be okay?”
He runs his hands through his thick hair and then answers, “Yes. It’s a minor fender-bender, but she’s pregnant with our first.” Damn. My heart’s actually breaking for this guy. Normally, I don’t get emotional when it comes to other people’s problems. Maybe it’s my own emotional trip that is making me soft.
“Wow, congratulations about the baby.”
“Thanks.”
“But if she’s fine, then why are you so frantic?”
He waves his drink glass over at the flight attendant. “Because I can’t live without that woman. I shouldn’t have left her alone. Have you ever felt that way about a woman? Wonder where she was your whole life?”
“Nope.” Wow. There it is again. Another reminder of what true love looks like. “But now I’m not sure I should,” I chuckle, taking a drink of my scotch.
He grabs my forearm and says, “Fall hard. It’s the best thing to find a sense of happiness so damn profound that the slightest thought of losing it turns me into this lun
atic bastard you’re looking at.”
The attendant is one row in front of us when he waves his glass up at her again. “Another?” she asks.
“Just one more. Then cut me off. Thanks.” He looks back at me and adds, “I need to calm down. I know she’s fine, but I take her well-being seriously and that’s the only reason I left her at home. Sorry to bother you with my troubles. I probably seem really fucking crazy.”
“Nah, I understand you. I’m on my way home because my grandfather had a heart attack. I’m Everett Williams, by the way,” I say, reaching over to shake his hand.
“Sorry to hear that. I’m Gavin Nicholson.”
“The owner of Granite Hotels?” I blurt out. I’d just stayed at one during my trip through Europe. I only remember because there was a mix-up that left me without a room for three hours. They mentioned how the owner would be disappointed and that someone would be fired.
“Yes, how did you know?”
“Well, I just stayed at the latest one in Milan earlier this week.”
“I hope it was to your liking.”
“Of course. It was magnificent.” I leave out the hiccup. He doesn’t need that stress right now. Besides, the staff made up for it.
“It’s my wife’s personal project. That’s where I met her.”
“A chance encounter…”
“Isn’t that how the best ones start?” He sighs.
For the rest of the flight, we make all kinds of small talk from his wife and how they met, to business matters and my grandfather. I don’t open up to people, but as we talk, I do give him some surface details of my life.
Chapter Two
Lena
“Come on. You have to go with me. I can’t go there by myself. I’ll look like a total loser. Besides, you need to get out of this dorm room. You don’t do anything but go to class and come back here,” my roommate whines. She’s practically stomping her feet like a little kid. It makes me want to laugh, but I hold back because that’s not going to stop her. In fact, she’ll use it to her advantage. We haven’t known each other that long since school only started in late August, but she acts like we’ve known each other forever.
“Well, I don’t really have money to spend, and I can’t go back to work,” I remind her. It’s been a month since my world changed, and I’ve pretty much run out of savings.
“I know. I’m sorry, Lena. I really am, but you need to live. If anything, what you need to take from this is that you’re alive and have a chance to live.” She's right. I've been hiding away after nearly being killed. A bank robber held me up a month ago, and even after I gave him money, he shot me. I spent less than a week in the hospital, but now, I’m afraid to go outside.
Most people wouldn't blame me, but my roommate is a pain in my ass. She thinks living is chasing men, or rather, boys our age. I don't think a single guy in my college class is attractive or even mature enough to consider giving my virginity to, but Briana's different. She couldn't care less as long as she has a great time. Sometimes I wish I had that in me. Especially after what happened. I should be living my life to the fullest instead of wallowing in misery and fear.
She turns around and grabs my arm and I pull it free before she yanks the damn thing off. "Come on, Lena. I can see you thinking in that big brain of yours. Please. It's not even in the city, so the likelihood of running into that bastard is not going to happen."
"Not in the city?" I close my bio textbook because she’s piqued my curiosity. Besides, it’s not like she’s letting me study at all.
She shakes her head vigorously and pulls out her lipstick from her makeup case on her bed. "Nope. It's in the suburbs. We can have a great time with a lot less people to try and ruin it."
Yep. I’m still not interested. "You can borrow my car. I don't want to go."
She spins around, leaning back on her dresser. "I don't want your car. I have my own. In fact, I'm the one driving. I just don't want to go alone." She acts like she doesn’t have a ton of friends. Then again, she probably is fighting with half of them over something dumb. Damn it. Here comes the guilt trip. “What if something happens to me because I went alone?”
"Why not bring one of your many boyfriends?"
She shakes her head and rolls her eyes like I’m being foolish. "Because I'm going to see one of them, and he's the hottest of them all."
I check the time on my phone and realize I have to head out to class. "Can't he just take you there?" I scoot off my bed and head into the closet to pull out my sweater.
"Um...no. He has to work."
"Wait, does he work at the bar?" I ask, slipping my arms through the hoodie.
"Yes, but not really. His grandfather had a heart attack and he's lending a hand. Please, please, please."
I zip it up and then stare at her. She steeples her fingers, pressing them to her lips while her eyes plead. "Fine. Fine. I'll go, but if you don't mind, I have a class to get ready for."
"Yay!" she squeals, hugging me until we fall down onto her bed. I push her off of me and stand up. "Sorry. I got too excited. I'm going to go get you a costume." Shit. I forgot about that part. A Halloween party means costumes.
"What time do we have to leave by?" I ask.
"About six. I don't want to catch traffic, but I don't want to be there early and have to wait around all night until he's done working."
"Okay." I continue getting ready for Bio, which starts in thirty minutes. It's down the street, but I like to be early. I scoop up my textbook and shove it into my messenger bag and wave her off. Before the door closes, I grab it and tell her, "I don't have a costume."
"Don't worry. I've got you there. I have the afternoon off. Time for me to spend my dad's money." She's a trust-fund baby and relishes it. I smile and head to class, hoping she doesn't pick out a terrible one.
I walk to class, considering everything she said about living. Even before the bank robbery, I hadn't lived a life outside of my books. It's not completely a bad thing, but my life was almost cut short.
The memory of those few minutes pops into my head. It happens every day and probably never go away.
I'm going through my list of duties as I start my shift at 1st National Bank when I hear someone demand the money. I look up, startled by a gun pointed directly in my face.
"Give me the fucking money, bitch," he snarls. My hands shake as I try to open the drawer. The robber slams his fist on the counter. "Now." I stare into his eyes and sense the evil behind them. The pale blues are vile, lifeless, cloudy with something, but one thing's for certain—he's dangerous.
My shaky hands surrender the money to him, but even with the money, he isn't satisfied.
Before I can take cover, I hear the loud pop and then all else goes silent. My mind is hazy and my ears are ringing.
"Lena. Lena! Call for an ambulance," someone spoke. They sound frantic, but it's so low I doubt anyone can hear her.
"Hold on, please, Lena. The ambulance is coming. Hang in there."
Suddenly, I feel the pain in my head. It's sharp, burning.
***
"Earth to Lena. Hello, Earth to Lena." Hearing my name shakes me out of the memory. I look over to see my classmate Merrick waving his hand in front of my face. He's a freshman like me at the University of Illinois at Chicago and we always run into each other before class.
"Oh, hi. Sorry. How are you today?" I ask as we enter the science building. The halls are decorated for Halloween with the school skeletons dressed up in costumes and set up by each classroom. The one by ours
"Good. You look nice." Our class is right by the main entrance, so we reach the classroom quickly and I don’t have to make a lot of small talk. It's set up like auditorium seating, and I sit about two rows up, so I don't look too eager while still being able to hear the instructor.
I look down at my navy blue zipped-up hoodie and my jeans. There’s nothing special about my outfit and it gives me a hint that he’s not interested in being friend zoned. I cock my brow up at him
because I think he's crazy, but whatever. "Thanks." I take my seat, and he sits at the one behind me.
Merrick leans in so we can hear each other. It can be quite noisy before class starts as it fills up with students. Halloween is the topic in the air since it’s actually tomorrow. "No problem. Are you visiting the haunted house on the Northside today? Several people are going."
"No, I'm not. I'll be hanging with my roommate."
"Pity. I’m surprised that you two are hanging out. A frat party?" There’s a tone of bitterness in his voice that makes me want to stop talking to him altogether.
Luckily the teacher comes in, ending the conversation and saving me from answering his question. He’s not dressed in his usual sweater vests, but in a shirt that says, This Is My Costume.
He opens his leather messenger bag and pulls out a stack of papers. I already know what it is before he “Happy Halloween. Clear your desks. It's time for your quiz." Tomorrow is actually Halloween, but we only have class on Mondays and Wednesdays.
"Hey, that's not cool,” one kid in the back shouts. Boos fill the air.
"Keep booing, you all are starting Halloween out right.” The class starts getting too noisy, so he whips out a horn and squeezes it. “Enough. Depending on how you do today, this can be a trick or a treat. As soon as you finish, you can leave." He winks and walks around the large desk.
This is going to be fun. If people paid attention to the notes, he said there would be a test today and why I was trying to study before Brianna started on her plea.
I'm the first one to finish, so I gather my things and walk down to the instructor, turning in the test. "How are you feeling, Lena?"
"I'm good, Mr. Hammond."
"Remember, if you need anything, let me or your advisor know." Because I missed two weeks of school, they all were made aware of what happened to me, so they have been extremely sympathetic. A bit of my hair had to be shaved around my ear, but the rest of my hair is very long so it hides most of the bald spot. I don't want to call attention to the scar, so I keep my hair the same way. The peach fuzz is just coming back, but for now, I leave my dark auburn hair braided over my right side to stop people from asking questions.