“You promised I would have a ring by now.”
Internally rolling her eyes at the outburst from the girl in line behind her, she continued to scan the story of the only grocery store in town closing their doors after forty years in the community.
“I don’t give a fuck how busy you are! I’ve waited long enough.”
In the short time working for Amato, she’d become immune to her coworkers having the same conversation as the girl behind her. Their need for a big diamond and someone to take care of them more appealing than taking care of themselves.
Gino stood as Kristine approached the table, pulling out her chair as he ended his call, “Love you too, Ma.”
Kristine is pleasantly surprised to hear such admiration come from Gino’s lips, having heard so much to the contrary about the mysterious man. Taking the offered seat, seconds before two bowls are placed on the table before them. Kristine lifted the spoon to her mouth, as she is assaulted with memories of sitting on her granny’s couch and watching various Christmas movies while enjoying the delicious soup. “You’re right, this soup is amazing.”
Gino pushed his empty bowl to the side, opening his mouth to question whether Kristine would like a glass of wine when the chair to his left was pulled out and the woman of his deepest nightmares slid in beside him.
Kristine stopped with her hand halfway to her mouth as the woman from the bathroom slid in beside Gino, her boobs spilling out of a dress which is so tight her hard nipples are showing through.
“There you are, sweetheart.” Felicia cooed, laying her lips to Gino’s cheek and scooting her body so close to his she’s practically in his lap. “You promised me a rain check and I’ve come to collect.”
Kristine looked to the unquestionably beautiful woman, with thick highlighted curls, and olive skin, and a body that could start a war.
“Felicia,” Gino coldly greeted, pushing her chair back to its original position.
Kristine tried not to read anything into the interaction between the pair. It was clear there was a history, and by the look in Felicia’s eyes, there were some feelings, at least on her part. Reminding herself jealousy had no place here, the dinner tonight only a statement of gratitude and not a proclamation of undying love. Lowering her spoon, Kristine wiped her mouth and looked for an exit.
“You’re interrupting me,” Gino told the woman with conviction, his tone leaving no room for argument. Felicia Vittorio may rule the home she shared with her parents, but she had no authority in any place where Gino took a breath. “I’m in the middle of a dinner date with the lovely Kristine Smith.”
Brown angry eyes flashed to Kristine, scrutinizing her from the edge of the table to the tallest hair atop her head. Felicia had heard of the new bitch working for Gino, everything pointing to her hooking up with Sully. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
“Play around all you want, Gino. But your birthday is coming, and we will be married.”
Kristine waited as the furious woman shoved her way down the aisle, hip-checking a waiter and sending his tray of cocktails crashing to the floor.
“Congratulations,” she turned back slowly. “Felicia is beautiful.”
“And a habitual liar,” Gino argued, tossing back his drink before signaling for another. “Her uncle and my father agree the two of us should be married.”
“I take it you don’t want that? To get married, I mean?”
“Not to her, no.” A few months ago, he would have said a hard no to marriage as a whole, but in the blink of an eye, the woman across the table from him made him reconsider.
“Now, finish your soup, I have one more thing to show you tonight.”
Forty-five minutes later Kristine stood in the center of a magazine-worthy living room, her eyes fixed on the sparkling lights of the Brooklyn Bridge in the distance.
“Impressive, huh?” Gino spoke in her ear, wrapping his arms around her from behind.
“Definitely,” she whispered back, afraid to break the beautiful moment between the pair. He’d held her hand on the ride over, rubbing his thumb across the back of her knuckles, creating a fire in her core.
“When it's light out, you can see the gym I own. I want you to come down and meet the boxer I’ve signed on, Kane Cavallo.”
Looking over her shoulder, “I love Kane Cavallo.”
Smiling, “I know, I saw you at the match the other night.” Reaching over, Gino tipped her chin with his index finger. “Your eyes never left the ring once the match started, I found myself envious of the bastard.”
“You shouldn’t,” Kristen breathed, her eyes shifting between Gino’s eyes and lips. “He has a girlfriend.”
Pulling back, Gino turned from the window, laying the keys to both the car and the apartment on the glass tabletop beside him. “He does, but I’m told their relationship is an open one. If I had to guess, Nikki is riding Brody King’s dick as we speak.”
Kristine didn’t want to know how Gino came into this information about a business partner. Instead, she remained silent, taking one final glance at the skyline before joining Gino in the center of the room. “You said you had something to show me. Is it here in your apartment?”
Gino raised his left hand, running his thumb over the edge of his bottom lip, his brown eyes meeting her blue ones. “Your apartment.”
“I’m sorry?” Kristine didn’t bother hiding her surprise.
Pointing at the suitcases against the wall. “I had Niko pack up your things from the hotel. My brother failed to follow through, not something I’ve ever been guilty of.”
“But this is…” Kristine stumbled for words.
“Too much? Too expensive? Too high up?” Gino prodded separating the distance between them. “Tell me a valid reason why you can’t live here, and I will move you to an apartment of your choosing. But if this is about money, or what one of those bitches in the office said, I don’t give a fuck.”
Unable to come up with an argument, her word to accept the rules pounding in her brain. “I’m sorry, you’re right. It’s beautiful and I’ll treat it with the utmost care.”
Gino could taste the victory in the air, he was so close to having her where he wanted her, he could feel it. Pulling his phone from his pocket, “Earlier you shared something with me that no one knew, I want to do the same.” Scrolling through his photos, Gino walked Kristine’s side, handing the phone to her as he pressed the white arrow on the screen.
Kristine watched as the video began to play, the picture of several teens dressed in gym clothes, wearing boxing gloves and headgear, stood paired off facing one another. Gino stood off to the side, demonstrating how to land a right hook to the group.
“These kids are amazing. They don’t care who I am, only that I spend a few hours a week boxing or playing ball with them.”
Watching the video till the end, Kristine handed the phone back to Gino. “Your secret is safe with me.”
Pocketing his phone, keeping his eyes trained on her face. “Am I safe with you?” Seizing the moment, Gino pulled Kristine close, sealing his lips to hers. He was not a kisser, but the feel of her breath mingling with his made him crave the closeness the act provided. “I was serious earlier. Let me show you my world and how much better you make it.”
Licking the taste of him from her lips, “I’m afraid our definitions of a relationship differ marginally.”
“I doubt that.”
Laughing, “I’m serious, Gino.”
“Giovanni,” he corrected.
Tipping her head in confusion, “But Nina said...”
Spearing his fingers into the hair at the side of her face, “There are four people on the planet who are allowed to call me by my full name. I like the way it falls from your beautiful lips. So please, call me Giovanni.”
“I’m told you don’t do relationships.”
Placing a kiss to the edge of her lips, “You were also told I wasn’t nice. As I’ve shown you today, that isn’t true either.”
Kristine coul
dn’t argue, nearly everything she’d heard about Gino had been proven untrue. She could also argue Gino was more of a man of his word than Sully was.
“I have one condition if you’re serious about having a relationship with me.”
“I assumed as much.”
“We take this at my pace. I’m not like Felicia or the other girls in the office.”
Gino tossed his head back in laughter, “Thank fuck for that.”
“I’m serious…Giovanni.” Kristine pushed against his chest, testing out the name he’d asked her to call him.
“So am I,” kissing her square on the lips. “Come, a moment like this deserves to be celebrated.”
“This is a first I must say,” Kristine laughed as she looked around the room. “Never in all my life have I ever celebrated anything inside a closet.”
Glancing over his shoulder, Gino took in the smile he’d become addicted to as he pressed his thumb over the scanner to unlock his safe.
“Few things in my world have real value to me,” tugging on the handle of the safe. “Every single one of them is inside this room.”
Kristine refused to read anything into what he said, instead turning to the rows of suit jackets hanging beside her. Running her fingers along the sleeves, her eyes land on the tag with a familiar name. Scanning the line of jackets, she noticed each of them still had their tag.
“Should I hold off on sending the check to your personal shopper?” Kristen questioned, raising her voice loud enough for Gino to hear from inside the small room he’d stepped into. Her eyes drifted to the other side of the closet where she found more articles of clothing, the tags dangling from each one.
“Why, was the bill wrong?” Gino questioned stepping from the room, a bottle of alcohol gripped in his hand.
“No, it’s just you’ve left the tags on them. That usually means you’re not keeping them.”
Securing the door, Gino turned and grabbed Kristine’s hand. “Wow, the rumor mill missed a bit of information about me I see.” Placing a kiss to her cheek, “I never wear the same suit twice. The one I have on will be on the rack of some second-hand store this time next week.”
“Wait, you never…that’s crazy.” Kristine yelped in surprise, realizing a second too late of her mistake. “I’m sorry, what you do with your money is none of my business.”
“It’s something my mother taught me. It keeps money flowing into the economy and helps out some guy who can’t afford to buy a new suit.” Gino shrugged, leading Kristine out of the closet and into his bedroom. He’d need a new bed; one he could assure Kristine she was the first female to ever share with him. While he was confident Nina knew her place in his world, he wasn’t naïve enough to know the girl harbored strong feelings for him and would more than likely share their history with Kristine.
“You’re a good man, Giovanni Vitale. And before I forget, thank you for a wonderful evening. So far, I’ve had a great time, excluding Felicia.”
Raising her hand to his lips, “No need to thank me, babe. It’s what boyfriends do.”
Several hours and more than a few bottles of champagne later, Kristine sat on the center of Gino’s couch, her feet propped in his lap and happily drunk.
“Oh my God, it’s after one in the morning, I should let you get some sleep.”
Gino rubbed Kristine’s sock-clad toes, the moans she’d shared with him making his cock rock hard.
“We’ve both had too much to drink,” Gino reasoned, dropping her foot and reaching for Kristine’s empty glass. “Stay here with me tonight? No expectations, just your boyfriend taking care of you.”
It was the second time he’d referred to himself as her boyfriend Kristine thought as her eyes grew heavy, her drunken brain telling her a quick nap was all she needed before heading down to her new apartment.
Gino waited for Kristine’s breathing to even out before carefully lifting her feet from his lap and placing them on the couch. He stared at her beautiful face as he retrieved his phone, sending a text to a number he knew by heart.
He’d barely placed the glasses in the dishwasher when the front door of his penthouse opened, and Niko and a second man walked in.
Gino shot the pair a look, quietly shutting the dishwasher before making his way back to the couch and Kristine’s side.
The man took a look at the sleeping woman before reaching into his pocket and retrieving a kit. Kneeling, he opened the kit and donned a pair of gloves before reaching over and tugging on Kristine’s chin, her mouth falling open. Carefully the man inserted a stick into her mouth, running the tip up and down inside her cheek before shoving it into a plastic container. Repeating the process four times, he rose to his feet. “I can have the results to you in a few hours.”
Reaching into his pocket, Gino retrieved a wad of cash, sliding off several bills and handing them to the man. “Make it one and I’ll double your fee.”
Nodding, the man silently agreed, as Niko motioned for the door. Gino waited until the door closed behind him before bending down and picking Kristine up off the couch. He couldn't bear the thought of her sleeping out here when he had a comfortable guest room his sister enjoyed on the rare occasion she came to visit. Laying her gently on the bed, Gino pulled the covers over her, placing a kiss to her lips and forehead before returning to the living room.
Niko stood beside the sink, a cup of coffee to his lips. The pair remained silent, the implications of what they were doing heavy in the air. Nearly an hour later, Gino’s phone vibrated on the counter, the words appearing on the screen making his breath hitch and Niko to crack a smile.
With a heavy sigh, Gino took his phone in hand, scrolling through his contacts, pressing the one he needed. Holding his head in one hand and his phone to his ear with the other, Gino focused on the grains of the countertop, the line ringing twice before a male voice spoke his name.
“Hey, brother, I need to meet with you. No, in person. Meet me in an hour at my gym.”
14
Kristine woke with the sun shining through the window, a touch of a headache pulling at the sides of her head. Sitting up, she was confused by her surroundings, having some recollection of falling asleep on Gino’s couch and now found herself in an elegant bedroom. Tossing back the covers, she tiptoed down the hall, finding Gino’s penthouse empty. Locating his coffee maker, she took one look at the modern contraption before deciding a walk to the coffee shop she’d noticed when they drove in last night would be less complicated.
Pulling out her phone as she stood in line waiting her turn to order coffee, her breath caught as her eyes landed on the Facebook post from last night on Jonah’s wall. It was a picture of him and Grace, a sparkling diamond on the ring finger of her left hand.
Her shock wasn’t of her broken relationship or his lack of patience before jumping into an engagement with Grace, but the life she may never have. Despite Gino’s assurance he wanted to share his world with her, his world screamed bachelor.
With her coffee in hand, Kristine exited the shop, taking a moment to savor the first glorious sip. As the scalding liquid burned off a few taste buds, she caught sight of an angry Felicia storming from the front entrance of Gino’s building, her cellphone clenched in her hand as she searched the sidewalk. Not wanting a confrontation with her headache still lingering, Kristine stepped back into the shop, watching out the window until Felicia climbed into the back of a black sedan.
Hurrying across the street, Kristine took the elevator to her apartment. Shutting the door behind her, she sat hard on the floor as the reasons behind why Felicia would be in the building flooded her head. She’d paid the multiple bills to various utility companies, recalling several of the address belonged in this building. Maybe the girls were right. After all, their warning of his compassion reflected his primal needs and not as he claimed of being a good boyfriend.
Rising to her feet, Kristine chugged the last of her coffee, reminding herself everything she assumed was circumstantial. While Felicia did prese
nt herself in a desperate manner, Kristine didn’t miss the expensive purse which hung from her arm the night prior. Nina had been gifted a similar bag, the price tag giving Kristine a reason to pause. Perhaps Felicia came from money? Giovanni did mention her uncle wanted the two of them to marry. Surely with the amount of wealth she’d seen in his business account, his family would associate with like money.
As she walked into her kitchen, her fingers drifting along the polished stone of the granite countertops, her phone pinged with a Facebook update. Tossing the empty cup in the trash, Kristine leaned over the counter. Her hand found her mouth as an ultrasound photo with the caption, ‘Kelley baby on the way’ splashed across the black and white picture. Tears sprang to her eyes as she read the announcement posted on Jonah’s wall, the baby due in four short months.
The sound of her door opening and Gino calling her name had her searching the room for somewhere to hide. She couldn’t face him like this, crying over an ex and his baby on the way. Her watery eyes land on the door in the hall. Moving a quietly as she can, Kristine dipped into the dark room, softly closing the door behind her.
“Babe?” Gino called into the room, his voice echoing off the tall ceiling. He’d hoped to return from his meeting before she woke up but found only her lingering perfume and a made bed. Reaching into his pocket, Gino fished out his phone, pressing the necessary buttons before holding it to his ear. Frustration filled him as the call immediately went to voicemail.
Kristine watched him through a slit in the door, her heart racing as he pocketed his phone and walked down the hall toward her, stopping short as he stood in front of a painting of a ballerina on the wall.
Gripping the side of the frame, Gino pulled it toward him to reveal the safe hidden behind. Entering the code, he removed several stacks of cash before closing the door and spinning the wheel.
Leave Me Breathless: The Black Rose Collection Page 12