Craving Mr. Kinky

by A. m Madden

  A smile to rival the sun caused crinkles to form around the same cornflower-blue eyes as Cassie’s. “Sweetheart, you made it.” He pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

  “Hi, Dad.” Cassie released me and wrapped her arms around her father.

  He peered over her shoulder and we locked eyes. All I could do was smile in response. Cassie let her arms drop and replaced her hand where it had been before. Rather than wait, I extended my right hand. “Hello, Dr. Brooks, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Dante, Cassandra’s boyfriend.”

  Cassie’s beaming smile at my using her full name was met with her father’s shocked expression. “Please, call me Edward.”

  Before Cassie could say a word, she was hoisted in the air and spun around in a circle. Her giggling made other party attendees turn to see what the commotion was. “Mark! Put me down!” She smacked his shoulder and then adjusted her dress. “Geez, you scared the hell out of me.”

  “Sorry, sis. I couldn’t resist.”

  “He’s awful.” A woman said, giving Cassie a hug.

  “You loved him by choice, Jenna. I didn’t have one, seeing as how we have the same parents.”

  “You must be Dante,” Mark said, carefully appraising me. “Do I need to give you the big-brother lecture?”

  “Not necessary, but how ’bout them Broncos?” Cassie gasped and Jenna’s eyes squeezed closed as if she were in pain. “You live in Colorado, right?”

  “Yes, but I’m a Patriots fan.”

  “Oh… sorry.”

  With a shake of her head, Cassie patted my chest. “Good job. Way to score points with my brother.”

  “Don’t sweat it, Dante. You caught me on a good day.” He tapped his ribs. “I’m not carrying today.”

  Cassie chided, “Seriously, Mark?”

  “So no cuffs either?” I quipped, feigning disappointment that was meant for Cassie’s ears only, but loud enough for Jenna to laugh and Mark to grimace. “Sorry, that was a joke.”

  “Yeah, a bad one.” At my worried expression, Mark’s hearty chuckle negated his stern words, prompting the rest of us to laugh along with him.

  Watching the family dynamic unfold in front of my eyes made me wonder what Cassie had been worried about. Aside from the language barrier, our families would probably get along well. The thought of our parents meeting one day didn’t seem far-fetched. In fact, I looked forward to it.

  I snagged two glasses of champagne off a passing waiter’s tray. Handing one to her, I lifted mine in a toast. “Thank you for bringing me today.” When I brushed the crest of her ear with my lips, a flurry of goosebumps covered her neck. “I can’t wait to see your secret hideaway. Where is it?”

  “At the east end of our lawn between two rows of arborvitae shrubs. I spent many afternoons lying on a blanket reading romance novels I stole out of Martha’s room.”

  “How old were you when you began this covert operation?”

  “Fifteen.” She blushed and I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “That’s young, isn’t it?” Cassie shrugged. “When can I see this secret place of debauchery? I’d like to put those romance heroes to shame.”

  “Is now too soon?”

  “Lead the way.”

  Cassie

  After last weekend in Connecticut, although fun and much better than expected, I was happy to be back in my element. The normal Saturday crowd chatter and DJ-driven music resounded through Dispatch. I knew my feet were touching the wooden floor, but my cloud nine euphoria had me walking on air. Women appraised the man who had my hand clasped in his, but rather than let it bother me, I relished the fact that he was all mine… every delectable inch belonged to me.

  Dante guided me through the room to where our friends were sitting. Brae flipped her hand in the air, waving at us.

  “Hi,” I greeted everyone, smiling as if I didn’t have a care in the world, because I didn’t.

  “Hey, lovebirds,” Vanessa said with a shit-eating grin. “You two are always the last to arrive. Why is that?”

  All I could do was shake my head at my sex-crazed friend. It didn’t matter what I told her; she’d still conclude that we were rolling around between the sheets. In all actuality, we had been working on my Sunday chores so I wouldn’t be stressed out come tomorrow.

  The fact that the three of us were all coupled off had me forgetting what it was like without the guys around. Even though Dante had been part of the group for only a couple of months, it seemed like he had always been there.

  “So,” Brae said with curiosity, “what happened at your parents’ house last weekend? Did you both have fun?”

  “Yes, we did. Here I thought my parents would be giving Dante the third degree, but they didn’t. For the first time since I can remember, they actually treated me like the adult I am rather than the one they groomed me to be. And as far as this guy goes”—I nudged Dante with my shoulder—“he was a hit. Even my father liked him, which was a shock.”

  “I told you they would love me… I’m irresistible, remember?”

  “Well, at least you’re not dating a stripper. Although that could have livened up the party.”

  My jaw dropped as I stared at Vanessa, while Luca, Jude, and Kyle started cough-laughing. Did they all know? When I glanced at Dante, he just shrugged. Maybe Luca told them, but Dante didn’t seem to care one way or another.

  Conversation flowed effortlessly between all of us. When the waitress brought our cocktails, I noticed Brae was sipping a glass of water. “What’s wrong, Brae? Are you not feeling well?”

  “I guess this is as good of a time as any to tell you all.” Jude exchanged a glance with his wife before wrapping his arm around her shoulder. “We just found out we’re expecting a baby.”

  A chorus of congratulations erupted. Brae’s eyes welled as she continued to look at her husband adoringly. He bent and kissed her lips long and hard, not caring that we all watched. For a second, I thought his kiss would turn into a full-blown make-out session, but then Brae pushed him away with a nervous giggle.

  Unfazed, he glanced around the table with a smug smirk. “And no one knows but our families, so keep it to yourselves… especially you, Cleary,” was Jude’s contribution to his wife’s announcement.

  Kyle raised his hands. “What? Everyone I know is here. Don’t single me out. Luca could spill the beans at the office.”

  “Don’t bring me into this,” Luca said with a glare before raising his glass. “Congratulations, and may you have a daughter to drive you insane. I’m buying your little one the biggest teddy bear I can find.” He glanced at Dante with a sinister grin, causing me to laugh. No one else knew why, and I wasn’t going to supply the information.

  Dante just shook his head before muttering, “Asshole.” He then leaned into me and said, “You, I’ll get even with later.”

  “You know…” I offered, deflecting Dante’s threat. “You could be having twins. Your grandmother is a twin, right, Brae?”

  Poor Brae’s face paled at the thought. “Yes, but the whole skipping a generation theory is a myth.”

  “Well, let’s not forget Soren has twin sisters,” Kyle piped in.

  “It’s not up to the male,” Brae said, trying to negate the possibility again.

  “Ah, but you forget I have super sperm,” Jude added with pride.

  “Oh my God! You didn’t say that out loud.” Brae laughed at her husband, but the endearing look in her eyes meant she agreed with him.

  Dante’s phone buzzed, and when his expression morphed from elation to concern, we all paused. “Sorry, it’s from overseas and not a number I recognize. Let me grab this. Please excuse me.”

  As soon as Dante stepped away, the rapid-fire questions began. Everyone wanted to know about our relationship. Even Luca chimed in. “Cass, I’ve never seen my brother like this… so happy. It’s because of you; I’m sure of it.”

  “Well, I feel the same way. It’s weird, you guys. I really like him. It feels right wh
en we’re together. For the first time in my life, I feel like a true couple… that should make you happy, Brae.”

  “It does, very much. Picture us in ten years, all married and with our kids in the Hamptons playing together on the beach.” Brae sighed and Vanessa choked. “Oh, Vanessa. Can you honestly say you don’t want a little Kyle or a mini-you someday?”

  “Nope,” came from both of them in unison.

  “I can.” That was true too. In the past, I knew I wanted to be a mother, but now that I had Dante, I could picture a little boy or girl perched on my lap as he snapped picture after picture while beaming with pride. “But we’re a long way from that nice imagery. You’re going to be a great mom, Brae.” Jude cleared his throat. “I have no doubt that you will be an incredible father. I’m thrilled for both of you.”

  Luca laughed. “Wow, Cass. You just complimented Jude. You must be in a good mood.”

  “I am, and you have your brother to thank for that.”

  “Speak of the Devil,” Vanessa said, pointing behind me. “Looks like the call was good news.”

  Dante returned with an elated look on his face.

  “Everything okay?” Luca asked when it was obvious it was.

  “Better than okay. Do you remember Matteo Romano? I worked as his apprentice for a while.” Luca nodded, and Dante turned his attention to me. “He’s the man I told you about. The one who runs a gallery.”

  “Yes, I remember.”

  “Well, he’s just presented me with the opportunity of a lifetime. One that I’ve dreamt of but never thought would happen.” For some reason my heart sank into the pit of my stomach. “He wants me to take over running his business. I’ll be traveling to different parts of the world creating stills for the gallery.” And there was the reason.

  All eyes swung to me, but all I could see was the joy on Dante’s face. Tears threatened, and I knew if I let them fall, it would ruin Dante’s moment. Gathering my wits, I plastered a smile on my face. “That’s wonderful! Congratulations! Dispatch must be the place for great news. First, Desiree, then Brae, and now you.”

  Luca turned to his brother. “When does this start? You just got here.”

  God, I didn’t want to hear his response. All I could think was that this was over… that we were over.

  Dante answered his brother but kept his eyes on me. “I still need to get the details, but enough about me. Here’s to Brae and Jude.”

  Chapter 23

  Dante

  I lied. All the details were laid out in an email Matteo sent after his call, but to voice them to Cassie in front of everyone didn’t sit well with me. Explaining everything that the contract specified needed to be done in private.

  The euphoria I felt when Matteo announced his decision to pass his legacy on to me slowly diminished with each second that ticked on the clock. So much so that by the time we pulled up to my building, all that happiness had morphed into doubt.

  From the cab ride to the elevator, Cassie remained indifferent. My girl forgot that I could read her like a book. She put on an overly joyful face, yet it was clear she felt the opposite when the sparkle in her eyes disappeared.

  Various scenarios of how to present this to her ran rampant in my head. When the elevator doors opened with a ding, I placed my hand on her back and guided her to my apartment. No sooner had I shut the door behind us and flicked on the lights than Cassie gasped.

  “Do you like it?” She stood stock-still in awe of her image, which had replaced Charlene’s on my wall.

  “When did you do this?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

  I took a moment to appreciate the beauty staring back at us. “A couple days ago. I wanted to surprise you.”

  She smiled. “Well, it worked.” My first thought when I hung the picture was she would be flabbergasted yet have a lot to say. Instead, she remained reticent.

  “Cassandra, I think we need to talk.”

  No argument came when I took her hand and led her to the sofa. I wondered if I hadn’t kept my hold on her if she would have distanced herself physically… like she seemed to have already done emotionally. I forced her to stay close, knowing it was a pathetic attempt to keep her with me. Maybe I believed she would subconsciously catalog our relationship to that point and use it to my advantage.

  “You need to know, I was just as surprised as you when I received that phone call. Never in my wildest imagination did I think Matteo would be passing the reins to me. Granted, I hoped one day he would, but to have it happen now, at my age, is unheard of.”

  “I’m thrilled for you. You’ve been working your whole life for this, and you did it. When will you have the details?”

  “I got them via email before we left the bar.”

  “Oh, and?”

  “I would need to report to the gallery in Milan in two weeks. And then, right after the first of the year, I’ll be required to travel abroad for two years.”

  My announcement siphoned the blood from her face, even though she tried to cover it up with a forced smile. “Then what?”

  “I’ll return to Milan for the gallery’s opening.”

  “What about your apartment?”

  “This isn’t forever. I plan to come back one day.”

  “One day.” If I wasn’t watching her mouth, I would have missed it. Suddenly, Cassie the cheerleader emerged out of nowhere. She gripped my hands and with a huge smile said, “This is amazing. I’m so happy and proud of you. Your dream, Dante… it’s coming true. What a fantastic opportunity for you. Your life is going to be fabulous.”

  If she threw out one more colorful adjective I would scream. Not once did she utter the word “we” or “us.” Instead, she took herself out of the equation. Her peppy words contradicted her lackluster smile. With each moment that passed, I felt her pulling further away from me.

  “Cassandra, I want you to come with me.” Her body went rigid, and an intense silence enveloped the room.

  “Dante…”

  “Think about it, and how great it would be together. You can travel the world…”

  “And do what? See the sights by myself? Sit in a hotel room and wait for you to come back from a shoot?”

  “But you’d be with me.” Her eyes widened, and I wasn’t sure if it was at my arrogance or the blasé way I said it.

  “No, I wouldn’t really. I’m a teacher. My job and my life are here. I fought hard for all that I have—you know that. How can I just pack up and leave it all behind? Why would I do that?”

  “For us.” Her eyes stared blankly at her picture behind me. Cupping her face, I brought her attention to mine. “I’m the happiest I’ve been in my entire life, and that’s because of you. Things are just getting started for us. We have our entire lives waiting to be lived, to see the world through each other’s eyes. I want to share my dream with you. You changed everything. Cassandra, I’m falling in love with you.” I paused and shook my head. “No, that’s wrong. I have fallen for you.”

  Her petite hands wrapped around my wrists. My heart hammered in my chest, waiting for her to profess she felt the same. When she pulled my arms down, I worried that wasn’t the case. Tears filled her eyes, but the resigned look on her face scared the hell out of me.

  “Don’t do this now.” Hearing her say that was no different than a slap to my face.

  “Do what?” Again she clammed up. “Dammit, Cassie. Talk to me.”

  She sucked in a breath and her eyes began to shimmer. “I need time. This came out of nowhere for me, Dante. You’ve been living with this possibility your whole life. When do you need to let them know?”

  Fuck. It never, ever, occurred to me this would be an issue. How fucking dumb was I to assume the woman I had fallen for, who I thought was also falling for me, wouldn’t do this with me.

  “Dante?”

  “I already accepted the offer.”

  Astonishment touched her pale face. “So all we have left is two weeks?”

  A surge of anger came o
ut of nowhere at her flippant statement. “Why are you doing this?”

  “Doing what, Dante?” I watched her jump off the couch and stare down at me. “Did you truly believe I would drop everything to hop onto your dream? What happens to me if things don’t work out between us?” Before I could even say one word in response, she shook her head in resignation. “Please don’t say it’s not a possibility. It happened in your past, ironically for the same reason. Did you drop everything to go with Charlene to Paris?”

  “She never asked.”

  “Would you have?” My five-second pause gave her all the answer she needed. “Exactly,” she said quietly.

  The three feet between us may as well have been a mile. Until now, I controlled my success, my destiny, my fate. Despair began to fester in the pit of my stomach. I’d never felt so helpless, yet resentful that someone else held my happiness in their hands. And I still had no confidence she felt the same about me. “Do you love me?”

  “Yes, but…”

  “No. You don’t get to do that. It’s a yes or no.”

  “No, it’s not, Dante. I do love you, but it wasn’t too long ago we were each on separate paths. In a matter of hours, you’re asking me to change all my plans without looking back.”

  “It’s called a leap of faith, Cassie.” The way I emphasized her nickname sounded like a hiss.

  “Maybe. But for me it’s abandoning my life for yours.” She came to sit beside me again, taking my hand between hers. “It wouldn’t be fair for me to expect you to give this up, and clearly it didn’t even occur to you to do that. It’s also not fair for you to assume I’d be coming with you.”

  “Cassandra.” I had no idea how to respond to her. Actually, I did. I wanted to demand she not throw away what we had. I wanted to insist she allow me to live my dream and still keep her. Even as irrational as that sounded, I still wanted both. “Are you asking me to choose? Because I’ll choose you.”

  “You can’t. I’m making the choice for you. You’re going, Dante. You have to, and I need you to. I cannot live with that, with the fear that someday you’ll resent me… and you will. Maybe not soon, but sure enough when you’re sick of photographing models, you’ll hate the fate you were forced to have because you chose me.”