“I don’t mind escorting you the whole way home,” I whisper against her ear. I press tighter against her, letting her feel my hard cock poking through my jeans. Mia shivers, which I take as a good sign.
“Oh no, that’s okay.” She lays her hands flat against my chest, but she doesn’t push.
“You’ve had a stressful night. Let me help you relax.” I bite her earlobe lightly, then whisper. “You have no idea how loud you’ll scream when I’m making you come.”
I grasp the side of her thigh and start making my way up. Mia lets out a stilted sigh as I hitch her skirt up.
“Let me give you a little taste of what I can do,” I say.
Mia doesn’t protest as I hook my thumb inside of her thong, and pull it down. She clutches at my back. I feel her body temperature rising. I trace the string of the thong to between her legs. She’s damp and hot there. I rub her clit in small circles through the sheer fabric. Mia whimpers against my ear. I rub faster, pressing harder. When Mia grinds her hips forward, my cock stands straight out. I growl against her ear, ready to wrap her legs around my waist and plunge inside of her.
I greedily kiss the side of her neck, and push the thong to the side. Now, I can feel her bare pussy. The skin is soft and wet. I part her lips carefully, and stroke her delicate folds. Mia melts against me, moaning, and letting me know she wants this. I plunge two fingers inside of her. She cranes her head bed, letting out a high pitched scream.
“Stick with me, baby, and I’ll turn your innocence inside out,” I growl. I twist my fingers inside of her. Her knees go weak and her moans deepen. I wrap my other arm around her waist, holding her tight against me. “I want to own your body. I want to make you mine.”
I thrust my fingers inside of her. Mia convulses, and the walls of her pussy cling tightly to my knuckles. She relaxes against me, then lets out a long, orgasmic scream. I know she just came. I pull my fingers out of her and sniff them, breathing in her sweet scent.
The bus stops in front of us. Mia pulls away from me, adjusting her clothes.
“Is this man bothering you, ma’am,” the bus driver says.
Mia shakes her head, as if just coming out of a trance. “No, no. We were just saying goodbye.” She turns to me, sternly. “Goodbye, Leo.”
“You sure I can’t take you home?”
Mia shakes her head tersely. “No, I-I better not.” She starts to take off the hoodie, but I grab her hand, stopping her.
“You keep it,” I say.
Mia’s cheeks flush red. “Thank you,” she says, quietly. “I’ll, um, see you later.”
She snaps her mouth shut. I can tell she hadn’t meant to say that. But sometimes our deepest desires slip out accidentally. I slip my hand around her waist, then lean in and kiss the side of her neck.
“You bet you will,” I whisper against her ear.
Chapter Five
———————-
Mia
The couple downstairs is arguing again. They are standing in the stairwell below my apartment window yelling at the top of their lungs. Their argument spins around in circles, covering the same points over and over again. It doesn’t go anywhere. It just gets louder.
It’s just what I need, another distraction. I can barely concentrate on these financial aid forms with visions of Leo cluttering my mind, and making me a little weak in the knees. It’s been two days since that all went down. It was such a strange, surreal night, I wonder if I’d imagined Leo, dreamed him up to be my savior.
Except he isn’t a savior. That’s how I know he’s real. If he and his brother were at the warehouse doing business, then that means Leo’s probably deep in some scary shit. He’s a criminal, just like the Nabatovs, just a really hot one.
I’d opened the window in hopes the brisk breeze would distract me from Leo. But the couple downstairs is too loud, and they’ve been known to go on for hours. I slam the window closed. The room heats up quickly, thanks to the sputtering, dangerously hot radiator under my windowsill.
It’s quiet now. I sigh with relief, then poise my pen over the form. Before I can start, a vivid memory flashes in my mind. It’s so clear, I can feel Leo’s brusk hand on the outside of my thigh, how he slowly, teasingly made his way between my legs. How, when he was fingering me at the bus stop, I’d felt so vulnerable beneath his large frame. He could do anything he wanted to me, and I didn’t want him to stop. Heat flushes through me. My clit pulses, making me squeeze my thighs together.
“Mia, concentrate,” I say, pulling my hair with both hands.
The financial aid forms are nearly impossible to complete. There’s a lot of documentation I need to get from my caseworker, who is very difficult to reach these days. Each time I try to call her, I’m put on hold for hours. Once I aged out of the system, I wasn’t a priority anymore. I can understand that. There are new kids coming into the foster system all the time. I’m an adult now, and have to make it on my own, as impossible as that seems.
I push the papers to the side, and listen to the words that have been rattling around in my head for two days.
I want to own your body. I want to make you mine.
Every time I think of Leo saying that, I want to melt. It’s so dangerously hot, hearing a dominating man like Leo say that. It tells me that he wants me for more than one night.
But I’ll never see him again. I’m not going anywhere near that warehouse again. I plan to stay far away from the shady underworld where Leo lives.
Still, I have to search for him on the internet. I turn on my ancient laptop that just barely works. In the search bar, I type Leo and New Jersey. But I need something more specific. On a hunch, I add a third keyword: mafia.
The electronics in my computer moan and complain as the search results are loaded at a snail’s pace. It’s still groaning when Dani bursts into my room unannounced.
“Knock, knock,” she says, then flops on my bed. She’s in sweats, with her silky dark hair pinned to her head. She’s not wearing any makeup. To me, she’s the most beautiful this way.
“What’s up, Dani? I say, turning around in my chair.
She folds her hands in her lap and smiles excitedly. “I have good news.”
Good news is rare and far between for me, so my ears prick up. Dani takes a few moments to build the suspense, then blurts it out.
“Anton wants you!”
She claps her hands excitedly. But the words confuse me. My brain has to slow down to make sense of them. I remember Anton, and his hand on my ass. I shiver.
“What does that mean, he wants me?” I ask.
“It means you’ll be one of his girls. He’ll take care of you. I know most of his girls get a very generous allowance.” Dani scoffs at my less than thrilled face. “Mia, this is a huge opportunity. You’re set.”
“And what would I have to do in return?”
Dani shakes her head. “Do I really have to tell you?”
The pieces of the puzzle click together in my head, and I feel like I’m going to puke. I shake my head fiercely.
“No, no, no,” I repeat. I pick up the financial aid forms and shuffle them. “I don’t need him. Once I get my nursing degree, I can take care of myself.”
Dani tilts her forehead towards me. “You’ve been talking about nursing school for the past three years.”
“Yes, I know. But this year I’m getting my shit together-“
“Anton will put you through school if that’s what you want-“
“With a loan, I can pay for it myself-“
“Mia!” Dani yells. She stands over me, holding her hands out like she wants to shake me. “You can barely afford the rent here, in this dump. How are you going to pay for school?”
I clutch the forms tightly, curling the edges. “I don’t know. I’ll work it out. I will.”
Dani notices my stressed state. She lays her hand on my shoulder compassionately. “I can’t keep paying for the both of us. You know I would if I could.” Her voice chokes with genuine
emotion.
“I know you would,” I say, quietly. “But you shouldn’t have to. That’s why I’m trying, trying to be a nurse, to get an actual paycheck.” I close my eyes, running the familiar equation in my head. It will take three years, at least, to get a nursing degree, and a lot longer than that to pay off the loans I’d need.
Dani rubs my back. “It’s not your fault. You would’ve been a great damn nurse. It’s the way things are. We don’t have parents, or any other family, to help us get on our feet. We were just spit out of the foster system, no connections, no money, and left to fend for ourselves.”
I lay the forms neatly back on my desk. “I can pick up another shift at the Fry Hut, work overtime as often as they’ll let me. I’ll find a way, Dani. I can’t belong to Anton.” The thought sends fresh shivers down my spine.
Dani drops my gaze, which makes me nervous. She forces herself to look back at up at me. “The thing is, with Anton, you don’t exactly have a choice. When Anton decides on a girl, well, that’s that.” She bites her lip guiltily. “I’m sorry, honey. But don’t worry, it will be well worth your while.”
I smack her hand away from my shoulder. “You were the one that convinced me to go down there. You’re the reason Anton knows I exist.”
“Come on, Mia. I was trying to help.”
I eye her warily. “Did you know he’d want me? Did you recruit me?”
Dani’s mouth drops in offense. “No. Plenty of girls work for one night and don’t come back. I thought it’d be a one time gig for you.”
I snap my mouth shut. I shouldn’t be lashing out at Dani for this, even though I really want to.
Dani grabs my shoulders and shakes them, trying to lighten the mood. “You’re making a big deal out of nothing. It won’t be that bad, I promise. And Anton only keeps girls for a year or two, tops.”
“And then what does he do with them?” I say, sardonically.
Dani rolls her eyes, smiling. “Stop. You’re too dramatic.” Her eyes flit past me, and she squints at the computer screen. “And you say you don’t like gangsters.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” I whirl around to face the computer screen. There are a page’s worth of pictures of three very attractive brothers. They’re tall, cut, and look like they belong in a jean ad. Leo’s eyes beckon to me from the screen. They’re so intense, it feels like he’s actually watching me. I read one of the captions. The last generation of the Romano crime family; Vince, Leo, and Mateo Romano.
“They’re way hotter than the Nabatovs, I’ll give you that,” Dani says, studying the pictures.
I shouldn’t be as surprised as I am. Leo smells of violence and sex. From the cocky way he holds himself, it’s obvious he thinks he’s a god among men, able to kill and fuck whatever he wants without consequence.
I glance at the clock, and it fills me with fresh panic.
“I have to go to work,” I say, jumping from my chair.
“What? Why?” Dani says. “You don’t have to work any more. That’s one of the perks.”
I tuck in my Fry Hut shirt, and grab my grease splattered cap. “I just-I- don’t want to be late.”
I run out of the room, stammering and stumbling, leaving Dani to gawk at pictures of the Romano brothers.
*
“Welcome to Fry Hut. What can I get you today?”
The blonde, middle aged woman studies the menu, not acknowledging me.
“Order when you’re ready,” I say.
“I will,” she snaps.
I tap my fingers against the keys of the cash register while I wait for her. My thoughts drift to the conversation with Dani.
With Anton, you don’t exactly have a choice.
What the fuck does that mean?
“Excuse me, ma’am. I said I’m ready.”
“Of course,” I say, snapping back to reality.
I click in her order for fried shrimp and two sides of potato salad. She makes a big deal of dropping a quarter into the tip jar and steps aside. There are no customers behind her. I stare out from the counter through the large window. I don’t have a choice. So, is Anton going to drive up and snatch me? Every time a car whooshes by, I hold my breath, thinking it’s him.
It’s a long eight hour shift with this paranoid thinking. Whenever the bell above the front door dings, I snap my head to look, expecting to see some Russian goons. I’m so on edge, I keep messing up people’s orders. Enough customers complain to Russ, my manager, to have a little chat with me when my shift ended.
After promising I’d be more of a team player, and reaffirming my mission to provide the best customer service possible, I walk out of the Fry Hut and into the chilly night. As I rush past alleyways, my anxiety reveals itself again. If Anton was going to snatch me, this would be the time to do it. I set my sights on my bus stop, and hoof it there.
Only two blocks away, I think, quickening my step.
I try to block out the cars driving past me. With every one, I’m convinced they’re slowing down, and fully expect for someone to reach out through the window and grab me. Each time, they drive past, allowing me to exhale.
Headlights come up behind me.
Keep driving, keep driving, I plead silently.
I hear the asphalt crunch beneath the tires as it slows down beside me. I don’t look. I just keep walking. The bus stop is less than a block away now.
But I can’t ignore that the car is going the same speed as I am. I hear mechanical gears as the window is rolled down.
“Hey, hey you,” a man yells.
Every nerve ending tingles with fear. I might not be going home tonight. I might have to share a bed with Anton.
“Hey, you like burgers?” the man calls.
The question sounds so absurd, I have to look. Leo is staring out at me with his dimpled smile. I nearly double over with the relief I feel.
“Leo,” I gush, walking up to the car.
“You seem happy to see me,” he says.
I straighten my hair, trying to seem casual. “Yeah, it’s just a surprise is all.”
“You didn’t answer my question. You like burgers?”
Somehow I know that’s not all he wants to ask.
“Doesn’t everyone?” I ask.
Leo bites his bottom lip while eyeing me up and down. I don’t feel particularly sexy in my beige collared shirt embroidered with the words “Here to serve!” But Leo is obviously finding something to look at. He leans over the passenger seat and opens the door. “Get in.”
Now, I know this isn’t the greatest idea, but I’ll take Leo snatching me in the night over Anton any day. And, let’s face it, I need the protection, if only to save me from my own paranoia. I see him watching me through the glow of the headlights as I walk around to the passenger seat. It’s a BMW. I’ve never been in a car this nice before. The seats are covered in supple leather. There’s so much legroom, I can stretch my legs out completely. Leo greets me with a smile, then immediately puts his hand on my thigh.
“That was easier than expected,” Leo says. “I thought you’d put up more of a fight.”
I shrug. “I’m hungry. You said something about burgers?”
Leo gives my thigh a squeeze before returning his hand to the steering wheel.
*
Leo takes me to one of those fancy places where burgers, toppings, and fries are sold separately, and a single meal costs around thirty dollars. The interior is dark and intimate. We’re seated in a booth in a room near the back. There’s no one else around us. Something tells me not every patron gets to sit back here. I study the menu, growing increasingly uncomfortable.
A dollar and a half for a piece of cheese? I wonder. Three dollars for a slice of bacon?
“Don’t worry about it,” Leo says.
I squint at him through the candlelight. “Huh?”
“The money,” he says, placing his elbows on the table. “It’s on me.”
I narrow my eyes at him, challengingly. “You think you
can read my mind?”
Leo shrugs his shoulders, his face dripping with cockiness. “It’s not that hard. I can see by your uniform that you’re not pulling in the big bucks. And when you’re looking at the menu, you keep doing like this.” He pinches his shoulders up to his neck, scrunching his eyes. “Like the prices are causing you physical pain.”
I am struck speechless by his arrogance, though he’s totally right. Leo sticks his hand under the table. I feel his fingertips graze against my knee. I squirm in my seat, feeling a wet spot form in my panties. Leo is keeping a close watch on my face, and is well aware of the effect he’s having. I have to stay in control of myself. I can’t let him seduce me. He thinks I’m like every other woman he’s conquered, but he’s wrong. I turn my knees to the side, and his hand falls away.
“How did you know where to find me?” I ask, suspiciously.
“I know a lot of people. Just did a little asking around.”
“So you were stalking me?”
“Not exactly,” Leo says. “I haven't been peeping through your window at night, though that doesn’t sound like a bad idea.”
My inner thighs tighten at the idea of him watching me undress. Damn this lust. It keeps clouding my better judgement.
Leo returns his hand to my knee. This time, he grabs it with a firm grip. “When I see something I want, I go after it.”
I desperately want his hand to keep searching up my thigh, but I try to summon the little bit of fight I have in me.
“Is that what I am to you? A thing to pursue?”
Leo leans back in the booth, crossing his arms over his chest, and gestures for me to keep talking.
“The night we met, you asked me how many of the Nabatovs I sold myself to. The way you said it, it was like you were judging me. How dare you tell a woman what she should and shouldn’t do with her body?” I tilt my chin up righteously.
Leo shows me his palms. “Hey, whoa, you’ve got it all wrong. I never judge anybody for what they do to get by. And I’m all for women’s rights and what have you.” He throws his hands up. “But you’re right. I was a little, uh, jealous thinking of those goons pawing at you.”
Hostage: A Dark Mafia Romance (Romano Brothers Book 1) Page 3
