by Olivia Deici
My eyes locked on hers. “Who's flirting now? And baby, you can rub against me all night long.”
Izzy rolled her eyes.
She pointed. “You can change in the bathroom over there.”
I looked and in the process of turning my head, I saw the mess.
Everywhere.
She laughed. “I should be embarrassed, and I kinda sorta am, but I barely have time to eat. Tidying up just isn't high on my list of priorities.”
I walked by her and reached my hand out to her cheek.
“You're lucky you're hot.”
I went to the bathroom, leaving her chortling behind me.
Chapter 15
Izzy
I watched as he went into my bathroom, amazed that he was here in the first place. If I would've been told a month ago that Roman Zambrano would be in my apartment and that we were going to go running together, I would've placed the person on a psychological hold.
I took the few minutes to breathe deeply. The incident with Parada had shaken me. I was disappointed at my fear, but also very satisfied that I was able to put my training to practical use.
I defended myself.
I couldn't before, but I had now.
And that meant everything to me.
I heard the door open and Roman came out. He had black jogging pants on and a black tank. He literally took up the whole threshold of my bathroom door. Roman was a large man. His gorgeous tattoos were on display. I knew he was a good guy, but if you didn’t know that about him and simply judged him by his looks, you’d definitely think otherwise.
Still, I'd never seen a finer looking man.
His body was beyond fit. The peaks and valleys of his muscles would make mountains jealous. I just couldn't get the juxtapositions of him out of my head.
He was a lawyer but a part of a mafia family.
He was a part of a mafia family but a gentleman.
He was a gentleman but had tattoos on nearly half his body- the half I'd been able to peek at.
“Take a picture, it'll last longer.”
His words brought me out of my head, realizing, to my own mortification, that I'd been staring at that magnificent man.
“Sorry.”
I felt my cheeks color.
“That's alright. I didn't get a chance to look at you down there.”
He walked a circle around me. I was wearing pink waist-trimmed, black running leggings that reached mid-calf. It was a muggy night, so I wore a pink sports bra.
He whistled. Dezi picked up his head from where he was sleeping.
I smirked at Roman. “We're just running.”
He nodded his head with a delicious twist of his lips. “Just running.”
I grabbed my runner's belt.
“Do you listen to music during?”
He nodded his head. “Sometimes, I prefer quiet surroundings if it was a particularly hectic day. Mostly, I listen to music. Hip hop.”
I rolled my eyes. He chuckled.
“Don't like? Let me guess, you listen to bubble gum pop music.”
“Ummm, no. Ok, well, some. I like hip hop but it's not only what I listen to.”
“Let's share playlists then. Let's run listening to each other’s, and see who changes back to their own first.”
“Ok.”
“Let's make a bet.”
“Do you always gamble?”
“When it comes to beautiful women? Yes.”
He came over to me, and put his hands around my waist. His touch on my bare skin made my breath catch. He smelled delicious. His skin still carried the scent of his clean-smelling cologne.
I swear I heard the spot sizzle where our skin touched. Roman's nostrils flared at our contact.
So I wasn't the only one affected by whatever was between us.
“Whoever wins, picks something to do afterwards.”
I twisted my lips.
“I'm not sure I like that.”
He scoffed in mockery. “Have such little faith in your abilities?”
“You're on.”
He looked at me for another moment.
“Please tell me that when you jog at night, you have something to protect yourself.”
I gave him a look. “You worry a lot over my safety.”
“Are you complaining?”
Actually, I wasn't. It was nice to have this for once. It wasn't that Cari didn't worry about me, but it was nice that someone else cared, too. When you don't have many people in your life who care about you, you couldn't help but devalue yourself. Thoughts like- was a piece of shit person to deserve being alone, stomped in my head on occasion. I know the fallacy of that statement, but feelings were feelings, and sometimes logic couldn't sway them.
“Yes. And no. I carry pepper spray and I have Dez.”
Dezi's head popped up at the mention of his name.
“You don't carry your piece?”
“Not typically.”
He was silent for a moment and I don't know what he thought about that.
“Ok. So let's get going. I'm going to beat that ass of yours.”
“We'll see about that.”
“You know it, baby.”
Once we were outside, we set a good pace. Having company was nice for a change. Dezi, as usual, was the best running dog. I didn't need to leash him because he always stayed by me without fail. Roman's playlist was pretty awesome. When we were nearing my building on the return, we looked over at one another and something passed between us. Call it one competitor recognizing the other, but we literally broke out into a neck-breaking pace.
We both laughed as we reached my door and then bent down to catch our breaths. Dezi was barking in excitement. I'd literally been on Roman's tail but he won.
“We need to do this again.”
He looked at me and smiled. “I'm down.”
“Seriously?”
He nodded. “Why does that sound incredulous?”
I shrugged. I couldn't explain it. After years of solitude and being a hermit, yea, I was surprised anyone wanted to spend time with me. He let it go, thankfully.
“So, I pick something to do now.”
I groaned.
“What? Does that scare you?”
I couldn't help snickering.
“Fine. Let's get changed. I'm taking you out.”
My eyebrows rose. “Really?”
He laughed. “You're so suspicious of me.”
I shook my head. “I just figured your plans would include a bed.”
I closed my eyes. Did I not have a filter? Fuck.
When I opened my eyes, he was grinning so sexily, I just wanted to launch myself at him.
Chapter 16
Izzy
Tori Kelly, Hollow
The last several weeks had been amazing. No, really, more than amazing.
Roman was everything I'd ever looked for in a man. I looked forward to speaking with him and seeing him.
Every. Day.
Every. Minute.
I missed him when he wasn't around. In only a few months? I wouldn't have believed it of me, either.
I hadn't had anything bad happen since Mr. Parada's visit. In fact, I was surprised by what had happened the next day.
Marta was getting the office ready when I came downstairs. A man in a uniform was standing in the reception area.
“He refuses to sit,” she whispered to me.
My eyebrows furled and I walked towards him.
“Hello. I'm Dr. Laurenti. Is there something I can help you with?”
He reached out his hand and I shook it. His mannerism was on the mechanical side, kind of militaryish.
“Hello, Doctor. I'm Javier. Mr. Zambrano sent me. I'm your new guard.”
“He what? My what?” I shook my head. “There must be some mistake.”
His smile was polite. “I was told to report here. It's my new post. I'll be splitting the twenty-four hour watch with Manny and Ralph.”
I had sighed, resigned. I cal
led Roman and spoke to him. He didn't give me a chance to list why I couldn't have, or afford, security. He said he'd taken care of it, and that it was one of his family's businesses. He'd be insulted if I didn't accept it.
Considering the night I'd had because of that bastard Parada, I relented.
So I now had a guard twenty-four seven, even on the weekends. Roman shook his head when I told him I fed them. He said they're used to it and bring their own food. He joked that he paid them well enough.
I spoke to each one of them, getting to know them. They were ex-military. The guys were very happy with their jobs, and they echoed the same Mildred had- they were satisfied with their jobs and Roman.
I was satisfied with Roman, too.
Scratch that- I was sexually frustrated.
I was never one for one-night stands. I never moved fast with the guys I dated before Elias. With him, the sex had been very…very…vanilla.
With Roman?
Forget vanilla. I wanted it to be the whole damn sundae, hot fudge and maraschino cherry on top. Give me the caramel syrup, pour it over his abs…
I digress.
I wanted that man more than I wanted anything in my life. The connection I felt towards him far surpassed what I’d felt with Elias. It wasn't even in the same solar system.
And in such a short period of time.
It frightened me, if I was being honest.
Did Roman engage in illegal activity? I had no doubt. I didn't want to know, really, and I had a feeling he wouldn't tell me even if I did- the whole “no involving women” thing.
The feelings I had for him forced me to turn a blind eye to my suspicions.
We'd been kissing and doing heavy petting, but no action- no oral, no sex, no nothing.
No orgasms.
At first, it was me. I was concerned this was about my building. I also had a bad experience in my past that had changed me. Moving slowly was an understatement for me. If normal people were turtles, I was a snail.
Then it was him. He didn't want me to even doubt that his interest lay only in me and that he was not using me.
He was surprising me with our date destination tonight. He'd made an odd request- to dress “80's.” It was my favorite decade.
I teased and crimped my hair like a pro. I had this amazing dress that I managed to morph into looking “80's”.
It hung off one shoulder. Check.
I had an electric pink bra. Check.
My makeup was loud but tasteful. Check.
Black ankle boots. Check.
Gloves. Check.
I managed to find some gaudy colorful costume jewelry. Check!
I wanted to wear a pair of leg warmers, but nixed them because of the dress. That might have taken things too far.
Before I knew it, I was staring at a woman who was frozen in time.
Chapter 17
Roman
I was looking forward to our date tonight.
Izzy was an amazing woman. The last few months had been great. She was smart and funny. She was easy to be around. I liked uncomplicated.
And she was fucking hot.
My dick wanted to be inside her.
My tongue wanted to taste her.
She was eager, too. I felt it. I didn't want her to question this thing between us, though. Call me psychic but I get the feeling she'd been hurt before. What fucking prick would hurt her? Total asshole.
Izzy was fucking perfect, man.
I was surprising her tonight. I’d listened to her playlists a few times and knew what she liked. She'd mentioned she liked the 80s. Well, my babe would get what she liked.
Yea, my babe.
She was mine, man. I felt it in my goddamn bones.
Tonight, we were going to go at each other.
Like fucking animals.
I felt that in my goddamn bones, too.
We hadn't spoken about it, but we were so wound up and coiled tightly into some sexually-charged bundle of urges. It was so damn hard to leave her at night, during the day when I would drop by…every freaking moment I was with her.
Period.
It was just fucking hard to leave her.
Period.
I was sporting a hard-on twenty-four seven. My hands didn't alleviate shit. My dick only wanted her.
And I would have her.
Tonight.
I had a feeling she was as ready as I was.
This woman would be mine tonight. To fuck, to lust, to spend time with… to protect.
I'd hired her security. She fought me on it but I didn't give a fuck. If Parada came back, I wanted her to have a first line of defense, even though she’d so beautifully shown her ability to defend herself. Plus, I didn't like this shit with the Semenovs. They were colossal assholes and dirty motherfuckers. They didn't ask for shit. What I’d told her was true.
They took.
They ripped whatever you had away from you if they wanted it.
They destroyed.
Something was up, and I'd fucking find out what it was and take care of it. Until then, my Izzy was going to be protected. I didn't care who or what family I'd have to fight, even Izzy herself, but she would be safe.
I called her to tell her I was downstairs. She told me she needed five more minutes before she was done. I stayed in my car and finalized my plans with Rodrigo. He was setting it all up for me at the club he owned, Cielo. After I hung up, a call came in. Figuring she'd need more time, I answered it and handled the “situation.”
“Don't let the fucking Russians near the container. I don't give a shit if you know who their soldier is. Fucking no Russians. Damn it, Tony.”
I read him the fuck out and hung up the phone. I slapped it on my dash and pinched the bridge of my nose.
It was the Zaitsevs.
When I spoke about the Semenovs earlier, I made the Zaitsevs sound better by comparison and that sure as hell wasn’t intentional.
Don't fucking trust the Russians- any of them.
One or both of them, had fucked my family over. The murders of my sister Daniela, and of my older brother’s wife, Jenny, was at their hands.
After a year of no leads, not a damn bit of information, we’d finally managed to narrow it down to the two Russian bratvas. Now we just needed a lead on which was responsible.
And we were going to fucking end them.
I walked to her door realizing ten minutes had passed. I shook my head when I found it unlocked.
Jesus Christ.
Did she have any fucking sense?
“Izzy!”
I yelled up to her. I felt my temper rise.
How could she be so careless?
“Izzy!”
Dezi greeted me at the top.
“Yea! Gimme another five.”
She called out to me from her bathroom. It was hard to resist the urge to go in there, throw her over my knee, and spank that ass.
And I wasn't even into that shit.
I don't want a woman to feel pain with me, only crazy lust and orgasms.
But fuck, man. Izzy was coming close to getting a red ass from my hand.
I sat on her sofa to take the urge away.
“Iz, are you fucking nuts?”
“What? Why?” She was still in her bathroom.
“Your door was unlocked.”
“What do you mean?” There was a pause of a several seconds. “How'd you get up here?”
I groaned and scrubbed a hand down my face.
“Your door! It was unlocked!”
She stood at the threshold then, and my fucking jaw dropped.
Fuck. Me.
It didn't matter what era she was dressed in apparently, because Izzy looked hot in anything.
I saw the look in her eyes and it was like something clicked.
“How'd you get up here?”
I heard the concern in her voice and saw it in her green eyes.
“You didn't leave it unlocked?”
She shook her head and the volumi
nous crimped mass moved as one.
She still looked hot.
“I mean, maybe… I could've…I try to be always careful.”
The dress exposing that shoulder that displayed a hot pink bra- damn.
“Roman?” Her hands moved to her hips.
My eyes snapped to hers. “Sorry, your beauty distracted me.”
She laughed and walked over.
“Look at you. Do you have a mullet back there, too?”
I shook my head, puffing out air. “I fucking draw the line there. This Miami Vice suit was all I could stomach. No skinny tie.”
Her laugh was airy.
“I'm going to check the building out, inside then outside. And I'm fucking talking to Ralph.”
“No, Roman. It's not his fault. I gave him the night off.”
My eyebrows rose. “You did what?”
She blushed and I wondered why she was until her next words.
“I wanted you to come up after our date.”
“Oh yea?” I couldn't help my grin. I walked over to her and rested my hands on her hips. “What does that have to do with anything?”
She looked down and bit her bottom lip. “I didn't want an audience in case it got…”
Her eyes rested on everything except for mine. Thumbing her chin, I brought her head up.
“In case it got what?”
Her eyes met mine. “Loud.”
My grin spread wider. “Are you a screamer, Izzy?”
Her cheeks reddened. When she opened her mouth to answer, I pressed my finger to her lips.
“No. Don't tell me. I want to find out for myself.”
Her eyes filled with lust.
“I want to kiss those lips so badly, but I need to check inside and outside. Stay here, baby.”
She nodded and I saw the worry in her eyes.
That fucking touched some unknown protective instinct of mine. Sure, I was protective of my family, but another woman? Never.
I'd never given a fuck. I'd never demanded exclusivity. I didn't care. No one had gotten to me.
But Izzy had.
And that look on her face, the one that reflected worry, fear, and insecurity? I was determined to wipe it away forever, whatever the cost.
I was here and fear was not an emotion I'd allow to grip her.
