* * * *
Billy eyed Caprice as she entered the room. The woman was drop-dead gorgeous with platinum blond hair, bold emerald green eyes, and one hell of a sexy body. She had a bit of class and sophistication about her, and what started out as a means to get paid money owed to him slowly turned into something more. She was special. He thought so from the start, and so did Kiernan. Especially after he roughed her up that first night and got a glimpse at the woman’s large breasts.
He wondered how she knew Charlie Bonnette, as Kiernan saw Charlie talking to her along with Felicia. He’d nearly shit a brick when Felicia walked in with Charlie Bonnette as her date. Billy knew who Charlie was and, more importantly, whom he worked for: Angelo, Vito, and Morano Fiorre. He couldn’t stand those fucking guys or their family. There were a shitload of them in New York. They dominated multiple industries that he couldn’t advance in. Plus, a year ago, Angelo Fiorre fucked up his cousin Murphy. Beat the shit out of him.
He introduced Caprice to the men. She shook their hands and all three men showed interest, but Kiernan put a possessive hand on her shoulder and kept it there.
“So, what was it you needed to talk to me about? I only have a few more minutes of my break left,” she said to him.
Billy couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her body. She was a knockout.
“How do you know Charlie Bonnette?” he asked her, and she looked a little surprised. She blinked and then turned to the left as if scanning the crowd for him.
“I just met him tonight.”
“Really? Because it looked like he knew you already and you were smiling a lot.”
“He actually came over to compliment me and mentioned knowing a friend of mine. She’s dating his friend,” she told him, but she seemed like she was holding back information.
“Small world, then, huh?” he pushed and she nodded. As soon as the sounds of the piano started, she gave him a pleading look.
He glanced at Don, one of the guys who was there. “What song did you request Caprice sing for you?” he asked him.
“’Danny Boy’,” he said, and then Billy smirked.
“There you go, Caprice. We’ll catch up at the end of the night. Don’t leave until Kiernan pays you.”
“Oh, just apply it toward the balance.” He squinted at her.
“Nineteen, then,” he said and nodded.
She worried her bottom lip. “Can I head back?”
He lifted his chin toward Kiernan and they headed out of the room.
“She’s a gorgeous, young, and talented woman, Billy. You tapping that or what?” Don asked and continued to watch Caprice walk away.
“It’s strictly business.”
“Then you won’t mind if I make a move, then?” Don Pasanno asked, holding his gaze.
“She won’t take you up on anything. She doesn’t date. She works all the time,” Billy told him.
“I bet she would if you put in a good word for me, considering you’re doing business with her,” he said and held Billy’s gaze. Billy smirked.
“If it’s worth my while, maybe.”
The music started to play and the sound of Caprice’s lovely voice filled the room. Don walked closer, leaving the conversation to end for now, and Billy watched him. The guy was wealthy and had a lot of pull as part of the Pasanno family, known mostly to be involved in the Teamsters and union business for electricians in the city. His family owned a few clubs. Nothing upscale, but all profitable, and Don managed two of them.
Caprice was indeed a very attractive young woman. She had a fabulous voice, and should be onstage somewhere great. A potential opportunity for him to profit if he could make the right contacts. His mind began to whirl with some ideas. Could he be her agent? Could he represent her, get his nineteen thousand faster, and also make a shitload more off of her? Hell, Don might pay for her and want in on this, too. He had connections in the industry, owned a few clubs, and knew some people who might hire her.
As she finished the song the crowd began to clap and cheer, and Don looked back at Billy and made his way over.
“We need to talk. Tell me more about her. About where she lives, where she works, and what business you have with her.”
Billy smirked.
“It’s going to cost you, Don, but I think I have an idea we can both profit from and get what we want.”
“I’m all ears.”
He smiled and Billy glanced at Kiernan, who wore a serious expression on his face as he watched Caprice. He would need Kiernan’s abilities to get Caprice to cooperate when the time arose.
Chapter 2
Caprice finished making coffee and prepared for the audition, despite the sounds of the neighbor next door fighting with his wife as the babies cried. She was surrounded by dysfunctional people, including the floor below her, where every Friday night her neighbor blasted rap music with some heavy bass and drum action that vibrated her floor. Above her was an old lady who barely made any noise, and whom Caprice helped a time or two, carrying up groceries. She hadn’t seen her in weeks, but she was older and didn’t go out much at all.
On the other side of Caprice, two brothers shared an apartment. They partied often and had women over every weekend. The sounds of their sexcapades could be heard through the kitchen walls in Caprice’s apartment. Thank God for headphones that drowned out the noise. As she cleaned up and brushed her teeth, she glanced at her watch. She had a good hour to go, but wanted to be sure to not be late for the audition. She was being offered the opportunity before everyone else. She looked at herself in the mirror. Black skirt, dark green, slim-fitting sweater that just covered her waist, high-heeled ankle boots, a heart pendant that fell in the V of her sweater and only revealed a bit of cleavage. She showed enough cleavage in the costumes she needed to wear for the burlesque show. She also had to get to work right after the audition.
She grabbed her things and headed out the door, locking it and walking toward the doorway for the stairs. The elevator was still not working.
She made the trek down the first two flights before someone else appeared, walking up. She tightened her grip on her purse. A guy she recognized was heading up. He looked at her. This guy always seemed to come around whenever she was coming and going. It couldn’t be coincidence. She was on alert.
“Hey, beautiful.”
She rolled her eyes and continued walking. His low whistle echoed through the stairwell, giving her the chills. She took the steps faster. She hated this damn apartment. She wanted out. She wanted a better life, with no debt and no Billy O’Hare breathing over her shoulder.
She prayed this audition worked out. Brandy said that the performers get paid better than most places, and it would pay more than her paralegal job, big time. She was nervous as she exited the stairwell into the small lobby and then through the two sets of half-ass security doors. The key card she had didn’t even work. The landlord was an asshole.
She pulled her jacket tighter as she entered the sidewalk and headed the two blocks toward the bus stop. She wasn’t nervous about singing; she was nervous about the pressure of landing this job and wanting a better life. She didn’t want to be forced to leave her apartment and live with her parents in Queens. She needed her own life. She needed to pay off the nineteen thousand, and she needed it fast.
Thirty minutes later, she arrived at Club Magique, and was greeted by a woman named Alanna.
“It’s a pleasure meeting you, Caprice. Charlie hasn’t stopped talking about your voice. You are stunning, too,” she said and looked her over, smiling, then walked around her.
Caprice still got uptight when managers, bosses, or whoever did that. It was like they were sizing her up by her appearance—her hair, her eyes, her body—but hey, she got the burlesque job because of all that and more.
“You have experience onstage?” Alanna asked.
“Yes, ma’am. I work at the Red Slipper.”
Her eyes widened. “Burlesque? Wow. Do you have your own act?”
“No, I’m a backup singer for the main performer, and I also do a few dance routines with other dancers.”
“How come you aren’t doing any solos?”
“It’s cutthroat. I’m sure I don’t need to explain that,” Caprice said and smiled.
Alanna smirked. “That it is.”
“Caprice.”
She turned around to see Charlie approaching with another man.
“So glad you made it. Did you have to stay late at the party last night?” he asked, greeting her by gently holding her shoulders as he kissed each cheek.
“A little after three.”
“Seriously?” he asked, eyes wide.
“Are you okay to sing this morning?” he added with concern, which kind of surprised her.
He seemed so nice. She had a good feeling about him and this audition. She sure could use this break. “Sure thing. Been drinking water and tea. I don’t sleep much anyway,” she told him and he squinted at her.
“Do you know what song you’re singing?” Alanna asked her.
“Well, I have a few in mind and wasn’t sure if you wanted something slow or fast,” she told Alanna, and then jumped when she heard a loud noise to the right. Looking that way, she saw a few guys were setting up some log tables and others were pulling linen and things from containers. By the stage, the band was setting up into position, along with the guy next to the piano.
“We need a few minutes of quiet, guys,” Charlie yelled out to them.
“Why don’t you sing something you would on stage that shows both your lower register and higher register, and then if we need to hear another, we’ll ask for something else? You can go over some ideas with Mike and the band,” Alanna said, then turned toward the guy by the piano below the front stage.
“Mike, this is Caprice, our first audition for today. Can you go over what song she chooses and the key she wants, then get the band on board?” Alanna said, reminding Caprice that as nice as Alanna and Charlie were, there were other women coming to audition today and this was a cutthroat business.
Caprice walked over to Mike and shook his hand.
“What would you like to sing, honey?” he asked and didn’t look too thrilled. In fact, he looked like he was unenthusiastic and preparing for a long, boring morning of auditions.
She swallowed hard. She needed something good. Something powerful and not too soft. What she’d practiced this morning may not be right.
“Getting stage fright?” he asked her.
She winked at him. “Never. Tell me something, Mike, do you know ‘It’s A Man’s World?’” she asked, and he raised one of his eyebrows up at her.
“I hope you have one hell of a register to sing that, doll.”
“Can you handle playing it?” she asked.
He smirked and nodded, then looked at the band. He called out to tell them the song and one of the guys shook his head, as if he couldn’t believe she chose the song. He hadn’t a clue that her voice had been compared to Christina Aguilera, Beyoncé, Whitney Houston, and even Aretha Franklin, when she did that raspy sexy singing for certain parts of songs at the Red Slipper.
She cleared her throat and took a sip from her water bottle.
“Whenever you’re ready,” Charlie said to her, and leaned against the one table in the front, along with Alanna.
She fixed the mic—the echo squealed through the sound system—and then she did a check.
When she was ready, she nodded at Mike and the band began.
* * * *
Angelo and Vito walked down the hallway from the back entrance of the club.
“I can’t believe we’re here and going to listen to auditions,” Vito said.
“Why are you so pissed? I was here until three in the morning,” Angelo said to his brother.
“By choice. You were itching for a fight. I told you to go to the ring.”
“Yeah, well, I will after this,” he said, and then they heard the music start, and the voice began.
“Damn, Charlie wasn’t kidding last night. Who the hell is that singing?” Angelo asked.
As they got to the main area Vito did a double take, and Angelo and him both stopped short.
“That’s Caprice,” Vito whispered, then neither of them said another word as her voice echoed through the room.
The strength, the range, was impressive and perfect. They had no fucking idea that she could sing, never mind sing like that. She was auditioning for a job here? At their club?
Vito noticed some of the workers came out from the back to hear her sing, and probably see what she looked like. He was jealous, possessive, and he tightened up. Then as she completed the song, the whole place cheered and even Michael stood up and cheered for her.
She said thank you over the mic and Charlie smiled.
“Perfect timing. Two of the three bosses are here,” he said and when she looked to the left of the stage and locked gazes with him and Angelo, her jaw dropped, her complexion went white, and she looked back at Charlie, then at them.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
Vito and Angelo approached the stage.
“It’s good to see you again, Caprice,” Vito said very calmly, and he didn’t know how he did that. The sight of her sexy body, that long platinum blond hair, and bold green eyes did him in. He remembered taking from that body, exploring it with tongue and lips.
“You know one another?” Alanna asked.
Caprice looked shell-shocked. Hadn’t she remembered Charlie from D.R., or maybe she hadn’t met him? He couldn’t remember. In fact, Vito only remembered the time he spent with Caprice and his brothers. Then how she refused to continue a relationship because of responsibilities.
“She’s perfect, isn’t she? I think we found our new solo performer. Come on down here, honey, and we’ll talk salary, hours, rehearsal schedules with Mike and the band,” Charlie said, but she just stared at Vito and Angelo.
“Give us a minute, Charlie,” Vito said.
“No. No, we don’t need a minute. I’m sorry, Charlie, but I don’t think this is going to work out,” she said and started to head past him.
Vito grabbed her hand. “Don’t go, Caprice,” he stated firmly, and she froze in place. “Your voice is incredible. We need someone talented. Someone who can bring in crowds and please them, keep them coming,” he told her, looking over her lips and her neck, and inhaling her perfume. Goddamn, he wanted her.
“You would fit perfectly. We didn’t even know you could sing,” Angelo said and eyed her.
“Talk to Charlie. It’s him and Alanna whom you would answer to.” It was a lie. He and his brothers were the bosses. They oversaw everything. But he wasn’t going to lose this opportunity to have Caprice close. Working here was better than anything he could have imagined.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” she whispered and pushed her hair behind one ear.
“I think it’s a perfect idea. Please, go over the pay. It’s negotiable,” Vito said and glanced at Charlie.
She looked at Charlie. “Come on down,” he said, “and Alanna and I will go over the particulars.”
Vito released her hand despite wanting, needing, to pull her into his arms and kiss her. Hell, bring her upstairs to his office and bury his cock deep in her tight, wet pussy. Fuck, he lusted for the woman, maybe even loved her. Jesus, he was losing his shit. Angelo watched her walk away with Charlie, and they both heard the compliments she got and saw the big smile on Mike’s face as he came up on stage.
“Guys?” he said to the band, and they were smiling.
“She is incredible. Raw talent. Not just anyone can pull off that song the way she did. Where has she worked before?” one of the guys asked.
“I think she works at the Red Slipper,” Mike told them.
The guys whistled.
“Burlesque? Nice,” one of them said, and Angelo pointed at him.
“Watch it. She’s taken.” He raised his hands up and then others chuckled.
; “Wait, is she the woman from D.R.?” one of the guys, Teddy, asked.
Mike chuckled. “Word gets around, bosses. She’s a beauty,” Mike said to them.
“Let us know how it works out,” Angelo said, and gave Vito’s arm a tap, then motioned for him to follow him off the stage.
“We aren’t leaving until we talk to her,” Vito said firmly.
“If we talk to her today, she won’t return. Let Charlie and Alanna do their thing. We’ll talk to them afterward,” Angelo said.
Before they walked away, Caprice glanced toward them and Vito gave a nod. He felt like he was wearing cement boots as he walked away from her. This was unacceptable. Shit.
* * * *
Caprice was shaking. Of course this had to blow up in her face. More bad luck. Nothing seemed to work in her favor. All the hoping, the praying, that this was a job that could turn her life around and get her out of the hell she was living. Of all the damn clubs and owners, it had to be Angelo, Vito, and Morano who owned this place? Really?
“So, we would need you Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights,” Alanna said to her.
Caprice glanced back toward the hallway where Vito and Angelo had disappeared. She worried her bottom lip and ran her fingers through her hair.
Alanna touched her hand.
“Honey, I don’t know what went down between you and the bosses, but I’ll be damned if you think I’m going to let you leave here without taking this job. You are super talented. I bet you even have ideas of your own for performances and things. You worked burlesque?” she asked her.
“I still do. I work Wednesday and Friday nights at the Red Slipper.”
“Doing solos?” she asked.
“Dancing with a few women for certain acts, and then I’m a backup singer for the main solo artist there.”
“Is the Friday at the Red Slipper negotiable?” Alanna asked.
“No. That’s the busiest night and the pay is higher on Friday nights.”
“We’ll pay you three hundred a night, for three acts a night, to start. That’s negotiable and increases with popularity.”
Made Men 3: The Red Slipper (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 3
