by Lara Swann
I stopped as I saw her standing there, looking at herself in the full-length mirror attached to one of the walls. Her arms were crossed in front of her and the expression on her face was wrinkled with a faint disgust as she glanced down at the over-long striped shirt of mine that flowed to mid-thigh, where her shapely legs were thinly veiled by the black tights she’d been wearing last night. Below that were the killer silver heels she’d somehow managed to keep pace with me in, and - I guessed - the only shoes here that would fit her.
The effect on me was immediate, if not quite what I’d expected. I was getting used to the rushes of desire that filled me every time I saw her soft figure, but it was seeing her in my shirt that twisted something inside me. I realized for the first time that I’d never had a woman stay longer than a night. It was what I’d wanted - hell, I’d been the one pushing them out of the door - but it meant that I’d never seen a face like hers as it slept, never discussed common, everyday activities the next morning. And I’d never seen a woman in my clothing before.
A wave of possession shot through me at the sight - the primal knowledge that she was wrapped in my scent tantalizing me with a wave of pleasure. It was almost as if it was me wrapped around her shoulders, stood against her back…with effort, I tried to shake off the sudden desire to take her. I was almost overwhelmed by the need to make her mine.
Then she noticed me in the doorway and turned with an irritated glance. “I look like a cheap hooker.”
That broke the spell and I shook my head slightly, trying to clear the absurd thoughts I’d almost run away with. Running my eyes down her body again, I admitted that as good as she looked in my shirt, I could see what she meant. A smile tugged at the corner of my lips, and I seized onto the familiar amusement as another way to stop myself from thinking about anything else.
Casual and provocative, I could do. Hell, even aroused and arrogant. Anything except…whatever the hell that had just been.
I gave her a cocky smile as I came to stand before her, watching as the heat in my expression had her face shifting, uncertainty replacing the disgust of a moment ago, her lips parting slightly. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear she wanted me.
I reached out to tuck a stray strand of thick black hair behind her ear, giving her a casual shrug as my eyes glinted with my own twisted humor. “No one could mistake you for cheap, princess.”
Her cheeks flushed in an immediate reaction and one hand flashed toward my face. I caught the slap before it landed, holding her wrist in the air as I felt my eyes turn dangerous. I might have deserved it, but that didn’t mean I could let my captive start thinking she could hit me.
The utter mortification that crossed her face made it obvious that she’d done it without thought - and regretted it immediately.
Good.
I held her wide-eyed gaze, feeling the pulse at her wrist beating rapidly as she waited for my reaction. The air felt tense and dangerous between us, and I knew it was all coming from me - there was only one way my body responded to a threat. But with her, that tangible threat in the air was all that was needed, and I let a few long moments pass like that. When it became obvious I wasn’t going to say anything else, she took a breath and jerked at the wrist I was holding.
I let her go without a word and she backed away from me, rubbing her wrist subconsciously and glaring at me. For some reason, that eased some of the tension that had built. I’d needed to make it clear that I wouldn’t tolerate that behavior, but I would have hated it if I’d cowed her completely.
Distancing myself from that unsettling thought, I gestured Alessa towards the door and tried to focus on my meeting with Jay. I needed to stop provoking her and concentrate on business.
Maybe that cocky response was instinctive when facing a sexy woman with so much passion - but it wasn’t worth risking my life over. And that’s what this would come down to if I didn’t get my head on straight.
She’s nothing. A hostage. Irritating. Inconvenient. Focus, and you’ll be free of her soon.
Chapter Seven
Leo
Alessa stayed silent as we made our way through the city, staring out of the window and giving me a chance to think ahead to what I was going to tell Jay.
A glance at the dashboard told me that - surprisingly - I wasn’t going to be late. That was a plus - Jay was a stickler for timekeeping and I needed him on my side. On the other hand, I was taking Alessa to him, which I was pretty sure would override any of the benefits simple punctuality provided - especially considering her attitude and my complete failure to even attempt to curb it.
It would be dangerous for him to be linked to me in her eyes, and more importantly, linked to the kidnapping of an Italian mafia boss’s daughter - and I had no doubt she’d be happy to tell her father every little detail. I hated putting Jay in that position, and if I wasn’t so sure his Russian bratva connections would protect him from any form of Italian retaliation then I wouldn’t do it - even if she’d proved that leaving her alone at the safehouse again would be a terrible idea. Still - Russian connections or not - he was going to be pissed about it.
We were over halfway there, driving with the sun glinting at us through crowded buildings from its position just above the horizon, when I heard Alessa’s stomach from the seat next to me. That quickly reminded me of my own, and brought me out of my concentration long enough to realize I was hungry too. Another glance at the dashboard told me we had enough time to pick up some breakfast and I tilted my head at Alessa.
“There’s a Drive-Thru up ahead - want to grab something to eat?”
She seemed to come out of her own reverie, and responded with an amused glance, seeming to forget for the moment it was her kidnapper she was talking to. “More junk food? My father would kill me.”
I raised an eyebrow at that - seemed like a strange thing for him to care about. Then again, I knew very little about Antonio Santini. Instead of commenting, I just shrugged and gave her my best rebellious grin. “Well, he’ll never have to know, princess.”
She laughed, and the lightness in it stirred something inside me as she gave me a quick once-over. “Ohh no, I plan on telling him all about it, Leo - and blaming you for every last bit.”
I felt a smile tugging at the corners of my lips and shook my head, turning the car into the fast-moving queue of vehicles.
“Keeping record, are you?” It didn’t surprise me, though I was impressed that she’d relaxed enough to start joking about it.
“Of course. So far force-feeding me junk food falls somewhere below the kidnapping, threatening to kill me, handcuffing me, forcing me to share a room - hell, a bed - waking me up at the crack of dawn, calling me a hooker…” Her brow puckered and she paused for a moment, as if thinking, “You know what, maybe the junk food isn’t so bad after all. He’ll probably be distracted by the time we get to that - should be safe enough for you to get me something with eggs and bacon here.”
I smothered a laugh as her request came just as we pulled up to the counter. I gave our order, shaking my head at her and wondering at the hint of merriment in her eyes. She didn’t even seem like she was considering shouting murder and kidnap out the window.
They processed it quickly enough, and we only waited a few minutes to receive two double-egg and bacon baps. I handed her one, and then gave her a mock-serious glance. “You know, I’m not quite sure it’s fair to label this force-feeding.”
She took a bite, giving a moan of enjoyment that had my pulse stuttering, then pretended to think about it over the mouthful. She swallowed, and it was all I could do not to watch the graceful arch of her neck.
She raised a finger to her mouth, tapping gently and giving me an opportunity to refocus - on her full, slightly glistening lips. “Mm, maybe not. You could always come with me and defend your case?”
I snorted as I unwrapped my own bun one-handed, keeping my eyes on the quickly growing traffic around us. I wasn’t sure what had changed her mood, but if she could deal with e
verything that had happened with this sort of lightness, the woman was stronger than I’d thought. Or maybe she just needed a little relief from the tension and stress, and joking about it made it less threatening. Either way, I found myself smiling as I drove the last few miles and we finished our breakfast without further comment.
It was only when we turned in towards Brighton Beach that I realized Alessa’s comments had distracted me from some of my anticipatory tension at seeing my old mentor again, and my mood sobered as I glanced around. The Bratva’s influence here was obvious, from the Russian signs on cafes and shops to the groups of rough-looking Eastern European men hanging around. Jay wasn’t a member of any of the New York City mafia groups - which was the only thing I was counting on to stop him from turning me over immediately - but he was working closely enough with the Russians these days that he kept an old house here.
Alessa glanced around an uneasy caution, and I decided to seize on it to make this trip a little easier. “You know where we are, Alessa?”
She looked back at me, trying to cover the anxiety there with a sarcastic response. “I’ve lived in New York City my whole life - I think I know Brighton Beach. Especially since—” She cut herself off, clearly thinking better of whatever she was going to say.
“It’s the base of your family’s rivals.” I finished for her, and she looked away, the discomfort there obvious. I could tell how much she wanted to know what we were doing here - and get some reassurance that I wasn’t intending to hand her over to her father’s potential enemies. She might have been at the center of building an alliance with them, but after the way that had gone, she probably knew as well as me that the chances of her having friends around here was low.
I let her sit on it for a few minutes, navigating the streets easily enough and turning us towards the rougher parts before I continued. “So, we’re going to visit a friend of mine. I reckon he’s okay, but the area he lives in…it’s not so nice. Most of the folks ‘round there probably don’t know how to treat a pretty girl right - and counting on your daddy’s protection might not work so well around these parts, either.”
Silence met my words for a good minute, and I could feel Alessa’s cool gaze on my skin, even as I refused to look over at her.
“So what you’re trying to say is don’t run off, right?” Her sharp comment finally broke the uncomfortable silence.
“Yeah, pretty much.” I gave her a casual shrug.
“Fine. Message received.” It was muttered and resentful, but I refused to feel apologetic for it. I had enough to worry about, and if we could get through this without an escape attempt, it was worth frightening her a little.
The last few minutes of the journey passed in silence, and for once her irritation slid off me easily as I focused on parking just opposite the old house and shutting off the car. I gave her a pointed look before I got out, but just received a stony glare in response.
“I said I got it. I’ll stick with you.” She pushed open the door abruptly, making my body tense instinctively, but she just stood waiting for me. With a quick breath to relax, I let myself start believing her a little.
I hated situations like this, where I wasn’t in full control. That was why I only did jobs alone, and kept to myself. I could trust myself, and I’d never met anyone else worthy of that. Even willing accomplices were unpredictable at best - and having a hostage seemed to make everything impossible.
Too many variables. Too many things to consider, work out and mitigate - and all before they even occurred to her to think of. My mind was hurting from only two journeys with the girl - I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.
So as I slipped out, I decided to take her at her word - here, at least. She had been honest-to-god scared of the men we’d seen around here, and I could use that. It would give me one less thing to worry about.
I gestured her over to me, and we walked quickly towards the building on the opposite side of the street. I opened the gate on the white picket fence that fronted it and led us through into an overgrown front garden. Jay might spend most of his time here, but he didn’t seem to care about his front yard any more than the other rough bastards in this neighborhood.
Instead of walking up to the front door, I strode through the tall grass towards the side of the property, offering an arm to Alessa as she started to struggle with her heels. She grimaced at it but accepted anyway, and I tried not to notice the way it pressed her body up against mine as we walked over to the bulkhead door built into the side of the house. As far as I knew, Jay did actually live in the old house above, but since I’d only ever seen the basement of this place, I couldn’t exactly be sure. He certainly confined his business dealings to the large, underground space.
I knocked sharply on the door and then opened it without waiting for a response, walking down the stairs with Alessa following behind. I took in the large, open space at the bottom as I moved through the different sections of it. The corner that formed a makeshift office - complete with filings cabinets and cupboards - was almost enough for it to appear an ordinary basement at first glance. But then that disappeared the moment you glanced to the side and saw the weapons lining the walls around a small training area. My fingers lingered on the punching bag as I passed through, looking for Jay between the organized clutter of the large space.
I’d only sparred here a couple of times, but it was enough to remember the endless days of training in my youth. Jay might not have always been kind, but he was effective - and though the jobs I’d done for him for years were more than enough to return the favor, I still held an appreciation for what he’d made me.
The other parts of the basement held various items I could only guess the purpose of, reminding me that Jay was a lot more than a simple killer for hire. It didn’t surprise me that he’d always been able to have his pick of the mafia and mob groups around - even I didn’t know the real extent of his skills.
“Jay!” I yelled when I didn’t find him in the main room of the basement. He might let me in this far without objection, but he wouldn’t be so generous with the few rooms that branched off from this space.
There was noise from up ahead, and then one of the doors past the office section swung open, Jay grunting as he came out. He looked much the same as when I’d seen him a couple of months earlier - brown hair lined with streaks of silver, an unkempt growth of stubble across his chin and a face carved with strong lines. I didn’t think that face had changed since I was a kid, and it narrowed in on me now.
“Leo. Want to tell me what this is all about—” He stopped as he spotted Alessa, who was hanging back behind me, then his eyes went wide as he turned to stare at me. “What the fuck is Alessa Santini doing with you? Fuck. Don’t tell me you’re caught up in—”
“Jay—”
“And why the fuck did you bring her here?!” Fury swept over his face, and I took a deep breath. Yep, that was about the reaction I’d expected for turning up like this.
He strode forward as I opened my mouth to speak, taking my arm and interrupting me.
“No. Not here. Come with me, and we’ll talk about this.” His tone made it obvious just how pleasant that would be, but at least he was still offering to talk.
I glanced back at Alessa to see an amused smile she didn’t quite cover quickly enough, but she accepted my pointed look without saying anything. I didn’t think she’d try and run off, not after what we’d said earlier. And despite her fiery attitude, she seemed to instinctively realize that there were things I wouldn’t let her get away with - not when we were out and there was real risk involved.
Letting out a short breath, I turned away from her and followed a tense Jay through a narrow parting and into a secondary office, which he quickly shut the door on before rounding on me.
“This trouble better not be about Viktor Kovalski, Leo.” His grey-blue eyes narrowed at me, and I ran a hand through my hair.
“I—”
“How could you be fucking stupid enough t
o take a job on the premier crimelord of—”
“Fuck it, I didn’t take the job. I was set up, Jay. No way was I gonna take a job like that. I took a job on some harmless financial guru—”
“If you were enough of an idiot to fall for a set up, I see even less reason to help you now it’s all come crashing down.”
I ground my teeth in frustration. This was Jay to a tee.
You’re only worth something if you’re good enough. Fast enough. Strong enough. You’ll just be a two-bit street rat until you prove yourself - and keep proving yourself. Slip, and you’ll be right back in the cold—
I shook the sharp memories off, taking a breath and reminding myself that I was good enough. One of the best. This was no ordinary set up.
“Manny is dead, Jay.” That announcement was enough for Jay to go still, and I seized the opportunity to make him listen to what I was saying. “This was calculated and coordinated - and whoever did it is taking out all of the pawns they used. Yes, I took a rush job, but there was nothing suspicious about it and I used my own source to verify. He ended up dead for his trouble. If I’d had time, sure I would’ve gone the whole extra mile - but I did everything you taught me as a minimum, and more. It was a straight, easy job - same as dozens before. And you fucking know you would’ve taken it too.”
To my surprise, he didn’t say anything after I’d finished, just looked at me with the same eyes that had weighed me up for years, judging my worth against some standards I’d only ever guessed at.
I took the opening to continue with the main reason that I was here. “Look, I know how bad this is. I know how many people will be out looking for me. The bratva, as well as whoever was really behind this hit - and hell, probably Santini now too. I need to clear this up, Jay. With Manny dead, I don’t have anyone left to pursue - and I know how deep your connections go. Just give me a lead on who hired me, and I can put an end—”
