I walked over to my couch and sat down, putting my head in my hands. “I don’t even know what to say. I never would’ve suspected.”
With a heavy sigh, Kane came and sat next to me.
“It’ll get worse,” he said. “He’ll get desperate enough to steal from you. You can’t let him in your apartment anymore. Keep the doors locked at all times.”
“But he’s my brother.”
“He would’ve taken whatever cash you’ve got in your purse if I wasn’t here. You saw him.”
The tears finally spilled over. I wiped them away quickly, embarrassed by the turn of events.
“Well, our date’s going great, isn’t it?”
He put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me against him. “Sure it is, Viv. I’m glad I was here when he came.”
“He owes you six thousand dollars?” I asked, feeling sick.
“Yeah.”
“What’s going to happen? I’ll get it from my parents somehow if something bad’s going to happen to him.”
I felt Kane’s deep sigh. “I’m not gonna kill him or anything if that’s what you mean. I ‘ve got no idea how deep he’s in with dealers, though.”
I squeezed my eyes shut against the new tears threatening to spill. The thought of Grayson on drugs and in debt to bad people made me feel physically ill.
“Hey,” Kane said, wrapping his other arm around me. “It’s okay. I’ll write off his debt to the club. And I’ll keep my ear to the ground about who else he owes.”
I hugged him around his chest, his solid presence the only thing keeping me grounded right now.
“I’m scared for him,” I said.
“I know. But some holes we’ve gotta dig ourselves out of. He’s not ready for help yet.”
He leaned back on the couch and took me with him. I pressed my cheek to his chest, curled my legs up in between his and let the rhythm of his breathing soothe me.
“How much money does he owe you?” Kane asked softly.
“Five hundred.”
“You need some money? For yourself, I mean? Did giving him that money cut you short?”
“No. But thanks. I have the money but I could tell something was off so I told him I didn’t. It’s so unlike Grayson to grab my purse and go through it like that.”
“He’s not himself, Viv. Try not to take it personal.”
“You know someone with a drug problem?”
He exhaled deeply, my cheek sinking down slightly as his chest fell. “Yeah. Used to, anyway. Me.”
I wanted to know more, but I wasn’t going to probe about something so personal. And I needed to process things with Grayson.
“I’m sorry about this,” I said. “I can’t go back to . . . you know . . . how things were in the kitchen.”
“It’s not your fault. Don’t be sorry.”
“I understand if you’d rather go than be around me right now. I won’t be much fun tonight.”
He smoothed a hand over my hair. “I should stay the night in case Grayson comes back. I’ll take the couch.”
I closed my eyes, a new wave of nausea rolling through my stomach at the thought of needing protection from my brother.
“We could watch a movie,” I suggested.
“Sounds good.”
I passed him the remote and told him to find one, and then I curled back up in my spot on his chest. All thoughts of sex had vanished. Now all I wanted was Kane’s closeness and comfort. And he delivered, wrapping his arms around me and laying with me in silence as I wondered just how much trouble Grayson was in.
Kane
My stiff neck wouldn’t allow me to sleep anymore. I opened my eyes and squinted at the unfamiliar surroundings. Dark purple chair with a white blanket folded over the back. White bookcase full of framed photos and paperbacks. Warm, sweet-smelling woman laying on my chest.
I was in Viv’s living room. We’d apparently fallen asleep on her couch together. The TV was still on and the first rays of morning sunlight were filtering in through the curtains.
Cringing, I twisted my neck just enough to dull the ache. I’d been awkwardly wedged up against the end of the couch all night, but I’d still slept soundly until a few minutes ago.
Viv stirred on my chest and raised her head to look at me.
“Hey,” she said in a groggy tone. “We slept here all night?”
“Yeah. Must’ve been tired.”
Her hair was messy and she had dark shadows of eye makeup under her eyes. The intimacy of waking up with her had my cock twitching to attention. If I got hard now, she’d feel it. And from the way her brows were drawn together with worry, I could see she wasn’t in the mood for sex.
“Maybe Grayson texted,” she said, picking up her phone from the coffee table. She swiped the screen and her face fell. “No. Nothing. I hope he’s okay.”
“I’m sure he’s fine,” I said, shifting to relieve the pressure on my neck.
Viv slid off me and stood up. “You want coffee?” she asked, combing her hands through her messy waves of hair.
“No, I need to get going. I was planning to stop by the club when I left here last night and make sure things were going okay. I need to go count the deposits and make sure no one fucked ‘em up.”
I used her bathroom, put my boots on and slid into my leather jacket. She was sitting on the couch, elbows on her knees, looking lost in thought.
“I’m sorry about last night,” she said. “I was hoping we’d be waking up together this morning, but not like this.”
Her sheepish smile tugged at me, and I walked over and sat down next to her. “Hey. Don’t apologize. Shit happens.”
“When do I get to see you again?”
I was taken aback by the hope in her eyes. She wanted to see me again soon. Really wanted to. And not like most women, who looked at me this way after I’d fucked them senseless. There was something about the most boring, average parts of me that Viv liked. It blew my fucking mind every time I realized it.
“How ‘bout Sunday night?” I said. “Or is that a bad night since you have to work Monday?”
“No, Sunday’s good.”
“I’d say tonight, but I can’t miss a Friday night and a Saturday night at work back to back.”
She kissed my cheek just above the line of my beard, her soft lips brushing over my skin with just a touch of wetness. “Sunday’s good, Kane.”
I stood. “I’ll call you. And uh . . . if you feel like stopping in at the club tonight for a drink, you know . . . you can.”
I sounded gruff, though I didn’t mean to. It was damn hard, this dating thing. Or whatever it was called. I wasn’t a nose-rubbing, can’t wait to see you again, pookie type of guy.
“Okay,” she said as I turned for the door. “Thanks for staying last night.”
I turned back to face her. “If Grayson comes back, don’t let him in. Don’t give him money. Call me if you need help.”
“I’ll be okay. Don’t worry.”
I walked to the door and reached for the handle. “I’d kiss you, but my breath probably reeks right now.”
“It’s okay.” She grinned at me. “Mine’s probably not great, either.”
“See you later.”
“Bye, Kane.”
I left, heaving out an exhale after I’d closed the door. Normally I was out the door once the sex was over, but this thing with Viv was new territory for me. We hadn’t even slept together and I’d stayed the night. My sore as shit neck would be reminding me of it all day. And truthfully, I liked where things were with Viv. Though if she was ready for more Sunday night and her deadbeat asshole of a brother didn’t get in the way again, I aimed to please her.
I couldn’t keep my eyes off the front door of the club for more than a minute at a time. Every time I tried to focus on something else, I ended up looking up front to see if Viv had walked in. I had a good vantage point from the balcony of one of the sky suites.
A deep roar, followed by the sound of breaking glass, p
ulled my attention to the suite behind me.
“You fuckin’ prick!” Gary Kelso bellowed. “No one’s that lucky.”
I came in from the balcony and closed the door behind me, sealing out the sounds of thumping music from below.
Gary was pissed as fuck. A vein in his neck bulged as he pointed at the man across from him, who held his hands up in mock surrender.
This monthly high-stakes poker game was no joke. The players took it very seriously.
Two other guys held on to Gary as he threatened to cut the other player’s nuts off and shove them up his ass. The pieces of a shattered glass tumbler sat forgotten on the floor.
“You can bill me for that, Kane,” Gary said, glaring at the younger guy whose nuts were apparently in danger.
“I’m not worried about it,” I said. “I’ll send someone in to clean it up. Did you guys want to order food now or later?”
“I’m starved,” one of the players said, standing up and tossing his cards to the table. “Let’s order now.”
“Yeah, okay,” Gary said, shaking out of the hold the two men had on him.
Food never failed to break up a brawl in this group. They were all wealthy businessmen who had plenty of money to lose, but hated the ego-thumping of a loss.
I jogged down the wide marble staircase and assigned a server to get appetizers into the poker room and find someone to clean up the broken glass. I caught Rosie’s eye from across the crowded room and he gave a slight tilt of his head. I walked over and spoke in his ear over the loud music.
“What’s up?”
He turned to speak in my ear. “Your woman’s here and she’s lookin’ fine.”
“Viv?” I looked from side to side. Rosie gestured at a tall table along the wall.
Fuck me hard. Viv sat on a high-backed stool, her long, sexy legs bare beneath a short skirt. She had a dark shirt and a colorful scarf and her hair was piled on top of her head loosely, a few curls framing her face.
I walked over, the sight of Viv laughing making me look at the other side of the table. Her blond friend Cara was there, wearing a tight black dress and hooker boots.
Viv saw me approaching and our eyes met. Her smile–or maybe it was her legs–made me want to drag her back to my office and get under that skirt.
“Hey,” she said, reaching an arm up and around my neck. She moved to kiss my cheek but I turned and kissed her on the mouth, feeling her pale pink lipstick on my lips. When she moaned softly and tightened her hold around my neck, I swept my tongue across hers, wishing like hell we weren’t in the middle of the crowded club right now.
“You made it,” I said.
“Of course I did.” She nodded at her friend. “You remember Cara?”
Cara wiggled her fingers in a wave.
“Hey, Cara,” I said, sliding my hand around to Viv’s lower back.
“How’s your night going?” she asked me.
I shrugged. “Usual. You guys want to eat? I’m booked upstairs but you can eat in my office if you want.”
“We ate earlier. I just wanted to have a drink and see you. We’re going to some other club Cara wants to go to after this.”
A small stab of jealousy hit me in the gut. I didn’t like the idea of Viv at another club, where men could hit on her without me there to intervene.
“I promise not to like it,” she said in my ear, reading my expression. “I won’t cheat on Six. It’ll still be my favorite.”
She nipped at my earlobe and I slid my hand underneath her shirt at the small of her back. I traced the ridges of her spine upwards with my fingertip as I spoke in her ear.
“So we’re on for tomorrow night?”
“We’re so on. No interruptions this time.”
“You look so hot, Viv.” I put my free hand on her knee. Her smooth, warm skin made me immediately hard.
“Jesus, get a room, you two,” Cara said over the music.
Viv smiled, ignoring Cara and moving in for another kiss when my phone buzzed in my pocket with a text.
“Fuck. Sorry,” I muttered, pulling it out.
Drea: Need you in SS 3. Clients getting it on with door open. Saying they are exhibitionists and won’t let me close it.
I rolled my eyes at the phone. “I have to go. Problem in a sky suite. I’ll let my bartender know you guys are on the house.”
“You don’t need to do that,” Viv said.
“You should totally do that,” Cara said. “The drinks here are like fifteen bucks, Viv.”
“When’s the last time you bought your own drink?” Viv challenged.
Cara arched a brow and grinned. So she was one of those.
“Nobody’s buying you any drinks but me,” I said to Viv. “Not at the next club, either.”
Her lips curved up in a smile. “Got it. See you tomorrow night.”
I kissed her one more time and then made my way through the crowd to put out the fire upstairs. My appetite for Viv would have to wait one more night. That was probably best, because guilt was stabbing me in the gut right now. When she’d turned those blue eyes on me and moaned as I kissed her, I’d had a realization. She was entrusting part of herself to me. I’d already hurt her by storming out once, and she was giving me another chance.
What would I do with that chance? Would I live out the many sexual fantasies I had about her, even though she wouldn’t know who she was letting into her bed? The thought tamped the fire that raged inside me for her. I wanted her to know the truth about me, but not yet. I needed more time to grow whatever this was between us. Even then, I knew she might run when she found out what kind of man I was. I needed more time with her before I let that happen.
Viv
I STEPPED OUT OF A cab, paid the driver and approached my brother’s posh Upper East Side apartment building. After an elevator ride to the fifth floor, I banged on the door, not bothering with the formality of a few light knocks.
Screw him. He hadn’t returned any of my texts yesterday. It was the least he owed me after Friday night. Now I was both pissed and worried.
“Grayson,” I called. “It’s Viv. Let me in.”
Silence. God, what if he was dead in an alley somewhere? Shot by the people he owed money to or killed by an overdose? I pounded on the door harder, by heart racing with worry.
“Open this door or I’ll call Mom and tell her everything,” I said, pressing my palms and forehead to the door. “She’ll be on the next flight here. Bet she’ll stay at their apartment here for a while. Or maybe I’ll tell her she should stay with y—”
The door opened and I stumbled inside, barely finding my footing without falling.
“Christ, Viv, it’s like eight in the morning,” Grayson grumbled. “What do you want?”
I could hardly make him out in the darkness. The blackout shades in the apartment were all drawn. I fumbled for a switch on the wall and found several. I flipped all of them and two lamps switched on.
What the hell? I looked around the apartment in disbelief. Grayson’s entertainment center had blank spaces where his flat screen TV and other electronics were supposed to be. His furniture was gone, other than the couch and a coffee table. Wrappers, half-eaten food and wadded up pieces of foil littered the table and floor.
“Grayson.” I stepped closer to him and wrinkled my face with disgust. He stank. Still in the jeans and rumpled t-shirt he’d been wearing Friday night, his hair was messy and he had several days of dark, unshaven hair on his face. “What is this?”
He shrugged. “I’m single. I don’t have to answer to anyone. Especially not my little sister.”
“Hey, asshole,” I said, poking him in the chest. “It’s not eight in the morning, it’s almost eleven. You smell like dirty ass and B.O. And where’s your stuff?”
He sighed and shook his head. “Not your concern, Viv.”
“Then I’ll leave and make it Mom’s concern before I’m even out of this building.”
“Jesus,” he muttered. “You’re gonna tell Mom
on me? How old are we?”
“You don’t have any idea what you’re playing at.”
“What, Kane? Believe me, I do. That asshole gave me a bloody nose and a concussion. He almost broke one of my ribs. What the hell was he doing at your place? I can’t even contemplate you’d date him.”
“I can’t even contemplate you thinking that’s what I mean, you dumbass. Drugs, Grayson. You’re using drugs.”
His vacant eyes showed no reaction to my words. “What do you want, Viv?”
“I want you to come to your senses. Look at you. Look at this place. Obviously you sold your stuff to buy drugs.”
He glared at me, eyes narrowed. “I told you, I don’t answer to you or anyone else. Now if you don’t want anything, go away so I can get some sleep.”
Where was my clean-cut workaholic brother? He’d always taken pride in his place and now it looked like he was squatting here.
“This is crazy,” I mumbled.
He put a hand on my shoulder and steered me toward the door.
“Grayson, let me help,” I said as he opened the door.
“I asked for your help and you turned me down.”
“Not money. You need help. Rehab or—”
He put his hands on my back and shoved me so hard I stumbled into the hallway. The door slammed closed before I even had a chance to look up at him.
My hands shook as I buttoned my coat. Grayson had never treated me this way. I was more worried about him than ever, and torn over whether I should alert our parents or let him deal with the consequences of his actions himself.
He was thirty-one years old. I’d offered my help. Now I just had to wait and hope he took me up on the offer before it was too late.
I grabbed my phone and read Kane’s text again. He’d sent it four hours ago and I’d read it at least a dozen times. It still wasn’t old.
Kane: I’ll bring dinner tonight. Dress sexy for me.
Sexy. I’d gone through outfit after outfit trying for the right look. I wasn’t the type to open the door wearing nothing but a bra and panties, because my paranoia about it being one of my neighbors wanting to borrow a cup of sugar was too strong.
Barely Breathing Page 9
