“It’s none of your fucking business.”
“Now, you see, this is where you’re wrong. Everything you say and do, until your dying breath, is my business. Tell Uncle Salvatore what’s wrong, and how I can help you.”
I scoff. “I doubt you can help me, Uncle.”
“Is it a woman?”
I flinch. Am I that fucking obvious?
“Nothing changes a man like meeting the one who means everything to him, who he’d die for. Did you meet the one you’d die for?”
Clenching my jaw, I stare him down for what feels like an eternity.
“I’m not pulling her into this life.”
“Fair enough, but I am meeting her.”
“No, you’re fucking not.”
“That is not negotiable. You want a deal, or not?”
I narrow my eyes, my heart jolting. “What deal?”
“You don’t get to leave the business, but you don’t have to do any dirty work. I have legit side businesses.”
“What’s with the goody two shoes?” He never does anything that doesn’t benefit him. If I get out of one limb of the business I’ll be stuck twice as hard somewhere else.
“Are you arguing against my offer?”
“What’s the fucking offer? You’re not saying much.”
“It’s because it’s moot. You’ll do as I say in either case.”
I stand, clenching my fists. “What. Is. The fucking. Offer?”
Salvatore looks me over, his gaze lingering on my fists, then he barks out a laugh. “Real estate. I’m expanding. You’ve got enough of a brain. You were never the brute we all hoped for anyway.”
I mull this over. That might be doable. It’s probably my only chance anyway. I don’t have much say.
I nod and give him my hand. He stands and grabs it in an iron fist, slaps my shoulder and grins. “Atta boy.”
God, I hate this man, his tacky house, his condescending tone, and his chokehold on everyone I care about.
Sydney
My heels click aggressively on the concrete steps as I run down the last set of stairs to the garage. I’m unfocused. I’ve been a mess the last two days, hanging on Jayna every break, wallowing in regret over showing Nathan the door. I could at least have heard him out. I push open the heavy metal door and exit the stairway. A row of lights come on as the motion sensor reacts. I pass a long line of cars to reach my own, searching for my keys in my bag as I half-run forward. Glancing around me, I unlock the car and hop in. Before I can lock the doors again, the door on the passenger side is ripped open and a man jumps in, slamming it shut behind him.
I scream and fumble to get out. He throws himself across me and grabs the handle. I snap my mouth shut and go still when I realize who it is. His crystalline eyes glitter as they meet mine. I throw up my hands in a gesture of defeat, and he lets go of the handle.
“Scoot over,” he says and nods behind him at his own seat. “I’m driving.”
I sink back, relaxing a bit now that I know I’m not in mortal danger, trying to get my breathing under control. “Nate…” I look at him and shake my head.
He gestures again. “Scoot.”
“Where are we going? I’m in a hurry, I only have twenty minutes.” I try to stay cool, but my heart is making salto mortales and my whole being tingles.
“I’ll drive you there,” he says.
I sigh and suppress the armada of butterflies that has sprung to life in my belly. Half-standing, I arch my body and slide across his. He grabs my hips as I pass him, seemingly to help me, but he is pretty obvious. Just like on the plane, when everything was still new and seemed so innocent. His warm hands shoot jolts of heat straight to my pussy. I inhale sharply and push past him, my heart slamming in my chest, almost choking me. We reclaim our respective limbs and find our new seats. My breathing is anything but calm, but I look out the side window and try to find my bearings again. I jerk when I feel a hand softly touching my chin.
“Where to, then?” he asks as I turn back toward him.
“Just drive, I’ll direct you,” I mutter.
“Keys?” He holds out his hand, palm up, looking expectantly at me, then at the keys still clutched in my hand. I dangle them between us before I, with a small grimace, demonstratively drop them in his hand. He puts them in the ignition and the engine roars to life in the otherwise silent garage.
As he pulls out and starts toward the exit, I steal glances at him. He’s got black jeans and a tight black T-shirt that shows off the rippling muscles in his arms. He’s devastatingly sexy, and I bet he knows it. I swallow hard. I know how those arms feel around me when they hold me tight to his body, when they hold me down, restrain me... My gaze moves up to his face. He’s as beautiful as ever. His nose is almost feminine in its perfection, but it fits him and softens his squared jaw and that rough maleness he oozes.
When we’re at the street he wakes me out of my reverie. “Left? Right?”
“Right.” I’m propelled toward the door as he accelerates out on the street and turns. I take in the smug expression on his face. “What do you want, Nathan? I doubt you’re just here to take me to my appointment.”
“Miss me?”
“No.”
“You sure?”
I can’t answer.
“What appointment, Syd?” he asks. “What are you up to?”
“I’m seeing a gynecologist. I’ve got crabs.”
The car jerks to a sudden halt and he turns and stares at me. Cars honk angrily behind us, someone passes, shouting something, flipping us off.
“What?”
I scoff. “I’m just screwing with you. As in ‘it’s none of your business’.”
He snaps his mouth closed. It forms into a thin line as he hits the gas pedal and the car jerks forward again, quickly switching between lanes on the densely trafficked boulevard. We’re accelerating still, and I open my mouth to tell him to take a left, but he’s flying past the intersection, continuing straight forward. My heart speeds up.
“You should have gone left,” I say in a low voice as my mouth turns dry. “What are you doing?” I have a bad feeling about this, but my mind won’t fully form the thought yet.
“I’m taking you with me, Syd. We need to talk.”
Yes, there it is. The truth. He’s taking over my life again. This is what he does.
“Nate! No! I need to meet this person and then I have to get back to work. It’s important. Don’t do this to me.”
“What person?” he snarls. He glances at me, then back at the road in front of us, switching lanes yet again. I can almost see the cogs turning. “Fine,” he mutters and takes the next exit to the right, pulling up to a sidewalk and comes to a full stop. “Where to?”
I look around us and realize I’m not sure, so I lean forward and program the navigator. The smooth male voice starts giving us directions and we’re moving again. I glare at Nathan. “This is so you. Just fucking everything up.”
He is silent, glances at me, then back at the road. His features are tense. I open my mouth to ask him the million-dollar question again, but snap it shut again, waiting for him to get to the point.
“Where are you off to? Who are you seeing?”
I cross my arms over my chest. “Nathan, I’m not obliged to answer to you.”
“I just wanna drag you to a cave right now, and make you answer,” he growls.
I clench my jaw. “Yeah… I know. It’s a bitch, isn’t it? Not getting what you want?”
He regards me, his face impassive. “I’ll admit that,” he says slowly.
“You have arrived at your destination,” says the disembodied voice cheerfully from the navigator.
Nathan opens the door on his side, tosses me the car key and holds my gaze. “See you later.” Then he shuts the door and disappears in the crowd as if he was never there to begin with.
I fall back against my seat, clutching the key in my fist. I’m shaking, my mouth is dry, and I’m totally thrown off balance. He
came back. Why? What does he want? I glance at the watch and am jerked out of my jumbled thoughts. Oh my God! The real estate agent. It’s Jesse’s mom and I know her well, we can postpone, but I want to do this now. Getting the show on the road, finding a hotel and begin a new chapter in my life itches in me, and the more Jayna and I talk about it, the less I can stand my current work place. I’m five minutes late. I have ten minutes before I have to be back to work. I curse Nathan to Hell as I jump out of the car and lock it as I start running, not bothering paying for a parking ticket. If I get fined, I’ll toss it at him. He can pay it.
I’m angry and frustrated, and at the same time I’m insanely happy he came back. It’s going to be hard to focus on this New Orleans estate Miss Lopez have found us.
Chapter 26
Nathan
I wanted to touch her, put my arms around her, crush her to my chest and make her mine. But I’ve learned my lesson. Sydney won’t be persuaded by us fucking. Sure, she’ll be mine for five minutes, or five hours, maybe even days, or however long we’d be at it, but it won’t convince her of anything else than what she already knows. That we’re incredibly physically compatible.
So, when she pleaded with me that this meeting is important to her, I couldn’t continue with my plan. I had to take her back or she’d forever think of me as a piece of shit. My fingers itched to caress her full lips, part them with my thumb, putting my mouth to hers and feel her breathing change, her nipples harden, her hands coming up to clutch my shoulders and pull me closer. I want every piece of her, soul, body, mind, but if I’ll ever have a chance, I’ve got to play my cards right.
Crossing my arms over my chest, I lean against the facade one house away from where she enters a building. I keep my eyes trained on her the whole time until she disappears, then I wait a few moments before I follow her.
Accountants. Lawyers. A dentist. A real estate agent. I look up at the nondescript building, scanning the windows one by one as if they could reveal where she went, then I cross the street and keep observing. After a few moments, I finally get a lucky break. In a window on the fourth floor, to the right, I see Sydney and a woman talking, then they disappear but I’ve seen everything I needed. I retreat into a store and watch the exit through the large windows. A few minutes later she leaves and walks back to her car. I glance at my watch but am interrupted by a salesman who asks if I’m interested in any particular brand of TV. I’m confused until I look around and realize I’m in a TV store.
“I’m good, thanks.” I walk back out into the blistering heat. I wish there was at least a breeze, but the air is thick and suffocating. Florida is an absolute nightmare.
‘Gianna Lopez Real Estate Agent’
I caress the outline of the sign with my index finger as I study it. Is she moving? Buying? Selling? Something is about to change, and I hate being out of the loop.
Pushing open the door, I step into the cool and quiet office. Almost everything is white except for a large oil painting on one wall that is a colorful imaginative landscape of skyscrapers in a generic city. The painting forms an interesting contrast to the bright neutral room. There’s a glass wall into the depths of the office. It seems empty, but then a woman appears in the doorway. She’s short and on the chubby side. Her features are decidedly Latin American. She gives me a big smile that shows off dimples in her cheeks. I turn on the Russo charm and smile back, extending a hand.
“Reeves,” I say lightly. “My colleague, Sydney Lewis was just here. She called me and said she forgot some papers. I was in the vicinity, so it was easier that I popped by. She was in a dreadful hurry.” To my surprise a hint of British English to my accent is easier to produce than I thought it would. It has the effect I wanted. American women are suckers for Brits.
“Lopez,” she says, her handshake surprisingly firm for a woman. “Gianna Lopez.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Miss Lopez,” I purr.
She blushes. “Ehm, I’m marr—Yeah, sure let me take a look.”
I let her hand go and she turns back toward the office. I trail behind her, glancing at the cozy surroundings. It’s a small place. No receptionist. She seems to be working alone.
“So, Sydney’s moving, huh?” I ask to her back, taking a wild stab at a guess.
She turns to me as we reach her conference table. “Ah, well, that’s still up for discussion. It’s depends on what business we can find.” She rounds the table and starts rummaging through a pile of papers.
I’m confused. “Business?”
She looks back up at me, a brochure in her hand. “Yeah, hotel business. She keeps saying she’s changing her life. That she’s been inspired lately, by a journey she made.” Then she stiffens. “I shouldn’t have said that. It’s between me and Miss Lewis.”
I smile broadly. “Oh, it’s all right.” Then I lower my voice a tad. “I won’t reveal your secret.”
She shakes her head as if to clear it, and looks down at the papers that are now spread messily before her. “I can’t find anything but my own copies—”
“Oh, well that’s good. It means Miss Lewis got everything. Thank you so much for your time, Gianna.” I turn, leaving her standing by the table, her mouth slightly agape.
Hotel business? She’s buying a hotel? I’m stunned. I have so many questions. Only Sydney can answer them. I look at the watch. One-thirty. I’ve missed lunch and decide to do something about that, then I’ll catch up with Miss Lewis again. This time I’ll make sure she gets nowhere before she gives me some answers.
Sydney
I haven’t been able to do one single thing the whole afternoon. I sat at our after-lunch meeting like a zombie. I’ve shuffled papers from pile to pile on my desk. I’ve opened my email and looked at everything I need to take care of, but my thoughts are a jumbled mess. I feel his hands on me, strong and warm. I want to feel them again, but I can’t. If I did, he’d crush me this time. I can’t open myself to him, knowing he’ll ravage my body and my mind without caring if it shatters me.
“I’ll be back.”
I’m going crazy.
I jump at every little sound when I walk to my car. Before I unlock it, I look around me, satisfied to see no one is around, but when I drive home my heart is heavy. I pull into the parking space, turn off the ignition, grab my bag and put my hand on the door handle when the door is ripped open. I yelp, totally unprepared. And there he is, in all his magnificence, supporting himself against the door, effectively blocking my way. I cross my arms over my chest, and raise an eyebrow, meeting his gaze that bores into mine.
He tilts his head, gesturing to the space beside me. “Scoot.”
I groan but do as he says, and shuffle over.
He hops in and raises his hand, palm up and looks expectantly at me, and then at my hand that’s holding the key. When I hand it to him, our fingers touch and it’s as if a current passes between us. It runs all the way down to the pit of my stomach. I gasp and quickly pull away. His eyes linger on my hand and then rise to meet mine. I swallow and look straight ahead instead. There’s a moment of silence, then he puts the key in the ignition and we’re moving. Once on the street, he steps on it and we shoot through the traffic, westbound. I look at the facades of the houses we pass with a feeling of imminent doom. I inhale and turn to him, opening my mouth to ask, but he beats me to it.
“Syd,” he says, keeping his eyes on the traffic. “We need to talk.”
“About what?” I ask and study his flawless profile, shaking my head inwardly at this man’s mere existence. Not to mention his mysterious appearance in my life.
“I’ve been thinking about you.” He glances at me, and then back at the traffic. “A lot.”
“Yeah. I think we’ve established that.”
“I know you haven’t let me go either. You act all indifferent for whatever reason, but I see it, Syd. You still need me.”
“I don’t ‘need’ you.” He opens his mouth but shuts it again as I continue. “Look, I’ll admit straight out t
hat I want you, okay? We had some moments I can’t hope to ever repeat, but I’ll be carrying them with me and move on. I want you, yes, but I don’t need you in my life. It would kill me.”
He turns his head and looks at me with a confused expression on his face.
“Road!”
He looks back at the traffic. “Why would it kill you? What do you mean? I wouldn’t…”
I swallow hard against the onslaught of feelings. “Not you. I assume—But letting you back in. I wouldn’t recover this time, Nate.”
“How? Why? From what? Explain to me, because I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
“I can’t explain. You’d just take advantage of everything I said.”
“No, I won’t. Are you saying you don’t dare to talk to me?”
I mull that over. “Yeah. I guess I am.”
He frowns. “Then we really need to talk. Do you think I’m bad for you? What is it about? Because I like it rough?”
“You didn’t listen to me, Nathan! You just took and took and took. I wasn’t along for the ride.”
“But… you loved it.”
I chew on my lip, unsure how to go on. Outside the car the suburbs flicker by. “It was amazing. But you scared me, and you never took care of me. I bared myself to you, trusted you. I had no control. None. It scared me, and excited me, and I would have needed to talk about it.”
“Was that why you ran?”
I nod.
“I’m sorry. I’m a selfish piece of shit. I really did think you were in on it.”
I stare at my lap, smooth out my wrinkled pants. The last of the suburbs disappear behind us.
I jump when he lays a warm, strong hand over my restless, fiddling fingers. “Talk to me. Please.”
“Don’t be nice. Please. Be bossy and a jerk. I can’t defend myself against nice.” I wipe at a tear that escapes the corner of my eye, fighting the lump in my throat.
“So you do have feelings.”
I’m quiet.
“Syd, talk to me. Please. I need you to be honest with me.”
Russo Saga Collection Page 20
