Concealment (The Cassano Series Book 1) Read online

  “Damn, bro, no I didn’t touch her. She wasn’t exactly being cooperative, so although she’s hot as hell, I was too busy trying to keep her from causing a scene.

  “Good thing she told me she knew you, or it might’ve happened. She looks about my age …” My asshole brother’s gaze then perused her body. “Like I said, ‘hot as hell.’”

  “Stop looking at her like that.”

  “I’m just screwing with you, Ace,” he said with a chuckle. “Jersey warned me you weren’t yourself with this one.”

  “No, I’m not, and I don’t think this is her normal behavior, either. I’m taking her upstairs. Can you help me with the elevator?”

  Once I had Victoria in my bed, she opened her eyes and focused on mine.

  “Thank you for finding me, Adrian, and giving me another chance. My heart broke when you left me earlier.” It was the only words she spoke before passing out.

  I removed her wig and combed my fingers through her hair. Damn, I wanted to touch her, especially after removing her dress.

  I was also confused over everything that had happened and unsure of what she would want, so I thought it best to sleep in another bed.

  Hearing her gargling mouth wash brings me out of my daydream. She turns and bites on her lip.

  “Um, how are we going to do this? I’m only wearing a towel.”

  I stalk toward her, never taking my eyes off of hers. “I’ve seen you naked. Get in and let me wash your hair.”

  Victoria obeys, and I step in the shower behind her. “Aren’t you going to undress?” She’s peering down at my shorts.

  “It’s not wise for us to shower together naked when you don’t feel well. Now, turn around. We’ll do this quick, so you can eat something and rest.”

  She pouts. “It’s not like I have the flu.”

  “I’m trying to be considerate here.”

  Her shoulders slump as she turns to face away from me. “Sorry again,” she mumbles.

  After lathering my hands with shampoo, I wash her hair. While massaging her scalp, she whimpers, and the sound heightens my awareness of how close I am to her perfect, naked body.

  She’s lost in how good she’s feeling, and I’m fantasizing of all the ways I could make her feel even better.

  My soapy hands glide down her arms, and bumps rise to the surface of her skin from my touch. I kiss along her shoulder.

  “Fuck, I want to touch you and taste you. Please, get out. The clothes I purchased for you are in the bedroom next to mine, and I’ll order breakfast as soon as I’m out of the shower.”

  Victoria turns and gazes at me. Her green eyes as lush as a rainforest are tilted up, water beading on her lashes as if they’re a vine.

  “You’re still mad at me,” she says.

  “No, I’m preventing you further embarrassment by ensuring you don’t vomit during sex.” My lips twitch with a smile.

  “You believe me about Rick?”

  “Yes.”

  “I thought for sure you would never forgive me. Thank you.”

  Feeling like the betrayer, I kiss her forehead, needing this conversation to end.

  “Out.”

  ***

  Victoria is at the dining room table taking a bite of toast when I find her. A juice box sits next to her small plate.

  “I hope you don’t mind that I searched your pantry for bread. I figured it’s all I could stomach this morning.”

  “Of course not.”

  After eating breakfast, I fix us both coffee, and we sit in my living room. She rests against the arm of the sofa with her smooth legs across the thigh area of my pajama pants.

  She’s in denim shorts I had sent up the other night and a pink tank top. Sipping on her coffee, she tucks damp strands of hair behind one ear.

  Her expression is seductive, and I get the vibe Victoria is feeling a touch better already.

  “What are you thinking about?” I ask.

  “What happens next?”

  “What occurred after I left Rick’s?”

  “I told him I cared for you, and his driver gave me a ride. I had him bring me here instead of home.” She stares across the room.

  “Maybe in a way I was trying to be near you. I meant what I said. I didn’t mean to hurt you, and I don’t like him.”

  Her eyes find their way back to mine, and she bravely gazes into them.

  “Please quit working here. I can’t take watching another man eye you the way I’ve seen them do. I’ll help you find another job.” My hand slides behind her ear and into her hair. “Smile for me.”

  From trying not to, she grins bashfully and leans into my hand as my fingers massage her scalp. “This sexy smile … I declare it exists only for me.”

  “OK.”

  “OK, you’ll quit?” I ask with wide eyes. Due to her typical defiant behavior, I’m surprised by her response.

  “Yes, but not until I finish out this schedule.”

  I’m frustrated that I have to compromise here, but I guess I can deal with it another week.

  “Fair enough. After that I declare this body will only model ‘nighties,’ as you call them, for me.”

  Victoria’s arms cross, grin brightens, and eyes display mischievous that makes my dick twitch.

  “Are we rethinking the uniform choice?”

  “Only for you, Juice Box. You’re the only woman I’ve ever noticed wearing it.”

  Faintly hearing a phone ringing, her eyes grow rounder. It’s hers and is on the nightstand in my bedroom.

  “Shit.” Victoria is off of me in a flash and running out of the room. A minute is all I can wait before I’m behaving nothing like myself and strolling down the hallway.

  Propping my shoulder against the doorframe, I watch and listen. Her back is to me as her left butt cheek and leg rest on my bed.

  Her right leg is dangling off, looking smooth and toned. Damn, I can’t wait to touch her again, and she’s on my bed.

  “Um, I stayed with a new friend from the hotel.”

  Pause.

  “No, not the guy from the party.”

  Pause.

  “I know, and I’m sorry. I should’ve called or texted. I have to hang up, but we’ll talk later. I’m going out with Cicely tonight.”

  She’s leaving and going out after what happened to her last night? Ending the call, she buries her face in her hands.

  “Is there a problem?”

  Her body twists around. “Um, I was supposed to let a friend know I made it home OK after the party and I didn’t, so they were worried. I was irresponsible last night in many ways.”

  I take a seat on the bed next to Victoria and move her hair over her shoulder, giving me access to her neck. “Then I declare you can only be irresponsible when alone with me,” I mumble in her ear before my tongue is tracing it.

  She giggles as her body shivers from my touch. I love what I do to her. Badass Victoria, succumbing to her vulnerability with me.

  Falling back onto the bed, I take her with me. She curls up against my body, her arm snaking around my waist.

  I knew I was lonely before Victoria invaded my world, but I had no idea how much so until I missed her.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Victoria

  My hair is thrown up into a messy bun before one swipe of pink gloss goes across my bruised lips.

  I’m late for my night out with Cicely. Adrian and I talked for hours and made out on his bed until my lips were sore, but he didn’t try to sleep with me.

  I think he wanted to ensure I was fully recovered from my hangover first. The problem arose when I needed to leave. He dragged that out a good hour, so here I am late.

  I could tell he worried about me being out, but as long as I’m not drunk, he has nothing to worry about. He would feel sorry for the person who tried to mess with me if he saw them after the fact.

  Cicely sends a text, stating she’s in front of my apartment, so I hurry out the door.

  “Hi, stranger,” she says aft
er I slide into the car.

  “Hi, and I’m sorry again that I disappeared for a while. I feel like all I’ve been doing lately is apologizing.”

  “Who else have you been saying sorry to?”

  “Reggie and some other men who have turned my world upside down.”

  I wait for Cicely to take a glimpse at me, and sure enough, she grins broadly.

  “Men plural? Damn, you have been busy the last few weeks.”

  “I’m only interested in one of them.”

  “Better than none. I was beginning to worry you were going to settle on your strange relationship with Reg.” She glances over, visibly panicked. “It’s not Reggie, right, and where to, by the way?”

  “Um, no it’s not Reg, and let’s skip Stopper’s tonight. I’m not in the mood to deal with the guys from the station. I imagine a lot of them will be there on a Saturday night.”

  “I’m wearing these tight ass shorts because I thought I was seeing Ben. He rubs my leg under the table when I sit next to him at the bar.”

  I examine my friend, and she’s in tiny, white shorts and an orange, scoop-neck t-shirt. Stopper’s isn’t the finest establishment, so even on a Saturday night, we don’t have to dress up.

  “Ben hits on you?”

  “Yes, and I don’t mind. I’m waiting for him to try to rub something else.”

  “Cicely! I have to work with him. I don’t want that image in my head.”

  “Hey, I can’t live with the dry spell you’re willing to endure.”

  She’s correct there. Cicely and I have been friends since high school. She’s an EMT and a bit abrasive. I love her, but guys seem intimidated by her, even more so than they are with me. I think because I’m quieter.

  She never gives off the vibe she needs a man other than for sex, so I imagine it’s why she hasn’t settled down.

  Craving pizza, she drives to Montesano’s Italian Restaurant off the Strip. One piece will be all I can stomach after drinking last night.

  She orders the Pizza Fresca, which is meatless, to help me out.

  “Why in the hell did you get trashed last night? That’s not like you.”

  “I know.” I pull out my phone. “Just look at these selfies. You know I was drunk when I took photos of myself, especially in front of a public bathroom mirror.”

  Scrolling through them, she begins laughing.

  “Oh. My. Word. Look at that dress, girlfriend. When did you start wearing evening gowns?”

  My phone is handed back before she’s fluffing her short blonde strands. It’s the same cute hair that gave me the idea for wearing wigs at Hotel Submission.

  “It’s a long story. Let me start from the beginning …”

  Theo

  “Can I have a piece of your gum, Uncle Simon?” Miranda asks him in her high-pitched, seven year old voice.

  “Uh, not this gum, doll-face,” he replies.

  “Uncle Simon is trying not to smoke nasty cigarettes, so that special gum helps him.”

  She scrunches her nose. “I’m glad you aren’t smoking those stinky things. They will hurt you.” Her words and tone admonish as she scowls at him, so I can’t help but chuckle.

  “Great, another member of this family who is going to lecture me.”

  “Miranda, go see if Mommy needs help with Elijah.” Without a word, she’s skipping out of the room, her thick, auburn hair swaying behind her.

  “What brings you here on a Saturday? After Elijah shit on you, I thought it would be a while.”

  “Ha ha, funny. I need to talk to you about Noah Sanders.”

  “Then we need to go out on the patio.”

  Simon follows me outside, and we take a seat. I stare in the distance at the city view and take a drink of my iced tea.

  “He leaked a little more information about the arms dealings to me,” my brother says too excitedly.

  “I don’t know about this, Simon. We’re risking a lot already with the drug purchases.”

  “I can handle him. He said he’s only dealing drugs, but I mentioned how I was looking for a connection to buy up some guns. He told me to let him check into it.”

  “What did you tell him you need them for?”

  “We own a casino. He totally believes we’re doing some illegal things on the side besides the poker games. I’m going to do only small purchases, so he doesn’t get suspicious.

  “My goal is to keep gaining his trust, getting him to leak more and more to me about the bigger arms trafficking going on down in Jaurez.”

  I look toward our back door. “Simon, Karen cannot find out about any of this. Never mention it. She already struggles with the games going down the way they do.”

  “I won’t, bro.”

  “Then why did you come here on a Saturday instead of telling me this at work?”

  “I also wanted to talk to you about Adrian. He and Vicky had a blowup at Rick Jacobs’s party last night. He was insanely jealous of her being there as Rick’s date.

  “Zev said she showed up at Caged, got drunk off her ass, and ended up at Adrian’s. I think she’s quitting her job, so she can date him.”

  “And once again, why do I need to hear this today?”

  Simon looks out over our backyard and taps his foot. “I was thinking maybe if he dates her, he might come around to forgiving Aggie, which means he might see her and Mom again.”

  “How are the two tied together?”

  “I don’t know. I caught him looking hard at a photo of Aggie in his office, and I doubt he was doing that shit before he met this Vicky.”

  I feel the heaviness in my chest as it tightens. Simon wants us all to be together as a family. You’d think he wouldn’t be attached to Mom since he received the least attention from her.

  Instead, he adores her, harboring the least disappointment since Denise being mentally ill is mostly all he remembers.

  He also latched onto our sister, Aggie, and hates that she’s back in New Jersey and not here with us. He believes Adrian holds the key to getting her to move to Vegas.

  “Leave it alone for now. If an opportunity arises, I’ll discuss it with him, but I think it should be me.”

  Simon’s gaze shifts from the horizon to the concrete below his feet. He stares intently, his shoe tapping even faster. I kick his leg under the table.

  “Stay and have dinner with us. I’m sure the kids would like it.”

  “OK, sure, but I’m going to need a drink to handle Mir. She’s wild.”

  “Hmff … like some other little squirt I knew.”

  After standing to go back into the house, I mess with my brother’s hair, and he punches my arm as he flips it back in place. I love the loyalty in this family.

  Ultimately, it’s what drove Adrian away from his twin, but I believe they will be close to each other again one day.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Victoria

  Adrian: How are you feeling?

  Me: Much better.

  Adrian: Then come stay with me tonight, and be prepared for me to touch you. No vomiting or passing out allowed.

  I giggle at the table of the restaurant.

  “Who gets credit for that grin?”

  “Adrian Cassano wants me to come stay with him tonight. I like him a lot, Cicely, but I’m afraid of what the future holds.”

  “You never fear anything.”

  “Until now, I’ve always felt my heart was protected. Adrian has somehow stolen a piece, and that lack of control scares me more than anything in this world.”

  I look back down at my phone and begin typing, fear controlling my fingertips.

  Me: Let me think about it.

  Adrian: Victoria, no more bullshit. I’m making you mine tonight, so get your superbly shaped ass over here, or I’ll be at your apartment. Take your pick, J. B.

  My grin, as wide as the Grand Canyon, illustrates my happiness.

  “Girl, I’ve never seen you smile like that. Let’s get you out of here, so at least one of us can get lai
d tonight.”

  ***

  His smile is a mixture of “I’m happy to see you” and “I’ve been waiting to rip your clothes off” when I spot him in the lobby of Hotel Submission.

  He holds my hand snugly as we step into the private elevator to ride up to his penthouse.

  There is no Charles or Sampson operating it as Adrian holds his thumbprint on the activation pad.

  Leaning back against the wall, he spreads his legs out and clutches my waist. Hands show their determination in a tight squeeze and yank that bring me to him in one swift move.

  Gasping, I cling to the front of his royal blue shirt.

  “I’ve had enough practice with self-restraint the last few weeks, Victoria. I’m over it, so I hope you’re prepared.”

  “You’re my boss for another week, Mr. Cassano.” I end my witty remark with a smirk, but he doesn’t play along as his forehead presses to mine.

  “Then I’m fucking my employee.” His lips devour mine, and the intensity of the passion between us has me falling farther against his firm frame.

  Solidly, I clutch his shirt, compelled to be closer to a man I should be holding at a safe distance.

  His tongue is slick along mine, strokes urgent yet skillfully placed, and I’m longing to be the subject of his dexterity test.

  The sultriness from his body and mouth create an image in my mind of his scorching breath bathing my skin.

  The elevator stops, and he groans against my lips with disapproval. I strive for air while the yearning for Adrian overruns my own restraint.

  Plunging my tongue back into his mouth, the doors close again, but we don’t begin moving. One of his hands shoves into my hair as the other clenches my ass, our tongues tangled wildly.

  After several seconds, he pulls away.

  “God, I have to get you in my bed.”

  “Please say you’re fucking me soon.” I’m dizzy and breathless, out of control, and nothing has ever felt more right.

  “Absolutely, baby. More than once.” Pushing me forward, he stands straight from the wall and picks me up.

  My legs wrap around his waist, our tongues and bodies entwined as he pushes the button to reopen the elevator.