Men of Mayhem (22 page)

“So, do you see your sisters often? That must have been hard when they moved to Florida.”

Victor set his fork down and looked at me. Candlelight flickered across his face, creating fleeting shadows. The piercing in his right eyebrow glinted in the light when he moved his head.

“I fly out once or twice a year and need to make plans for another visit. It’s been almost a year since my last trip, but if they ever need me, I’m on the next flight out.”

“Do they ever come here?”

He grew silent and contemplative, chewing on his lip piercing and staring past my shoulder for a few seconds before turning his attention back to me. “No.” I thought that was the end of conversation and opened my mouth to change the subject when he continued. “Because of my pops. My mom doesn’t want them to see him in prison.”

“Oh, that makes sense. Do they have any contact with him?” I cut off another forkful of duck and popped it in my mouth.

“They write, but that’s about it. Do you have any brothers or sisters?” he asked.

“Nope. Just me. Well, after the accident, I went to live with my aunt and uncle. They have a son, my cousin Ryan, but he’s like ten years older than me. He graduated college the same year I moved in. They took me in out of obligation.”

From there we talked about our jobs. Victor told me his dad’s friend, Gio, was a successful businessman and helped him get his tattoo shop and even said Gio was like a second father to him. I tucked that nugget away to explore later. Victor completely glossed over any mention of the mafia, not that I expected him to be forthcoming.

With dinner over, he drove me back to my apartment. The drive to the restaurant was full of the first date awkwardness, but the return trip was more comfortable. Victor walked me to my door and I watched with amusement as he went in first and scanned my apartment. I don’t even think he realized he was doing it.

“All clear?” I teased and he stopped, turning to face me with a grin.

“Ah yeah, just want to make sure you’re safe, being that you’re a beautiful woman living alone.” He crossed the room and drew me into his arms. I went willingly. His dress shirt was unbuttoned at the neck, exposing part of his tattoo, making me curious about all of his ink. Did he have tattoos everywhere? I starting unbuttoning his shirt, frustrated to find a wife beater on underneath, yet another barrier to my exploration. I must have scowled or huffed as Victor laughed and stepped away, pulling both shirts over his head.

Holy shit!
I thought to myself as I took in his body art. A giant dragon covered his chest, the tail wrapping around his hip and disappearing below the waist of his pants. His arms were complete sleeves and the pattern seamlessly blended with the scales of the dragon on one side and then on the other side with the fire being breathed in a stream of vivid reds and oranges.

“Wow, your tattoos are amazing!” The body beneath was equally spectacular. He was solid muscle and perfectly sculpted. My gaze was continually drawn to the dragon’s tail and I wondered where it stopped. Victor smirked and started to take off his pants.

“Whoa, what are you doing?”

He paused and raised his eyebrows. “Showing you the rest. What did you think I was doing?” he said with a wink and I laughed, shaking my head in embarrassment.

“I’m not sleeping with you tonight. I’m not the kind of girl who does that on a first date.”

Victor stopped unzipping his pants and we regarded each other from just a few feet away. I could feel the attraction pulse between us like electrical currents, and as much as my body wanted to ride Victor into the next day, I knew he had a reputation for one-night stands and zero relationships. I had to keep him coming back and interested in order to complete my assignment. Uncovering a major heroin deal and disrupting the pipeline was more important. It became harder to remind myself of that the moment Victor stepped forward and claimed my lips with his. His hands roamed down my back to cup my ass and my breasts were crushed against his chest. Heat radiated off his bare skin and my hands traced every ridge of muscle. I discovered his nipples were pierced when I broke off the kiss and they were practically at eye level. I drew one of the silver bars into my mouth. Victor hissed and threaded his fingers through my hair, pressing me closer, encouraging me to suck harder. He moved his hips and I felt the bulge in his pants nudge my stomach. With a pop, I released the bar and took a dizzying step backward.

“You’d better go before I break my first date rule,” I said. My skin was hot and need pulsed through every vein.

“Do you have a second date rule I need to know about?” Victor asked, bending over to pick up his clothes.

“No. I just don’t like to rush into things. I like you, Victor, but I need to get to know you a little better.”

He shook his head and at some point his ponytail had come loose, so his dark hair hung down, brushing the tops of his bare shoulders. “I usually don’t go on more than one date, not that it’s a rule or anything. I’ve just never wanted…nor needed another.” He paused and looked me up and down while nibbling on his piercing. “I want a second, third, even fourth date with you, Lauren. Tomorrow night, do you have plans?”

“No.” Since it was a Saturday, I didn’t have to go to the office, but I did have to file my weekly report with the DEA, but aside from laundry and grocery shopping, that was it.

“You do now. I’ll be here at four. Wear jeans and boots, if you have them. Have you ever been on a motorcycle?”

“Yes, my dad used to have one. It’s been a while, but I imagine it’s like riding a bike,” I said with a smile.

He laughed and gave me another kiss, his hands gripping my hips as I leaned into him. He sucked my lower lip into his mouth before releasing it with a pop. “I’ll see you at four.” His eyes were dark and intense and I just nodded. He left after that, not bothering to put his shirt back on. His back was just as decorated as the front and his muscles moved when he walked.

I closed the door and leaned against it, the wood cool on my feverish skin. My fingers traced my lips, the taste of Victor’s skin still on my tongue. Damn it, I was getting attached—the number one rule I absolutely could not break. That was the moment I should have pulled out of the assignment and walked away, but I didn’t.

Victor

I slid into my Audi and paused before starting it. Damn, that woman had given me the worst case of blue balls. I was tempted to go back and finish what we started when my phone rang. This was the latest burner phone, not my personal one, so I immediately prepared for some urgent business. That’s the only kind that happened after eleven on a Friday night.

“This is Victor,” I answered.

“It’s Gio. Where you been? I’ve been calling you for the past half hour.”

“Sorry about that. I was dropping off my date and left the phone in the car.”

“A date? If you’re still on it, call it a night.”

“It’s already done. Why, what’s up?” I asked, sitting up straighter in the leather seat.

“That job I sent you earlier this week.”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“We need to move it up. The chick is threatening to reveal the affair to the dude’s wife.”

“Fuck. All right, I’m on it.” I hung up and pulled out of the parking lot. All thoughts of Lauren and our date were pushed aside. I didn’t like rushing these jobs because that allowed room for errors. Mistakes led to people getting arrested and sentenced to decades in prison, like what happened to my pops. It was a twenty minute drive back to my house. The LED headlights briefly illuminated the four-car garage before I pulled into the empty bay. I went inside and quickly changed into black jeans, a black t-shirt, and finally a black hoodie. Packing another set of clothes into a bag, just in case, I walked back into the garage and climbed into my dark blue Ford F-150 pick-up truck.

I’d already done some surveillance and knew the woman lived alone and didn’t have a security system. I had a backpack in the truck full of supplies needed for a clean-up job. I hoisted that onto my shoulders before putting leather gloves on. I stuck to the shadows, my dark clothing blending in with the night and quickly scaled the stucco wall that surrounded the backyard and in-ground pool. The master bedroom had a set of sliding glass doors that opened to the patio. A flicker of lights from the otherwise dark bedroom indicated the TV was on. I spied the woman on the bed asleep, an empty wine glass on the table next to her.

Popping the lock on door was easier than opening a jar of pickles and made less noise. The door silently slid open and I stepped onto carpet so thick that it muffled my footsteps as I approached the bed, circling around to the side closest to the woman. She was still asleep, her mouth open, allowing muffled snores to escape. Grabbing one of the extra pillows, I placed it over her face. She didn’t react right away, her responses slow from a wine induced sleep. The woman weighed no more than one hundred fifteen pounds and was easy to subdue. She blindly scratched at me, but the sleeves on the hoodie protected my arms. Her struggling grew weaker and weaker until she went limp, her one arm dangling off the side of the king-sized bed. The pillow absorbed her last breath.

The sun was beginning to rise when I finally arrived home and pulled into the garage, waiting until the door closed completely behind me before I stepped out. I was covered in dirt and my arms were tired from digging a grave in the desert and filling it back in, but the job was done. After I removed the body, I texted Gio and he sent someone in to do a final sweep of the woman’s house to remove any evidence of foul play. Her clothes were packed and removed as well as some other belongings to make it look like she’d left town. Those items along with her car were on their way to a demo yard to be stripped and destroyed.

After a nap, a workout, and a two hour session at the shop, I headed over to Lauren’s on my bike. A brand new helmet, red like the color of the shade of lipstick she wore when I first met her, was stuffed in the saddlebag. She was ready for me and wearing jeans so tight they hugged every curve. Black leather boots stopped at her knee and a formfitting leather jacket completed the outfit. I was looking forward to having her on the back of my bike. I greeted her with a kiss, which she drew out, pressing her body against mine.

“Jesus, sweetheart, you’re fucking gorgeous.” I bent over and grabbed her helmet, stepping forward to put it on and adjust the straps. She’d pulled her hair back in a braid, making the various shades of blonde stand out. She climbed up behind me like a pro and her legs hugged my hips. Without hesitation, she wrapped her arms around my waist and leaned forward so her breasts pressed against my back. The Harley roared to life and Lauren squeezed me tighter when we took off.

Once we got out of the city, I drove up the Pacific Coast Highway and rode until the sun began to set. We stopped at a roadside restaurant that clung to the edge of a cliff and overlooked the ocean. The hostess sat us at a table facing west and we ate dinner while watching the sun set, changing the water from blue to orange and pink hues. I found myself watching Lauren’s face more, though, discovering a small dimple appeared on her right cheek whenever she smiled. I noticed she had a habit of twisting her hair between her fingers when she talked.

“I love the ocean.” She sighed and stared dreamily out at the water, her braid fully entwined through the fingers of one hand. “I had no idea since I grew up in a landlocked state. It sure is different than Lake Erie.”