Page 19 of King of the Bronx

“I’m an only child. I have cousins, but they’re busy most of the time. Some of them are involved in the mob, so they don’t have the time,” he explained. That was more family then I had. I wondered what it was like to have parents and cousins to visit on holidays.

“What about you?” he asked as we started walking again. He allowed Bello to control the walk as we turned the corner and passed by a group of girls who looked like they were on their way home from a nightclub.

“No family. I grew up in foster care…well, except for Toby. He’s like a brother to me.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. I looked up to see him staring at me. Instead of the usual look of pity I got from people when I told them my history, it was a sincere apology, as if he was somehow responsible.

I shrugged. “It’s okay. It was a long time ago.”

I tried not to think about my time in foster care. Some of the foster homes I lived in were just terrible. I saw things that no child should ever see, and there was never anyone there to protect me. No one ever shielded me from adult life the way that kids were supposed to be shielded. Not until I moved in with Toby’s family. They were genuinely good people. I was there for a couple years, and I thought I’d stay until I turned eighteen, but I messed that up when I got caught selling weed at school. It was a stupid thing to do, but I was glad that Toby had stuck around and stayed in touch with me after the ordeal.

We walked the rest of the way in comfortable silence, stopping occasionally so that Bello could sniff the bushes. When we got back to the apartment, Enzo hung the leash up.

“Do you want to give him a treat?” he offered.

I smiled, liking this softer side of Enzo, especially after he murdered a man. He handed me a small biscuit.

“You have to tell him to sit first,” he instructed.

Bello looked up at me, his tail wagging in anticipation.

“Sit,” I told the dog. He did as I said, and I threw the treat at him, which he caught midair. I patted him on the head.

When I stood back up, Enzo’s eyes were trained on me, dilated wide with desire. I felt it too. The air in the room shifted.

My breath caught in my throat as he stepped close. The smell of his cologne came off his body in waves, filling my nose and the space between us. Was I really going to do this? It wouldn’t be the first time I slept with a dangerous man, but I’d never slept with someone as dangerous as Enzo. The mafia ran every inch of this city. I was playing with fire, but the fire was so warm and welcoming, all I wanted to do was fall right into it. Erica’s voice replayed in my head. Seduce him. Do what you gotta do so that he won’t even notice or care when you take $30,000 from him. Bello whined, but when Enzo didn’t pay the dog any attention. I listened to the sound of his paws walking across the floor, leaving us in the kitchen. Enzo’s eyes were trained on me as if I was the most beautiful woman in the world. It was dirty to have sex with a man I was about to steal from, but right now, nothing felt more right. It was obvious he wanted me. So what if I happened to benefit from it? Would he really turn his head the other way when I took his money if I let him in my panties? I doubted it, but I became too focused on his dark smoldering eyes to care. He placed a hand on the wall next to my head and leaned in close. I clenched my thighs together, trying to get myself under control. I hadn’t even looked at a man in months, and here I was, the sole focus of a very powerful and dangerous man.

“I would give anything to kiss you right now,” he said, his voice coming out deep and husky. A chill ran down my spine.

“Then kiss me,” I encouraged, wanting to feel his lips against my own. I had no doubt that this would be the best kiss I’d ever have. He looked in my eyes, as if searching for any kind of hesitation.

“I won’t be able to stop at just a kiss. Are you okay with that?”

I swallowed. I hadn’t planned to sleep with him tonight, but now that we were here, I wouldn’t be able to walk away. Not when my body felt one-hundred degrees hotter and there's an itch between my legs. He stepped closer to me, pressing his body against mine. The bulge in his pants rubbed against me. He bent his head down, and his warm breath send chills over my skin.

“Say yes,” he encouraged. I didn’t need any more convincing.

“Yes,” I squeaked out.

His lips softly grazed against my neck, and I moaned from the simple contact. I bit down on my lips, embarrassed by the outburst. My sex deprivation was differently showing. But Enzo seemed to like it. His lips lifted into a smile against the crook of my neck. He littered kisses from my neck down to my collarbone. His hand went to my waist, as if to keep me in place, as he trailed his lips down to my cleavage. I clenched my thighs tighter as he moved from my cleavage back up to my face. He stared at me for a beat before pressing his lips to mine. The touch sent an electric shock through my body. I relaxed into it; I had no control over my own senses. I couldn’t think straight as his kisses turned more hungry. As if he couldn’t get enough. Another moan escaped my lips as his hand moved from my waist to grip my ass. I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders. He pulled back and searched my eyes. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves as he grabbed my hand and led me through the apartment to a bedroom. The bedroom contained a king-sized bed and dresser, but besides that, it barely looked like it was lived in. I walked past him and sat on the mattress, making myself comfortable. He smiled at me but stayed standing.

“What?” I asked.

“I like the sight of you in my bed.”

“Just for tonight…Nothing more,” I said with a warning.

I just needed to get in his head a little bit so I could take the money. I didn’t need a relationship, especially not with someone in the mob who might be interested in taking part of my brothel. I could handle things on my own, and a relationship meant someone looking over my shoulder.

He stalked toward me and placed both arms on either side of my body. He leaned forward until I laid flat against the mattress. “Whatever you say, baby.”

I wanted to correct him and tell him I wasn’t his baby but the way the word rolled so easily off his tongue, I let it slide. I ignored the term of endearment and the butterflies that erupted in my stomach. He hovered on top of me as I wrapped my legs around his waist. His movement had pushed my dress up to my stomach.

I grabbed at his jeans, fumbling with the zipper in my haste, until his dick sprain free. My breath caught in my throat as I got a good look at the source of his cockiness. I’ve seen a lot of penises in my life—most of the times when I didn’t want to—but nothing could compare to his. It was thick and much bigger than average. I didn’t get a chance to admire it much longer because the sound of material ripping brought me back to the present as Enzo tore my panties.

“I’ll buy you some more,” he promised.

I nodded but couldn’t care less about the ripped material. All I wanted was him. His fingers rubbed against my clit, and I let out a soft moan as my body tingled. I could orgasm right now just from the smallest touch from him.

---