Page 19 of Blood & Loyalties
My body flooded with giddiness as I bit my bottom lip to keep from saying anything stupid. Jag groaned, watching my teeth tug at my lip as the waitress arrived, snapping her gum. Great.
When I looked up at her, her eyes were solely focused on Jag, and I couldn’t blame her. She was probably five years younger than me and super cute. Her dark brown hair was pulled up into a tight ponytail on top of her head and swished every time she breathed, let alone moved, and her white uniform was skintight, leaving little to the imagination. I bet her slutty body was great for tips.
Looking over at Jag, I saw his eyes were focused on me, and damn if the little girl inside me didn’t do a dance.
“What do you want,dolcezza?” His words washed over me like honey, and I itched for him to lick it off.
“Cheeseburger, fries, and a strawberry shake,” I answered, my eyes not leaving his. A woman could definitely get lost in the depths of them.
“What about you, sweetheart?” The waitress snapped her gum again, and I had the sudden urge to make sure her mouth stayed shut. For a long ass time. I restrained myself, though, since she was just a kid. A horny kid, but I had no claim to the man sitting across from me, and judging from his intense stare, he didn’t want her, anyway.
“Same thing for me, but make the shake chocolate.”
“You got it.” She lingered for a moment, trying to get his attention, but he didn’t budge. His attention was on me, strong and intense, something I hadn’t felt before. A woman could definitely get spoiled.
The waitress finally took the menus hastily and left in a huff.
“So, you work for my uncle?” I felt the need to really get to know him, and what better way than to ask how he was connected to my family?
I wasn’t a moron. I knew things my father, uncle, and brothers did weren’t the best of things, but I had never knownexactlywhat it was they did. I had no desire to find out in any real detail.
“Yeah, over on the West Coast,” he answered casually.
“How long have you been working for him?” I pressed.
“Since I got out of high school.”
That actually surprised me. Most coming out of high school didn’t even know this life existed unless they grew up in it. Meaning he must have had some sort of connection to it before entering. I might not know the ins and outs of the business, but I knew enough.
“How old are you?”
“Thirty.”
I raised my brow. “You’ve been working for him for, what, twelve years?”
“Something like that.”
That said a lot in this world. Loyalty was defined by time, and Jag had obviously showed that. I wanted to ask him what he did, but I wasn’t stupid. We had no legal businesses on that side, and the less I knew, the better. That meant I would just stick to getting to know him as a man, instead.
The waitress took that opportunity to drop off our drinks, but she didn’t stick around this time.
“Val says you’re not staying long.” I wanted the words to come out strong, but even I could hear the faint disappointment in them. Despite barely knowing each other, the sexual tension between us was palpable, something I needed to explore before he left.
“I’m here on business. He’s right, but my stay may have just gotten longer.” He reached across the table and grabbed my hand, and an electric sizzle flowed through my body as his eyes darkened, storm clouds raging behind them. His thumb brushed my hand, and with each back and forth motion, the fire I thought was out earlier roared back to life.
My breathing hitched and food became the furthest thing from my mind. All I wanted was him on top of me, crushing me beneath him. I would never let him know that, though. That gave him too much power, and I wasn’t ready to relinquish any of that. After Antonio, I might never be again.
The clatter of plates hitting the table had our eyes momentarily leaving each other. He squeezed and then released my hand, and I gazed at the food, my mouth watering. From the hot man making me burn or the food, I wasn’t a hundred percent sure at that moment. When my stomach growled, I knew I needed to feed that beast first.
As we ate, he asked me questions about my job, which I explained as best as I could. We fell into a comfortable conversation, and I even found myself laughing on more than one occasion. We even had a few movies and some music in common.
He paid the check to gum-snap girl at the register then came back to the table, extending his hand to me. After I gladly accepted, he pulled me against him, and I felt every hard edge of each muscle along the length of his body. He didn’t ask; his lips took and devoured my mouth with a heat that rippled through me to my toes. I wrapped my arms around his neck, giving myself fully to this man, meeting him movement by movement.
He pulled away, taking in every inch of me. “Take me home with you.”
I nodded, unable to speak as he grabbed my hand and led me out the door.
He looked pointedly at Scraper. “Catarina’s.”
