Page 4 of Mafia Fire

“Maybe we can help each other out.” He opens the door wider with his good hand. “Come on in, Cinderella.”

I push past his dark ego, entering the dimly lit home. The place must have been gorgeous back in the days when Bella Accardis’ money and elegant touch graced it with their presence.

Now it’s filled with cobwebs and dust and grime. My little neat-freak heart bangs against my rib cage. I love to make things beautiful.

Time to get to work.

Antonio shows me where the cleaning supplies are, a cupboard just as dusty and neglected as the rest of the house. Then he leaves me to clean his house and wonder what he meant byhelping each other out.

I know by the cunning look in his eyes it won’t be long before I find out.

2

Cannon

I feelwarm skin against mine as I open my eyes. Dread fills me as I roll away from last night’s mistake. Who’s in my bed this morning? I lift my head from my arm and take a glance.

Long blonde hair trails down the very bare back of a woman lying on her side, her waist dipping in a deep curve. Beautiful. She could pass for thirty but must be closer to forty.

What was her name? Cat? Kate?

Running a hand over my bare chest, I glance under the sheets. Naked as the day I was born.

I lift the comforter, moving across the mattress with stealth so as not to wake my guest. I’ve not had my espresso and am in no mood for the uncomfortable morning-after small talk.

Shower time.

Hot water washes over me as I scrub the scent of her perfume from my skin. I comb my hair back, trim my beard, and choose a button-down in my favorite color. Black. Pure perfection with no complications.

I return to the bedroom, hoping she’s slipped into last night’s wrinkled clothing and out my door.

Nope. Still here. Cat. I’m sure it was Cat.

“Um, sweetheart?” I lean down, touching her shoulder. A tattoo sits just below my fingertips. A swirling letter K.Now I remember. Kat with a K; that’s what she said when I poured her a second shot of silver tequila at the bar.

I never sleep with members but will occasionally make an exception for a guest because it’s likely I’ll never see that person again. Each guest is only allowed one visit per year unless they’re given a special exception—their member purchases them a key from me—but I rarely allow this, wanting the members to be our main focus.

One of the members of my club, an entrepreneur named Thomas, made his fortune creating an upscale American hotel chain. His wife thinks he’s here in Italy expanding the business.

He’s not. He’s here for my club.

Thomas and Kat met in Rome and became fast friends. Thomas invests in upstarts and Kat’s paired up with him to create her own hair extension line. I’m not so sure how much success they’ll have; one of her long, fake locks got caught in my fingers last night when I was taking her from behind and tugged her hair too hard. Last night, Kat came as Thomas’ guest.

I clear my throat. “Wake up.”

“Hmm?” She blinks awake, stretching and yawning, her expensive, enhanced lips swollen from our night. Her gaze follows me from the top of my head, my wet hair combed back, down the plane of my chest to the tips of my boots. “Hey, baby. Last night was amazing.”

She’s not wrong. The sex was phenomenal. I’d never met this woman before but somehow our bodies acted as if they were familiar with one another. Instinctively, we knew how to please each other. There was a connection.

But now, it’s behind us. Her time to be here in my personal space has long since passed. My skin starts to crawl. It always does on the mornings they spend the night and stay past sunrise. I didn’t think she’d be one of those.

I’ve misread.

My business relies on my instincts, my sixth sense. I hate when I get it wrong. When I let her into my bed last night, I thought she was a one-nighter, just one of the women who wanted a one-time hook-up withtheCannon Bachman, owner of Fire, Italy’s hottest kink club.

I usually have a pretty good read of people, but now she’s snuggling deeper into my dove-gray linen duvet and calling me…baby.I was so tired last night from hosting back-to-back events that I don’t remember much from the night, other than coming hard, right after her.

It’s time for her to go.

---