Savage Little Games: Chapter 24

I wake up with a shiver. It takes me a moment to realize I’m tucked into bed underneath a mountain of covers, naked other than my panties.

Then I remember the night before, when I let Dante finger me down in his club. It felt so good, too good to care about who may have seen us, like I was drunk on the lust. For a few minutes, I felt wild and free, so different from my constant, uptight, worrisome motherly role.

It was nice to let go, even for a few minutes. It’s just a little scary that Dante Salvato is the man who did that to me. For me.

Speaking of the devil, I don’t remember what we did afterward. After we left the club.

I’m not sore between my legs, so I’m confident nothing else happened. Dante may be a mobster, but he would wait until I’m fully conscious to have sex with me the first time. If not only so the smug bastard could hear me beg first. Which is surprising. I know the mafia king could’ve used a release of his own last night. He had to have been hurting, yet he didn’t insist I return the favor. Dante’s not as selfish as I thought he would be.

“Morning,” the man with magic fingers says softly. He’s awake and watching me. His messy head of hair still rests on his pillow, on the other side of our makeshift wall.

“Morning. What time is it?” I ask as I pull the covers up to my neck even if there’s no point in hiding my nakedness from him since he obviously undressed me the night before.

Dante props his head up on his bent elbow to face me. “A little after seven.”

“You didn’t go work out this morning?”

“No. I had a late night.”

“Oh?”

“I had to handle some more business after I got you back to the room.”

“Again? Is everything okay?” I ask, noticing the tension in his jaw, the furrowing of his brow.

“Another warehouse was raided. At least this time it was empty.”

“Oh, well, that’s good, right?”

“Better than losing millions in product, but it’s concerning that the locations of my warehouses are being shared.”

Someone betrayed him, which is stupid and dangerous. “Any idea who was behind this one?”

“Not yet, no.”

There’s no way Dante will stop searching until he finds them, then makes the traitor pay.

“You’ll find them. Eventually, they’ll make a mistake,” I assure him.

“Or I’ll twist enough arms to get someone to sing.”

“Or that,” I agree.

Reaching over, he lifts a strand of my hair from my pillow and twirls it around his finger. The whitish blonde is quite a contrast to his tan skin. “The violence doesn’t seem to upset you. Why is that?” he asks.

I shrug. “It’s a violent world. And sometimes, I guess it’s essential. I just don’t believe in hurting innocent people.”

He hums, which can be interpreted as an agreement or disagreement. I’m not sure which. “And how are you feeling about last night?”

“Last night was…fine,” I reply.

The scowl on his scruffy face tells me he didn’t like that answer at all. “Just fine?” He jerks the covers toward him, trying to pull them off me but I cling to them tightly. “You came for me faster than a speeding bullet.”

“I did not!” I huff, jerking the covers back.

“I bet one of the security cameras caught it all and could give us a timed playback. Shall we have a look?”

“Ass,” I mutter with a grin.

The truth is, I haven’t had enough time to think about what we did last night. I enjoyed it, more than I anticipated. It was the best, most erotic experience I’ve had in years, especially in public. But now, I’m confused. I can’t afford to let my body become greedy for, well, any of this particular man’s body parts.

What’s worst of all is that I want to reciprocate. Not because I think I owe Dante pleasure in return, but because I want to get my hands on him. Every part of him. Especially the long, hard part between his legs.

It would be so easy to toss the pillow wall and touch him everywhere. Maybe that’s the reason he skipped his workout, hoping to get lucky.

But no, touching Dante, getting him off, would feel too much like waving the white flag.

“I’m going to get a quick shower, then go see if Sophie wants company on the court.”

I turn away before I can see the disappointment in Dante’s eyes. It doesn’t matter since the displeasure coming off of him in waves is strong enough to nearly knock me over when I stand up with a sheet wrapped around me.

“Wait,” he says, causing my feet to freeze while I keep my back to him. This is it; Dante is going to finally snap and demand I get him off by threatening someone’s life, possibly my son’s, and I’ll do whatever he wants despite my convictions. The reminder of why I should hate him will be more than welcomed…

“You play tennis?”

That’s it? No death threats or demands, just a question about my athletic skills?

“Yes, I played a little with my mom growing up. Even poor neighborhoods have courts, you know,” I quickly feel the need to add.

“You lost her and your father as a teenager?” he asks, obviously knowing from his background research on me that my parents were reportedly killed in a car crash that I survived.

“I did,” I respond before heading for the bathroom to avoid answering any other questions about my past.

The less Dante Salvato knows about me the better.

Vanessa acted just as I expected this morning. She refused to admit how good I made her feel last night, turned skittish, and bolted before letting me touch her again.

Everything with that woman feels like one step forward and three steps backward. Just when I start to think I’m making progress, she shows me just how wrong I am.

But Eli is right. Vanessa is a distraction I can’t afford to have right now. That’s why I decide to focus on the current life or death situation before me, and not my sex life for the rest of the day.

A war with the Russians is brewing, so I need to do everything I can do to stop it. In the meantime, I’ll have to make sure my men are ready for anything. That we’re prepared for the worst-case scenario.

Being prepared means shoring up defenses and making sure I’m on good terms with all allies. As Eli mentioned last night, there’s one potential ally in particular that I’ve been pursuing for a while now. It wasn’t easy at first since his family was thought to be responsible for the shooting that killed Madison’s mother Maria. But Lochlan Dunne was a child when that happened. He’s not his father, just as I’m not mine. If we could put aside our past, both of us could come out stronger with an alliance.

There’s just one little thing holding him back.

It’s time to suck up my pride and reach out to the Irishman, despite how much I may hate asking for his support, or caving to his requirement for said support.

Rather than going up to the roof and getting distracted watching Vanessa playing a game of tennis with Sophie, I sit down in my office chair to make the call.

I’m not surprised that he answers by asking, “When do I get to meet my bride, Salvato? I’m not getting any younger.”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I tell him, “I know, Lochlan. But Madison is young. She’s still…warming up to the idea of marriage.”

“Then don’t expect me to side with you when the Russians retaliate for you killing two of their enforcers.”

Fuck. If he’s already heard that Kozlov is suspicious of me, then I must be his top suspect. “That’s pure speculation on Kozlov’s part,” I lie. “The dead enforcers probably just fucked around with the wrong person.”

The bastard chuckles. “I don’t doubt that one bit. But until my ring is on your daughter’s finger, you’re on your own.”

“Trust me, I’m doing you a favor right now. If I drag Madison down the aisle before she’s ready, she’ll claw your eyes out the first chance she gets.”

“I do enjoy having my eyes in their sockets.”

Changing the subject, I ask him, “Have you by chance heard who is raiding my fentanyl warehouses?”

“No. I heard about the one in Arizona getting hit, but not by whom.”

“They came for the California one too, but it was empty.”

“At least you’re a step ahead of whomever is gunning for you. If I had to bet, I would put money on it being the Russians.”

“The Arizona raid happened before I even heard about their two men going missing.” Before I killed them.

“Is that right? Wow. It would be unfortunate for you to have war raging on two fronts. I’m not sure if I would want to marry into that kind of messy fucking family. You’re also damn lucky the Russians aren’t offering me any pretty young brides.”

“I’m handling shit,” I assure him, meaning all of it. “And our families will come together. Just be patient a little longer.”

“If there’s no engagement dinner within the next six months, there will be hell to pay, Salvato,” he threatens. “And I expect an update when you attend my poker tournament next month.”

“I’m not gambling in anyone’s casino but my own,” I tell him.

“Your ass better be there rubbing elbows with the celebrities. It’s for charity, you jackass. And I want you to bring Madison. It’s time I got to meet my bride.”

“That’s a horrible idea.” I can’t even imagine my daughter at such a public event. “You want her running off with some actor or lead singer in a band?”

“Bring her, or our little truce is over,” he says before ending the call.

Rather than adding an ally, I could be gaining another enemy at the worst fucking time if I can’t convince Madison to marry the son of a bitch.

Leaving my office, I head up to the third floor and to my oldest daughter’s bedroom. All the girls have giant suites. Madison’s is at least three times the size of mine. Her door is shut, so I knock on it and wait rather than start this conversation off by busting in unannounced.

“What do you want?” she calls from the other side of the door. When it finally opens her eyes widen. “Daddy?” A second later her surprise fades into indignation. “You actually walked up all the stairs rather than summon me by phone to your office?”

Is that what I do? Lately, yeah, I guess it is. Only because my daughters are teenagers who no longer welcome me into their rooms to play Barbies, have tea parties, or race go-carts in video games. It’s been at least seven years since Sophie did any of those things, nearly ten for Madison since she’s the oldest. Rather than apologize for my absence they each insist on, I get to the point.

“I need you to make a decision,” I tell her.

“A decision on what? Where I’m going to college in the fall? I’ve narrowed it down to three schools…”

“No. You’re not going to college. I meant a decision about marrying Lochlan.”

“Oh. Well, in that case you can have my decision right now. My answer is no.”

“Let me rephrase that,” I grit out. “I need you to to marry Lochlan right fucking now. The wedding doesn’t have to be soon, but you need to accept his engagement ring and agree to see him so he’s reassured that it will happen, eventually.”

“My answer is still no to all of that. I don’t want his ring, or to see him. His family killed my mother!”

“The Irish have always denied the shooting. There was never any evidence pointing to them directly either. And even if there had been, that was Lochlan’s father, not Lochlan who ordered it.”

“Same thing.”

“No, it’s not. Lochlan is innocent. Or at least he’s innocent when it comes to Maria’s murder. I pray that no one ever holds my sins against you.”

“So do I,” she agrees as if she knows they’re too numerous to list.

“Look, sweetheart, I know this marriage isn’t what you want. But the Irishman is one of the few men who I trust to actually take good care of you. Lochlan will be able to protect you. He also has the financial means to give you, and your future children, everything you could ever want.”

“No! I’m not marrying someone just because you want me to, especially not him!”

“Honestly, I’m dealing with a lot of other shit right now. The last thing I need is to make another enemy by refusing Lochlan’s offer.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “Then you should marry him. It’s legal now for two men.”

“Yes, I know it’s legal, but I’m pretty sure he’s expecting biological heirs. I’m afraid I can’t give those to him.”

“I can’t either. That’s what surrogates are for, right?”

“Madison, if you would just give him a chance, you may even like him. He’s not that much older than you, and he’s not unattractive.”

“Sorry, Dad. It’s going to take more than a handsome face to get me down the aisle. I want to love the man I marry and spend the rest of my life with him. I don’t want it to be just a business arrangement!”

“The list of men who I trust to keep you safe as well as make you happy is incredibly short. Lochlan is the one closest to your age. The rest are much older men closer to my age. If that’s your preference…”

“I don’t want or need your help finding a husband.”

“Madison…”

“It’s not going to happen, okay? Let Cass or Sophie marry the guy instead.”

“They’re too young to be thinking about marriage yet.”

“Then he can wait a few more years.”

“I thought you wanted to leave, to get out of this prison of mine, as you refer to it.”

“I do. But I want to do it on my own terms. I’m not trading one prison for another.”

“Then, I guess we’re at a stalemate.”

“I guess we are.”

“Is there anything I can do to change your mind?”

“Let me go to college for two years, and actually live on campus. I’ll agree to date the man while I’m there.”

“He’ll never agree to that, and neither will I,” I tell her. “God, you’re so fucking stubborn, just like Vanessa.” Madison may look exactly like her beautiful mother Maria, but her mother was so obedient and eager to please me. I never expected her daughter to be so damn difficult.

“How much longer is she gonna be staying here?” Madison asks.

“Several more weeks.”

“Weeks? Why? What’s so special about her? You’ve dated plenty of younger, prettier women.”

“Don’t you dare ever use those words in front of her,” I warn her. Knowing she’ll do it just to spite me for telling her not to, I add on what the punishment will be for disobeying me on this issue. “You think this is a hellish prison now, but if you offend Vanessa, you’ll be living in a stone-age prison with zero technology.”

She rolls her eyes. “I don’t like her.”

“I don’t care. You and your sisters tolerate her and be respectful while she’s here, or you’ll regret it. And you be coming with me to meet Lochlan at his fucking poker tournament next month whether you like it or not. Is that clear?”

“Crystal,” she mutters before closing the door in my face.