“I certainly hope I’m the only one getting those special friend rates,” he jokes, and I can’t help but smile.
“Don’t push your luck. I still have the scalpel,” I remind him as a new wave of uneasiness sinks into my stomach. Not because I fear Silas when I should; on the contrary. I’m becoming too accustomed to him being around. And I know better than to get close or depend on anyone else.
33
SILAS
“You drove me across the city for a street hot dog?”
Leonore looks at the hot dog in her hand like I’ve handed her a live grenade.
“And the best coffee in town.” I hand her the takeaway cup with Gooma the Coffee Guru printed on the side. “You’re welcome.”
She mumbles something about ten thousand dollars under her breath as she takes the cup, and I fight the smile. She eyes it with the suspicion of a woman who has very high coffee standards, or perhaps it’s more the company she’s still disgruntled about.
“If this is terrible, I’m never trusting you again,” she says, her eyes sparkling in the silvery dawn.
“If this is terrible, I’ll let you hold the scalpel to my throat next time,” I say.
“I don’t need your permission for that. It takes the fun away from the spontaneity,” she deadpans, and I can’t hide my smile that I’m so often used to masking. She stares at me, but when she notices my gaze, she immediately looks at the hot dog in front of her.
I watch as she takes a sip of coffee. Her eyes close, and the sound she makes is somewhere between a sigh and a moan, which goes straight to my cock.
“Okay.” She moans again. “That’s incredible.”
“Told you. Gooma the Coffee Guru knows what he’s doing.”
She takes another sip, and I watch her. I rarely do anything that’s not surrounded by my business, but I’ve found myself wanting to uncover more about this woman.
My status, my wealth, and the fact that I run the city’s biggest crime syndicate doesn’t impress her. In fact, I can count on more than one hand the number of times she’s snubbed me for it. But give her a good cup of coffee, and she’s moaning like my face is buried in her pussy and she’s about to come.
Which I have every intention of doing later.
“If you think that’s good, try the hot dog.”
She bites into the hot dog. “Fuck.” She takes another big mouthful, and there is no self-consciousness or pretense of manners or politeness. Ketchup and mustard slide across her lips. I’m smiling because I suspect she’s purposely trying to eat messily in spite of me.
We find a bench facing the water. The waterfront is empty at this hour, but it won’t be long before morning joggers make their way down to the water.
Leonore tucks her legs beneath her on the bench, and in the pale light, she looks softer. As if I can see through a crack in her armor. My obsession is taking hold because now all I think about is her.
I want to kiss her.
Hell, I want to kiss her a lot.
Even when she’s not around, I find myself thinking about it. Which is fucking confusing. I’m not in the habit of bringing women to my favorite coffee and hot dog cart at dawn just because I like the way I feel when I’m around her. I certainlydon’t pay women ten thousand dollars to give me attention, but if anything, it entices me more because she’s the only one ballsy enough to request it.
Sex has always been an uncomplicated exchange of mutual pleasure and nothing more, but since my sister’s interference and intrigue, I realize I’m royally fucked. If my sister and the men are becoming curious about Leonore, it shows that I’m not even conspicuous anymore.
My cock twitches when she wraps her mouth around the hot dog for another bite, purposely ripping it away like a savage and giving me a pointed look. I could watch her all day, and now that I have the time for it, maybe I will.
But I have to be careful with Leonore. One moment, she is here, and the next, I can tell she’s vaulted behind her secrets. Behind the fake name. Hiding whoever she really is. And God help me, I’m desperate to find out everything. At other times, I provoke her so much that her inner psycho comes out. My cock jumps again at the thought.
More, I need to know more.
I watch as she licks the ketchup and mustard from her fingertips.
The sky is getting lighter, and a band of gold breaches above the skyline. I don’t often go out of my way for such things, and I imagine Leonore is the same. Our place lies in the darkness.
