"Sorry, Sweetness." His lips crash onto mine, his tongue filling my mouth as he tastes me thoroughly. All my anxiety, every bit of concern and trepidation I had, vanishes with his kiss.
"Get a room," Ry says as he stacks the dish in the cupboard. "I want you guys together, but I don't want to see it."
"Shut up, dude," Evan growls. "Get out."
My brother laughs, sauntering out of the kitchen as I sag into Evan's arms, content to stay here. We're in a really good place, spending as much time with each other as possible. We're not really getting reacquainted because I could never not know him, but we're just taking things slow.
He has tried a few times to get me to move in with him. He refuses to move back into the townhouse without me, and in the meantime, he's living in a dingy apartment a few blocks over from the bar.
At some point, we will move in together. It's inevitable and what I want, but I don't want to rush things. I'm still trying to get Greg out of my life. While we've been apart over six weeks now, he keeps finding excuses for not coming to get his things.
"How'd it go with Anna?"
"Good," he murmurs into the top of my head. "She's fragile, but not, if that makes any sense. She's not worldly, but she's astute and is fully aware about what we're dealing with. We need to figure out how to get her out of there."
Tilting back, I look up at him, and I see concern masking his face. My hand tenderly skitters across his dark five o'clock shadow.
"We will. If anyone can get her out of there, it's you."
A smile slowly emerges as a loving twinkle settles in his gaze. Tugging me closer, he plants a brief, hot kiss on me as his hands grab my bottom, lifting me so I connect with his hard length, and then he squeezes.
"I want you." His husky voice is low and blistering.
With a low moan, I wiggle in his hold, taunting both of us. "Soon. We can leave shortly. You coming back to my place?"
"Absolutely." With the corners of his lips curved up, his gaze lingers on my chest. There's a gleam in his eyes that makes my stomach tighten with desire. "My mouth has a date with your pussy."
Now
Evan
"HEY, HOW ARE YOU?"
Anna's eyes are wide as her lips part in surprise. "You shouldn't be here." Peering out the door, her head pans a full 180 degrees as she worries her lips.
"They saw me and know I'm here," I say matter-of-factly.
There's no working around Mari's men. The part I can't figure out is what's taking him so long to make his move. All of us at HC are feeling uneasy because of it. I can't shake the feeling that he's got a plan and we won't know what it is until he's got us in his trap.
"Why do you keep taking these risks?" she asks, exasperated. "Do you have any idea what this could mean?"
"Yeah, but I want him to make his move first. This is all part of that."
It's true, but there's more to it than that. Her aunt passed away a week ago and I also want to make sure she's okay.
She hasn't really shown any emotion, other than crying the first day I learned about it. I met her briefly and she cried in my arms in public, at the campus park. I considered that progress. The fact that she let me in and showed me what she was feeling shows she's learning to trust me.
"Come in." Shaking her head, she turns and leads me into the house, her concern clear in her creased brows. "Evan, I don't know if you should do this. He's not going to just let me go."
"We know that and we're prepared to negotiate."
"You have no idea what he'll ask for."
"No, but we won't know what we're dealing with unless we give him a push."
We each take a seat in a formal living room. For a young woman, the place is reserved, the furniture conservative and prim. I didn't know her zia, but it's clear an older person furnished and lived in this home.
"You like to live dangerously?" she asks dryly.
"Not really, but it keeps things interesting." My tone is playful and light, although the risk is real and I'm not thrilled about having to tackle it this way. We're talking about the mafia here, so we can't go knocking on his door unless we have something to offer, and as of now, we don't. I'd just be taking, and that simply won't fly with La Cosa Nostra.
"How's school?" I ask to change the subject and lighten the mood.
"Fine, the same. I don't know what I want to do. I feel like I'm so behind in life. I'm nearly twenty-five and I'm just starting college, and even at that, I wonder what the point is. My life's already been planned for me." She sighs, her tone dejected and frustrated.
This is only my third time meeting with her, yet I can already tell that she's a sweet girl. She's lonely and lacking a bit in confidence, but my guess is that's only because she hasn't been encouraged or allowed to spread her wings. My wish is to let her out of this place, to watch her fly. Even in the short time we've been getting to know each other, it's clear that she'll soar and thrive, if only given the chance.