I look into the rearview mirror, redirecting my thoughts from what Deets and his little pecker will do to me later tonight and I catch a glimpse in the rearview mirror as a black sedan with dark tinted windows pulls out behind us. I smile inside.
The cops are coming for Fat Tony and they ain't playin'. These two fuck-knuckles ain't got one damn clue. Ah, the perk of being the captured one – the innocent one. A small sense of satisfaction washes over me. Maybe, just maybe, I'll get picked up tonight. I let the thought vaporize before I let the hope take hold.
I'm tired of Fat Tony's bullshit, and what's even worse is I'm tired of Big Daddy's bullfuck. I'm ready to turn them all in if I'm given the chance again. Of course, my last arrest was before we moved into this house.
I'm over their shit. I should have turned them in a year ago. I've come to the conclusion that a life six feet underground has got to be a million times better than this.
My name is Livia Meadow Fazio, and I'm the daughter of Mercutio Fazio, ex-number one-inside cop for the biggest mobster in New York City.
I am a whore because my father fucked up.
I am part of one of the largest sex trafficking rings in the United States because my father couldn't keep his nose out of places it didn't belong.
My father is dead and I'm paying the price.
Chapter One
Working Girl.
BRYAN
"Dude, a strip club? Really?" I glare at Liam, my best friend and bodyguard, as we pull into the parking lot of a Phoenix, Arizona strip club.
"Why the hell not? At least it's dark in there. You can hide in the shadows and I highly doubt anyone will recognize you."
He has a point, but that's not the point. "So, we can deal with the headlines tomorrow too?"
"Look around, no one here cares, all they care about is the piece of ass wiggling in their faces." He ushers me ahead of him and I hand the bouncer my ID, my fake one.
Once we're inside the club, Liam ushers me toward a roped off area in probably the darkest corner of the club. "Besides, it will give the media something new to print," he tacks on when we're out of earshot of most people. The music is loud, but not obnoxious. The patrons of the joint are quite loud. Being inside a crowded club has its advantages as far as staying in the shadows, but the more people present; the more likely it is I'll be recognized.
Realizing Liam is set on being here tonight, I decide to make the best of it. I simply shrug and lead the way to the VIP area.
I need a night of mindless, mind-numbing nothing. A chance to escape the outside world, or maybe even spark new headlines. The media outlets have been filled with nothing but the big bad breakup between me and Heather, an up and coming pop-singer. I won't lie. I was shocked it managed to stay out of the news for more than four months. Then again, our relationship was over three weeks into our little charade.
Sure, Heather was a sweet girl, but it was never going to work between us. I knew three weeks into the relationship; it just took me another month to end it. I guess I put too much faith in the idea that maybe I'd found someone worth keeping around or that I would change my tune about her. It never happened.
I pull myself from the memories of Heather and the bad tabloid headlines as I take in the sight of two rather large men standing on either side of the roped off entry of the obviously improvised VIP area of the club.
Strip clubs used to be a tradition for me and Liam. My concerts always ran late into the night but being amped up on adrenaline from the show made settling down impossible. So, we did the only thing open, we hit the strip clubs. In each new city we'd check out the local flavor. Eventually it grew tiresome and boring. It was a great escape from the crazy that is my life, but eventually it became redundant and boring. I will admit that some places were better than others, but Phoenix has never been one of my favorites. Plastic has always been a popular choice amongst Phoenix strippers and I don't like the plastic ones.
I should have stayed in my hotel room, but after months of being on the road, confined to a bus and a schedule not my own, I'm ready to wrap up this business so that I can take a few months off and get back into the studio. That's why I'm here in Phoenix. We arrived this morning and by the afternoon I was already going stir crazy, but like most things, I should have waited until tomorrow to come into town. My meeting isn't until then and we could have easily flown in right before and right back out after to avoid going stir-crazy in a hotel room.