Packing Heat(35)

“What’s with all these people?” I asked Rafa.

“They’re the staff. Just ignore them.”

“But why are they just standing around?”

“Because it’s late and they have nothing to do.”

“Seems crazy to have so many people working this late.”

“You haven’t seen crazy yet.” He grinned at me. “This is the fucking Barone family. Extravagance is the name of the game, girl.”

He stopped in front of a door and took the packet from my hands. He fished out a key card, just like the kind hotels used, and swiped it. The door clicked open and we stepped inside.

The room took my breath away. It was absolutely gorgeous and enormous. There was a main living room area, a small kitchen area, and a bedroom and bathroom off a small hallway. It was a lot like my apartment, but actually way nicer. The furniture was all clearly expensive, and there was even a fully stocked bar. The bathroom had every toiletry I could imagine, and the sheets felt like they were silk.

“What do you think?” Rafa asked after I had explored.

“It’s amazing,” I said.

“There’s one thing, though.”

I sighed. “What else now?”

“You might not like this.”

“Just spit it out.”

“I’m staying in this room, too.”

I stared at him. “Why?”

“We need to make this look real. Plus, you’ll be safer if I’m always here.”

“No,” I said simply.

“You don’t have a choice.”

“I do have a choice. I don’t want to stay in the same room as you.”

“Too bad.” He walked over to the bar and made himself a drink. “It won’t be so bad, sweetheart. You can come begging me to get you off whenever you’re in the mood.”

“That’s unlikely,” I said.

But truthfully, that was why I didn’t want him to stay.

We’d slept together once. I had let myself give in to what I wanted, and I still wanted it. But I knew it was dangerous to get involved with this man, especially now that I might be carrying his child. I’d take his protection, but I wasn’t letting him take anything more from me.

I could see how this could get incredibly complicated. Hell, things already were complicated. I’d let him come inside me without a condom, with the intention of getting pregnant. That thought sent a thrill down my spine all over again, but I needed to ignore that. I couldn’t keep throwing myself at him and put myself in more danger.

“Either way, doesn’t matter,” he said. He sat down on the couch and kicked his feet up. “I’m staying.”

I clenched my jaw. “Are you always this stubborn?”

“Only when I’m right.”

“Fine. Asshole. I guess I can’t say no. But you’re sleeping on the couch.”

He shrugged, kicking his shoes off. “Fine.”

“What about my bags?”

“They’ll be brought up soon.”

“Good night.”

He raised his drink. “Night, Cass.”

I gave him a look and then retreated back into the bedroom. I collapsed onto the enormous bed and sank into the sheets, letting their soft fibers wrap around me.

What the hell was I doing?

I was deep in the mafia’s compound, surrounded by enemies and allies alike. I was in more danger than I ever had been before in my life.

And yet I just kept thinking about that beautiful, handsome man. That was all I could think about. His body pressed against mine, kissing me, touching me, his cock deep between my legs. I could feel him inside me again, his warm cum filling me.

I had no clue if I was pregnant or not. There was no way of knowing, not yet at least, but I had to assume that I was.

I had no clue what I was going to do with this kid. Rafa had mentioned adoption, and maybe that was an option. Adoption was a really good thing. Some great family that needed a baby but couldn’t have one would take care of our child.

But even just thinking about giving my baby up made my anxiety go crazy.

I couldn’t deal with it. I was exhausted. I snuggled deep under the sheets and closed my eyes, trying to forget about where I was and what was happening.

And I especially tried not to think about the handsome man in the other room and how I desperately wanted him to sneak into my bed and make me feel alive again.





18





Rafa





I hated sleeping on the damn couch, but I knew not to fucking push it.

At least not the first night.

I woke up to the sun streaming in through the windows and grunted. A half-empty bottle of whisky was on the coffee table in front of me, and a hangover was knocking at my skull. I glanced up and saw that the bedroom door was shut.