Thirty-Nine
Bianca
W e watched three movies back-to-back-to-back in Vincent’s room before the screen dimmed without him moving it onto the next movie.
“I hate this,” he said with a sigh.
So did I. Both Dominic and Levin had left me high and dry.
And God, I’d told Dominic I loved him. How pathetic was I?
It had settled in my guts over the past week.
It had been a stupid move. He’d been avoiding me ever since.
So had Levin, which wasn’t unusual. They’d left Vincent to look after me.
I was sure he had better things to do. Even if he did, he didn’t seem to mind.
“How about we play a game?”
“Aren’t we already?” I asked dryly.
Vincent smirked at me. “Come on. It’ll be fun.”
I sighed. “Fine. What is it?”
“We tell each other a secret. I’ll go first.”
I looked at him. He was willing to tell me secrets? He gave me another smile and lifted his brows, waiting for my answer.
Screw it.
“OK,” I said, staring up at the ceiling.
The room was dark, the only light coming from the TV screen frozen on the Netflix dashboard.
“OK. I’ll go first,” he said, sinking back next to me, his arms folded behind his head. “I lost my virginity to a twenty-something-year-old escort on Halloween four years ago.”
“What?” I looked over at him.
“Dom’s dad had a party. Big event. Everyone who was anyone was there. His dad paid money for this escort for Dom. Dom didn’t want her.” He shrugged. “She was paid for, so I did it.”
“That’s gross.” I wrinkled my nose at the information.
“It was a hellavu lot of fun. I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing, but I learned quickly. That way I didn’t have to disappoint someone I cared about later. It worked out for me.” His head tipped back, his face impassive.
“Did you at least use a condom?”
“Of course,” he scoffed. “I was horny, not stupid. Your turn.”
I sighed, shaking my head at his secret.
“Fine. Um … I don’t know.” I swallowed thinking about Dom and Levin.
I knew this was Vincent’s way of getting me to talk without forcing it out of me.
“I’m scared I mean nothing to everyone. My mom doesn’t seem to care.
She hasn’t even checked on me since they dropped me off here.
I love her and miss her. I miss the way she used to be.
She changed with David. My dad’s gone. Hail hurt me.
David hurt me. Everyone hurts me.” My mind flashed to losing Fallon too. I hated this game.
“And Dom and Levin hurt you,” he said quietly.
I nodded, my throat tight.
“For what it’s worth, B, they do care. It’s just hard for them. Neither one has ever given a shit about a girl before. Then you came here and obliterated everything they ever knew.”
“I did nothing but become a plaything.”
“You’re more than that. So much more. They just haven’t figured it out yet.”
I huffed out a breath and continued, letting the words tumble out of my mouth before I could stop them. “I told Dominic I loved him.”
Vincent stiffened beside me, wordless.
“He. . .he didn’t say it back. He told me it was the wrong answer,” I whispered.
“And Levin, I-I feel something for him too. I never imagined he’d want me back though.
Then he did. But he told me flat out it was a one-night thing.
I’d be stupid to think otherwise, but my heart…
” I twisted my fingers in the hem of the t-shirt I wore.
“It still wants him. Dom too. And neither wants me.” My voice cracked before I fell silent. It felt good to get the words out.
“They’re idiots,” Vincent said gently after an agonizing minute of silence. “Fucking idiots.”
“I fell for someone else too. Someone I shouldn’t have. He left me because it couldn’t work because of all the shit involved. It hurt so much, and maybe that’s why I did all that stuff with Levin. I think we were both hurting and acted too quickly. Now, whatever we could have had is ruined.”
Since I was messing everything up anyway, I decided to cut the head off the snake. At this point in the game, it didn’t much matter.
“Then there’s you… Always nice to me. Always acting like you give damn when no one else does.” I turned my head to look at him and found he was already staring back at me.
I reached out and traced my fingers along his plump bottom lip. “I-I want you too. But I’m scared if I make the leap, you’ll let me fall just like they did and then not help me pick up the pieces.”
He was quiet for a moment before he spoke, his voice soft. “Baby B, you told more than one secret. That’s not how the game works.” He reached out and drew me closer to him as he rolled onto his side. “But I’ll keep playing.”
My heart thundered in my chest as he leaned in and brushed his lips against mine. His kiss was soft. Gentle. Sweet. Tentative. Like he was testing me to get a reaction.
“For the record, I like you a helluva lot too. And if you fall, I’ll be there to catch you. I’m not a runner.”
My heart skipped at the prospect of what he was saying to me.
“Tell me more,” he said, pulling me closer.
I rested my head onto his chest as he held me.
He hadn’t pushed me for more. He didn’t demand anything of me. Instead, he wanted to know more.
“I miss my dad. I’m scared something terrible happened. I have no answers.”
“Nor do I,” he said. “I’ve checked. I never heard of him before I met you.”
“My mom said he was in trouble with gambling. That he owed Dominic’s dad money.
I’ve gone through a lot of crap to not get any answers.
Before I left home, I snooped through all my mom’s stuff, looking for clues.
Any unknown number, I called. Any unexplained address, I checked.
I asked all his old friends, co-workers.
No one knew anything. I called hospitals seeing if he’d been admitted.
I even asked if there were John Does there.
I’ve spent hours on my computer reading articles about bodies found within a hundred-mile radius of here in the weeks he first disappeared, seeing if any of those unclaimed people might be him. All of them … dead ends.”
“Maybe we aren’t asking the right questions.” Vincent ran his fingers through my waves, soothing me. “Granted, I haven’t been digging as much as I should have. I’m sorry for that.”
“I understand,” I murmured.
“I’ll start looking harder, OK?”
I nodded against him. “Levin said he hadn’t heard of him either.”
“Doesn’t surprise me. We tend to remember the people we fuck up. He isn’t anywhere near our list.”
I supposed that was a good thing at least.
“I’ll talk to Dom. See what he knows. He might have some insight.”
“Thank you.”
“Of course,” he said, kissing the top of my head.
We lay like that for a long time, me listening to the soft thud of his heart.
“B?”
“Yeah?”
“If you could have us all, would you want us?” His voice came out thick and low.
I bit my bottom lip, knowing exactly what I wanted. “Yes.”
He reached out and shifted me, tilting my chin up. His lips brushed against mine again, sending a flurry of emotions surging within me.
I let him lead. When he deepened the kiss, I cradled his face, the stubble on his cheek rough against my palm.
Vincent kissed me like he didn’t want to hurt me. He was gentle, sweet, his tongue sliding against mine as his hand moved beneath my t-shirt to hold me to him.
“I won’t hurt you,” he murmured against my lips. “Believe me.”
I nodded, desperate to believe him. “Yes.”
“Just don’t hurt me , baby B. Promise me.”
“Promise,” I said, eager for more of his soft kisses.
When his hand slid beneath my sweats, I shifted onto my back to allow him easier access. He took it and pushed my pants down, taking my panties with them. I wasn’t sure where we’d end up, but I didn’t hate any of the possible destinations.
His fingers slid along my slick slit, making me tremble at his warm, tender touch.
“Do you want me to touch you?” he asked as he teased me without burrowing through my wet folds with his fingers.
“Please,” I managed to rasp.
“Spread your legs wider for me,” he said softly. “So I can bury my face in your pussy and taste all that sweet honey you have for me.”
He nudged my legs open as my breathing picked up. Within moments, he was between my legs, peering up at me.
“Hold onto something,” he said, giving me that sexy smirk I knew so well. “And don’t let go.”
I gasped as he swept his tongue up my aching center and burrowed through my folds, finding my sensitive bundle of nerves. He lavished attention on my clit, making me moan, each lash of his tongue making my body quake with my impending release.
Vincent wasn’t kidding. I twisted my fingers in his sheets as he licked and sucked, his fingers pushing into my pussy and hooking inside me. First one finger, then another as his tongue continued its mission on pushing my buttons.
I moaned, shoving my pussy to his face and bucking shamelessly. He grunted his approval, his free hand moving to grip on my hip, pulling my center as close to his face as possible.
“Vinny,” I said breathlessly, a flurry of heat sweeping through my body before it completely engulfed me. The orgasm raked through me.
He cleaned me with his tongue, swallowing all I had to give him, his fingers still buried inside me as he kissed my clit gently.
Vincent Valentino knew how to use that mouth of his.
And his fingers. God, his fingers.
“Relax,” he breathed out against my heat.
I tried to as he gathered my wetness with his finger and circled the tight ring of my backside.
“Vinny, I’ve never—”
“Trust me,” he said, pushing his finger gently past the ring.
I cried out as his mouth met my heat again, his finger moving slowly into my ass.
The feelings were so intense that I reached out and held his face between my legs, moaning as another orgasm racked my body at unprecedented speed and force. My cheeks heated when I felt the dampness run down my ass onto his mattress from the explosion I’d just had.
“That’s a fucking beautiful mess,” Vincent said as I released his hair, his face glistening from being buried between my legs. “Fuck, baby. I’ve never had a girl come like that before. I’ll gladly sleep in the wet spot.”
My skin reddened more at his words, but he was quick to wipe his face and move up my body, pressing his lips to mine. I could taste myself on him.
“I’m a bad person,” I said between kisses. “I shouldn’t feel the way I feel for all of you.”
“Mm, I like it,” he said, nipping my bottom lip. “Don’t feel bad. I want this. They do too. Promise.”
“Swear?”
“On my life.” His tongue slid into my mouth, and that was the end of that.
I’d believe anything he told me at that moment.
Soon our kisses slowed to a sweet waltz until they stopped altogether. Vincent had me back in his arms, my sweats back in place.
“What about you?” I asked softly.
“I have all I need right now,” he answered giving me a tight squeeze and kissing the top of my head.
I snuggled closer as another movie played in the background.
Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad. One king was better than none, and Vincent Valentino was one hell of a prize to be won.
My mind wandered to Fallon.
I closed my eyes envisioning him joining me and the kings.
Sometimes all a girl had were her dreams.