4. Kinslee
FOUR
Kinslee
W ith the remaining drug paraphernalia safely cleared away, I returned to the table, ignoring Thomas’ less-than-subtle glare in my direction. Vanessa gave me a pointed glance from where she was standing next to Federico, back on the bench seat in a casual recline with his black shirt unbuttoned enough to catch a glimpse of dark chest hair and the gleam of a gold chain, looking every bit the rich mafia man I was beginning to suspect he might be. One hand splayed possessively over Vanessa’s lower back, while the other cradled a new, full glass of amber liquid. Vanessa leaned into him, whispering something in his ear, and his brows rose, before he released the glass and crooked his finger at me.
“Thomas, have you visited the restaurant on floor twenty-three? The scallops are to die for,” Vanessa said loudly, strutting around the table to the side I’d been previously seated on, although she remained standing rather than taking a seat. She glanced back at me, and I took the hint, coming up next to Federico. My heart was suddenly pounding as I realised that this was really happening. It wasn’t just a plan in my head. Somehow, I had to get that phone, wherever it was, or at the very least create an opportunity for Thomas to get it.
I let my gaze sweep over Federico’s body under the guise of checking him out, and I suddenly remembered. He’d taken a call earlier. His phone had been in— Fuck. It had been in his right trouser pocket. Not only was I on his left side, but his right side was pressed up against the padded curve of the bench, so there was no way of getting to it.
And now his hand was on my hip, pulling me closer, and Thomas was staring daggers at us… It was up to me to salvage the situation, and that meant I had to follow this wild plan through.
I let myself press into Federico’s side, giving him a sultry smile. Placing my hand on his lower thigh, I met his gaze. “My boyfriend enjoys me flirting with other men.”
He peered around me, his brows lifting. A smirk tugged at his lips. “He does not look as if he is enjoying it, bella . Myself…I am enjoying it. Very much.”
“It’s all part of our foreplay.” Letting my hand trail higher, I leaned in even further, allowing him a good view of my cleavage as he leered at me.
He shifted in his seat, his free hand ghosting over the bulge in his trousers, and I barely managed to stop myself from recoiling. Clearing my throat, I forced the words from my mouth, dropping to a whisper.
“Vanessa mentioned that sometimes you like to play with other women…”
His hand had been moving lower in tiny increments and was right at the top of my ass now. I didn’t dare to look at Thomas.
“Is that something you would be interested in?”
Swallowing hard, I nodded, and he smiled, his fingertips sliding onto the curve of my ass.
“Lose your shadow and come to our room. I trust Vanessa has already given you the number?”
She’s already given me a keycard , I nearly said, but held on to that information, just in case. I didn’t want to get her into any trouble if she wasn’t supposed to give it out.
Instead of replying, I straightened up, blowing him a discreet kiss, and then gave Vanessa a subtle nod. She lifted her glass in acknowledgement, moving back around the table to Federico. As I shifted to give her space, Thomas reached out, pulling me into him, so I was standing in between his legs with his hands on my hips.
His dark eyes glittered at me, his jaw set in a hard line, tension thrumming through his body. Shit. He was fucking livid .
“Finish your drink,” he commanded in a low tone.
I twisted around to pick up my untouched drink, my former glass having been cleared away while I’d been occupied with Vanessa. I noticed Thomas had drained his whisky. Keeping my eyes on him, I lifted it to my lips, letting the chilled liquid slide down my throat. He kept his eyes on me until I’d drained every last drop, and the second I was finished, he manoeuvred me out of the way and rose to his feet.
“We’re leaving,” he ground out from between clenched teeth. Giving Federico a brief nod, he dragged me away, leaving Federico smirking and Vanessa giving me an encouraging smile. Of course, she probably thought I was being dragged off to a hotel room so Thomas could do dirty things to me with his tongue, but in reality, the only thing he’d be doing with his tongue was serving me with my inevitable backlash.
The second the door to our suite was closed behind us, he was on me, trapping me up against the door with his body weight, spitting fire from his mouth.
“What the fuck were you thinking? You’ve jeopardised this entire assignment, and you let him get his hands all over you. Is that what you’re into? A two-bit mafia wannabe who can’t keep his dick in his trousers?”
“I had a plan,” I gasped, heat unfurling in my core, my breaths coming hard and fast as this incredibly angry and incredibly sexy man continued to press into me, holding me in place effortlessly.
“Yeah? What was your plan? To seduce him?”
“What if it was? We need that phone, and I didn’t see you coming up with any ideas.”
He tore himself away from me, pacing up and down, tugging at his hair. “This was supposed to be an easy fucking assignment. Go in, slide the phone out of his pocket while he’s distracted, connect the Bluetooth, then put the phone back. Simple. I’ve done it enough times, and it’s always gone smoothly. Then you come along, trying to be fucking BFFs with Fontana’s mistress, and the next thing I know, he’s got his hands all over you and you’re fucking encouraging it.”
Whirling around, he stalked over to the tech room, shoving the door open. It rebounded off the interior wall with a bang. After a moment of trying and failing to slow my heart rate, I followed him into the room, determined to make him see reason, but he was already speaking to someone through a mic. His glasses were back on, and his jacket was tossed on the floor in a heap.
“She jeopardised the whole fucking assignment. It was supposed to be in and out, a quick, easy job… Yeah, no fucking chance, mate… Fuck. Fine .” He slammed his hand down on a button in front of him, making me jump, and suddenly, Creed’s voice filled the room.
“Kinslee?”
“Hi,” I croaked.
“Hi. Can you tell me what happened tonight? Without Hunter interrupting,” he added in a hard tone.
Hunter .
“Well…um…I didn’t know what was happening. Hunter didn’t tell me anything beforehand, other than the fact he needed to make contact with the mark, and I was supposed to speak when I was spoken to. After he’d pointed our target out to me in the bar, I noticed the people sitting opposite leaving, and I thought it would be a good idea to go over. I-I’m sorry. I didn’t know…”
“See what I mean? I told you I didn’t have time for this babysitting shit. You should’ve sent someone who knew what they were doing, or even better, sent me in alone. You know?—”
“Hunt.” The warning in Creed’s tone stopped his tirade, and he snapped his mouth shut. “This was on you, too. You should have provided Kinslee with clear instructions beforehand. This is her first assignment, and I expected you to walk her through it, not to fucking wing it and hope for the best.”
I glanced over at Hunter, and then cleared my throat, responding to Creed. “When he eventually told me what was happening, when Federico took a call and Vanessa was in the loo, I did my best to salvage the situation. I noticed Federico had been, um, looking at me, so I followed Vanessa and put some feelers out?—”
A muscle ticked in Hunter’s jaw. “So it was your fucking idea to let Fontana get his grubby hands all over you.”
“Yes, and it worked, didn’t it?” I fished the keycard from my bag, brandishing it. “I have a key to their room and an invite from both of them to join them tonight.”
“Is that so?” Creed’s voice sounded again, and there was definite amusement in his tone. It was a direct contrast to the man leaning against the desk with his arms folded across his chest, staring daggers at me from behind his sexy glasses.
“She’s not one of your sirens, Creed,” Hunter bit out.
“We haven’t decided where she’s going to be placed yet. You’re good at rolling with the punches, and it appears Kinslee is too. Deal with it. I’ll expect a report later.” There was a click, and then the room was silent except for the sound of our breaths.
“Fuck.” Hunter ripped off his mic, launching it across the room. He turned on me. “Do exactly as I say. To the fucking letter, okay? Do. Not. Fuck. This. Up.”
“Okay,” I whispered, the seriousness of the situation hitting me. Something flashed in his gaze that looked a lot like worry, but I was sure I was mistaken. Before I could get a closer look, he turned away.
He dug around in a drawer, swearing under his breath. When he straightened up, he beckoned me over, and I crossed the room on shaky legs.
“I’m gonna be in touch the whole time, okay?” There was still a hard edge to his voice, but his tone was noticeably softer. “You’ll be able to communicate with me through this earpiece. Just don’t let Fontana or his mistress see it, whatever you do. Keep it covered by your hair. I should be able to get in and out before things go too far, but—” He cut himself off with a shake of his head. “I will get in and out before that asshole has a chance to get his hands on you.”
“Good, because I’m not going anywhere near his dick.” That was not what I’d signed up for. No shade to anyone who did things like that, but it was not something I’d prepared for or ever wanted to do.
“He’s not getting his dick anywhere near you. I’ll fucking incapacitate him before that happens,” Hunter promised darkly, and I believed him.
After another set of instructions, I was ready to go. I detoured to the bathroom, dabbing at my lipstick with a tissue and smearing it a little, then removing my hairband and messing up my hair, so it would look as if I really had spent some time getting down and dirty with Hunter. No. Thomas.
I was Lindsey Davenport, postgrad student and seducer of mafia men.
It was time for me to play.