A Very Wicked Christmas (25 Days of Christmas: Bikers and Mobsters / Club Wicked Mafia)

Prologue

NICK

Ten years ago, I fucked the mob boss’s daughter, and my life hasn’t been the same since. Lust at first sight turned into a flame we can’t put out.

Cheryl and I belong together, and we both know it. Ten long years ago, mob boss, Frank Barnett, her father, and my former employer separated us for her safety.

In the bad old days, I made collections for Frank’s organization—what people in Brooklyn called a leg breaker. I fled to Vegas to start over. Then opened up a mega nightclub right off The Strip, complete with a celebrity DJ, LED light system, and piranhas swimming under the lighted dance floor.

Unbelievably, fate threw Cheryl and me back together—in the craziest place of all—Sin City. Along with another surprise: my ten-year-old daughter, Portia.

Portia’s shocking existence helped seal the peace between Frank and me for the sake of his granddaughter. If someone told me back then that I’d actually be living with the mob boss’s daughter, I would’ve thought they were fuckin’ nuts, but it’s true.

Crazy times—me finding out I have a ten-year-old daughter who not only looks like me, but, according to Cheryl, has my stubborn streak. Of course, Portia and I don’t agree with her.

I immediately want us to be together as a family, but Cheryl’s skeptical and wants to make sure I’m doing this for the right reasons.

How could being with and wanting to get to know my daughter be the wrong reason? Cheryl held strong. Stubborn and feisty: two things I love about her. So, to prove my commitment, I show up at a house she was looking to buy in Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada, and this is where our story continues.

CHERYL

Nick and I stare at each other for a few long minutes.

“You didn’t answer my question.” Nick closes the distance between us. “Do you like the house?”

“I don’t understand.” I frantically search the room for my realtor. “Why are you here?”

I looked at this house last week with my realtor and immediately fell in love with it. Today, I was supposed to meet her here for another look and to make an offer to buy.

“I’ve tried for ten fuckin’ years to get you outta my system, and I can’t. Karma or fate or some other shit threw us back together again, and I’m not letting you slip away. I can’t ignore the way I feel, and neither can you.”

“I know, but—”

“You’re an excellent mother to Portia, and fuck me, but I can’t live without you because when we were apart, I was half dead inside, barely existing—”

“Nick, please—”

“Let me get this out.” He pauses. “We’ve lost so much time already, and I’m not about to lose anymore. I wanna get to know you again, and, most of all, I wanna get to know my daughter and give both of you the best damn life possible.” He grabs my hands in his.

“I know you’re mad I didn’t tell you about Portia sooner.”

“I was, but I was mostly pissed off at not having the chance to make it better for you and her.”

My heart thumps hard at his perfect words.

“I never want anything to separate us again, and from now, on we always tell our truths. No matter how bad or how difficult.”

“When I walked into this house last week, I loved it right away, but a part of me knew something was missing.” I gaze into his dark, soulful eyes, so much like Portia’s. “And here you are when I need you. Saving me.”

“Nah, babe, you don’t need me to save you. You’ve been doin’ that all along. I just wanna be here to catch you if you fall.”

Silent tears wet my face. My man knew how to bring me right to the brink.

He didn’t use flowery phrases or pretty words; he just spoke from his jagged heart.

A heart torn to ribbons, like mine, and although scarred, still able to accept the gift of love.

Along with our beautiful daughter who looks so much like her daddy.

“Even your father is on our side this time. The hard-ass mob boss said if I didn’t do right by you, I’d be swimming with the piranhas in my own damn club.” Nick’s arms encircle my waist, drawing me closer. “Kiss me.”

Nick fulfills me in so many ways. Only with him does the loneliness disappear.

NICK

“Even Samson said to stop acting like a whiny punk and go after what you want.” My long-time friend and business partner actually said, “Stop acting pussy-whipped and quit fuckin’ around.”

“So, the only reason you’re here is because Samson called you out, and you’re afraid of my father?”

“Samson’s always calling me out on some shit, and I think you already know I’m not afraid of your father.” I pull her closer. “The reason I’m here is because I’ve lived half a life way too long, and I’m not about to let you go ever again.”

“Sounds like you’re talking about forever.”

“Damn right, so stop giving me shit.” I lean in and attack her lips, pushing her back against the kitchen island. My hands roam down her back, cupping her ass until she grinds against me, desperate for more.

My frayed self-control unravels. I want to take this slow. Lay her out in bed and savor every part of her silky skin and delicate curves, because logic and restraint vanish when I’m with Cheryl. Ten years ago or now, it doesn’t matter. The urgency, the need for it never lessens.

“I want you to know you never have to be afraid again, ‘cause I see every part of you. Even when you’re scared and trying to act fearless and gutsy.”

Her hand slips between us. “Wow, that’s a lot of words for a man with a raging hard-on.”

“I know what you’re doin’. Playing down the real shit you’ve been through. I never doubt your courage, but from now on, I got you and Portia.”

“Reason why we’re good for each other. Neither one can hide from the other. Even if it’s painful as fuck, we show all sides, good and bad.”

“Right now, I’d like to show you my bad.” I cover her hand with mine, rubbing it over my painfully hard dick. “Or good, depending how you look at it.”

My fingers flip open the button of her shorts and ease down the zipper. I push them to the floor, then loop my forefinger under the lacy elastic of her thong and jerk my wrist until the flimsy material rips away.

“I have a feeling you’re going to be buying me lots of panties in the future.” She smirks. “I also think I’m going to love every minute of it.”

“Damn fuckin’ straight, and, yeah, you’re gonna love it all.” Gripping her waist, I haul her onto the counter.

She shivers when her ass cheeks hit the cold granite. I pull her into another kiss, my fingers frantically pulling at the button and zipper of my pants. I push away the material, then cup her ass again, notching myself between her thighs.

I angle her over my throbbing cock until I have her where I want her. I sink into her heat, and a low growl vibrates in the back of my throat.

“Fuckin’ perfect,” I mumble into the crook of her neck.

I dig my fingers into her hair, tugging her head back, then cover her collarbone with wet kisses. I push into her deeper, and my body shudders from the sheer erotic pleasure of finally having my woman right where I want her—right where I need her.

She anchors her arms around my neck and rides me to fuckin’ glory. I drop my head and watch as Cheryl’s body takes me in over and over again. Our bodies move in sync, and the pressure builds to a glorious level of pain and ecstasy.

My hips thrust faster with the need to make her feel all of me, unforgiving and without reservation. We take and give, neither one backing down.

“Without you, I’m nothing but a thug from Brooklyn,” I mumble against the soft skin of her neck.

Cheryl always lit me up in all the best ways, but this is different. This time, we’re working on forever, and that realization sets off a primal need. It makes everything real and fragile at the same time.

Her nails scratch me through my shirt, as she whispers, “Make that a hot thug from Brooklyn.” Her breath is hot, but her body is on fire.

She milks me with her pussy, pulling me deeper until she owns me, body and soul. My thrusts quicken, each one bringing us closer until she throws back her head, screaming out my name, long and loud.

“Fuck!” I yell as I explode, knowing there’s no going back, no past, just the here and now—together.

I draw in a deep breath, my body savoring the euphoric high of finally being fulfilled. “I guess we gotta buy this house now,” I mumble into her hair. “Seeing as we christened it.”

“Just like the first time, all those years ago,” she adds. “We were always so impatient for each other.”

“Never could wait when you were naked. You fuckin’ light me up from the inside out.”

“Always such a bad boy.”

“And you love it.”

She strokes my cheek. “I love you.”

“And I love you, baby, always.”