Page 172 of Sinfully Savage Mafia

“Take your hand off of me,” she snips, pushing her shoulder into my chest. But I have too firm a grip on her, and if I’m being honest, I’m finally starting to relax and enjoy my visit to the Sapphire Lounge. I’m not really in a rush to let her go.

And she doesn’t seem to be fighting against me too hard, either.

“Jaelyn! There’s a problem with one of the girls!” A high-pitched voice laced with panic pierces the carnal fog clouding us and I loosen my grip on her, backing away. Her full lips stretch into a tight line and in that second, I’m imagining all sorts of things I’d like those lips to do. X-rated images wallpaper my mind when a searing pain shoots up my calf as she drives her high-heel into the toe of my leather shoe.

A loud groan escapes through my clenched teeth and she pushes past me. “Gotta go!” she says in a cheerful voice with a small wave. “Fuck you very much for coming!” And just before she turns away, she flashes a sparkling white smile, the brightest and widest one I’ve seen all night.

So She-Devildoesknow how to do more with her mouth than just spew venom.

Nice.

Let the fantasizing continue.

My eyes drop to the tip of my shoe. She really dug in that heel. Thank fuck for quality Italian leather. I wince, putting weight on it as I turn toward Bruno and Enrico where they’re waiting by the exit.

It isn’t until we’re outside that Bruno opens his mouth, but I hold up a hand to silence them. This is enemy territory and they’re not going to get a single syllable out of us while we’re still on their grounds. Whatever he has to say can just wait.

Once the valet pulls my car around, we all jump inside. I zoom around the circular driveway, peeling down the tree-lined private road headed back to the Strip, not even close to being far enough from the toxic Torres family.

Spying on me like that. As if they can beat us at this game!

Shit. I thought we were dysfunctional, but them?

They’re goddamn nuts.

Especially the girl.

And while that may be fun in some scenarios, the one where I take my big fat rejection to the table doesn’t rate.

I slam my hands down on the steering wheel over and over, letting out a roar of frustration…sexual and otherwise. “What a clusterfuck that was!” I bellow. “What the hell am I gonna tell Matteo? This is just what he wanted, you know. For me to crash and burn like that.” I shake my head. “I didn’t even get to the money part of the offer, for Christ’s sake. They fucking baited me!”

“He was never gonna sell,” Bruno grunts, turning up the air conditioner. Even at night, the Las Vegas heat is oppressive and my car feels like an oven even though it was only sitting outside for less than an hour. “Did you see the line outside when we left? And it’s barely eleven o’clock. That place is packed like that on a weeknight, can you imagine how much cash they bring in on the weekends? You were never gonna get that pie. Not even a slice, Serge.”

“Where the hell did he get the money to build up those clubs, anyway?” Enrico says. “He’s been here for how long? A few years? Who’s his investor? There has to be outside money, no?”

“There isn’t much on him,” I mutter as the trees whizz by. “He and his crazy bitch sister came to Vegas a few years ago. No word on where they came from or why they left. They don’t have a huge organization, either. They keep a small circle, only the best and only who they absolutely need to keep things running smoothly. It’s tight — and lethal enough to keep them in power.”

“If they don’t have backing, it shouldn’t be hard to take them out,” Bruno says. “We have three other families in our back pockets. It’s not a war they’d wanna start.”

“We’re not going to war,” I snip, taking a sharp left. “That’s exactly what Matteo wants me to do, to lose my shit and blast them back to whatever rock they crawled out from under. But I’m not gonna do that. I’ll find another way.” I peer out the windshield into the darkness. My headlights only give me so much visibility. The only other lights illuminating the road right now are shining from the sky.

It all contributes to the exclusive and intriguing vibe.

Goddammit, I want that vibe! I will find a way to own that vibe!

A sudden lurch makes me yelp, and the car bounces and shudders as I let up on the gas.

“What was that?” Bruno asks. “Did you hit something?”

“What, like a cactus?” I say in a snide voice. “I can’t see shit out here right now!”

A thin stream of smoke pours out from under the hood, and within seconds, billowing clouds immerse us.

I swing the car over to the side of the road and hop out. I reach out to pop the hood and the hot metal singes my fingers. I pull them back with a gasp. “Sonofabitch!” I shout at the sky. What in the hell else can go wrong tonight? We’re on a desert road headed back to the city with barely any cell phone service. This area is famous for being a dead zone.

Sitting fucking ducks is all I can think right now.

“What are we supposed to do? Hoof it back to the city?” Bruno asks, throwing his hands in the air.

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