Page 7 of His Sweet Torment
“A few cousins scattered throughout the country. Claudio is the closest to me. He’s an artist. His sister, Soleil, she died a few years ago.”
Some memory pinged in Padme’s memory at the unusual name. “Are you talking about Soleil Fonseca? The murder down in Los Angeles?” Enver nodded, his eyes sad. “God, that was horrific, I’m so sorry, Enver.”
“Thank you. It was a bad time for us all, especially Claudio.”
Padme shook her head. “So much pain.”
Enver smiled a little and covered her hand with his. “You make it better.”
Padme’s eyes locked on his and then his lips were against hers. God, he was intoxicating… “We can’t do this…” she said, but then lost herself in the kiss. Enver pulled her into his arms and her body curved around his. “Enver…Enver…”
His hands were at the waistband of her pants, his eyes questioning and she could not tell him to stop. A frenzy of stripping and Enver was sliding his huge cock into her as they tumbled to the carpet. They fucked quickly, intensely, smothering their moans with their mouths, lips against lips, skin on skin.
Padme’s legs tightened around his waist as he plowed deeper and deeper into her, her fingernails digging into the finely-honed muscles of his back. She came, dampening her cry of release by pressing her lips to his shoulder as Enver buried his face in her neck to muffle his groan as he came.
They lay together, panting, listening for any sign that they had been heard. There was silence throughout the property. “God,” Padme said, her face flushed, her hair sticking to the sweat on her face. “We really shouldn’t have done that.”
Enver grinned down at her. “I think it was kind of inevitable,cara mia.”
She chuckled quietly. “You’re so cocky. Help me up, big guy, I’m supposed to be protecting you.”
He pulled her to her feet, and they got dressed, pausing to kiss often. Enver persuaded her to go to the large kitchen with him, and they made sandwiches, falling on them as if they were half-starved.
“Food and sex,” Enver grinned at her, “My two favorite things.”
“Keeping you alive, baby, ismyfavorite thing. Seriously, Enver, that has to be the last time until the case is over.”
Enver nodded, sobering up. “I know. I’m sorry, Padme, I could not stop myself.”
“Don’t apologize, I wanted you just as much – Istillwant you,badly, but this is your life we’re talking about.”
“And yours,” he said firmly. He set his sandwich down and ran a hand through his dark hair. “God, I’ll be glad when this thing starts.”
“The D.A. told me you’ll actually be testifying against one of the Ingles’ associates? Not Frederick Ingles himself?”
Enver rolled his eyes. “They won’t arrest Freddy Ingles himself, he’s too important. Their words. They’ll just take his knees out from beneath him. He has deals in place with so many high-ranking government officials in Europe, but the slightest whiff of corruption, they’ll pull out of his deals which will make his organization very hard to deal with.”
Padme blinked. “I just don’t get the business world. I guess I see things in black and white – you make a product, you sell the product, etc. As soon as you get more complicated than that, I’m out. I’ve never asked – what is your line of business?”
“Shipping,” Enver said and grinned when she grimaced. “Well, quite. Really, it was Max who brought me on board. We had known each other since we were kids. After college, I was adrift really – my major was in music – but I didn’t know if I wanted to pursue it as a career. Max inherited his father’s shipping business, and when I joined his company, I found I had a gift for negotiation. After I had brokered a huge deal with the Scandinavian governments, Max made me a partner. His father had run a low-key operation, but we expanded it to become the world’s biggest shipping company. I sound like a brochure.”
Padme burst out laughing as he pulled a face at the end. “A little, but please, go on. Tell me more about Max.”
Enver smiled a little sadly. “He was my best friend, and I loved him, but he got greedy. Unbeknownst to me, he approached Freddy Ingles to broker a deal. The specifics of the deal, I don’t know, but Max came to me one night, telling me he gotten in too deep, that he had underestimated Ingles’ grip once he had Max in his net. He told me a little about what he had discussed with Ingles, but then Ingles had gotten nasty, threatening to kill Max and everyone he loved if Max reneged on the deal. Three days later, Max and his wife, Julia, were murdered in their home. They made Max watch while they stabbed Julia to death, and then cut Max’s throat. They came after me, but I’d been pre-warned and wasn’t where they expected.” Enver let out a shaky breath. “Julia was pregnant when she died.”
“Jesus,” Padme felt a wave of horror flood over her. She didn’t think she had processed how much Enver’s life was on the line until this moment. “Enver…if they’re only going to hobble Frederick’s business, not arrest him, what’s going to stop him pursuing you for the rest of your life?”
Enver smiled sadly. “Nothing. And I’m aware that once I testify, all bets are off. The F.B.I. is under no obligation to keep protecting me.”
Padme wanted to argue, but he was right. “God.”
“I have been offered a pass into witness protection, but I don’t want that.”
Padme gazed at him, distressed. “If it keeps you alive, why not?”
There was a long pause. “Because I have someone who I cannot be parted from, now, Padme, and they wouldn’t let me see you again. I cannot live with that.”
“Oh, Enver…” Padme felt her body go cold at the thought of it. She took a deep breath in. “I can’t be the reason you get killed. I can’t.”
