A Test of Love: Interracial Erotic Romance (Chasing Love) (15 page)

“M-my dad cut someone up on a beach?” Vivian mumbled.

“No. It’s a long story. Chase killed the man. . .by accident, well, because the man was raping Lucy, and your father basically took care of it,” I said.

“By cutting the body into pieces?” Vivian asked.

I looked to Troy or Chase for help. They turned away.

Cowards.

“What the hell does my father do?” Vivian directed that question at Chase.

“He’s an attorney.”

“Fuck you!” Vivian spit those two words out. “What does he really do?”

“He represents the interests of people who have been investing in my family’s businesses as well as many other wealthy men all over the world,” Chase said. “These people aren’t the mafia or some sort of drug cartel. They’re men in suits with families and longstanding respectable images in their communities. However, behind closed doors they invest in heavy things from war weapons to my field of global entertainment. I don’t know all the ones on top. Benny deals with them. He’s the middleman. And with the way Benny solves his problems, I don’t think I ever want to meet the people on top.”

Vivian’s bottom lip quivered. “Do they have a name?”

“No. According to Benny, names give people somewhere to point to and investigate, so he says ‘my’ or ‘our’ friends,” Chase said. “Dad had to deal with them when my grandfather handed over everything to him. Now, I’m involved with Benny’s friends.”

“Meanwhile, in between these shady deals, my dad just kills people like it’s a hobby?” Vivian began gnawing on her thumbnail.

I snatched the hand away from her mouth and patted it. “I’ve never heard of Benny killing anyone.”

“Oh, yes. I forgot. Dad just gets rid of dead bodies.”

I had nothing to say after that. “Well, we’re off topic. What we need to figure out is why Benny is even here in the first place. He obviously knew about the beach search and that we were here.”

“He’s bugged my home.” Chase began typing into his phone.

“Chase’s men suck,” Troy said. “No wonder women have been dying around you. The number one suspect, Lucy, hired them all. Then you have Benny’s men ordering them around because they’re soft, punks. You need a whole new group of men.”

“I plan to replace everyone today,” Chase said.

“With heavy hitters?” Troy asked.

“Exactly.”

“Get my brothers out and they’ll be the best—

“Oh, hell, no.” I put my hand out to say stop. “Sherman and Mike are in jail for a reason. They don’t know how to deal with problems in society in a way that won’t get someone killed, emotionally harmed, or severely injured.”

“And Sherman scares the shit out of me,” Vivian admitted.

“He’s just a bit intense,” Troy said.

“My money goes far, but not that far, Troy.” Chase stood up and paced. He’d been pacing a lot more lately and walking through these days with grim looks. “One thing is correct. My security sucks.”

“Sucks balls,” Troy added.

“Thank you, Troy. Duly noted.” Chase took out his phone and headed away. “Jasmine, I’ll be in my office next to our bedroom. Let me make some calls and get this taken care of. I need men who won’t bow down to anyone, not Lucy or Benny. I have to keep the best around you.”

“But, baby—”

He’d already left without a further word.

The room went silent for a few seconds. No doubt, everyone pondered what had already transpired and what would soon come. It was bittersweet for me. I suspected Lucy or Dawn, but never had proof. The missing gun was my assurance. Yet neither woman could be found and now Benny walked around in the shadows of Atrani, doing what he always tended to do, stir up madness and shovel sand over secrets.

Why are you going so crazy to protect me, Benny? Is that really why you’re here, or are there secrets of your own that you’re scared will be revealed? There’s no way you love me so much to rush out here. If you did, then wouldn’t you have told me you were my dad long ago?

Vivian’s words broke the silence. “It’s like I have no idea who the hell my dad ever was.”

Troy got up and readied himself to leave. “Well, once we get this crazy bitch with a gun far away from Jazz, then we can spend our time finding out exactly who Benny is.”

Chapter 15

TROY

This is probably stupid, but I just don’t give a fuck.

On the beach, Viv and I lay under the stars. Sure, we each had our own blanket with three feet of space between us, but we would be kidding ourselves if we thought this moment wasn’t something more between a man and woman, or even. . .siblings. We were far apart, but so fucking close I drowned in her scent, just hoping to die in that moment when silence mingled with stars and our problems existed far behind us.

She’d followed me here, or more like refused to stop walking behind me as I marched to the beach. I couldn’t sleep or think. The foundation of Chase’s house had caved in on me. The ceiling reminded me of jail, the lies of home. I had to get out of there. The urge to break out overtook me.

But I didn’t really escape.
I inhaled Viv’s perfume.
Naw. Some problems stay close no matter what I do to run from them.

“I thought you always hated the sunrise.” Viv said.

“I’m not here for the sunrise. I’m here to watch the dark sky, just for a little bit longer.” My feet weren’t on the blanket like the rest of my body. They lay in a hill of cool sand. It was the story of my life. No bed ever truly fit me. No blanket could ever cover all of me. My toes usually remained cold and dangling.

“So you’re here for the stars, as usual?” Viv asked.

“Yes.”

“And what are they telling you tonight?”

“To take Jazz and go home.”

“No way. Which one is saying that? I like that star.”

I closed my eyes. “Why did you come out here with me, Viv?”

“Because I didn’t want to be in that house. It’s like a prison. I couldn’t breathe. You know how I am when I get like that. I just needed to get out of whatever artificial foundation I’m housed in, take off my shoes, and sink my toes into the earth. It makes me feel connected. All of this stuff out here is breathing. It’s alive—the ocean, sky, grass, trees, all of it. I just feel better when I’m linked into nature. You know what I mean. We’re alike that way.”

I refused to agree. With the way I was feeling, anything that reminded me of how good we could be together would just simply push me over the edge.

“What was that thing you used to always say in your letters right before you put ‘Love, Troy’?”

“I don’t remember.”

“You’re such a liar.”

“You are, too. You remember what I would say.”

She blew out a long breath. “Of course I remember. How can I ever forget? You would always say, ‘Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light; I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night.’”

She just won’t let me forget us.

“Why did you always put that in your letters?” she asked.

“Because like the night, your love was the only thing I wasn’t afraid of.”

My body hummed with the memories of the nights when I wrote those letters. Only the moonlight helped me see. Night could be a dangerous time in prison. Guys chose to kill when the lights turned off. Others masturbated and at times decided that their hands were no longer enough, and that maybe that guy in the cot next to them would fit just right. I didn’t sleep much at night, not because of the dangers. My brothers kept me safe. Half the time their reputations alone served as enough of a deterrent to stay away from me. No. I wrote to Viv and gazed at the stars.

“You never told me who wrote those two lines.” Viv disturbed my thoughts.

“This poet named Sarah Williams.”

“They’re’ beautiful. I’ve always thought that.” The sound of rustling came from her side. She must’ve been moving. I kept my eyes closed, hoping she wouldn’t come over to me like she would when we were together. But she did. Viv laid her head against my chest. My body stiffened. I did my best to not breathe her in anymore, run my fingers through her silky hair, or even capture her lips with mine. I remained still and just allowed myself these seconds of her on me. Guilt mingled with lust. Desire tussled with logic. Viv would let me fuck her if I asked. There was no doubt. Her body shivered against mine, and it wasn’t the cool wind brushing against our skin. She always trembled when I kissed or touched her, as if just I alone could stir her hormones into a bustling frenzy.

“I miss you,” she whispered.

Why is she doing this? Why can’t she just let us go?

“Do you remember what you used to say in your letters about the stars?” she asked.

“No.”

“You’re such a liar. How could you forget?”

“Because none of that means anything to me anymore.”

She hit me on the chest. It was a pitiful little thump with no strength. I’d had kittens do more damage to my body. Opening my eyes, I took her off my chest, edged back a little, rolled over on my side, and glared. I shouldn’t have. So close, she was goddamn too much. That soft, pale flesh glowed in the moonlight. I yearned to touch her, slip my fingers along her skin, and taste every cell. I’d done it before, torn her clothes off, bent her over, and taken her from behind like I couldn’t breathe unless my dick pushed through that silky opening. God, I could taste her flesh on my tongue in that moment. It was salty and sweet, lush and strong enough to wear the imprint of my teeth and the red spots where I’d sucked for too long out of pure madness.

“Why did you hit me?” I risked a look at her breasts. Her nipples were stiff and pushing against her shirt’s thin fabric. I craved to release them and lick those little pink nubs until they swelled and puckered out just how I liked. She would moan and scratch my back like a wild woman, and by God, once she got a hold of my dick, it was over.

“I hit you because you’re being an asshole.”

“How’s that?” I couldn’t direct my view away, and thank God she didn’t seem to notice. A burning sensation pulsed through my dick, heating it up and causing my buddy to rise. He didn’t give two shits about her being family. All he yearned for was to slide in and out of that juicy flesh between her thighs, so pink and ripe for licking. And I did, back in the day, a whole lot. I licked her pussy so much, she’d scream until her throat ripped raw and her body grew limp. One time, she actually shed tears, mumbling that I’d consumed her.

“Did you even hear what I said?” Viv snapped her fingers. “Troy?”

“What?”

“Stop trying to close me out!” Viv yelled, her breasts jiggled with all the emotion in her chest. She knew what that did to me. It made me crazy when she got loud. So crazy I would resort to ripping away those clothes and doing all the things I’d been trying not to dream of doing.

“Viv I just can’t—”

“I’m not asking you to fuck me. Okay? I’m just asking you not to forget.”

Sighing, I dragged away my gaze from those lovely mounds and returned to her face. “Not forget what?”

“Me.”

“I couldn’t even if I tried and put all of my energy into it.”

That had to have pleased her for a few seconds because she lay back down. “Do you remember what you used to say to me about the stars?”

“Yes. I told you that whenever I had the chance, I would point out as many stars as I could and tell you their names.”

She formed her lips into a big smile. “Well, here we are. The stars are above us. We’ve got nothing but time.”

“The sky will light up in two hours.”

“Fine. We have some time constraints.”

“This is stupid.”

“Come on.”

“Damn, Viv.” I rubbed my face. “What stars do you want to know?”

“The cool ones.”

“They’re all cool to me.”

“The most popular ones like the Big Dipper.”

I searched the sky. So far out in this distant land, the stars were clearer than they were in Oshane City’. They glittered and danced. Viv’s haunting fragrance swirled around me, teasing my nostrils and shifting my body into overdrive. With the night’s beauty and her body, I would be regretting several things by tomorrow morning.

“We should leave.” I couldn’t even turn her way. My gaze remained on those brilliant jewels above me, so far, yet utterly linked to my soul. They had to be, because for all my life, these stars floated high and guarded my fear when I sat on my juvie cots and later jail bunkbeds. In dark moments, the sky was all I had. A small square window so high above me that I was forced to strain my neck to get a perfect view. But I did, every night, and usually fell asleep to them sparkling.

“Just show me three big constellations,” Viv begged.

I pointed up to the brightest star in the sky. “That’s the North Star. In relation to both dippers, it’s like the center of a Ferris wheel. Every day the Big and Little Dipper go around the North Star once.”

“Okay, so the North Star is right there?”

“The brightest one?”

“Yeah, but wouldn’t this be a different view from Oshane?”

“Italy is still in the northern hemisphere so we should be straight.”

She lowered her head and stared at me. “You’re so smart.”

I lifted her chin back up to the sky. “Stop trying to woo me. So the Big Dipper pretty much appears like a bowl with a handle. “

“I think I see something right there.” She gestured in the general direction of the Big Dipper.

“Yeah. If you draw an imaginary line with those stars does it make a bowl and handle?”

She commenced with painting a picture on the night’s canvas, something more than a handle, but it took her longer than it should have. Giggling, she added swirls and delicate hearts between stars, and every now and then I could’ve sworn she drew in a body or two.

“Thank you.” Licking her lips, she turned my way and trapped me into a kiss. Shock hit me first and then a bolt of lust, so hard my teeth chattered a little before opening my mouth and letting her tongue enter.

Why can’t I get you out of my head?

She moaned against me. It shattered my senses—my ears filled with the sensual sound, my nose drank in her perfume, and my fingers skipped along her soft skin. Trembling, she watched my reaction. Those eyes pierced mine like they always did. She was the only woman I knew who could stare into my eyes the whole time I fucked her. She loved seeing my reactions to her, relished in the whole moment of it all—our moist bodies sliding against each other. Her body full with me. My body overdosing on her. She embraced her sexuality and loved everything about us.