Step Brother: Off Limits (7 page)

Actually picking up the gun and ink had always been the fun part of the job for me.

Gordon’s agent, Rob, had agreed to tag along for the duration of the tour in case we needed any problems handled. He had our itinerary, and it was his job to make sure we knew where and when to show up for our appearances.

I stretched and threw my backpack over my shoulder when I stepped out onto the tarmac. “So what’s the plan, Rob?”

He put on his sunglasses and flipped through a binder. “A Natalia Perrini is supposed to meet us here and take us to the hotel.”

Gordon ran his hand through his hair and scanned the tarmac. “Good God, I hope that’s our Natalia,” he said, nodding toward a tall, thin, and impossibly gorgeous woman who walked toward us.

She wore a simple, but perfectly fitted black suit and sky high heels that made her just a few inches shorter than I was. She approached, tossed her long, dark hair, and all three of us were completely mesmerized.

“
Buon giorno
, gentlemen.” Of course she had a sexy voice and an irresistible accent. “Welcome to Rome. I’m Natalia, and I’ll be taking care of you on behalf of Pussy Katt while you’re here. Ms. Katt left me very strict instructions that you are to be made comfortable while you are here.” She focused on my father. “Mr. Gentry, it is a great pleasure to make your acquaintance. And this must be Mr. Robert Greaves.” She shook both men’s hands as they stared at her, dumbfounded. Turning her attention to me, she looked me up and down. “And you must be Mr. Reed Randolph. I am very pleased to meet you.”

I couldn’t quite interpret the expression on her face, but if I had to try to put it into words, I’d call it raw lust. Her gaze raked my arms, taking in my tattoos, and it was like she could see my body underneath my clothes. Though I’d never had it happen before, just looking at her, and having her look at me with her frank, intent stare, gave me the beginnings of a hard-on. Goddamn, was she hot. And probably trouble.

I took her hand, finally finding my tongue. “Nice to meet you. We’re looking forward to our stay in Rome.” I was proud of myself for having strung together two sentences in the face of such beauty.

“Your baggage?” she asked.

“Should be unloaded momentarily,” Rob told her, finally able to speak. “How long will it take to get to the hotel? Gordon and Reed have an interview scheduled in two hours.”

“Oh, that will be no problem. The hotel is about forty minutes drive from here.” She looked at me, as if she was picturing me naked. “You’ll even have time to take a shower, if you like.”

“I’ll be fine,” I replied to no one in particular. “The flight wasn’t very long, and I have some phone calls to make before the interview.”

“As you like,” Natalia replied.

The bags arrived and the driver loaded them into the back of a long, black limousine that whisked us away from Fiumicino Airport. Natalia had seated herself next to Gordon along the back seat of the limousine, facing the long seats along the sides, where Rob and I sprawled comfortably.

“Prosecco?” she asked, sitting with her knees together and pointed to one side—a position that would have been prim and proper had it not been for the fact that her skirt was hiked up just far enough that I could see the top of her stockings. Black lace, of course.

“Hell, yeah,” Gordon answered, in true rockstar form. “Boys, we’re on tour. Let’s fuckin’ enjoy it!”

I tried to tell myself that Natalia didn’t hold my gaze any longer than she had with Gordon or Rob when she handed me the flute of sparkling wine. I knew she had, though. Goddamn, I’d just gotten to Italy, and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it out of the country without doing something I’d regret.

My last phone call with Tatum had been tense. I’d finally had to tell her that the tour was sponsored by a porn star—the very same porn star I’d be tattooing on camera when we finished the tour in Amsterdam. I’d told Tatum that I wouldn’t sleep with anyone else but her, and I’d promised I’d be on the first plane home to Vegas when the tour ended. It wasn’t so much that she acted like she didn’t believe me; it was more like she didn’t really care. I’m a man of my word, but I had a strong feeling that Natalia was going to put me to the test.

I stared out the window as I drank my wine, trying to pay attention to the city—one I never really thought I’d ever have the chance to visit. I hadn’t looked at the hotels we were booked into, but Rob had assured us he’d insisted on suites in some of the top hotels in each city. I knew I wouldn’t have any other chance in my life to enjoy such VIP treatment, and I was determined to soak it all up. The buildings—many of them with rooftop terraces and trailing plants—didn’t look like anywhere else I’d ever been.

We exited the highway and wound through streets so packed with little cars and scooters that I couldn’t imagine how anyone managed to avoid daily fender benders. I lost track of the number of sights Natalia pointed out, and it was as we drove by the Colosseum, Gordon and Rob practically hanging out the window, that Natalia caught my eye. She’d hiked her skirt up even higher on her stocking-clad legs, and before I realized what she was doing she spread her knees far apart, giving me a full view of her perfectly shaved, completely naked pussy. I had an instant erection. She spread her knees even further, and I could see her perfect pink opening glistening beneath her modest black suit. It was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen. This beautiful Italian woman was offering herself to me, and all I could think was how upset Tatum would be if she found out.

Gordon turned to talk to Natalia, and she quickly put her knees together and slid her skirt down over her thighs. I wasn’t sure if he’d realized what had been going on.

Glad we had a bit of a drive before I’d have to stand up, when we pulled in front of the hotel I was relieved my hard-on had subsided.

“You are very near to some of the best shopping in Rome,” Natalia told us as we climbed out of the limo. “You can find perfumes, scarves, shoes, and even lingerie, should you wish to shop for a girlfriend.” She looked straight at me. “Or a mistress.”

I felt turned on and flustered all at the same time. “I think we’ll be too busy to shop. I have appointments scheduled starting tonight, I think.”

“Yes, you do,” Natalia said, putting her hand through my arm. “Pussy Katt herself will be there this evening to meet you and watch you work. Do you mind if I accompany her? I would love to watch you. I might even get some more ink myself.”

“You have tattoos?” I was surprised, given her elegant appearance.

“
Si
,” she answered with a smile. “Just let me know if you would like to inspect them. It’s something best done in private, though. They are in rather … intimate places, Reed.”

Jesus, I was going to melt down if I didn’t get away from her. “Maybe later,” I said, extracting myself from her clutches. “I have those calls to make.”

She got us checked in at the front desk and went with us to all three rooms to make sure we were pleased with the accommodations. She saved my room for last, so—of course—I was alone with her.

“So, what do you think?” she asked, turning slowly around to face me from the middle of the large suite.

I was stunned. The room was spectacular. “It’s wonderful.” I walked to the window and looked out, surprised to see the Colosseum not far away. “Wow, the view’s magnificent.”

“Glad you like it.”

Natalia’s voice had come from the other room, so I followed her to look at the rest of the suite. I stopped in my tracks when I entered the bedroom. She was bent over the end of the large bed, one knee up and her skirt pulled up to reveal the perfect curve of her ass.

“What do you think of the view in the bedroom, Reed?” she asked, turning to look at me over her shoulder.

“I think it looks like a view my girlfriend would dislike.”

“Oh, I don’t mind if your girlfriend joins us in bed. I like women very much.”

I turned around and walked out of the room. I couldn’t stay there without touching her, and I knew if I touched her, I’d end up balls deep in no time. I was not going to break my promise to Tatum.

Natalia walked back into the living room, seemingly unperturbed by my abrupt rejection of her offer. “You know, if you’d like to see what you’re missing out on, you can check out my YouTube channel.” She dropped a business card on the desk. “Take a look. I’ll see you this evening.” She kissed me on both cheeks and left the room.

I was dying to see her YouTube channel, but I had a feeling I knew what would be on there. She worked for a porn star. She was clearly in the same line of work. Maybe when I finished my day, I’d take the time to pull up a video or two. Jerking off wasn’t cheating, after all, and since Tatum wasn’t with me, I was clearly going to have to take matters into my own hands.

I was just about to leave the office to pick up some lunch when the phone at my desk rang. I looked at it, a little surprised because the office phones hardly ever rang. In fact, I’d wondered why we even had phones on the desk, but my boss had shushed me right away and told me one of the partners was a bit of a Luddite. Apparently he’d have preferred it if we sent smoke signals to our colleagues and clients. I laughed as I wondered how he handled email.

“Tatum Monroe,” I answered with a smile.

“Ms. Monroe, you don’t know me, but I have something you need to hear.”

Well, that was certainly unusual. “Okay.” I pulled a pen from the cup on my desk and flipped my legal pad to a fresh page.

“You are acquainted with a Tina Monroe, I assume?”

I was instantly apprehensive. “Yes.”

“A messenger will arrive with a folder for you. The contents are yours to deal with as you see fit.”

“What’s in the folder?”

“I don’t want to discuss it over the phone. And if you tell anyone where you got the folder from, I will not only deny it, but I’ll have you charged with theft.”

“I haven’t stolen a thing! Who is this?”

“Your father is an old friend of mine, and I recently came across some paperwork that … well … concerns me. I want someone who’s in a position to act to see it before it’s too late to stop what’s going to happen.”

“Look, mister. This is all mysterious and shit, but what the hell is going on?”

“You’ll know as soon as you open the folder. It should be there shortly. And don’t forget. If you tell anyone I gave it to you, you will regret it.”

He hung up.

I replaced the phone and shook my head, having trouble processing what I’d just heard. I decided to head to the front desk just in case the folder came early, hoping I could see who delivered it. If I was going to piece this little mystery together, I wanted to have all the information I could gather.

“Has anything arrived for me?” I asked the young woman at the front desk.

“Let me look,” she said, turning in her chair to scan the boxes labeled with each employee’s name. “Ms. Monroe. There’s an envelope for you.”

“When did it arrive?”

“No idea. I’ve been here since eight-thirty except for a couple of bathroom breaks, but I haven’t had anything arrive via messenger, and the mail’s not here yet.”

“Hm,” I said, taking the folder from her outstretched hand. “Thanks. Let me know if anything else arrives.”

“Will do.”

I carried the large envelope back to my desk and examined it on the way. It didn’t have any markings on the outside except for my name and the name of my firm. I opened it and slid out a plain black pocket folder. In the left hand side, I found copies of one month of statements from the equity group that I knew handled many of my father’s investments. I skimmed the papers, noticed both my father’s and Tina’s names attached to the account, and I also noticed several large withdrawals: one for seventy thousand dollars about two weeks ago, and a more recent one in the amount of one hundred twenty thousand dollars. Idly speculating that perhaps my father had withdrawn money for campaign expenses, I dropped the folder on my desk as a horrifying thought occurred to me.

What if he’d done something illegal with the money? What if he’d bribed someone again?

My face flooded with color as anger swept over me, and I could feel tears filling my eyes as I hoped I was somehow mistaken. Had he really done this to his family again?

I sat back down and looked at the paperwork on the right side of the folder, pulling it out and realizing it was another statement, this time for a bank I’d never heard of in the Cayman Islands. My eyes widened as I noticed the damning details—the account only bore a single name: Tina Monroe, and there were two deposits, in the same amounts as the withdrawals from the investments account.

Shaking my head, I replaced the statements in the folder and closed it. At first glance, I knew one of two things was going on. Either my dad and Tina were trying to avoid paying taxes on some of Dad’s money, or Tina was stealing money from my dad.

The trouble was, I didn’t know how to figure out which scenario was the truth. I needed some help.

I picked up my cell phone, realizing there was only one person I could call, and I hoped I wasn’t making a huge mistake.

“Stanford Boyle, at your service,” he said when he answered my call on the very first ring.

“Hey, Stanford, I hate to bother you, but I need some help. Any chance you’re free for lunch?”

“For you, dear Tatum, I’d move heaven and earth. Let me make a phone call and bump an appointment, and I’m all yours.”

Gack. He was just over the top, but I needed him. There was no other way. “Sounds great. Meet me at my place?”

“Oh, absolutely,” he said, sounding far more thrilled than I wanted to hear. “Can I bring anything?”

“No. I’ll just make us an omelet or some sandwiches, if that’s okay. Mostly, I just need to bounce some things off you, and I don’t want to do it in a public place.”

“No problem.” He still sounded excited, even though I hoped he realized there was no way in hell I was going to sleep with him.

“See you in half an hour?”

“Perfect.”

I was pretty sure we had enough food in the fridge to whip up something for lunch, so I headed straight home. It wasn’t until I was halfway there that it occurred to me that I could have called Reed. We were halfway through the month he was supposed to be gone, and we’d actually only talked a couple of times. With the time difference and the fact that every photograph of him in the tabloids showed him having the time of his life, I was starting to have less and less faith that things were going to work out between us. We hadn’t recreated the super hot phone sex, and I could hear women in the background the last time we’d spoken.