Vice (20 page)

“Oh, Liam, I’m so sorry.”

“No, don’t be. Turns out I have an addictive personality, and you were my addiction. I treated you like my own personal casino. It was too much, too soon. All of it, including the wild animal sex.” He grinned and the balls of his cheeks reddened. “Although I did enjoy that part.”

“It was okay,” Kate teased.

“Okay, she says.” Liam leaned in and teased her earlobe with his teeth. “I really want to start over and see if we can work our way back to the insane monkey sex.” She giggled and he danced his fingers under her shirt, smoothing them over her waist. “I do love you, Kate. I don’t want to fuck this up.”

“I love you, too.” She gave into temptation and brushed her lips over his neck and collarbone. “I was miserable without you.”

“Me too. Woman, you brought me to my knees. Ask Wade. I was a bear without you.”

Even as she laughed, she continued kissing him, letting her tongue trace the long lines of his neck.

Liam gripped her and pushed he back a bit. “Dammit, sugar. If you keep this up, you’ll be naked instead of letting me do the honorable thing.”

She licked her lips, savoring his taste. “And what would that be?”

He brushed his thumb over her wet lip, his gaze concentrated on her mouth. “I want to take you to dinner. Somewhere other than Vice. I want to discuss our future.”

“
Our
future?”

He smiled. “If there’s one thing I know, Kate, it’s that I’m never going to watch you walk away again. I did last time because I knew you needed a better man. I wanted to be a better man for you. But this time,” he said, his voice trembling with a low growl. “You’re mine.”

The hairs on her arms stood on end at his wonderfully-possessive tone.

“So,” he said, kissing her. “Where would you like to eat? I know some nice French restaurants, or maybe a Korean barbeque.”

Kate grinned. “How about pizza?”

Liam laughed. “I offer her swanky dining and she wants pizza. Doesn’t sound gluten-free.”

“Fuck gluten-free. Let’s get pizza.”

He folded her in his arms and buried his face in the crook of her neck. “Whatever makes you happy.”

Chapter Seventeen

An hour and a half later, Kate and Liam sat at the back of Massimo’s Pizza Parlor, polishing off the remains of a large double-cheese and pepperoni pizza. Liam sat back, stuffed, and smiled when Kate peeled the pepperonis off his discarded slice and popped them in her mouth. His cock hardened at the sight of that beautiful tongue licking her fingers with glee.

Damn. He so needed to see her naked again.

But business first. He needed to know they were on the same page before he could feel comfortable enough to lose himself in her sweet body. “So, full disclosure from now on?”

She gazed at him for a moment and then wiped her hands. “That would be awesome.”

He leaned forward and grabbed her hands, linking them with his own. “I’ve been seeing a therapist. He’s helping me comes to terms with my issues. My need to control my environment. You, Michelle, my work. God, even my
choice
of work. Do you know what one of the oldest sayings of the casino world is, Kate?”

She shook her head.

“‘The House always wins.’ That’s how I treated my life. I needed to be in charge to make up for the times I had no power.” He raised one of her hands and kissed it. “I’ve blamed myself for years for things over which I had no control. Including what happened to me while I was homeless.”

She squeezed his hand but didn’t say a word.

“I was hungry. I was cold. As a fourteen-year-old boy, I had to deal with big men who wanted to fuck me and women who wanted to buy me. To get by I lost my virginity way too young and learned it was a commodity. People were commodities. I was a commodity. It took me a long time to realize I was wrong.”

She tipped her head and gnawed on her bottom lip.

“But I was one of the lucky ones. I was smart enough to get off the streets. When I went back to Aunt Margaret’s, it was as someone who’d seen too much, someone who held grudges. I don’t want to be that person anymore.” He exhaled. “It’s still hard for me to share the details, but I’ve shared more with you than anyone else. Can you be patient with me?”

She nodded, her eyes welling up.

“Thank you.” He watched her for a moment, full of fascination and love. “There’s one more thing. I want to open a piano bar with you. A proper piano bar, all on its own. With you as the headliner.”

“I can’t accept that. I can’t let you buy me a bar to sing in.”

“I wouldn’t be. We’d be partners. You can invest as much as you like, but the papers will show we’re co-owners. Hearing you sing was the first thing to get me excited in a long time. Not opening Vice, but you. Your talent. I will walk you through every step of the process, but I want you to be my partner. There won’t be a single gaming device in the building, I promise.”

“This is Vegas. Will people even come if there isn’t a slot machine somewhere or if I don’t show my boobs?”

“Actually, I don’t want to build in Vegas. I’ve been talking to Alex. He’s pointed out some great opportunities in New York. I’d like you to come with me.”

“New York.” Kate couldn’t seem to close her jaw. “I don’t know what to say…”

“Say yes.” He bit his lip, a silent reminder to himself not to be so pushy. “Or at least say you’ll think about it.”

It took a few seconds, but soon she bobbed her head. “I want to be with you.”

“Then we’ll take it slowly and we’ll make it happen. I want to make you happy, Kate.”

“Then take me home, Liam.” Her slow smile made his heart hammer in the best of ways. “Now.”

Liam could feel his cheeks in his ears. Not caring that they were in a pizza parlor, he stood, scooped her out of her side of the booth and held her in his arms. Kate laughed as he fished for some money in his pocket and plunked it on the table to cover their meal. Then, kissing her like his life depended on it, he carried her out the door.

Somber intensity made Liam’s eyes sparkle as they entered her apartment, but Kate could tell something had changed. Gone was the man who had things to prove. Gone was the man who couldn’t trust, who needed to bend life to his will. And gone was the little boy who was afraid of being alone.

The need in his eyes no longer filled her with fear. Perhaps because his desire was now tempered with sweet consideration and freedom from his past. His perceived sins no longer held him hostage.

She was glad he’d brought her to her apartment, rather than back to Vice. As much as she felt badly he’d sold his businesses, she knew she didn’t need to see the inside of a casino again. Too many memories. Too many ghosts. Like Liam, she’d seen things she never needed to see again.

He embraced her long and hard and she drank him in. The scratch of his beard as he nuzzled her neck. His warm breath as it drifted under her collar. His delicious cologne as it mingled with the scent of his clean skin. He touched all her senses, gave her a heady rush.

Her Liam.

He dug his hands into her hair and looked deep into her eyes. “The last time I saw you here…” Lines of regret furrowed his brow. She remembered how Hugo Vaughan had been all over her.

“Don’t dwell on it. The future, remember?”

Since Vaughan’s arrest, other women had come forward, accusing him of rape. Detective Baxter had assured her the loan shark would go away for a long time.

Liam brushed his thumb over her cheek. “No one will ever hurt you again, Kate.”

“I love you.”

“I adore you. C’mere.”

He held her against his firm body, his arms molded about her as he covered her mouth with his own. She opened to him and their tongues met in a dance of velvety surrender. He kissed her as if making a pledge to her.

He skimmed his hands over the top half of her body as they kissed, massaging her shoulders, playing with her hair. Tickling her ribcage. She arched into him as her body begged for more intimate touches.

Despite her need, he kept his touch light and sensual, rather than sexual. A few minutes of this took their toll on both of them. Kate panted as he rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.

“Christ,” he murmured. “I’m trying hard not to rush things, but this might kill me.”

She let out a giggle, feeling his pain. “Liam, I want you so much.”

“I want you, too.” He caressed her ribs, his hand straying close to the underside of her breast.

“Then what are you waiting for?”

His eyes narrowed, his gaze piercing. “Just this.” Liam reached over to where he’d dumped his jacket and pulled a slim box from out of the inside pocket, handing it to her. “This belongs to you.”

Kate already knew what was inside but was too choked up to open it. Liam raised the lid of the box for her. Upon seeing the shimmery strand inside, her tears spilled over. Her mother’s pearls lay inside.

He took the choker out of the box and fastened it around her neck. “Vaughan left a trail. It wasn’t hard to follow it. You didn’t think I was going to leave your mom’s necklace in some grubby pawn shop, did you?”

She covered her trembling lips with her hand.

“Hey.” Liam smiled and wiped her tears away, holding her until her breathing calmed. “No more tears, okay?”

She nodded. “No more tears.”

Within seconds, their outfits lay scattered all over the floor. As soon as he revealed the tantalizing planes of his abdominal muscles, she dropped to her knees and smoothed her tongue over each ripple. His stomach clenched and he buried his fingers in her hair.

“God, Kate.”

She gripped him, teasing him further. He swore and lifted her off the floor, then dropped her on the bed. He stood over her, running a hand down her calf.

“Mine,” he said as he lowered himself over her, mystified by their connection.

And he was hers, all hers.

He traced her eyebrow with his thumb. “Forever.”

Kate nodded. “Forever.”

After worrying they’d never be joined again, he found his way inside her, moving with such aching slowness that she cried out. Letting out a long sigh of ecstasy, she dug her fingernails into his broad back and held on.

Perfection.

Each thrust pitched her higher and his heat warmed her like the sun over the desert.

Their love wasn’t wrong after all. They could be good for one another. Would be good. In losing everything, they’d gained the only thing that mattered. Each other.

He rose up on his elbows to gaze at her. He drove them both toward an incinerating climax, and Kate realized she no longer feared his passion. She shared it.

Their bed was no longer a home to vice, to addiction or fear. Instead, she saw promise in the familiar lines of his face, and hope. As they came together, swallowing each other’s sighs, she felt Liam smile against her mouth and her heart soared.

Wherever they went, whatever they did, they would be home.

Acknowledgements

So many wonderful people played a part in helping me bring this story to life. Thank you to everyone at Samhain Publishing for accepting this romance and starting this journey. I’d like to also thank my editors, Noah Chinn and Patricia Kot, for helping to clarify my thoughts.

Many thanks to my friend Monette Michaels, the talented author who first read this book and shared her opinions. Moni, I appreciate your honesty and kindness. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my readers, the people who cheer me on and share their enthusiasm on a regular basis. I am lucky to have you. This story is a personal one for me and although I haven’t led Kate’s life, I understand her choices. It’s my hope that anyone dealing with compulsive gambling receives the help they deserve.

About the Author

Rosanna Leo is a multi-published, erotic romance author. Several of her books about Greek gods, selkies and shape shifters have been named Top Picks at Night Owl Romance and The Romance Reviews.

From Toronto, Canada, Rosanna occupies a house in the suburbs with her long-suffering husband, their two hungry sons and a tabby cat named Sweetie. When not writing, she can be found haunting dusty library stacks or planning her next star-crossed love affair.

A library employee by day, she is honored to be a member of the league of naughty librarians who also happen to write romance. Rosanna blogs at
rosannaleoauthor.wordpress.com
.

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