Her Man: An Interracial Romance (The Bentini Brothers Book 2) (14 page)

     “Kat…”  William whispers and he closes his
arms around her and holds her as she cries out her pain.  “Don’t cry Kat, you
know what it does to me to see you cry.”  Bending his head, he kisses her soft
lips.  Then moves down to her neck.  “Kat…”  Slowly, he pulls the silk belt on
her robe as he plants kisses all over her face and neck while gently, slowly
sliding the robe off her shoulders to pool at her feet.  She moans his name as
he pulls the neck of her nightgown down and takes a hard pink bud into his
mouth.  “I miss you Kat…”  William growls as he slides his hand inside her
panties.  Suddenly he stands up, takes her and bends her over the arm of the
nearest chair.  “Will? What are you doing?”  Katherine pants as she tries to
push up from the chair.  “You know what I’m doing Kat.”  Putting a strong arm
in the middle of her back, he easily holds her pinned in place, as he unzips
his pants and releases his eager shaft.  “Will…”  Sliding her panties out of
the way, he leans over her back and slowly shoves into her tightness.  “Uhhmm…You
know you want this Kat.”  Will groans, grabbing a handful of long chestnut strands
in one hand and holding onto her shoulder with the other as he begins relentlessly
pounding into her.  Katherine keens low in her throat, loving the rough
pummeling.  This is one thing they never fought about.  With every deep thrust,
she feels her core tingle and vibrate.  “More Will!…” She pleads and tries to
shift her body so that she can take more of him.  Releasing her hair, he clutches
her hips and pounds into her fast and deep.  Will continues to frantically pump
into her until he feels his balls tighten and his muscles tense and he suddenly
erupts, releasing deep inside her grasping core.

***

     “How do you feel, sweetheart?” Mya comes into
the room carrying a tray with a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

     “I miss my babies –Candi and Cotton—I wish
they were here with me.  I hope Antonio is taking good care of them.”

     “Well, I don’t have the cure for puppy
heartache, but I bet some hot chocolate will at least make you feel just a
little bit better.”

     “Thanks sis, I’m sure it will.  Where’s Renny?”

     “In the backyard on the swing with James, you
know she’s a daddy’s girl.”

     “Just like her mother.”

     “And her aunt.”

     “Tiressa?  Do you mind if I ask you about
him?”  It doesn’t take a genius to guess that she’s referring to Antonio.

     “No, I don’t mind.  What do you want to know?”

     “You said that you knew that you could lose
your job if         Mrs. Bentini found out you were dating her son…so, why did
you do it?  It’s so unlike you to do anything like that.  We were just giving
you the business about being so standoffish with men.  What happened?”  Mya asks
with genuine puzzlement.

     “When Antonio first made it known that he was
interested in me, I was so floored.  I was shocked and I didn’t believe him.  I
thought he was playing some kind of rich-man game with me.  But then, he was so
persistent and so sincere.  I let my guard down… and…well…he got under my
skin.”

     “So does that mean you like him…I mean,
really
like him?”

     “Yes, Mya…I more than like him, I’m crazy
about him.  He’s a great guy.  Although, to be perfectly honest…he can be
bossy, controlling and a bit heavy-handed, but sometimes I even like that about
him.”  Seeing Mya’s raised eyebrows.  “Don’t make that face.”  Tiressa says
laughing.  “Sometimes a girl likes a strong, forceful guy.  But there’s more to
him than that.  He can be so incredibly gentle and sweet and understanding and
supportive.”  Seeing her sister’s now softer expression.  “I’m in love with him
Mya.”

     “If everything is so lovey-dovey, then why are
you here hiding out?”

     “Because I want him, but his mom doesn’t think
that I’m the right kind of woman for her son.  She likes me well enough as an
employee, but she doesn’t want a black girl or black anything mixing with her
precious family.”

     “How does he feel?  Was he just looking for a
good time… someone to scratch his
jungle-fever
itch?”

     “No Mya!  I told you he’s not like that!  He
loves me and he’s willing to go against his mother for me.”

     “So, if that’s true, then what the hell?!  Why
aren’t you with him?  Screw the job…and forget his mother…you got the man.  And
he’s rich!  You don’t even need a job.” 

     Although it’s on the tip of my tongue to tell
my sister about the million dollars Antonio gave me, I hesitate.  We tell each
other everything…well, almost everything.  But, I don’t want to tell her about
the money.  I don’t want
anyone
thinking that our relationship is based
on Antonio’s money.  And truth be told, I don’t want anyone doubting my true
feelings for him.

     “I don’t want to be that chic. I don’t want to
be that female who relies on a man to give her money.  I liked my job; I liked
getting up every morning and going to work.  Besides, I don’t want to be the
cause of a family rift.  I don’t want his family hating me because they believe
I’m some kind of gold digger.  A scheming hussy that set out from the beginning
to trap their golden boy.”

     “Scheming hussy?  Really Ti, you’ve been
around grandma too much.”  I love the way my sister can make me laugh, even when
all I want to do is cry.  “So, what are you going to do?  Why don’t you just
talk to him?  What could be the harm in that?”

     “You’ve seen him Mya.  He’s tall, stacked with
muscles, sexy as hell and totally irresistible.”  When Mya rolls her eyes, she
adds with a grin.  “Well, he is…at least to me.  If I talk to him, then he will
convince me to go back with him.  If I go back with him, he and his mom will
fall out.”

     “So what if they do.  He wants you and that
should be enough.  His mother is a stupid bitch if she can’t see that you are
the best thing that’s ever happened to her son.”  Although Mrs. Bentini said
some shitty things to and about me, I still cringe at my sister calling her a
stupid bitch.  Mya is usually even-tempered and wouldn’t talk like that about
anyone, but she’s mad about everything that’s happened.  “I think his family
likes me and maybe they would accept me in time.  His dad, who’s really a nice
guy—as long as you’re not doing business with him—likes me well enough.  He
knows about Antonio and me, but I’m not sure how he would feel about me being a
part of his family.  What I definitely know is that his mom won’t ever accept
me or our relationship; especially if we were to get married.”

     “Damn, is it that serious between the two of
you?!”

     “Yes, I think so.”

     “Why didn’t you tell me?  We’re supposed to
share everything!”

     “Because, although I have him now, I’m afraid
that if we stay together, he’ll eventually come to despise me for being the
cause of problems between him and his mom, and I’m sure it wouldn’t stop with
her…it could end up involving his entire family.  I couldn’t bear that, Mya. 
I’d rather lose him now, than have him hate me later.”

***

     “Okay, Boss, here’s what I have…”  Vitto Rossi
says settling down into the chair across from Antonio’s massive desk.  “Aside
from finding your brother Jason at her friend Carmen Menendez’s apartment,
there has been no sighting of her.”

     “My brother Jason and Carmen Menendez together?” 
At Vitto’s nod Antonio mumbles, “Interesting, but not surprising.  I think he’s
been seeing her for a while.  At any rate…”  Antonio says getting back to the
discussion at hand.  “Is there any signs of Tiressa being on-line?”

     “None.”

     “Keep your man on Tiressa’s sister.  I don’t
want her to move a muscle without us knowing about it.  I’m sure she knows
exactly where Tiressa is.  I tried to talking to the sister again, but she
refuses to tell me where Tiressa is…other than that she’s not with her.  Unfortunately,
I can’t kick the door down and barge into the woman’s house –Tiressa would
never forgive me.”

     “Not to mention that Mya would probably have
you in handcuffs before you got more than five steps in.”

     “Mya is it?”  At Vitto’s sly smile, Antonio
reminds him.  “Vitto she’s married.”

     “Yeah, but is she happily married?” 

     “I don’t know what you’re up to Vitto, but
don’t you do a damn thing to make things worse between Ti and me…as a matter of
fact, stay the hell away from Ti’s sister.”

     “Okay, Boss.  I’ll stay hands off for now, but
there’s something about her that I just can’t ignore.”

     After giving Vitto another hard look, Antonio
continues.  “
Mrs. Stephens
tried to make me believe that Tiressa has
left the state, but I don’t believe that for a minute.  However, something she
said reminded me of a comment Tiressa made about one of her aunts that she’s particularly
close to…an Aunt Lena…no, that’s not it…Aunt Helen…Helena…that’s it, Aunt
Helena!  I have a feeling about this.  I want you to get the names of all her
aunts and check out Aunt Helena.  Let me know the moment you have something for
me.”

     “I’m all over it Boss.”  Vitto says getting up
from the chair and heading to the door.  Before he leaves, Antonio gives him
one more reminder.  “And Rossi, I mean it…stay clear of Mya Stephens.”

***

    “I don’t want to upset you Tiressa…but, your man
came back again.”

     “Antonio? When?!”

     “You and Renny were in the kitchen baking
brownies.”

     “What happened?”

     “He wanted to see you…kept insisting that I
know where you are.  Of course, I denied it.  But then, I slipped up and now he
knows that you’ve been here.  I’m sorry Ti.” 

     “Don’t be, I know how tenacious Antonio can
be.”

     “Yeah, he seems pretty determined.  I told him
that you were here, but have gone to live with one of our relatives out of
state.  I wouldn’t tell him which one, of course…and boy he didn’t like that
one bit.  He didn’t give me a chance to slam the door in his face this time. 
He glared at me and then stalked off to his big SUV.”

    
Damn
. “I can’t stay here Mya.  Now that
he knows I’m here, he’ll keep coming back until I agree to see him.”

     “He doesn’t know for sure.”

     “Maybe not, but I don’t want to take that chance.”

     “Okay, then why not go to Aunt Helena’s? 
Aren’t you overdue for a visit?”

     “That’s a great idea!”

Chapter 23

     “Go right in Mr. Rossi.  Mr. Bentini is
expecting you.”

     “We found her Boss!”  Vitto exclaims excitedly
as soon as he enters Antonio’s office.

     Antonio jumps to his feet.  “Where is she?!”

     Vitto doesn’t waste any time giving Antonio
the information he desperately wants.  “Apparently, she was staying with her
sister until late last night.”

     “What do you mean –until late last night?”

     “My man followed her when she left her
sister’s place and drove approximately thirty miles south and checked into a
hotel.  It appears that she may be going t—”

     “To her Aunt Helena.”  Antonio accurately
guesses as he calmly sits back down.  Now that he knows where Tiressa is and
has eyes on her, the knot in his chest is not quite so tight.

     “Yes.  How did you know?” 

     “As I have said before, Tiressa has mentioned
her Aunt Helena to me before.  If I’m not mistaken she is Tiressa’s mother
younger sister and they are forever in competition.”  Antonio allows himself a
brief smile before continuing.  “Much like my mother and her younger sisters.”

     “I see.  Well, she checked out of the hotel
room early this morning and is now at this very moment at her aunt’s place.  What
do you want us to do Tony?”  Vitto asks seeing the sadness sweep across
Antonio’s face before he pulls himself together and becomes all business once
again.  “Tell your man to stay in place and keep an eye on her.  I’ll be there
as soon as I can.”

     “Do you want her to be prevented from leaving
that location?”

     “No.  But I want to be kept apprised of her
whereabouts at all times.”

***

     “Hi Auntie.”  I don’t hold back a giant smile
as me and my aunt hug in a happy embrace.  Of all my mother’s siblings, Aunt
Helena is my favorite –although I would never tell the others that.  “I’ve
missed you sooo much.”  We hug again before Aunt Helena links her arm with mine
and we walk arm in arm to the living room. “Oh baby girl, I thought you said
you couldn’t make it.  I’m so happy you changed your mind.  I spoke to your
mother last night. She and your father will be here sometime early this
afternoon.”

     At first, I don’t have a clue as to what my
aunt is talking about.  Why would my parents be coming here for a visit?  Then
as I continue to listen to what my aunt is saying, I suddenly remember. 
Oh
Shit!
  My Aunt Helena and Uncle Joe’s annual barbeque. 
Damn, what
rotten luck!