Read Illicit Temptations (Tempted Series Book 1) Online

Authors: Janine Infante Bosco

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Illicit Temptations (Tempted Series Book 1) (10 page)

BOOK: Illicit Temptations (Tempted Series Book 1)
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“Not really,” I said, shrugging my shoulders as I did so.

“It’s probably a good idea if you go to a few other clubs in the city. You know get a feel for what the competitors have that draws in a crowd. I’ll tell Anthony to go with you. That guy needs a night or two out anyway,” he waited a beat. “Or maybe Nikki, she’s always out hopping from club to club with that boyfriend of hers,” his lip twitched as he finished his sentence.

My lip curled in disgust at the mention of Nikki’s boyfriend, causing Victor to raise an eyebrow at me.

“I take it you’re not a fan?” He said, holding back a knowing smile.

I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m surprised you haven’t given that guy his walking papers,” I thought about it for a moment. “Or that she hasn’t either.”

“I try not to get involved in affairs of the heart anymore,” Victor said, turning around to stare at the glass wall. “I sabotaged my relationship with one daughter already not looking to do that again.”

So that’s why Victor was letting Rico get away with acting like a prick. It made sense, I suppose. He didn’t want to destroy his relationship with Nikki over a guy, especially since apparently that had been the case with Adrianna. I wondered if it was her relationship with her son’s father or if it had been another guy. However, I was still baffled as to what Nikki saw in him. A girl like her could get any guy she wanted why she would settle for an arrogant jerk off like Rico was beyond me.

“There’s something else I want to make clear Michael,” Victor said, turning back around to face me. His facial expression had grown serious in a no nonsense type of way. Finally, the Victor I remembered emerged. I peered at him, wondering what had him so passionate with determination.

“People pass judgement on the man that I am they think I’m a monster and in some ways I probably am. I don’t play by the rules and I walk a crooked line. However, there are things that I am adamant about not having in my businesses. There are things I won’t get involved with, you might think I’m a hypocrite, that’s fine, but I am telling you right now I will not have drugs in any of my establishments. I won’t stand for anyone pushing drugs in this club. I expect you to control that situation. I’m relying on you,” he said his eyes glued to mine.

“Wait a minute, you expect me to control who does drugs in this place? It’s a club…,” I started only to be cut off by him.

“That’s not what I’m saying. I won’t have anyone distributing in here the last thing I need is the DEA sniffing around me. It’s not going to be easy either. Kids these days will take anything they can get their hands on. They crush up pills and snort them in the bathroom. We don’t want anyone overdosing in our club either. People are going to do drugs the same way people are going to get piss drunk. The difference is we will supply the liquor not the drugs. You follow me?”

I nodded. I was going to need to be sharp and on point every night my eyes were going to have to be all over the place. This wasn’t going to be a walk in the park for me. I needed to get my shit together because opening night would be here quicker than I thought and Victor had high expectations of me.

“Good. I think we’ve covered everything. You’ll be on your own tomorrow. If you have any questions, you can call Anthony or Sal. Jimmy and I will be out of town for a few days.”

“Okay,” I rose to my full height unsure how to proceed. Should I shake his hand? Victor made the decision walking around the desk to drape one of his arms around my shoulders as he escorted me to the door.

“Oh, I almost forgot! I want to surprise Nikki her birthday falls on the same day as the grand opening I put in a call to Rosalie’s Bakery they are making one of those fancy custom cakes for her.
She
doesn’t know anything about it. I want her night to be top of the line so if there is anything else you can think of just do it. Maybe live entertainment or something. I don’t know. I just want her to be surprised and happy.”

I may not have thought much of Victor but in that moment, he gained my respect as a father. I liked the idea of him being behind a special night for Nikki. I stepped out of the office turning around to be face to face with him. “I’ll figure something out,” I would. I wanted to be a part of her birthday to be a part of her special night. One way or another I’d figure out a way for that night to be something she never forgot.

“I don’t think Rico has anything planned, but you might want to run things by him,” Victor said, speaking the words as if it pained him to say them.

“I’ll handle him,” I said with a nod. I actually wouldn’t mind having a conversation with the little prick. “I’ve got this,” I said with determination. Victor smiled at me before I turned and walked out. I glanced around Temptations feeling an unfamiliar sense of purpose. I was being given an opportunity to make something out of this place. While I worked on making Temptations a brand and not just a watering hole, I could work on making myself a name. Maybe I wasn’t destined to just breeze through life without purpose anymore. Victor was putting his faith in me and it dawned on me that maybe it was time I put a little faith in myself.

I was flipping through the movies on Netflix trying to decide on what to watch when my phone chimed signaling that I had a text message.

Rico: Hey Babe not going to make it. Last minute gig at the Pink Elephant. I’ll wake you when I get home.

I frowned throwing my phone onto the bed. He’ll wake me up when he gets home? Was he fucking serious? I untucked my legs from underneath me throwing them over the side of the bed. I glanced at myself in the mirror my hair piled high on my head in a messy bun. I was wearing Rico’s boxer shorts a lace camisole and leg warmers that were scrunched
around my calves.
I was dressed for a night in. A much needed night in with my boyfriend. So much for that. I wouldn’t have been bothered by the fact that he had a last minute gig if it hadn’t been for the lack of time we had been spending together. I knew he worked nights, and I worked during the day our schedules conflicted most of the time. But after my father had hired him for the grand opening of Temptations, he had given me the cold shoulder about interfering with his work. He was a disc jockey not a brain surgeon. I didn’t get it. The only thing I knew was that I was really anticipating our night together. A girl’s got needs goddamn it.

It didn’t help matters much that all I could think about was Mikey. I blamed that on Rico too. Lack of orgasms and not seeing my man that much forced the unwanted thoughts of Mikey naked into my head. My phone chimed again. Heaven help Rico if the next text that came through that phone read something like “keep dinner warm”. I’d kill him and prove to the world that I was my father’s daughter so help me God.

I stared at the phone on the bed for a minute fighting the war raging inside of me. I wasn’t some little housewife that was going to sit home. Nope, not me. I reached for the phone ready to unleash my fury on Rico but froze when I saw the text was from Mikey.

Mikey: What’re you doing?

Well, now. I pondered all the ways I could answer the simple question. Did I tell him I had just been stood up? Did I tell him I was sitting in my pajamas waiting to get laid? No, definitely not that.

My fingers worked quickly to reply. I probably should’ve waited right? Maybe not seem so eager.

Me: Trying to decide what to do tonight. What about you?

I chewed on my bottom lip as I stared at the phone waiting for him to reply. It seemed like minutes when in reality it was merely seconds before my phone chimed again.

Mikey: I’ll make it easy for you. You’re hanging out with me.

I grinned like a fool. It was bizarre. My boyfriend could tell me that he was ditching me for work and that he would wake me up when he got home sending me into a fit, but Mikey could dictate what in fact I was doing and I was perfectly fine with that. I even liked it.

Me: What will we do?

It didn’t matter what he replied because I would’ve agreed to anything. I mean it anything. He could’ve said, let’s go rob a bank, and I’d ask him if I should bring a crowbar. I was screwed. Actually, I wasn’t and maybe that was part of the problem.

My phone rang, and I answered it without even checking who it was. “Hello?”

“I don’t like texting,” he said into the phone sounding a little grumpy.

“Then why did you text me in the first place?” I asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I don’t know,” Mikey said, sighing into the phone.

“I bet you’d like sexting,” I said half serious half curious.

“Want to try?” He said and this time I heard the obvious hint of humor in his voice.

“I wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable Mikey,” the grin on my face was starting to hurt my cheeks.

“You’re chartering in dangerous waters Princess,” there was no humor in his voice this time. I wanted to push him further see just how far he’d go before he snapped. I don’t know why, but I liked pushing Mikey’s buttons, especially since he had me all out of whack. Yep, there was a big fat ‘Out of Order’ sign on me since Mikey came home.

“So apparently I need a crash course in New York’s night life if I’m going to be any kind of good at this job and I thought you’d make the perfect tour guide,” he added.

I lost all train of thought unable to form a sentence. The idea of Mikey and I all dressed up taking on the city that never sleeps well it did things to me. Like turn me into a brainless idiot.

“Hello? Did I lose you?”

“I’m here,” I croaked.

“So what do you say?” He asked with his voice sounding a little bit impatient.

“Fine. But make sure you look good if you’re going to be my arm candy,” I said smiling. I was already trying to figure out what I was going to wear.

“I’ll try,” he said with a chuckle. Everything in his voice told me he was going to look sexy as hell. I couldn’t wait
.

 

Chapter Seven

I don’t know what I was thinking asking Nikki to go out with me. It’s not that she was a bad time or anything like that. Hell, I was having a great time with her. I don’t remember the last time I was so comfortable around a woman or a time when I actually enjoyed being with one. However, being with Nikki made me want things I had no business wanting especially with her. I could blame it on the dress she was wearing. The black material clung to her body like a second skin not revealing much in the front but when she turned around her entire back was bare. Her skin was like silk. I know this because when we arrived at the club, she suggested we go to I placed my hand on her naked back to usher her through the club. I’ve been fighting a war inside my head since we arrived trying to keep my hands to myself when all they wanted to do was travel along her skin. I wanted to feel the goosebumps along her spine that my touch created.

It wasn’t the dress or the fact that her naked back was exposed to my hungry gaze that made me want her. It was simply her just Nikki. She owned the room actually she was the center of attention even before we walked through the door. The bouncer greeted her as if she was the queen of England kissing both of her cheeks as he let her passed the velvet rope. He stared me down until Nikki told him that I was a guest of hers with a grunt the beast opened the rope to let me into the club. We walked through a sea of people nearly all of them knew the girl on my arm and they all wanted to be near her. I couldn’t blame them. Not one bit. However, I wasn’t in the mood to share her either.

She sat on the bar stool legs crossed and her skirt inched its way up her thighs. I lifted my gaze from her legs why torture myself? She was staring at me with an amused look on her pretty little face. Her lips painted a rich crimson color curved upward treating me with a smile I probably didn’t deserve.

“You clean up nice Mikey,” she said her eyes quickly glancing along the length of me. I had thrown on a pair of black slacks pairing it with a gray button down shirt. I had shaved finally, so I didn’t look like an ape and my hair was actually styled with a comb not just my fingers.

I leaned closer partially so she could hear me over the music that vibrated through the club, but mainly just to catch a glimpse of her scent. Whatever perfume she was wearing was putting me in a trance.

BOOK: Illicit Temptations (Tempted Series Book 1)
11.65Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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