I talk to ease my discomfort. “You mentioned your father. He doesn’t want you out at night alone?”
“He doesn’t want me out, period. If he had his way, I’d never leave home.”
“Why is that?”
“Tells me it’s too dangerous out in the real world. Says I’d never survive. Mom says it too but he’s the boss of our family. What he says, goes. Says my life is family life and that’s an end to it.”
“And what do you want?”
“You know what, I’ve never even thought about it. Cara asked me that once. I didn’t even know what to tell her.”
“Cara?”
“My cousin. She was talking about her dream of going to college one day and then she asked me what my dream was. I don’t even have one. How pathetic is that?”
We pull up outside the house. “Where are we?” she asks.
“No more questions,” I reply as we get out. The car moves smoothly away as I talk. “Tonight is simple. You want to get back at your father by finding someone to sleep with. Lucky for you, I’m a safe bet. No venereal disease, no chance of an emotional connection. I don’t do love or warmth or any of that soft lovemaking bullshit. I do fucking and I’m good at it. I’ll be clear. This is a one night thing. Two bodies, nothing else. We go inside and tomorrow morning we go our separate ways. Agreed?”
Four
Nico
* * *
She looks at me, folding her arms across her chest. “Why would I agree to something like that?” She pouts up at me in an attempt at modesty.
“You already have.”
I grab hold of her and kiss her before she can say anything else, placing my hands either side of her face, holding her cheeks, caressing her neck. At first, she goes rigid but then she relaxes, her mouth opening slightly so my tongue can slip inside.
“That’s why,” I tell her, kissing her again.
I’ve got her.
It’s always the same. They think they can resist me but no one can. She’s no different to the others.
No, that’s not true.
There’s something about her that is different. I can’t quite put my finger on it yet but I’ll get there.
Maybe it’s the fact we both have families trying to control what we do. Maybe it’s the fact she’s rebelling like I did at her age.
Maybe it’s just the fact that she’s clearly innocent in so many ways and I’m such a bastard that I like defiling innocent things. Innocent women. Law abiding citizens. What would she think if she knew I was a made man? A Don’s son?
I stop kissing her for long enough to unlock the front door. She follows me inside in a daze. Once we’re in the hall, I kiss her again.
She closes her eyes, melting into my arms. I scoop her up, carrying her upstairs.
She looks up at me as I head into my bedroom. “One night,” she says. “No emotional connection?”
“Right. One night. No strings. You get back at your father. I get to see what you taste like. We both win.”
She flushes color in those cute cheeks of hers. “You will be gentle, won’t you?” she says and I’m not sure if she’s being sarcastic or not.
“As long as you want me to be.” I turn her around so she’s facing the other way, kissing the back of her neck. I slip the zipper open, easing it down her dress, watching as her body comes into view. She’s got pale skin under there. Not enough time in the sun, I’m guessing.
Shucking the dress from her shoulders, I move it slowly down, easing it off her body. She steps out of it, trembling slightly as she does so.