“You never gave me an answer,” Josh said, snapping me out of my dark thoughts.
“About what?”
“Whether or not you’re my girlfriend.”
My pulse ratcheted up, and there went my stomach, going aflutter. “Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” I said, sneaking a glance over at him.
He flashed a wolfish smile at me, and honestly? I forgot about the body in the trunk. Hell, it felt like the sight of those dimples was realtering my brain chemistry so that all my future thoughts would revolve around this man.
My body’s response to his was bad enough, but I was doomed now that I had a face to go along with it. Doomed, I tell you. Whatever self-preservation remained went out the window. This was what I wanted – he was what I wanted – to hell with the consequences. And yes, it was all happening faster than was probably normal, but with him, I didn’t need months to make up my mind. These past few weeks had been enough for me to decide what my answer would be.
He made me feel alive. He’d dragged me out of the gray world I’d been living in and taught me how to see colors again. In a sea of men who barely put in any effort, this man stood out for going above and beyond. He was the definition of “If he wanted to, he would.” Because he’d done for me what no one else ever had: he not only met but exceeded my needs, both physically and emotionally. He kept me on my toes, never knowing what he would do next. And he did it all while making me blush and laugh, often at the same time.
Of course, I wanted to be his girlfriend. Hell, if I had it my way, every free moment I wasn’t working would be spent in his company from now on. I hoped he understood what he was getting himself into because while his obsession had started relatively recently, mine had been going on for months, and once I got my claws in him, I didn’t plan to let go.
He shifted forward, crowding into my space in a way that made my breath hitch and my nerves spark. “Aly? Do you want to be my girlfriend? The position comes with snacks and orgasms and maybe a little light stalking.”
I grinned. “Yes.”
He swooped in and kissed my cheek, and I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been so happy. Even with a dead body not five feet from me. Even on my way to ask the last person I wanted to for help. Josh distracted me from all the awful bullshit and made me feel good instead. Maybe this relationship had started out on questionable footing, and maybe we still had a lot to learn about each other outside of our mutual stalking, but saying yes to being Josh’s girlfriend felt like the easiest decision I’d made in a long time, and no matter what was to come, or what secrets Josh still held, I doubted anything would ever make me regret it.
Chapter 18Josh
Ithought your uncle was a low-level mobster,” I said. To Aly. My girlfriend.
“That’s what Dad told me.” She peered through the windshield at the Italian-style villa we approached. “I guess dirty work pays well?”
I was gonna dirty work her as soon as I got her alone. The smile on my face was starting to hurt at this point, but all I could think about was how we could get this over with as fast as possible so I could drag her back to her place and consummate our relationship.
Maybe we could back the car up like a dump truck, tip Brad’s body out on the driveway, and wish her uncle good luck as we raced away like the horny miscreants we were. And yes, I felt comfortable speaking for both of us. Aly had zero skill at hiding her emotions, and she’d been sending me hot-for-stalker looks since I took my mask off.
Reluctantly, I pulled my gaze from her and peered out at the towering front gate. It was closed, but there was a small console to buzz up to the gatehouse just beyond. Was anyone even awake at this hour?
I had my answer a minute later when Aly rolled down her window. She’d barely reached out to press the little red call button when the speaker crackled to life.
“Who are you, and what the fuck do you want?” a gruff male voice asked.
I knew it was the asscrack of dawn, but I still didn’t appreciate him talking to my girlfriend that way.
There went my mouth, pulling up in a too-wide smile again.
My girlfriend.
Aly leaned out into the cold night air. “I’m Alyssa Cappellucci, Nico’s niece.”
The gate swung open on silent hinges.
Aly put the car in gear, and we shared a surprised look. That seemed far too easy. No verification of identity necessary? Were they expecting us, or was there a standing order to let her in if she ever showed up? Considering what Aly said about how important family was to Nico, the latter seemed likely.
A thought struck me then, and ah, fuck – mobsters were probably more into true crime than most. I’d been so busy planning fun, naked couple activities that I hadn’t thought about how this might play out. What if someone fixated on my appearance and brought up my dad? I needed to be the one to tell Aly; I couldn’t risk her finding out from someone else when I didn’t have the time to sit her down and explain everything. She’d probably lose her shit if that happened, and I wouldn’t blame her.
I reached into the front pocket of my bag and pulled out my trusted disguise: glasses and a fake mustache. In my defense, it was a very high-end fake mustache, and it looked incredibly real, even up close, but yes, I still looked like a reject from an 80s buddy cop movie in it.
“What the actual fuck are you doing?” Aly said as I flipped down the sun visor and used the mirror to guide me while I stuck the mustache into place.
“I’ll explain later. I promise,” I said, patting the sides down.
“Are you famous or something?”
“Or something,” I said, turning toward her.
She glanced at me and shook her head. “You look…”
I waggled my brows. “Hot, right?”
She jerked her gaze back to the driveway as we passed the gatehouse and the shadowy figure watching us out of its windows. “You shouldn’t. That thing is ridiculous.”
Unable to help myself, I closed the distance between us and whispered, “And yet you still want to ride it.” For good measure, I brushed it over the shell of her ear.
She jerked away, eyes fixed on our destination, pink coloring her cheeks in the dashboard light. “I think we’ve already established that I’ll try anything once.”
I straightened in my seat, trying to remind my dick that we were about to meet a notorious mobster, and doing it sporting a full erection was less than ideal. Unfortunately, all I could picture was me lying flat on my back with Aly straddling my face. I needed a distraction.
How about the dead body in the trunk?
Oh, right. I’d just killed a man. And while Aly had done a great job of weaponizing my logic and using it against me, part of me still wondered just how “accidental” Brad’s death was.
I couldn’t remember taping his mouth. Yes, I knew I’d slapped the duct tape in place, but I’d been distracted by something Aly said at the time, and was half-excited, half-terrorized by what we were about to do. Had I just been sloppy? Or had some subconscious part of me acted on impulse and placed the tape intentionally? The fact that I wasn’t sure and probably never would be was going to haunt me for the rest of my life.