Fallen Angel: A Mafia Romance - Part 1 (Roman Crime Family) (4 page)

She woke to the sound of the alarm.  

“Oh my god, what the hell time is it? Turn that fucker off.” Eric’s voice was heavy, laden with sleep.

Jess looked over at him, watching while he lay there angelic, and peaceful.

Fucking bastard.

Every inch the monster her father was.

She slid the covers off, seeing several bruises on her arms, legs and breasts.

He made sure he kept his word last night. He wasn’t gentle. 

Foul, alcohol-laced breath…sweaty hands…suffocating her…moving all over her body, touching her…violating her…thrusting forcefully…her coming with him, feeling sick inside that he could still make her do that, knowing she was pretty badly fucked up to not leave him...

She hit the snooze button on purpose, getting out of bed.

His jeans were flung to the floor. She picked them up, trying not to trip over them. As she put them in the basket, an open condom wrapper fell to the floor. Jess stared at it, feeling like she’d been hit in the stomach.

So the bastard
was
fucking someone else. She instinctively knew who the whore was. She flung his jeans back on the floor. Leaving the condom wrapper where it fell for him to see. 

The alarm went off again as she was putting her hair in a bun. She peeked out of the bathroom, smiling at the sight of him jolting up to turn it off.

“What the hell, babe?”

“Sorry. I thought I turned it off. Must have hit snooze by mistake. My bad.”

Instead of lying back down he leaned over, cutting lines on the nightstand. She watched as he noticed the wrapper lying on the floor and paused.

“You ready to knock ‘em dead?” He sounded nervous. Like he was waiting to see if she would call him on the condom.

“Of course,
papi
. Ready as I’ll ever be.”

He snorted four lines off the table, raising the straw in her direction. She took it, doing four lines as well.

She knew she needed to stop. That things were spiraling out of control.

If only she could.

“We’re playing in PA tonight so I won’t be home until tomorrow sometime.”

“Oh, that’s perfectly ok. I have to work tonight. I made plans to stay at a friend’s place in Jersey. Guess there’s some after-party thing I have to attend.”

“Who all’s gonna be there?”

He laid back on the bed. Visibly relieved she didn’t say anything.

“Just some girls from the club. The party’s at Nicks’.”

“Have fun and be safe.”

What a joke.

He motioned for her to come kiss him. She leaned forward, allowing him to place his lips on hers, feeling him get excited. It repulsed her.

She pulled away. Trying her best not to touch him anywhere else.  

“Love you.”

“Love you, too.” She walked out the door without a backwards glance.

Jess realized she still meant those words.

That was a problem.

Make-up and lies could cover bruises, if only temporarily.

It wouldn’t be so easy to cover this truth.

“Number 208, please step forward.” 

It took her a few minutes to realize 208 was her number. She moved up in the line forming. If this was the cut line, she was going to be royally pissed.

“Back line, thank you. We won’t be needing your services. Front line, see the guy standing at the side of the stage on the way out. He will get you information for filming.” 

She made it. Her first real legit dancing gig since moving to New York.

What did this make, audition one hundred?

She skipped to her bag, swinging it over her shoulder. Accidently hitting the guy standing behind her. “Hey, I’m sorry.” 

“It’s cool. I’m Joe, the fairy godmother. And you princess, are?”

She laughed, knowing immediately they were going to be friends. “I’m Jess.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, princess. See you at the first filming, mama.”

Joe sashayed away with a walk putting most runway models to shame. He was going to have to teach her how to do that.

She got the information for the first filming, looking at her watch on the way out. It was already five p.m. She decided to head directly to the club.

It would give her time to talk to that bitch.

Woman to woman.

Feline to feline.

Or something.

She pulled up to the club, seeing Amy’s car already there. Her car was barely in park before she opened the door and got out. Rage was building inside of her. She knew exactly who to take it out on.

She flung open the door, seeing Angel’s massive biceps folded as he stood there.

“Sup, Jess? You seem like you’re on a mission.”

She gave him a short nod, walking right past him. She didn’t say so much as a word.

She was on a mission, all right. Finding Amy, which didn’t take long.

She was sitting at the bar next to Nick, per usual.

Jess walked up behind her, grabbing a handful of her badly bleached blonde hair. Pounding her forehead into the bar. Amy screamed.

“Lemme talk to you for a minute.”

“What the fuck are you doing, kid?
Stop
!” Nick jumped up, gesturing for Angel.

She pounded her head into the bar again. 

“I just need to ask this whorish, bitch of a slut, a simple, motherfucking question. It requires a simple, motherfucking answer. Amy,” Jess smiled cheerfully.

“Are you fucking my man? Yes, or no?”

Amy’s forehead was bleeding. She looked dazed, but still found a way to smirk at Jess through the blood. “Wouldn’t you like to know, bitch?”

Jess reached for the beer bottle sitting by her, calmly breaking it on the bar. She held the bottle casually with one hand. Pointing it towards Amy.

“Now. I know simple bitches can be stupid. So I’m going to give you one last chance for your simple, whorish, bitch
ass,
to answer my question. Are you. Or are you not. Fucking my man. You skanky, little gutter tramp.”

Nick saw the look on Jess’s face, and grabbed her. 

“Get off me Nick.”

“Not happening, kid. You need to relax.” His voice was calm, but authoritative. 

He motioned for Amy to go upstairs. She quickly followed his command, instinctively looking like she knew not to ask questions. Angel moved to block the entrance so Jess couldn’t get to her.

Damn him and Nick for stopping her.

Nick let Jess go. “Sit.”

She ignored him. Staring at him defiantly. He said it more sternly. 

“I
said
sit. Now, do I have to make you? Because that might be fun.”

She sat, knowing she wasn’t going to win.

“Here. Drink this.” He handed her a shot of whiskey. She downed it in one gulp.

“What…in the fuck. I’m not even….What the hell am I going to do with you?” He laughed, ducking when she took a swing at him. “Easy, Slugger. Settle down. You’re a little hellcat, aren’t you?”

“She shouldn’t have fucked my man.”

“I’d say not, Rocky. Remind me not to piss you off.” 

She smiled, and reluctantly laughed. She was mad at him for making her do so.

“She’s not worth jail. Let it go, ok?”

Oh, she would let it go….for now. 

Besides.

She knew exactly how she was going to get even with Eric for betraying her.

And she certainly mustn’t forget Amy.

Oh, no. Never that.

Before Jess took the stage that night, she looked around, making sure Nick was in the club. She saw him, sitting in a booth with the godfather of Brooklyn and several other men. He was engrossed in a conversation that seemed rather heated. Rather than be afraid, she was intrigued.

She stopped on the way to the stage, asking Mike to play
Justify My Love
as the first song of her set. He gave her a knowing grin. Blowing him a kiss, she walked away.

She climbed on the stage, waiting for the song to play.

Nick raised his head, acknowledging her with a nod, then went back to his conversation. 

The song began and Jess started dancing. Her eyes closed as she moved her hips. Rubbing her curvy body with her hands. Enjoying the feeling of her own tight, young flesh.

Being a dancer had its rewards.

She immersed herself, getting lost in the music.

Tonight, she didn’t allow much time before letting the music overtake her.

Nick heard Johnny C. say, “
Damn
,” under his breath. He raised his head again, looking at the stage. 

He took in everything. The way she moved. Her beautiful face. Her fully rounded breasts. High, upturned. Spilling out of her demi cup bra. Her lithe, young, nubile body climbing, writhing around the pole so fucking sensually.

Jesus. She was absolutely amazing.

She turned, locking eyes with him. Darting her luscious pink tongue out to lick the cherry red gloss from her lips.

Fuck.
Was she dancing for him?
 

Now he was amused…and maybe a little obsessed.

He leaned back in his seat. The other men at the table turned to see what he was staring at so intently.

She smiled at him, slowly working her shorts down. Bending over, revealing her round ass and red thong barely covering her pussy. 

He swallowed hard. Feeling his cock expand and tighten.

Tonight.

It would be tonight.

She wrapped her legs around the pole as he got up from the table. As he walked toward the stage, she allowed herself to slide down it slowly, using only her legs. Rubbing over her body with her hands.

She refused to look away.

Tonight.

It would be tonight.

Suddenly, this wasn’t about getting Eric and Amy back anymore. It was all about Nick. And the crazy, out of control feelings she couldn’t explain.

At the end of the song, he was waiting by the steps. He helped her off stage, extending a hand. “That was quite the-”

She cut him off midsentence, placing a finger on his lips.

“That party you were talking about. Can we just make it for two?”

He stared at her, speechless, leaning against the wall. They stood, staring at each other for seconds…lifetimes. His voice was raspy with need as he spoke.

“You sure you’re ready for this, kid? I can’t make you any promises.”

She leaned forward kissing him softly on the lips.

“The question is, are you?”

He grabbed her hand. “Get your things.”

She practically ran up the stairs. Amy was walking down as she flung on her dress. She grabbed her things, meeting him at the door.

Jess turned to see her take the stage as Nick took her bag. Amy tripped, falling at the sight of the two of them leaving together. 

It didn’t even matter anymore.