Vinny: Alvarez Security Series (32 page)

In the middle
of the night, Vinny woke to the feel of Annalissa’s hand on his chest. Moving slowly over his muscles. Gliding up to his shoulders and then down his bicep, tracing the pattern of his tattoo. Her soft touch caressed, and as he turned toward her, he saw green eyes following the trails of her fingers.

Afraid to speak, not wanting to break the spell that she was weaving, he held still watching her face.

Lifting her gaze to his, she whispered, “You’re beautiful. Everything any woman would want in a man.”

“I don’t care about any other woman,” he whispered back. “Only in being what this woman wants.” He leaned forward just enough to kiss her forehead before capturing her gaze again. “As long as I’m what you want, princess, I’m good.”

A smile curved her lips and he felt the piercing straight to his heart once again. Only this time…
no fear.
Giving control over to her, he allowed her to pull his head down to kiss his lips. Warm. Pliant. She licked his lips and he growled his response.

Taking over the kiss, he teased his tongue slowly into her mouth, exploring. Tasting. Tempting. Cupping her face with his hand, he ran his thumb over her cheek, the soft skin silky underneath his finger. The kiss lasted longer than most as he was determined to not rush.
We have all night. We have our whole lives.

Rolling her slowly to her back, he bore his weight on his forearms resting on either side of her head. Never losing her lips, he maintained the kiss while gently pressing his swollen cock against her pelvis.

Their lips separated only long enough for him to divest her of her t-shirt from the evening before. Bearing his weight now on one arm, he moved his other hand leisurely down her side, rubbing his thumb on the underside of her breast. He held that pose for a few minutes, gently massaging her nipple, feeling her body come alive under his. Continuing his downward path, he slid his hand over the curve of her waist and down her thigh. Throughout this exquisite torture, he held her lips, taunting and teasing them with his tongue.

She spread her legs so that he could settle between them in the natural position that had held men and women since the beginning of time. His cock nestled into her wet folds that beckoned him. He moved slightly so that his hand could explore further as his fingers found the way inside her warmth. He moved them, crooked them, felt her inner core begin to tighten and then slowly pulled them out.

Chuckling at her moan, he moved his fingers up and as he pulled his mouth away from hers, he slid his fingers coated with her juices between his lips. Her green eyes implored him, but she did not speak, both knowing what was happening between them was beyond words.

He reached over to grab a condom, rolling it on quickly. Keeping his gaze on hers, he deliberately slid his cock into her waiting body. Inch by tortuous inch. Not pounding. Not plunging. But so slow he could feel every twinge of her body. Memorizing her feel. Reveling in the sensation of her body accommodating him.
Nothing…nothing has ever felt like this. Pure, exquisite torment.

He finally reached as far into her as he could go and then began to slide lazily back and forth. The friction built just as quickly as if he had been rocking her body. Both arms were on either side of her head again, and their eyes never wavered. Over and over he moved until finally the fevered pitch had reached its crescendo.

Determined to hold his gaze, she squeezed his shoulders tightly as her orgasm rushed over her, electrifying her body from the core outwards. Tightening her legs around his waist, she pulled him in as he emptied himself into her. His neck was corded with thick, straining muscles until he finally collapsed to the side taking her with him.

Eyes still connected. Hearts beating as one. Legs tangled and arms holding tightly.

“What just happened?” she whispered in wonderment.

He held her close, kissing her lips once more. “Love, princess. Love just happened.”

T
he evening of
the gala was filled with women in glittering gowns and men in black tuxedos. Earlier in the evening, Vinny had moved to the second bedroom to get dressed while Sharon and Parker worked on Annalissa. Parker was over the moon with a new dress he had procured for her. She had to admit that when he pulled it out of the garment bag she was speechless. The dress had a fitted, beaded bodice that flowed down to a full skirt made of iridescent material that shimmered with blue and green. He helped her into it and then stepped back to admire his creation.

“Oh, darling, girl. You are a vision,” he gushed.

Sharon hustled her over to a stool and began working on her stage makeup while Parker then fixed her long curls. Leaving them hanging down her back, he expertly pulled the front away from her face so that they would not interfere with her playing. Fastening bejeweled clips all around, she had the appearance of wearing a crown interwoven in her hair.

Sharon chattered on about people in LA that she was meeting and hoping would get her acting career started.

“You are such a talented makeup artist, Sharon,” Annalissa said, laying her hand on her friend’s arm.

Giving a little shrug, Sharon said ruefully, “That’s nice to hear, but it’s kind of like always being the bridesmaid and never the bride.” Looking up at Annalissa eyes, expertly applying just the right shade of eye shadow to compliment the dress, she smiled, saying, “Speaking of brides. Anything we ought to know about with Mr. Hunky?”

“Oh, do tell,” Parker said, plopping down in front of her too.

“No, nothing to tell.”

“Well, you’re still living here. Did you ever go back to your place?” Sharon asked.

“I did, but it was so trashed. Vinny didn’t want me to go back there, and quite frankly I didn’t want to either.” Looking at them both, she admitted, “I guess that sounds kind of weird, doesn’t it?”

“Not at all,” Sharon said. “Hey, when you’ve got that, who’d want to live alone?” She stood up and walked over to her makeup case, putting her supplies away.

Parker leaned in, inspecting her face. “Beautiful, as always.” Capturing her gaze, he added, “Honey, when it’s right, it’s right. Don’t matter if it’s ten years, ten days, or ten hours. You got it, you hang on to it.”

They shared a smile before he assisted her up. Sharon and Parker wished her well and headed out of the apartment on their way to the event. “We’ll meet you there and do touch-ups before the press makes it into the room,” they promised.

Nervously, she walked out of the bedroom. Not seeing Vinny, she walked down the hall and when she turned, she stopped dead in her tracks.

He was standing in front of the windows, the evening sunset behind him. His black, fitted tuxedo stood out in stark contrast to the crisp white shirt that he wore. She knew it had to have been specially made—it fit him to perfection. And perfection he was.

Tall, handsome, and that smile.
Dear God, that smile.
His eyes were pinned on her and she felt her breath catch in her throat.

While she had been perusing him from head to toe, he had been staring at the vision in front of him as well. Every inch of her was elegant. The hair. The dress. The makeup. The shoes. Elegant. And perfect.

“Princess,” he called softly, holding out his hand.

She glided toward him, taking his much larger hand in hers. “Babe, you take my breath away. Absolutely fuckin’ away.”

Smiling, she ducked her head, but he lifted it again with his fingers under her chin. He offered her a kiss. Just a touch on the lips. Just a promise.

A knock on the door interrupted their moment and as Vinny called out, Jobe entered. He looked almost as marvelous as Vinny and she smiled as she walked over to welcome him.

Jobe looked her over, his eyes twinkling as he took her hand and lifted it to his mouth to place a kiss there. She giggled as Vinny gently pulled her back.

“You get the harp and I get the girl,” Vinny jokingly reminded him.

“Just my luck. Well, come on Easnadh,” Jobe said, as he carried the case down to the limousine that waited for them.

*

“We can’t afford
to fuck this up tonight.”

“You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t laid awake every night trying to figure out how to get our hands on that harp?”

“All I know is I’ve got no plans of this taking me down. And if I make one more call to Jawan, then the next thing coming from California is someone to take care of me—permanently!”

“Shut-up! You’re not making this any better. I’ve got this. It won’t fail.”

The two continued to argue for several minutes, each hoping that tonight, this entire fucked up situation would be over.

*

Once at the
Richland Concert Hall, Vinny left Annalissa’s side reluctantly as she made her way with Easnadh to the ballroom upstairs. The guests were still meandering around as they arrived, hor d’ouevers being passed by the wait-staff. As they made their way to the room where the evening’s activities were taking place, Tony’s men mingled.

Tony had several men outside providing their regular security service for some of the city’s dignitaries. Security cameras had been installed on the inside of the ballroom focusing on the small stage where Easnadh would be for most of the evening. BJ was at the helm of the van outside, monitoring the cameras and training another new hire.

On the inside, Tony placed the men he trusted the most. Terrance and Doug had been working for him for about a year and had earned the right to work security on the inside. Gabe, Jobe, Vinny, and Tony himself considered Annalissa and her harp to be their mission. And one they would not fail.

Once upstairs, she saw Maurice near the small platform stage where they would perform. Making her way over to him, she set her harp down to offer him a congratulatory hug.

“Oh, Mr. Feinstein, this evening is all for you. And I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more.”

Returning her hug, he smiled warmly down at his protégé. “Malyshka, I am so pleased to have you with me tonight.”

Sharon called her over from the side of the platform and Annalissa made her way toward her. “Hey, Parker and I are in a small room back here if you want to touch up. Todd said that we can use this room and you can leave your case here if you need.”

She followed her into the room, surprised that it held mostly stacked chairs that were not being used. There was a temporary mirror that Parker had placed on the wall and was already moving her in front of it. Fixing a few pins in her hair, he declared her ready for any performance.

Sharon had stepped through a door at the back and was re-entering, tossing a cigarette behind her. There was a small balcony overlooking the river beyond her. “Sorry,” she grimaced. “I just can’t break the habit. I know it’s nasty and I always go outside so I won’t get any cigarette smoke on you.”

Parker waved his hand in front of his face, fanning the last of the smoke away. “That’s why this room is so good—you can have that outside door if you need it.”

Sharon moved in front of her, eyes roaming over Annalissa’s face. “Makeup looks good, dearie.”

Smiling, Annalissa walked out of the room, setting Easnadh’s case at the edge of the platform, near the door. Taking the instrument out on the stage, she placed it next to Maurice’s violin, nervously patting it.

“Annalissa,” came a call from behind. In no time, she was surrounded by Gordon, Todd, and her father. The guests had moved to the ballroom and she was ushered to her seat at the place of honor next to Maurice.

The dinner passed quickly, although Annalissa had to admit to herself that the conversation was tiresome. An elderly senator, who appeared to be attempting to enter the campaign race a little early, and his wife dominated the conversation. She could hear Gordon from the table behind corner an airline mogul and was trying to hash out a deal for her travel. Todd, at another table, was whining to the waiter about his wine not being the proper temperature.

Just when she wanted to face-plant into her plate, her gaze landed on Vinny. He was staring straight at her as well. With a wink her way he moved around the room, seemingly casual, but she knew he was on high alert.