Made Men 3: The Red Slipper (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  She tightened as his thumb grazed the side of her breast. She hated this man.

  “Do you understand what I’m telling you? I own you and your father. You’re going to make me back my money and then some.”

  She was breathing heavily but the need to resist him, to fight him and gain some control, was building inside of her. These last several months of this shit was weighing its toll on her.

  “The nineteen thousand and then it’s done. We owe you no more,” she said.

  He snorted, then softened his hold on her jaw and stroked her lower lip. The way his eyes sparkled reminded her of some sinister villain who had tricks up his sleeve, his grin pompous and all-knowing. There was more to this. What, she didn’t know.

  “Kiernan will pick you up next week, Tuesday night at six. I’ll touch base with you beforehand.” He stepped back and Kiernan was there, eyeing her thighs, her skirt nearly to her waist. He pulled her up and she lowered her head and fixed her skirt. He caressed her hair from her face. She swallowed hard and looked up, locking gazes with Kiernan.

  “Let’s go,” he said to her.

  She looked at her father.

  “We have more negotiating to do, to ensure you do what’s required in this new deal,” Billy said, and then the other two guys pulled her father up from the chair and started pulling him from the room to another back room.

  “No. Where are you taking him? What are you doing?” she screamed at Billy as Kiernan wrapped his arms around her and stopped her from going after the guys and her father. She heard her father grunt. She saw the one guy slug him in the stomach, then she looked at Billy.

  “It will all work out,” he said, then exited the room and closed the door.

  She tried pulling from Kiernan’s hold and a moment later he had her shoved up against the wall, her face and body plastered to the painted sheetrock. Kiernan towered over her and he pressed his body hard against her body, caging her in. His hand held both of her wrists behind her back and tears rolled down her cheeks.

  “Settle down. You can’t fight Billy. This is your father’s fault and you have to do what Billy says.” He inhaled against her hair and neck and she shivered with fear.

  He whispered into her ear. “It will be over before you know it. The debt, the deal.” His lips touched her ear and she whimpered. He was silent as he dragged his lips along her neck, and then her shoulder. She could feel his erection against her rear. She couldn’t stop shaking.

  “I won’t be too far away. Cooperate and when this is all done, I’ll take care of you,” he said to her, and used his free hand to slide along her hip, then down over her front before he gripped her around the waist.

  She held her breath when suddenly he released her wrists, turned her around, grabbed her face, and kissed her. She wouldn’t kiss him back and he pulled from her, grabbed her hand, and started dragging her from the room.

  “Move.”

  He pulled her along with him. She wiped her eyes, afraid to make a scene as they exited the crowded restaurant and bar. She kept her head down and held onto Kiernan’s arm so she wouldn’t fall as he abruptly pulled her along. She’d obviously pissed him off, too. When they got outside, the car was there and Marlin opened the side door. She didn’t look at him either. She got inside and Kiernan slammed the door closed and then got into the passenger seat.

  “Her place,” he said.

  She leaned back and covered her mouth with her hand to submerge the sob. What was she going to do? How was she going to get out of this?

  * * * *

  “Hey, sorry to bother you.”

  “No bother, Bailey. What’s going on?” Adalina asked. She was looking over some numbers and documents on her laptop in the office.

  “I think I saw a friend of yours this morning.”

  “Okay.”

  “Sexy, platinum blond, about five foot five, striking green eyes, gorgeous from head to toe.”

  She figured it was Caprice. His description was what most men picked out immediately. Platinum blond, green eyes, sexy body.

  “And what? You want an introduction? I’m not a matchmaker,” she said, and then heard someone clear their throat. Sunny stood there in his business suit, narrowing his eyes at her. She gave him a wink and a wave.

  “Under other circumstances I would probably take you up on that, but considering she showed up at O’Hare’s with Kiernan and Marlin and was taken to the back room, I would say she’s involved with something,” Bailey told her.

  Adalina sat up straighter.

  “What else can you tell me?”

  “Well, she was back there for a bit. Thirty minutes, tops, then Kiernan was dragging her out. She was upset. Crying, head down, and Kiernan looked pissed off. They left in his car with Marlin driving.”

  “Well, I appreciate the information.”

  “Anything for you, Adalina.”

  She smiled.

  “Let me know if you see anything else.”

  “Of course, and I hope she isn’t in big trouble. Those guys are relentless, and Kiernan’s not really dealing with a full deck.”

  “Understood. Thanks.”

  She ended the call and then turned to look out the window. What the hell was Caprice doing at Billy O’Hare’s place?

  “What’s going on? I know that look. Start talking,” Sunny said to her, and then Vinny walked in.

  “Start talking about what?” he asked and closed the office door.

  She tapped the cap of the pen against her lip.

  “I don’t know yet. It could be something.”

  “Well, who was that on the phone?” Sunny asked.

  “A guy I know. He spotted Caprice somewhere, and around some not-so-good people.”

  Sunny exhaled. “Number one, who was the guy on the phone? Number two, who was Caprice with, and what do you think is going on?” Vinny asked, with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

  She exhaled. “Could I look into this before we discuss it?”

  “No,” they both said.

  Sunny walked closer and pulled her up from the chair and into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close. Adelina rubbed her palms up and down his muscular chest.

  “Baby, you know the rules. We talk to you about everything, and you talk to us about everything. We protect what’s ours, and if one of your friends is in trouble, we talk it out, together.”

  “I don’t know what’s going on. That was Bailey. I’ve known him for years, and his dad, too. They work as electricians and Bailey runs numbers sometimes.”

  Sunny raised his eyebrows up at her.

  She stepped back and looked at both of her men. “He said he saw Caprice go into Billy O’Hare’s place with his two main guys, Kiernan and Marlin.”

  Vinny squinted at her. “I know. Not good. He said she was there about thirty minutes and when she left, she was upset and Kiernan was dragging her through the place, and he left with her and Marlin in a car.”

  “What do you think is going on?” Sunny asked.

  “I don’t know. I haven’t exactly had time to see the ladies, and with the new business and all, we’ve been swamped. I know that Caprice’s dad used to be in the electricians union, but he was laid off a couple of years ago. I think I’ll call her and set up a lunch date.”

  “And do what? Confront her on this meeting or whatever with O’Hare?”

  “Pretty much. That guy is trouble. He has a bit of pull, especially with the electrician unions and truckers, but not as much pull as Fedarro and Collin Fiorre. What he does do on the side is loan sharking. Could be something going on there.”

  “Shit,” Vinny said.

  “I know. This reeks of problems, considering what happened in D.R.”

  “Wait, what happened in D.R. that has to do with this being a problem?” Vinny asked.

  “You don’t know about Angelo, Vito, and Morano, and who they hooked up with there?” she asked.

  Vinny and Sunny looked at one another, and the
n Sunny widened his eyes.

  “Them and Caprice? Holy shit,” Sunny said.

  “Wait, are they seeing her now?” Vinny asked. Adalina shook her head.

  “I heard that Caprice told them what happened in D.R. was as far as it could go. That they lived different lives and she had things going on in her life …” Adalina stopped talking. “Shit,” she said, and then grabbed her phone.

  “What? What is it?” Sunny asked her.

  She looked at them and exhaled.

  “I’m pretty sure that Angelo beat the hell out of Billy’s cousin, Murphy, during some sort of business situation. Word on the streets in the fighting world is that the match Angelo is training for is against a guy who is being monetarily supported by O’Hare. Murphy has been training him to beat Angelo.”

  “How the hell do you know this stuff?” Vinny asked her.

  Sunny shook his head.

  “Why are you even asking her that? Our woman seems to know a lot of people and a lot of things. Now, could this be an attempt to go after the Fiorre brothers?” Sunny asked.

  “Not sure, but before we get in touch with them, I think I need to make plans with Caprice.”

  “Not alone,” Vinny said.

  “Of course not. I’ll take you two along,” she said and smiled, then texted on her cell phone.

  “Oh, really? There is an order to the ladder of authority in this relationship,” Sunny said, and pulled her into his arms. Vinny pressed up against her back and gripped her hair, tilting her head sideways as he suckled against a sensitive spot on her neck. She lowered her hand with the cell phone and moaned softly.

  “Yes, there is, and I’m at the top,” she whispered. Sunny cupped her breast and then pinched her nipple, making her gasp.

  “Who is on top?”

  She locked gazes with him, her body was so aroused, so needy for the two men, but they were in the office at work. They were her men, and she needed to respect them and their positions of authority in the family. She had yet to explain to them who she really was and who her father was. Her dad was adamant and his life depended upon no one knowing he was even alive. She felt badly, and knew she needed to tell them and make them promise to keep it a secret, but she didn’t know how she would tell them and what their reaction might be. The longer she waited, the more she risked losing them. They would think she didn’t trust them.

  “I like you on top, but only in bed, where my brother and I can take you together. Claim you, our woman, together, and make you beg for mercy,” Sunny said, and he and Vinny both began to arouse her, cup her breasts, and stroke between her thighs.

  When her cell phone buzzed, she pulled back. “We’re in the office,” she reprimanded.

  “Who is in charge?” Sunny demanded to know, and Vinny held her around the waist.

  “The two of you, and I promise to behave,” she said and winked at Sunny.

  “You won’t behave. You like being naughty way too much,” Sunny told her, and caressed his palm along her hip, and then leaned forward and kissed her. He stepped back and Vinny turned her around and kissed her next.

  “Look at your cell and see what Caprice said,” Vinny told her, and she stared at him a moment and then looked at Sunny.

  She loved these two men so much. The time was drawing near to tell them about her dad. She just knew it.

  She looked at her cell phone and squinted her eyes.

  “She declined lunch.”

  Adelina worried her bottom lip. Sunny rubbed her arm.

  “You’ll get her to meet you or you’ll go to her job. Where does she work?” he asked.

  “The Red Slipper.”

  Sunny widened his eyes.

  “I didn’t know that,” Sunny said, looking shocked but also smirking.

  “Neither did I. What does she do, wear those sexy outfits and dance?” Vinny asked.

  “Oh, so you’ve been there staring at the sexy outfits?” She raised one of her eyebrows and accentuated the word outfits.

  “Honey, it’s a great place.”

  “Yeah, well, she’s been hoping to get a solo gig singing.”

  “She sings?” Vinny asked.

  “Yes, but she also works as a paralegal. Let me see if she’ll meet me. Otherwise we’ll go there Wednesday.”

  “Okay. We’ll go there together,” Sunny said to her.

  She looked back at the cell phone, worried about Caprice. Her gut clenched and she wondered what exactly was going on.

  Chapter 3

  Caprice finished up the first act, and was putting on the sexy red corset, thigh-high stockings, garters, and high heels for the dance she did with five other women called “Lady in Red”. It was a sexy, slow-moving song popular in the ’40s and ’50s, traditional burlesque style. Her makeup was caked on, her lips cherry red, and she was applying mascara to her eyelashes when Brandy came up to her, all set to go.

  “I can’t believe you won’t take that awesome job at the Magique,” she said to her.

  “I told you why.”

  “So what? The guys you slept with in D.R. work there. You are practically in love with them anyway,” Brandy said and fixed her makeup.

  Caprice swung her head to look at her friend. “What? Who said that?” she snapped at her.

  “Honey, you haven’t been the same since D.R. Who the hell are they, anyway? I mean what’s the big deal?”

  “I can’t say, but if you knew, then you wouldn’t be pushing the issue.”

  “Sure, I would be, because you deserve a break. An opportunity to shine.”

  “Yeah, well, other shit is going on, too, and right now isn’t a good time to take on another job.”

  “You lost the paralegal job, so why not work at club Magique and make some good money, get out of that shithole apartment, and start making a living and being happy?”

  “Don’t even talk to me about the apartment. The damn guy next door was partying all night with several women, and the old lady upstairs was blasting music all night. I’m not looking forward to even going home tonight.”

  Brandy touched her arm. “You want to crash at my place? I could go to Ivan’s?”

  “No, don’t worry about it. No use in complaining,” she said.

  “Two minutes!” one of the girls yelled out.

  Caprice and Brandy headed toward the stage with the rest of the women. When the music began and they headed out to the stage, the crowd roared, loving this very sexy act, and she got lost in the music, in the role she was playing and hoped the tears wouldn’t fall. She really didn’t know what she was going to do about Billy and his demands, plus her father called and asked her to obey Billy’s demands, and then hung up on her. She was feeling hollow inside, and working here at the show was the only thing keeping her from losing her head.

  * * * *

  Caprice stopped at the curtain as the manager of the club pointed toward the booth. Adelina saw her facial expression go from shocked, to scared, to forcing a smile. She lifted one finger and then disappeared behind the stage. A few minutes later, she emerged wearing a sheer robe that somewhat covered the sexy attire. Caprice watched her avoid the men eyeing her, calling things to her like “have a drink with us”, but then Vinny stood up and met her, kissed her cheek, and the sight of him made the guys shut their mouths. They each greeted her and Caprice, and they hugged.

  “I can’t believe you’re here. This is such a surprise,” she said, and Sunny offered her a seat as he stood by the booth.

  “We wanted to come see you. Well, these guys wanted to see the outfits. I came to see you,” Adelina teased, and Sunny and Vinny shook their heads.

  “You looked amazing up there. We didn’t know that you worked here,” Sunny said to her.

  Caprice looked a bit embarrassed, Adelina thought, as Caprice lowered her eyes. “Yeah, well, it helps pays the bills.”

  “So, how is everything going? What’s new?” Caprice asked.

  “Just busy with the new business. I was wondering what was new with y
ou.”

  “What do you mean?” Caprice asked.

  Adelina looked at Sunny and Vinny.

  “A friend of mine saw you at O’Hare’s yesterday with some not-so-nice individuals.”

  Caprice’s eyes widened and immediately tears filled them.

  Adelina reached over and covered her hand.

  “What’s going on, honey? How bad is it?”

  Caprice went to open her mouth and then the tears flowed. She wiped them away and then looked at Vinny and Sunny, then back at Adelina.

  “I…I don’t know where to start, and I have to get back to work for another dance act.”

  “I know something is going on, and I want you to know that whatever it is, I’m here for you, and so are Vinny and Sunny.”

  “It’s not your problem. I’m handling it.”

  “You’re upset.”

  Caprice was silent.

  “Okay, listen, we are going to talk about it and work it out together,” Adalina said. “Now, we can do that tonight after you’re done working, or tomorrow, first thing in the morning.”

  “I don’t think you should get involved, Adalina. It’s not your concern.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong. You’re my friend and you are my concern. I know about men like O’Hare.”

  “Do you?” Caprice whispered, holding her gaze as a tear rolled down her cheek.

  “He’s not a man to mess with. If he’s holding something over your head, threatening you, or trying to force you into something, you need to tell us so we can help get you out of it,” Sunny added.

  “It isn’t just me,” Caprice said.

  Adalina felt her gut clench.

  “Explain. From the start,” Adalina said.

  Caprice looked at the stage and then back at Adalina. “Everything was fine. I had been working here, working the paralegal job, when I found out my dad owed Billy O’Hare money.”

  Sunny exhaled.

  Adalina raised her chin toward Caprice. “Found out how?”

  One look into Caprice’s eyes and Adalina knew it was bad. A tear escaped. Caprice wiped it and then sniffled. “I don’t want to talk about that.”