A Bad Man: Joey Read online

  He didn’t respond, just continued to stare at her, breathing heavily, and making her arousal grow despite the knowledge that this reaction was out of place.

  She clenched her teeth together, hating that his silence could have such an impact on her.

  “I told you I would protect you. There isn’t anyone else on this planet that can make sure you’re safe, Marra.” He placed his hand on her cheek now, lightly, intimately, and dominating her with the barest of touches, and with his words. “I won’t let anyone hurt you,” he said softly now.

  Marra may have “known” him for the past year, but she didn’t really know him. But what she was most certain about was that when Joey said something he meant it. She was in this situation because she had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but Joey had been there. If not for him her brains would be plastered across the asphalt.

  “I will never be dishonest with you, but I expect the same in return, Marra.” He lowered his gaze to her mouth, and she found herself licking her lips.

  “You want me to tell you that I want to leave because of my feelings for you?” she said on a whisper. “Or you want me to tell you that I hate you, that I want to leave because this life you lead has put me in this situation where I am fearing for my life?”

  “You have nothing to fear, because I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

  He looked angry, hard, and in control at the same time.

  “You act like you don’t like what I do, but look me right in the fucking eyes and tell me the temptation of darkness doesn’t arouse you. That you don’t want me.” He squeezed his fingers harder into her flesh, but just when discomfort started to take hold he slipped his hand behind her head and held onto her hair. “Try lying to me and say that knowing I can and do bad things doesn’t makes your pussy so damn wet you could scream.”

  Her heart raced, her mouth went dry, and she wanted to argue, but she couldn’t. What he did was wrong, and how he lived his life was bad, but she couldn’t form the words to tell him that right now.

  He smirked. “Knowing that I am dangerous turns you on, Marra.” He leaned his face in closer to hers. “I bet right now you want me to fuck you despite the danger that your life may be in, don’t you?”

  She shook her head, hating the fact that there was a part of him that was right. “You hurt people, kill them.” She swallowed roughly.

  “I do, and I don’t apologize for that, because if I wasn’t able to take a life so easily yours would be nothing but a memory right now,” he said softly, but harshly. “People that deserve to be hurt are the ones that meet my wrath.” He moved in an inch closer until she felt like their lips were touching.

  “You like hurting them, getting your revenge.”

  He stared at her in the eyes, not answering right away, but also not showing any emotions. “You want me to tell you that I regret what I do? That I feel some kind of grief for the people that put my family, my business, in jeopardy?”

  She felt the heat from his body, felt her chest brush along his with every inhalation she made.

  “I won’t say any of that, because it would be a lie, and I won’t lie to you, Marra. I won’t ever do that, because I believe you deserve the truth.”

  She swallowed, not sure how to respond.

  “Now tell me what you want right now. Don’t think about what is outside of this apartment, or in Bourbon. Just feel this, feel me, and be honest with us both.”

  She opened her mouth, but before she could say anything he started speaking again.

  “And don’t lie to me, Marra. Never fucking lie to me.”

  Her heart beat fast and loud, and she felt it in every part of her body. “I do want you, even after all of this, but I can’t let myself give in, Joey.”

  God, this whole situation right now was surreal. She should be plotting her escape from Bourbon, and all this fucking drama she was right in the middle of. His nostrils flared, and a low sound left him. He was angry.

  A few seconds passed where he didn’t do anything but breathe heavily, maybe trying to get himself under control.

  “Don’t you have someone in your life?” she asked a little out of breath.

  “You’re the only woman in my life that means anything, Marra.” And then he pressed his lips to hers, grabbed her chin with his other hand tight enough to hurt, and showed her who was in control. For several seconds she couldn’t do anything but let him kiss her, and that was exactly what he was doing. He stroked her tongue with his, show her that he was the one that held all the cards, and that she was helpless to help him. At least that was how she felt.

  “You feel that?” he said against her lips, and then placed his hand over her heart. He went back to kissing her, taking everything from her and not letting her retreat. His arms and hands caged her in, and his mouth was on hers. He moved his tongue along her lips. Joey’s moves were ones of expertise, deliberately planned, and so thorough that she was so desperate for breath she was gasping when he broke the kiss.

  “What are you doing, Joey?” It was a rhetorical question, because obviously she knew what he was doing, but this was so not the time or place for this.

  “For the past year you’ve been refusing me, Marra, and making me want you even more because of it.” He cupped her cheek with his other hand, and smoothed his thumb over her bottom lip. “So red and swollen from my kiss,” he said while looking at her mouth. “I can’t tell you what that does to the possessive side of me, baby, knowing that I was the one to make your lips look like that.” He slowly lifted his gaze back to her. While looking at her, he took his hand, slid it over her collarbones, down between her breasts, and stopped for a second. The weight of his hand just resting there, adding a bit of pressure, made her nipples harden further.

  He moved his hand down to her belly, left it there for a second, and then to her utter shock he placed his hand right down her pants. She didn’t wear a bra and panties, because the ones she’d had on were either covered in blood or felt nasty on her body. But right now she was wishing she had another barrier on. He moved his hand right through her folds, and she grew wetter at the fact he could feel how aroused she really was despite her situation. He touched her pussy as if he owned it. And God, did it feel good.

  He growled low in his throat, as if an animal had been released inside of him. “I can feel how much you want me, and even if you want to deny it with your mouth and words, this right here,” he slipped a finger deep inside of her and she gasped out. “This right here, shows me that you want everything that I am.” He kissed her again, hard, possessively, and with so much force that their teeth clashed together. He broke the kiss for only a second and said in this deep growly voice, “This pussy is mine.” He moved his mouth down her neck, over the top of one of her breasts, and then he was sucking her nipple right through the shirt. He growled again. “And these are mine.” He cupped her other breast, and tweaked the nipple while he continued to suck on her. “You’re all mine, to own, to control, to pleasure, and to protect.”

  Marra didn’t know what to say. He was still thrusting a finger in and out of her, and all she could do was hold onto the counter behind her and bite her lip to stop from telling him to give her more. But his rough breathing, the way he pressed his body to hers, letting her feel how hard he was for her, had Marra opening her eyes. Realization moved through the thick haze of arousal, and she pushed him back. He was resistant at first, groaning out obscenities, but finally he relented. The bulge that pressed against his slacks was impressive, but when he advanced again, she held her hand up to stop him.

  “And you’re still trying to deny how you feel for me, how much you want me, and that there isn’t this connection between us?” he said in this hard, annoyed voice.

  “Joey, this isn’t about you and me, or about wanting each other.” She breathed in deeply, feeling like she wanted to just go into his arms and rub herself all over him. But she couldn’t. She was in this Twilight Zone-like situation, and getting her mind clea
r was what she needed to do. Having sex with Joey Bacelli was so not going to help with that.

  “This is about you and me, Marra. It’s very much about us.” He moved closer again, took hold of the back of her neck with his hand, and kissed her hard once more. Marra instantly got lost in the feel and taste of him, but she couldn’t allow herself to ignore everything else right now. She pushed at him, but he was relentless, and she wanted him so badly that she knew she wasn’t putting up a fight.

  “Stop, Joey.”

  “Do you really want me to, Marra?” he said against her neck now, ground his dick against her belly, which had her becoming wetter instantly.

  She wanted him, was on the verge of moaning out that she wanted him to just rip her clothes off and fuck the sexual frustration of the last year right out of her, but she didn’t. Instead she pushed against him as hard as she could until he relented.

  “What the fuck, Marra?” His voice was deep, guttural, and there was clear irritation in it. But she didn’t care.

  “I said this wasn’t a good idea, but clearly you are too hard up to listen.” She tried to catch her breath, because honestly she was just as turned on as he was, and stopping had been hard as hell for her.

  He reached down and grabbed his cock right over his slacks, and she felt her eyes widen at his obscenity.

  “Don’t look so damn innocent there, baby. I bet that pussy of yours is even more soaked than it was when I had my finger all up in you.”

  “God, you’re so damn crude, even at a time like this.” She was starting to feel those shots, and coupled with the fact she was hot as hell for Joey, she knew she needed to call it a night. She’d end up doing something she may or may not regret in the morning, and she already had enough on her plate. Moving past him was pretty damn hard, and when he reached out for her wrist and stopped her, she feared he might break her resistance.

  “You think I’m a bad man, Marra, but if I was really that bad then I wouldn’t be letting you walk away right now.” He let go of her a second later and moved down the hall and disappeared behind one of the bedroom doors. He slammed it shut, and she jumped a little.

  God, what a night to almost be killed, and then to have Joey Bacelli nearly fuck her.

  She glanced at the door, contemplating just leaving, but knew she wasn’t going to. Marra wasn’t a fool, and leaving in her condition, and especially in the city at this hour, wasn’t smart. No, she’d sleep this night away, and in the morning convince Joey that letting her go was the best option.

  Marra thought that might be easier said than done.

  Chapter Six

  “What did you find out?” Joey asked Niklo over the phone, and walked over to the window to look out over Central Park.

  “Found out that Carlos has been holding up in some foreclosed estate in Sugar Hill, and that he has been trying to move into Bourbon for the last six months. Not sure what his game is, but he has some kind of vendetta with the Bacelli family,” Niklo stated, and then shouted something to someone about watching the merchandise or fingers would be taken off as payment.

  That had Joey’s interest picking up immensely. Although this was news to him, he wasn’t shocked. He had felt the pressure of the Gondalo crew trying to slowly take up residence in his town, but he was surprised that they actually thought they could accomplish it. It had been little things Joey noticed, like coming into Bourbon late at night, causing fights in his bars, drinking up the liquor, insulting the women that were paid to give them a good time, and then leaving before Joey or his men could get there and shut things down. Six months wasn’t that long in the big picture, but when Joey had tried to reach out to Carlos, set the ground rules if they planned on working in a close, but separate town, Carlos had eluded him each time. There hadn’t been a sit-down, hadn’t been anything worked out, and now two of Carlos’s men were dead because of Joey, Mario was gone, and Mario’s wife was being used as a pawn. There would be no more talking things out, coming to an agreement that could make them both a lot of money

  It wasn’t that Joey didn’t allow people into Bourbon, but he ran things here. The Bacelli crew had been in this town all his life and even before that. His father had been the Boss, had run this town and made it what it was, and Joey had no plans to let some back alley group of wannabe mobsters take that away. He took a sip from his coffee and stared out at the people walking back and forth on the sidewalk below. His apartment was in the heart of NY, and although he loved Bourbon, there were more times than not he just needed to get away and clear his head. He was ruthless, and he wouldn’t change that for anything, but that also didn’t mean it didn’t chip away at his humanity. Sometimes getting his head on straight to think clearer made him a better leader, and one that could handle the brutality of the life he led.

  “What the fuck kind of vendetta?” He turned and walked over to the sink to set his mug in it. It was early, and although the sun was just barely starting to crest over the skyscrapers, Joey hadn’t gotten more than a few hours of rest. Marra was still asleep, which was good because if he had to see her right now after how worked up he had been just hours before, he might molest her before she even had time to rub the sleep from her eyes. Joey scrubbed his face with a hand and braced his back against the counter. Just thinking about her got him harder than a fucking steel pipe, and that was bad news especially with the Carlos shit happening. Pushing away his thoughts of Marra and how he wanted to do some pretty fucking wicked things to her body, he focused on Niklo and what his younger brother was saying.

  “Carlos has been keeping his intentions and the reason for all of this hush-hush,” said Niklo.

  Joey felt pissed that all of this was going down, that Marra was in the thick of it, and that his people were in jeopardy.

  “I might have gotten the info out of some Sugar Hill drunk that heard too much, but enjoyed talking to the end of my baseball bat,” said Niklo.

  Joey shook his head despite Niklo not being able to see him. His brother did like to use violence to get what he wanted, but fuck, they all did, he supposed. They might all use muscle to get answers, but Niklo was definitely a sadist at heart, and liked to come up with “unique” ways to get the answers he sought.

  “Seems like Carlos might not be so hush-hush now with what he wants, not after Mario and two of his guys are gone.” The sound of the voice on the other end dimmed, and then Niklo was the only thing Joey could hear. “Joey, man, this Carlos might not have his shit in order, and be so unorganized I could mow his crew down with a kick to the balls, but regardless of all of that he has some revenge on the brain and in his blood.”

  Joey exhaled, knowing that even the most unplanned things could be followed through if the person wanted vengeance. “Find out what you can. I want to know everything about what this vendetta is, and why we never heard about it until now.”

  The sound of the bedroom door opening had him glancing at the hallway. Marra looked at him, their gazes clashed, and he swore the fucking connection and heat slammed into him enough that he actually took a step back.

  “Joey, did you hear me?”

  He saw her lips part. Yeah, she had felt it, too, but she was still trying to refuse what was happening. She moved down the hallway and disappeared into the bathroom. He turned from her, focused on the stove, and thought about what the fuck he needed to do. “I’m staying in the city for the time being, at least until I can figure out what the hell to do with Carlos and this revenge mindset he clearly has.”

  Niklo grunted in agreement. “You keeping the girl there with you?”

  “Yeah, for the time being. At least until this blows over and I know she’s safe.”

  Niklo was silent for a moment. “You can keep her safe without taking her into the city, Joey,” Niklo said seriously.

  Yeah, he could have, but that wasn’t the point. Joey knew what Niklo was getting at though. “She isn’t a problem, and won’t cloud my judgment when push comes to shove.”

  “I didn’t mean
anything by it, but I don’t want your hard-on for her to make you think twice if push comes to shove.”

  “There isn’t going to be anything that happens to her, Niklo. She’s under Bacelli protection, got it?”

  “Yeah, what the fuck ever, man. I just want to make sure you’re in this, and that some woman that you’ve wanted as your goomah for the last year won’t come between whatever we plan.”

  “She isn’t my goomah, and I don’t want her as one.” What he didn’t tell Niklo was that he wanted Marra as his, and only his. He didn’t want a piece of ass on the side. Joey wanted Marra by his side. “Listen, just send over some clothes for her. I don’t have shit here for her to wear except some of my sweats and t-shirts.”

  “I’m sure your territorial ass is all about that.” Niklo started laughing. “All right, I’ll bring some shit over. But there is one more thing.”

  “What?”

  “Angie has been coming around asking for you.”

  Joey rested his head on the cabinet and refrained from cursing out loud. “I’ve been avoiding her for the last couple of months. When she isn’t trying to find me at my place in town, she’s blowing up my phone.”

  “Why not just tell her to fuck off? I grew up around Angie, too, and I know how she can be. The only way to get through her head is to tell her how the fuck it is.”

  “You think I didn’t do that? She’s adamant when she wants to get her point across.”

  “If she was a male she would have made one hell of a made man.” Niklo started laughing, but then sobered. “On second thought, she’d probably stab us all in the back right after she slit our throats.”

  “Just avoid her. She’ll get the point soon enough.” Probably not, but Joey had more pressing issues right now, and didn’t have time to deal with a woman that thought the world revolved around her. “Just bring me the shit because I’m not going to leave Marra alone until I know what the fuck is going on.” He hung up the phone, knowing that he could have Alex or Niklo, or even Little Johnny over here watching Marra while he hunted down Carlos and needed this. But the selfish part of him wanted to be with her, keep her for himself, and not let anyone else spend time with her. He was becoming a possessive bastard, but in all honesty ever since he had seen Marra he had wanted her.