Acquisition (16 page)

“Sweet Sarah, those were movies, and my life is a lot different. I guess they did get the respect thing right though. Your brother fucked up, and he’s going to have to die. That’s the only way to address the situation.”

She licked her lips again, freezing when she remembered how much he seemed to appreciate the gesture. After a second, she finished the motion, but moved slower. “If you take something of greater value, won’t that settle the debt?”

He snorted. “It would have to be exceptionally valuable for me to risk appearing to be negotiating with a little shit who stole from me. I highly doubt Robbie Hastings has anything that valuable.”

She gathered her courage, swallowing the lump in her throat. “He has me.”

He arched a brow. “Unless you’re an heiress, Sarah, I don’t think you’ll be able to cover his debt.”

She’d hoped he would gather her meaning, but apparently she was going to have to be blunt instead of subtle. “If everyone thinks you’re taking his sister to repay the debt, that will satisfy the revenge aspect, won’t it? Then there’s just the matter of paying you back the hundred thousand dollars? He said it was just a small shipment, and he didn’t think you would notice it had gone missing.”

“I notice everything, but especially when it’s the first time I entrust something to a new associate.” His gaze seemed to bore through her. “So you’re offering to whore yourself out to me in exchange for your brother being given leniency?”

Her eyes widened. “No, of course not. I just thought that if you were seen with me in public a few times, and people thought you had taken me to satisfy his debt, that would be the end of it. I don’t have a whole lot of money, but I can sell the jewelry my grandmother left me and cash out my 401(k). I could probably scrape together at least seventy thousand now, and then work out an arrangement for the other thirty thousand, if you’re agreeable?”

He turned slightly, pressing his knee against hers as he looked at her in a forthright fashion. “What do you do, Sarah?”

She cleared her throat. “I’m a kindergarten teacher.”

He chuckled. “Of course you are. Let me get this straight, just to make sure I understand what you’re offering. You want to…what, pretend to be my mistress in public while you pay me back privately for your brother’s crime? In return, I let the little shit continue to breathe. Is that what you want?”

She nodded, hoping there was some decency in him. “I know it’s a lot to ask, Mr. Rinaldi, but you appear to have a generous side too. I researched a bit before I came here tonight, and I know you donated a wing to the hospital, and you also provided a grant to the Head Start program.”

He shook his head “No, that was the Rinaldi Foundation, which was founded by my mother. I support their work, but my brother Luka heads up that. I had nothing to do with those directly.”

Her heart sank a little in her chest, but she forced her expression not to betray her disappointment and renewed spark of anxiety. “Even still, you support the deeds, so you must be a good person deep down.”

He chuckled starkly. “Very deep down, Sarah. Would you like to hear my counteroffer?”

She licked her lips, bracing herself to hear something outrageous, like a hundred thousand dollar-interest charge on top of the hundred thousand her brother already owed him. “Yes, Mr. Rinaldi.”

“If I’m prepared to indulge this insanity—and I haven’t committed to the idea yet—there will be nothing pretend about it. You would be my mistress, which is an old-fashioned word, but applies perfectly well to our arrangement.”

She gasped, opening her mouth to protest, but he pressed on before she could speak.

“I’m not going to take your 401(k) or your grandmother’s jewelry, but if we negotiate an arrangement, what I will take is every inch of your body at my bidding. You do what I say when I say, and for how long I say.”

Her eyes widened, and she licked her lips. “Basically, you want me to be your sex slave for however long in exchange for letting my brother off the hook?”

He scowled. “Robbie isn’t off the hook under any circumstances. There’s nothing you can negotiate with me to make that happen. What I’ll do is send the little shit far away. He’ll get another shot with a different branch of the family, which is far more than he deserves, but will also be watched like a hawk. He fucks that up, he’s dead. You’d better emphasize that to him.”

She clutched the strap of her purse tightly in her hand. “What will you do to me if I agree to this, Mr. Rinaldi?”

He stared at her in that appraising fashion, but there was a predatory gleam in his eye. “You have this whole innocent sweetness vibe going on. I have to admit, it’s pretty damn sexy. I especially love the idea of ruining it, wrecking you, and leaving you looking like a wanton slut instead of this virginal persona you project.”

She took a gulp of her wine, uncertain if admitting it wasn’t a persona would be beneficial to the situation or not. Perhaps it was though, since he seemed to like the whole idea of ruining her. If she revealed he would be completely ruining her, it might be incentive to get him to capitulate and stick to the agreement, or perhaps even set a timeline.

If she could go through with the agreement. In the back of her mind, she had considered the idea that the gangster whom her brother was in trouble with might want more than just a pretend arrangement, and she tried to brace herself for the possibility, though uncertain she could really go through with it.

Now, sitting so close to Roman Rinaldi, with her nipples pressing against her sturdy white bra, and her panties damp at the idea of having the dark and dangerous man beside her stripping all vestiges of innocence from her, she was utterly convinced she could do it. That part scared her far more than actually making the agreement, but she was still troubled by his word that he would do anything to her.

“I’m sorry, but there would have to be some balance. A contract or safe word or something. You can’t just expect me to completely surrender to you without knowing what you might do to me. I don’t know what your tastes are. I mean, you could be into really kinky things like…” She trailed off, having a difficult time trying to think of something really kinky. She wasn’t completely naïve, but she was uneducated about strange things people did to each other.

“I don’t think I’m into anything too unusual. Whips, chains, and the occasional donkey just about covers it.”

Her eyes widened, and fear bubbled up in her. “I hope the donkey’s for you?” she said, sputtering in shock.

He laughed, a genuine laugh and not one burdened with any trace of bitterness or other negative emotions. “I have a feeling I’m going to like you, Sarah. I’m just kidding about the donkey.”

She took the last drink of her wine, wishing the glass had magically refilled itself, because she was still parched and nervous as heck. “But the whips and chains?”

He reached forward to take the empty glass of her hand, his fingers tracing hers in a gentle pattern as he did so. His touch was a marked contrast to his words. “Not kidding. I like a little rough play, and the idea of leaving some marks on you gives me the hard-on from hell. It wouldn’t be sweetness and light or unicorns and rainbows if you make this agreement.”

“And I have to do anything you say?” Her anxiety bled through, but she couldn’t deny she was also slightly intrigued by the prospect.

“Yes, but I’ll make some concessions. The first is, I’ll never share you with anyone else. That includes other women, just in case you were wondering about that.”

She exhaled a sigh of relief. “You don’t like girl-on-girl?” Had she really just asked that? She had to blame it on the wine and nerves.

Roman smirked at her. “I’m a red-blooded man. Of course I like it, but I also like the idea of owning you exclusively. I don’t want anyone else touching you, and that means other women too. If we negotiate a deal, you belong only to me for the duration, and if there’s already a sucker in your life, he’s history as of right now. Got it?”

The darkly possessive way he spoke sent shivers down her spine, but they weren’t all fear-inspired. “There’s no sucker currently.”

“Except me.” He laughed with a hint of darkness. “I can’t believe I’m prepared to overlook your brother’s blatant dishonesty and disrespect just for having you in my bed for a while.”

She couldn’t believe it either, and she was uncertain whether to be hopeful or fearful. “Does that mean you’re considering the proposition, Mr. Rinaldi?”

His hand went to her thigh, squeezing lightly. “Indeed it does, but I think I might need a sample before I can make up my mind completely.”

She took a deep breath and swallowed the lump in her throat. “No. No free samples. You don’t touch me until we have an agreement in place.”

His hand inched higher up her thigh, and soon his thumb brushed the crotch of her slacks. Thankfully, the denim hid the secret of just how wet she was from his light touch. “You drive a hard bargain. How do I know you’re worth that?”

She used her last bargaining chip, tilting her chin. “Do you like virgins, Mr. Rinaldi? You said you wanted to ruin my innocent persona, but the truth is, it’s not a façade. I’ve been too busy with school and trying to keep Robbie out of trouble to have time for relationships, so I’m untouched. If you agree to our deal, you’re acquiring completely pure stock.” She hated referring to herself in such an objectified fashion, but she figured it would appeal to him.

Instead, he frowned, the first hint of uncertainty showing. “You’re a virgin?”

She swallowed the lump in her throat, suddenly frightened her bargaining chip had turned into a stumbling block instead. “Yes, but if that’s a problem, I could take care of it before our arrangement starts.”

His mouth tightened, and he looked angry. “What do you mean, take care of it? You said there was no loser in the picture.”

She wasn’t sure if she was trying to entice him or just make a straightforward proposal to eliminate an obstacle when she said, “I’m certain I could buy a vibrator and deal with the physical unpleasantness of removing my virginity myself.”

His hand tightened on her thigh, and the other one around her back lowered to squeeze her upper arm. His anger was palpable. “Don’t even think about doing something like that. I’ll be the one claiming that prize, Sarah.”

Her chest fluttered as her heart pounded as she faced the reality of what she was doing. They were on the cusp of negotiating an agreement, and though it was certainly far more than she had planned to give, at least it would ensure her brother was safe.

And it would allow her to experience what it would be like to be fucked by a man like Roman Rinaldi. That appealed to her dark side, the one that everyone had—even virginal twenty-three-year-old kindergarten teachers. “Yes, sir.”

His eyes were dark with passion, and his mouth crept closer to hers, but he didn’t kiss her. “You can call me Roman since we’re going to be so intimately acquainted.”

“Yes, once we have an agreement. In writing,” she added.

Roman’s eyes widened. “You really want to put this kind of arrangement in writing, where it could fall into the wrong hands?”

She nodded. “Let’s just say I’d feel better about the whole thing if I have the security of knowing there’s proof somewhere documenting our deal.”

“Fine. Give me your address, and I’ll come to you tomorrow with paperwork in hand. After your name is on the line beside mine, our deal is in effect. There’ll be no backing out then once you believe Robbie is far away and safe, Sarah,” he said with a hint of warning.

She licked her lips and nodded. “I have a feeling there was no backing out from the moment I stepped into this club, Roman. I’m here to make sure my brother is safe, and I’m willing to do what’s required to do that.”

“You can’t safeguard your brother from his own stupidity and dark urges, but in this instance, you’re right. I’m willing to accept something far more valuable in exchange for leniency.”

Suddenly, despite her words about no samples, Roman’s mouth was on hers in a hungry, possessive kiss. His tongue surged into her mouth before she could even think of protesting, and he seemed to be both tasting and branding her at the same time. When he lifted his head a moment later, fire burned through her, and her panties were extremely damp. She had the unseemly urge to finger herself right there, certain he would appreciate the show, but also knowing it would lead to far more intimate actions. Events she couldn’t allow to happen until they had an agreement in place, and her brother was far away and safe.

“Definitely far more valuable. You have no idea how much I’m looking forward to defiling your innocence.”

She shivered, temporarily overwhelmed with fear by the intensity in his gaze. She had no doubt Roman would strip every vestige of innocence and naïveté from her, and she had no idea what kind of person he would leave in his wake. She was frightened to find out, but also oddly fascinated by him and whatever he planned to do to her.

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R.E. Saxton is the pen name Kit Tunstall uses when writing dark romance. It’s simply a way to separate the myriad types of stories she writes so readers know what to expect with each “author.”

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