PROLOGUE
NICK
Ten years ago, I fucked the mob boss’s daughter, and my life hasn’t been the same since. Lust at first sight turned into a flame we can’t put out.
Cheryl and I belong together, and we both know it. Ten long years ago, mob boss, Frank Barnett, her father, and my former employer separated us for her safety.
In the bad old days, I made collections for Frank’s organization—what people in Brooklyn called aleg breaker.I fled to Vegas to start over. Then opened up a mega nightclub right off The Strip, complete with a celebrity DJ, LED light system, and piranhas swimming under the lighted dance floor.
Unbelievably, fate threw Cheryl and me back together—in the craziest place of all—Sin City. Along with another surprise: my ten-year-old daughter, Portia.
Portia’s shocking existence helped seal the peace between Frank and me for the sake of his granddaughter. Ifsomeone told me back then that I’d actually be living with the mob boss’s daughter, I would’ve thought they were fuckin’ nuts, but it’s true.
Crazy times—me finding out I have a ten-year-old daughter who not only looks like me, but, according to Cheryl, has my stubborn streak. Of course, Portia and I don’t agree with her.
I immediately want us to be together as a family, but Cheryl’s skeptical and wants to make sure I’m doing this for the right reasons.
How could being with and wanting to get to know my daughter be the wrong reason? Cheryl held strong. Stubborn and feisty: two things I love about her. So, to prove my commitment, I show up at a house she was looking to buy in Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada, and this is where our story continues.
CHERYL
Nick and I stare at each other for a few long minutes.
“You didn’t answer my question.” Nick closes the distance between us. “Do you like the house?”
“I don’t understand.” I frantically search the room for my realtor. “Why are you here?”
I looked at this house last week with my realtor and immediately fell in love with it. Today, I was supposed to meet her here for another look and to make an offer to buy.
“I’ve tried for ten fuckin’ years to get you outta my system, and I can’t. Karma or fate or some other shit threw us back together again, and I’m not letting you slip away. I can’t ignore the way I feel, and neither can you.”
“I know, but?—”
“You’re an excellent mother to Portia, and fuck me, but I can’t live without you because when we were apart, I was half dead inside, barelyexisting?—”
“Nick, please?—”
“Let me get this out.” He pauses. “We’ve lost so much time already, and I’m not about to lose anymore. I wanna get to know you again, and, most of all, I wanna get to know my daughter and give both of you the best damn life possible.” He grabs my hands in his.
“I know you’re mad I didn’t tell you about Portia sooner.”
“I was, but I was mostly pissed off at not having the chance to make it better for you and her.”
My heart thumps hard at his perfect words.
“I never want anything to separate us again, and from now, on we always tell our truths. No matter how bad or how difficult.”
“When I walked into this house last week, I loved it right away, but a part of me knew something was missing.” I gaze into his dark, soulful eyes, so much like Portia’s. “And here you are when I need you. Saving me.”
“Nah, babe, you don’t need me to save you. You’ve been doin’ that all along. I just wanna be here to catch you if you fall.”
Silent tears wet my face. My man knew how to bring me right to the brink. He didn’t use flowery phrases or pretty words; he just spoke from his jagged heart. A heart torn to ribbons, like mine, and although scarred, still able to accept the gift of love. Along with our beautiful daughter who looks so much like her daddy.
“Even your father is on our side this time. The hard-ass mob boss said if I didn’t do right by you, I’d be swimming with the piranhas in my own damn club.” Nick’s arms encircle my waist, drawing me closer. “Kiss me.”
Nick fulfills me in so many ways. Only with him does the lonelinessdisappear.
NICK
