“Sophia. Sophia! Soph, wake up, Sweetling. Wake up, you’re having a nightmare.”
I startle awake, my eyes wide and wild as they dart around my surroundings. Yakov holds me tight in his lap, his warm breath ghosting across my ear. Dark, fathomless brown eyes enter my line of vision, and I feel my entire body relax.
“There she is. Hello, little sweetling.” Monty’s big hands mold to my jaw, his thumbs brushing against my temple and cheeks. I am 5’10” flat-footed, and though I am slender, I have not often felt small or little. My sisters and I, except Dot, have towered over nearly everyone since the 4thgrade, with Rose and Blanche taller than me. Meeting the Kosher Nostra and being accepted into their family, we are finally surrounded by people our own size. Luckily for Dot, the children are small enough she doesn’t feel left out. Yak and Monty are not blood relation to the KosherNostra, but they are as much a part of the mishpocheh as Tovah or Ezra, and just as big.
Whereas others might make me feel nervous with their sizes, I have always felt safe and secure when I am near either of them. And at night, when I sneak into their suite and Yak’s room…I know it’s not really sneaking if I wake up in his bed, surrounded by the scent of both men, but neither has called me on it and I do not want to stop anytime soon. I can’t sleep in my own house or my suite at the compound. Over the months since everything went down, the only time I can keep the nightmares at bay long enough to sleep is when I am in Yakov’s lap, or my head on Monty’s thigh while he runs his fingers through my hair and along my face. Their presence is all that stands between me and complete insomnia.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper hoarsely, feeling embarrassed as the weight of others’ stares registers.
“None of that.” Monty shakes his head before pressing his soft lips against my forehead in a lingering, tender kiss. I sigh contentedly, melting into Yakov’s embrace. “Do you want something to eat?”
“No, thank you.” Dipping his chin, he stands from where he is crouching in front of me and sits next to us on the picnic bench. We sit in comfortable silence, the three of us, watching the backyard of the Kosher Nostra compound come alive with the sounds of conversation and laughter, the smell of hamburgers and hot dogs, and the sights of happy children running amok.
The 1stAnnual Mishpocheh Consortium Employee Appreciation Day is in full swing. Yak has been tense for weeks leading up to this, knowing that security would be spread thin with everyone here. And it’s difficult to appreciate your employees if they are working their own event.
I point with a giggle at David and Moshe smacking each other with spatulas, both wanting to man the grill. Tovah swoops in, hip checks them both out of the way, and proceeds to pull a spatula from between her boobs. When they try to take the grill back by force, her husband makes his presence known. Masud, commonly known as The Pharaoh, is 7 feet-tall and intimidating. To those who do not know him at least. Witness him pout when he loses inMortal KombatorScrabbleand he’s not nearly as intimidating anymore. Yak and Monty snicker when father and son stomp their feet in unison, glare at one another, and storm off to their wives for comfort.
“So, the tall scary one is married to the other tall scary one and we gotta give up a day off to eat barbeque with our bosses and play stupid fucking games?” Voices carry from a nearby picnic table filled with Mishpocheh Consortium employees. They are scattered across the expansive grounds and at a quick glance it appears most are enjoying themselves. Other than whoever just spoke, anyway. Yak tenses beneath me, so I shift slightly and place my lips against his throat on instinct, humming to soothe him. He absently kisses the top of my head; his hard glare aimed at the table.
“Dude, shut the fuck up.”
“No, it’s ridiculous. We put our lives at risk for them every day and they think a hamburger and some potato salad will make it all ok?”
“I think the exorbitant salary, company matched 401k, free health insurance, and paid time-off make it all ok. This is just fun.”
“Mandatory fun.”
“It wasn’t mandatory.”
“So, I could have said ‘no’ and lived to breathe another day?”
“You are way off base.”
“And I think you all are naïve. You heard what happened to Chas—” The rest of the stupid man’s ramblings are drowned out by Yakov’s growl. He stands swiftly, depositing me in Monty’s lap and strides toward the table. Yak grips the back of the man’s head and slams it into the picnic table once, twice, three times a bloody mess. I close my eyes, Tovah’s bloody body flashes through my mind. Monty rubs his hands up and down my arms, then wraps them around me and holds me close.
Yakov’s voice is loud and clear, an obvious threat to anyone else brave enough to challenge the Kosher Nostra. “Dig deep, find your manners, or I’ll cut you open till I find them for you.”
One of the others at the table grabs a cell phone, stands and walks toward Yak. He hands it over, whispers something in Yak’s ear that has him turning a violent shade of red. Now is not the time to be turned on by how…animalistic he looks. Given the chance, he would tear that stupid man limb from limb, but he holds himself back. His self-control is incredible.
“Tev!” Tevye kisses his fiancé Vandy on the lips, tickles Arlo’s belly and jogs over to Yak. They whisper back and forth, then the loudmouth is yanked up by the collar of his shirt and carried off, his feet dangling above the ground. Vandy licks her lips and I laugh to myself. These men are something else. And most people would think I should be frightened by them, I should fear the violence that lives inside them.
I don’t. Seril, Harper, Ruthie, Dottie, Vandy…they sleep in the arms of the men they love knowing that violence is what protects them. Protects their growing families. The people they hold most dear.
“He’s glorious to watch, isn’t he?” Monty whispers in my ear, a shiver traveling down my spine from the sensual tone of hisvoice. I slowly turn to meet his gaze and swallow hard at the scorching heat that stares back at me. I nod numbly, my brain short-circuiting as it fails to process this new development. Is he…are they…am I penis-prohibiting them? I sleep in Yak’s bed most nights…ok, every night. That doesn’t give them much time…alone.
My body heats uncomfortably, arousal warring with shame. The two of them together, naked, writhing, moaning…but they can’t do any of that because I am always in their way.
“Stay with her, I have an exit interview to conduct.” My head tilts at Yak’s words. Exit interview? Are they firing that man? The hard glint in his eyes tells me this particular exit is permanent. Yak glares over his shoulder, turns back to me and kisses me on the forehead, then he’s gone.
“Come on, now that you’re awake, let’s enjoy the festivities.” Monty stands, placing me on my feet. He holds my hand and leads me to where Sophie and Zeppo are standing, a crowd gathering around them.
“Sophia!” Ruthie calls out to me, and I step into her embrace, happy to spend time with her. I push back the memories of my nightmare and smile at my friends. The only real family I have ever known. “You gotta try this.”
“Try what?” Zeppo hands me a small plastic package. I stare at the label and try to make sense of the image. “NakatokingPlaza?” He nods with a big grin. “I don’t get it.”
Zeppo and Sophie laugh and I don’t know why that’s funny. “You aren’t the only one.”
Monty snatches the package out of my hand. “The shit that Ernie took and had him tripping balls? No, she ain’t trying it.”
