Provoke

“Leeta, maybe you should calm your friend down,” Dad said, his voice stiff. I rubbed my temples. How could I have possibly thought this would go well?

Calm him down? I was on the verge of storming out on his behalf. I was proud of Mace for remaining so calm.

“Maybe you should stop trying to make him uncomfortable?” I suggested sweetly to Dad.

“Maybe it’s best if I leave,” Mace interrupted. He dragged his chair back and stood up, his eyes clouded with anger. He turned to me. “Call me when you’re done, yeah?”

Shaking my head, I watched him storm out of the restaurant. I turned back to Dad. I was so angry I was trembling. I stood up and threw my napkin on the table.

“Would it have killed you to be civil?” I said acidly, reaching for my handbag.

“Come on, Leeta. What the hell are you doing with that fool? You can do better. You had better.” And there it was: he was never going to get over me breaking up with Ben.

“You don’t get it, Dad. Ben didn’t make me happy. Mace does. You might not like the package, but if you gave him a chance . . .”

I laughed as Dad scowled at me. Why am I even bothering?

“All you’re doing here is pushing me away,” I warned as I backed away from the table.

Stalking out through the restaurant lobby, I scanned the room for Mace. I spotted him outside, walking to his bike. I raced after him.

“Mace!”

He turned around and waited for me to catch up. “I’m sorry, Leets. But I couldn’t sit there and be judged like that.” He ran his hand through his dark, curly hair, his blue eyes sad.

“I’m sorry. My dad can be an asshole.” I ran my fingers over his ripped chest, with one thing on my mind: making him realize just how important he was to me. “Take me home?”

“Sure,” he sighed. He handed me the spare helmet. “Jump on.”

#

There was nothing quite like soaring through the streets on the back of a bike with your arms curled tightly around a hot, sculpted body. I leaned my face against the back of his jacket, holding him as close to myself as I possibly could without mounting him.

It took me a moment to realize we were headed to his house, not mine. Smiling, I held on a little tighter to my man. He pulled into his driveway and steered the bike into his garage.

We walked inside through the internal door in the garage. His house was a far cry from my inner-city apartment. Situated in one of the poorer suburbs in Melbourne, his street was one I’d feel nervous about walking down alone at night. Well, nowadays I’d feel nervous walking anywhere alone at night, but around here . . . it gave me the creeps. With Mace with me, though, I felt safe. One of the benefits of dating within a crime family was that nobody was game enough to touch you. Everyone knew who he was, and by association, everyone knew I was his girl.

“He’s right, you know.” He put his arms around my shoulders and smiled down at me. “You could do so much better than me, Leets.”

How had he known that Dad had told me that?

“Mace, quit doing that. You are an amazing guy. I’m not dating my father, thank God. I’m a big girl. Believe it or not, I’m old enough to decide who I date.”

“You sure your dad knows that?” He smirked. I punched him lightly on the arm. I hated that he felt like he wasn’t good enough for me. We couldn’t be any more different, but together we were perfect.

Every day, my feelings for him grew stronger and deeper. There were so many layers to this man, and every one I peeled back revealed another reason for me to love him.

There were things he hadn’t told me—tonight at dinner was a perfect example—and I knew there was more, secrets from his past locked up inside his soul, but I could only trust that when it felt right for him, he’d let me in completely, with no boundaries.

“Shut up and kiss me, you idiot.” I pulled him toward me, my mouth closing over his as my arms wrapped around his waist. His fingers struggled to free my shirt from the constraints of my skirt until they roamed over my bare back.

I pushed him away and narrowed my eyes.

“You think I’m sexy?” I asked, tilting my head. My dark hair tumbled over my shoulder as I unbuttoned my shirt. He smirked and leaned back against the kitchen counter, his hands behind his back, just watching me.

With all the buttons undone, my shirt fell open, giving him glimpses of my smooth, creamy skin and the soft-pink lace bra that was doing a wonderful job holding my girls up.

I bit my lip and reached behind me, unzipping my skirt. Very slowly, with my thumbs hooked on either side, I lowered it. His eyes fell to my matching pink thong as the skirt disappeared down my long legs. I kicked it aside and walked over to him, swaying my hips. The heels I was wearing gave me an extra few centimetres in height, which brought me almost to eye level with him.