Nate

“Yes.” She darted her tongue along her bottom lip. “But some things are still the same.”

God, this girl. I had to get away from her before I did something we’d both regret. “Don’t get too comfortable. You’ll be leaving soon.” I turned and walked toward the doorway to the hall.

“Can I at least redecorate my room?” Her sweet voice dripped down my spine like warm honey. “Hello Kitty isn’t exactly my taste anymore.”

I waved a dismissive hand at her. “Sure. Knock yourself out. Opal can get whatever you want.” At the door, I hesitated. “Are you going out today?”

“Didn’t you just say you want me out?”

I glanced at her over my shoulder. She had one hip jutted out, her arms crossed beneath her breasts. A spanking. Definitely a spanking for that one. “I do want you out, but just not in that dress.”

She glanced down, then met my eyes with a sly expression. “Why? What’s wrong with it?”

When I realized she was playing me, my cock engaged in open warfare with my zipper. Brattiness was my weakness, and she had it in spades. “You know what’s wrong with it.”

“I love it.” She held out the hem, precariously close to revealing what was underneath. “I can’t imagine why you don’t like it.” She fluttered her eyelashes, taunting me.

I didn’t have time for her games, but fuck did I want to play. Forcing a clipped tone into my voice, I said, “Hargut will accompany you when you go out. If you want him to see your perky tits, that’s on you.” I strode into the hall instead of throwing her over my shoulder like I wanted. God, the things I’d do to her tight little body and her smart mouth. Gagging her with my cock shot to the top of my list, right behind the spanking. And damn, I would turn her ass redder than Santa’s cheeks on Christmas Day.

Anger boiled inside me at the thought of Hargut seeing her in that dress, but I pushed it down. I needed to be running on all cylinders, and her little peep show had thrown me right out of whack.

One thing was for certain. The sooner she moved out, the better.

Chapter Four

Sabrina

I had zero intentions of moving out. But my plan wasn’t going quite as easily as I’d imagined. The Nate I remembered would have jumped at the chance to get with a girl like me. But he wasn’t biting. Instead, he was backing away and trying to send me packing. Of course, this only made me want him more. Over the years we’d been apart, he’d turned into a gentleman—at least where I was concerned. Problem was, I didn’t want a gentleman. I wanted Nate. Down and dirty. Just the way I remembered.

Staring down at myself, I took in what I had to offer. Medium breasts, but perky, as he’d pointed out. A decent waist and, I could admit, a larger butt, that led down to long legs. Boys at school had told me I was pretty—of course, that was when they were trying to get into my pants.

I worked out, took self-defense and kickboxing electives. Not a vamp by any stretch, but I wasn’t a plain Jane. And I could have sworn Nate had been affected by me. His pupils dilated, his breathing faster. I didn’t have the nerve to look down and try to spot a stiffy, but I suspected he was attracted to me.

So what was I doing wrong?

“Did you drop something?” Opal walked into the breakfast room and gave me a questioning look.

“No.” I smoothed down my dress. “I was just, um…” I had no real explanation for why I was staring down at myself, so I changed the subject. “Nate said I could redecorate my room.”

Opal gathered the plates. I reached for the empty glasses, but she waved me away. “This is my job. Been that way since before you were born.”

“Okay.” I moved out of her way as she efficiently cleared the table. “But do you think we could shop later?”

“I’ve got some chores to do, but I’m sure Mr. Franco wouldn’t mind you shopping without me.” She paused and met my gaze. “But make sure you take Hargut with you. You know who I mean, right?”

“Yeah.” I’d seen him every day for five years straight. I could recognize him even if he dressed in drag.

“He can pay for the things you want.” She finished gathering the dishes. “I’ll see you when you get back, and we can work on changing the room.”

“Thanks.”

She smiled, her motherly eyes warming me a bit. “Anytime.”

I turned and walked into the marble foyer, a sparkling chandelier overhead casting a gentle light along the wide staircase. Nate had already left, gone out to do whatever it was mob bosses did. I supposed I should have been more concerned about his profession, but I was the daughter of a Bratva drug importer and his mistress. I’d watched him die when I was just a child, and, at the time, I’d been slated to die right along with him. But through some twist of fate, the hitman had taken pity on me, stolen me away, and had me adopted into a nice family.