Page 7 of Forgotten Comeback (Parisi Family #5)
Chapter
Six
Taylor
“Ugh,” I groan with eyes closed. My head throbs to the beat of last night’s techno as I peel my tongue from the roof of my mouth.
Why did I think last night was a good idea again?
Something cold touches my forehead, and I snap my eyes open. Gavin’s smug face hovers over me; he’s holding a glass of water against my temple.
Sitting up, I snatch the water and pull the covers over my naked tits, being careful not to jostle a sleeping Mia.
“I’ve gotta go,” he says quietly. “Tell Mia thanks for the good time. Or should I thank you?”
“For what? Teaching you how to eat pussy?” I take a huge gulp, handing him back the glass.
He shakes his head, placing the water on the nightstand. “For being such a gracious loser in our little game. You squirted so hard, I nearly lost an eye.”
“Go away, little fuckboy.” I lie down and snap my eyes shut, all the while I’m berating my pussy for losing to the likes of Gavin.
“You know there’s nothing little about me,” he whispers with humor in his voice. “See you around, man-eater.”
“Let’s not and say we did,” I mutter, drifting back asleep.
Our server delivers breakfast, and I nibble on a piece of toast. Choosing my words carefully, I tell Mia, “I know things between us started out interesting—”
“Interesting?” Mia nearly spits out her coffee. “There’s an understatement.”
I smile, leaning over the table. “Okay, really fucking unorthodox, but I want to explore this thing between us. Just you and me.” And zero fuckboys with photoshopped penises. “Come on, Mia. I like you. You like me. Why don’t we give this exclusive relationship thing a shot?”
Considering me over her coffee cup, she says, “Yeah, okay. Let’s give it a shot.”
I smile, reaching over and lacing our fingers together.
Her phone buzzes, and she releases my hand to grab it. “Ah, that’s Gavin.”
Instant lockjaw from grinding my teeth so hard.
“I’m bartending with him this weekend at a private gaming party. He says they need more dealers. You interested?”
“Sure, I’m always up for a side hustle.” And more importantly, to make sure Gavin understands last night was a one-off.
After breakfast, we linger in the parking lot. “I’ll pick you up tonight for our first official date,” I say, tucking a strand of hair behind Mia’s ear.
“See you tonight.” She smiles.
I lean in and give Mia a peck before she slides behind the wheel of her car.
Grinning, I take it back: I can’t wait to see Gavin. To rub in his face that Mia’s my girl.
Gavin
I impatiently check the time on my phone. John’s now twenty minutes late, which isn’t like him. My thumbs fly over my keypad, but before I can hit send, the storage unit door opens, and in slinks my brother. “Where the fuck have you been?” I ask him.
“Busy trying to keep this operation afloat.” Only later did we learn how things shook out with the drive-by: slippery fucker Romeo Parisi survived. “Where the fuck have you been?” John counters. “Other than between a woman’s legs.”
“Hey, now. I can multitask.” I pin a picture of Mia on the Parisi family board, connecting a string between her and an AC soldier named Sal.
“Mia is Sal’s cousin. I’m going to pump her for information this weekend.
” I would have last night, had a bossy redhead not fucked up my plan.
And my head. I can’t stop thinking about Taylor touching herself, which is annoying as fuck.
“What about the Nicky angle?” I tap the picture of Romeo’s supposed girl. She’s hot, I’ll give him that.
John releases a frustrated growl. “A dead end. Romeo’s got her locked down tighter than the Pentagon.”
“How about the soldier who was guarding her? Enzo?” I tap his picture on the wall.
My brother shakes his head. “Another dead end.”
“Then it’s a good thing I’ve been between Mia’s legs, as she appears to be our only avenue.”
He snorts. “You’re man-whoring ways might actually pay off.”
“Somebody’s jealous.” I rib.
John points at me. “You need to stay focused. I spoke with Russell—”
“Oh, God. Here we go,” I mutter.
“He said you got a bit aggressive with him…”
“It was a misunderstanding.” Now that I’ve had a chance to cool off, I understand Russell was talking about boxing, and nothing more.
“Well, let’s make sure there are no more ‘misunderstandings.’ We’ve got big money riding on tonight, and we need you to take one for the team.”
“Isn’t that what I’ve done my entire fucking life? Always bending over and taking one for the team,” I bite out.
“Gavin, we’re playing—”
“The long game,” I finish for him. “How could I forget?”
He grabs my face. “Hang in there for me. We didn’t come this far only to fade in the final round. Yeah?” He pats my cheek before releasing me.
“Yeah.” I blow out a breath. “I’m gonna go home and catch some Zzzs before tonight’s bout.”
“Russell says you’re burning both ends of the candle.”
“If I’m taking dives, what does it fucking matter?” I brush past him.
Later that night, when I’m in the final round of the bout, that’s exactly what I do. Fade. Or pretend to, anyway, as I take a dive to the mats.
The ref begins his count as I keep my eyes closed, fucking hating the long game.