Enzo
She stopped and turned around, but didn't come back. Her face was carefully blank.
"What's your name?"
"Sera. With an 'e'."
A pretty Italian name for a beautiful woman. "Sera what?"
"Just Sera."
I shoved my hands into the front pockets of my dress slacks in an attempt to disguise the raging hard on she gave me just by standing there in that goddamn non-dress I knew was hiding underneath her coat. "Come back. I need a date, and you're already here." Because I sure as hell wasn't allowing her to run off to someone else who wouldn't think twice about abusing that luscious young body.
She glanced down at herself. "What about the way I'm dressed?"
"I'll buy you a new dress."
"I can't ask you to do that."
"You're not asking me. Consider it part of your payment for the pleasure of your company tonight."
She hesitated, but only for a moment, and I couldn't quite figure out if it was over the offer of a new dress or the fact that she would need to carry through with this night after all that made her pause. Lifting her chin in a gesture I was beginning to recognize as something she did when she was feeling unsure of herself, she walked back over to me with forced confident strides and waited for further instructions.
Good girl.
"Just let me get my coat," I told her. Opening the door all the way and propping it against the wall so I could keep an eye on her, I went inside and got my coat, keys, and cell phone as I tried to talk myself out of taking her with me. This was a bad fucking idea. Sera was much more distracting to me than Jade ever was. It was one of the reasons I used her when I had to go to parties or dinners. I couldn't afford to have my attention on anything else other than what I was there for, which was usually protecting Luca or gathering information we had no business knowing.
But something had twisted in my gut as I'd watched her walk away with that forlorn expression. I couldn't let her leave like that. At least not tonight. And perhaps, before the evening was through, I'd take her up on her original offer.
My cock pulsed in agreement beneath the cover of my jacket. "Let's go." Taking her hand in mine, I let the door close behind me and led her to the elevator. She needed clothes, and we were already late.
An hour later, with the help of the hotel concierge, Sera was in a new dress fit for the occasion and we'd arrived at the venue.
"This is where the party is?"
The tone of her voice drew my attention. I glanced over at her as we pulled up to the restaurant. "Yes. Why?"
"It looks like an old church."
"It's actually a restaurant, run by an Italian family who came here to America from Italy almost forty years ago. The original owners have passed away, and the kids run it now. Everything inside was brought on the ship from Italy, including the recipes. The Bistecca Alla Fiorentina is some of the best I've ever tasted." I didn't mention that the owners were also very aware of who we were and what we did. We protected them and gave them plenty of business. And in return, they took good care of us when we frequented their restaurant. "We're going to a wedding reception being held here. A distant cousin of mine." It was actually the youngest son of one of our best soldiers. He was way too fucking young to be getting married, but according to his father there'd been no talking him out of it. And the girl he'd just married was Irish, her father a member of the mob in New Orleans, so it made for good neighborly relations.
She smiled, showing off that fascinating gap in her teeth. "It sounds wonderful."
I parked the SUV near the door and ran my eyes over her one last time as she took off her seatbelt. The concierge had taken one look at her and called a boutique near the hotel, who had immediately sent over one of their sales associates with three different dresses to choose from that had all fit Sera almost perfectly. The dress she chose was modest, with short sleeves and a high neckline. Creamy lace with fawn-colored accents, it came to her knees, and with her pastel pink hair and light makeup, it gave her a soft, feminine appearance. Innocent. The only things she still wore that were her own were the nose ring and the shoes. They were nude and matched the new dress better than the scraps she'd been wearing before. "Let me see your coat," I told her. "You won't need it inside. The place is small, and it always gets warm when it fills up with people."
She shrugged out of it, handing it to me without argument. I folded it carefully and laid it on the backseat. As I went to open my door, I caught her eyeing me with a curious expression. "What?"
"Do you ever take off your sunglasses? I mean," she hurried on, "do you need them to see or something? Or do you have sensitive eyes?"
"No," I told her in answer to both questions, then I opened my door and got out, walking around the vehicle to open hers for her. But by the time I arrived, she was already out of the car and waiting for me.
"No for which one?" she asked. "Which question?"
"All of them." Taking her hand, I helped her navigate the rocks in the drive. I told myself it was because I didn't need her to break an ankle. I had no time to take her to the hospital. I wouldn't admit that wasn't the only reason I assisted her.
Her hand felt fragile in mine. The skin soft. Like if I squeezed just a little harder, I'd feel the bones snap beneath my fingers. Absently, I rubbed my thumb along the back, memorizing the texture of her skin.
She stopped when we reached the door, tugging me to a halt. "So who all is going to be at this party? Anything I should know before we go in there?
Like, your name, maybe?"