“Later,” he said, pulling himself up on top of her.
“This is really good. You’ll like this,” she said.
“I said, ‘later,’ he growled and reached up and pinched her nipple so hard it brought tears to her eyes.
Then he yanked off his pants and fucked her so hard that the entire bed felt as if it were going to break in two.
She came before he did. He knew her better than she knew herself. He knew when she needed it soft and sensuous and when she needed it hard and fast.
When he was done, he rolled over and flopped on his back.
“So, baby doll, I’m ready to listen now. What’s your plan? You think we let Fong live and take out someone else? Maybe that brunette cunt.”
Nicoletta sat up on one elbow, her eyes sparkling.
“Oooh, you’re so clever. You knew that’s who I was thinking about, but I have a twist. You said Marshall can make anyone we want the killer, right? With that technology?”
“Yeah,” Charles said sitting up.
“She’s not another victim. She’s the killer.”
He sat up. “What? Didn’t you say she was the cop’s ex?”
He never called James by name. That would give the guy a dignity he didn’t deserve. However, he did manage to stop himself from calling him the “gimp cop”; that was just how he thought of the guy in his own head. Even Nicoletta would look down on him for that, and she wasn’t one to worry about being politically correct.
“Like I said,” Nicoletta said, sitting up and fluffing her hair. “I got him drunk—really drunk—and asked about her. He basically told me that the reason they didn’t work out is because she did illegal stuff.”
He frowned. “Like what? Fraud? Shoplifting?”
“Murder.”
Nicoletta said the word and gave him a triumphant smile.
His eyes widened.
“Yep, he basically told me she was a killer.
“No fucking way.”
He jumped up.
“This is fucking perfect,” he said. He threw his hand in the air, fist pumping.
“I know!” she said and stood on the edge of the bed, bouncing lightly up and down.
He looked up at her naked curves and smiled.
“You are not only the most beautiful woman in the world, but you are also the smartest.”
She grinned and then ran her hands over her boobs, slowly and sensually.
To his surprise, he felt some movement down there. It usually took a little longer to recharge, but plotting murder turned him on as much as Nicoletta’s centerfold body.
“Come show me how much you appreciate me,” she said. “I’m still horny.”
He didn’t have to be asked twice.
Thirteen
After hanging up with Ryder, I laughed to myself. We were like goddamn teenagers.
But I felt better. I’d released some of my pent-up sexual frustration and felt like I could go to dinner with the mayor without attacking him just because he was halfway good-looking.
When I got out of the shower, I saw Ryder had texted me.
“Let’s do that again real soon.”
“You bet.”
I was five minutes late getting downstairs to meet the mayor. I couldn’t stop thinking about him as “the mayor” even though I knew his name. Fucking Italian mama’s boy.
He was standing just outside the lobby doors, chatting with the valet. They were in such an animated conversation I stood there for a few seconds.
The mayor was talking about some musician he’d just seen live, and the kid with the spiky hair was impressed.
“Damn,” the valet said with a low whistle. “I’m green with envy.”
“Yeah,” the mayor said. “I’m not going to lie. It was cool.”
Then they noticed me and the mayor looked up with such a big smile, I felt like my eyes magically transformed into emoji heart eyes. He was cute.
What woman wouldn’t want a guy to look at her and smile like that.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Let’s do this.”
He held my door open as I got into his low-slung, black Acura NSX. The mayor’s salary must not be that bad.
Ten minutes later, we were in North Beach. He valet parked the car, and we dipped inside the dark and moody restaurant. The walls were covered in red velvet wallpaper adorned with black and white signed photos of celebrities. We sat under a signed picture of Frank Sinatra in a back, corner booth.
“This is my favorite table,” he said. We sat with our backs to the wall of the semi-circular booth, giving us a view of the entire restaurant.
“You a former cop?”
He laughed. “No. Politicians need to see whose coming for a different sort of attack. Usually I’m ducking a verbal barrage instead of bullets.”
“Nice,” I said, sipping the martini I’d ordered. “Don’t suppose you ever woke to a horse’s head in bed?”
“No, thank God, but I have woken to find a dead animal on my front steps.”
“Ew,” I said and made a face.
“Yeah. I moved right after that.”
“I don’t blame you,” I said. “What was that all about?”
“I voted against a motion to build a luxury hotel in North Beach,” he said and pointed. “Right there. Next to Columbus Square.”
“Ouch,” I said. “You anti-hotel?”
He laughed. “Dante already told me about your bid to buy the hotel. I don’t have a problem with it. But you might find some people on the planning commission who don’t like the idea of the helipad.”
I squinted my eyes. “Dante told you all that?”
He shrugged. “We’re old friends.”
“Old friends?” I said in a skeptical voice.
“Well, not old like you guys. But maybe ten years or so. We worked on the same homeless commission back in the day.”
“Huh.” Ten years ago?
“That okay?”
“Sure.”
Inside, I was thinking that sonofabitch didn’t tell me he was such great pals with Mr. Mayor. He was holding out on me. Was this date a set up? Probably. Fuck me.
“What’s wrong?” Mayor McCheese asked.
“Did Dante make you ask me out?”
He practically spit out his water and burst into laughter.
“What? Like I felt sorry for you.”
I smiled and shrugged.
“Actually, to be perfectly honest, he told me to back off,” he said.
I nearly spit out my water.
The mayor held up his hand. “Let me explain,” he said. “He called me this afternoon
