Foreplay: Six Full-Length Standalone Novels from Six New York Times Bestsellers Read online

  “Oh.” Fumbling through my purse, I found the money and handed it over. As he started to leave, a laughing couple stumbled from the club and climbed through the door. I still hadn’t closed it. His on-service light was switched off as I heard the guy mumble an address before he started sucking on the girl’s neck. Then the cab drove off, and I was left on the curb.

  Great.

  Again. What the hell was I doing?

  I eyed the line waiting to get inside. Most of them were dressed with next-to-nothing while I wore a long-sleeve shirt over jeans. Granted, Amanda had to lend me her jeans, so they stuck like glue to me, but I was covered. There was no way I was going to get into that club, not like this. So I took a deep breath and saw how long that line was. It’d be hours before I even got to the door. As I bit my lip, I considered going around the line and approaching the four large hulks in front of me. As one glanced at me, I saw the flat look in his gaze. My gut told me that others had tried and been rejected. I sucked in my breath—they might even ban me from the place. Then all hope would be gone.

  As a large black Sedan drove past the club and turned into the back alley, I started to follow. Could I get in through there? But no. The car slid to a stop and four more men rushed the back door as it was opened. A man and a woman hurried out and through a side door. She’d been giggling, wearing a flashy red dress, and the guy had a business suit on. The door shut with a resounding finality as the bouncer pounded twice on the roof. The car took off and those four guys resumed their stances before the door.

  Just then, the door opened again and another big guy walked down the alley towards me. I gulped. This was it. This was my chance. As he started past me, I reached out for his arm, but my wrist was grabbed before I made contact.

  I froze. My eyes bulged out as I saw that he had a vise-like grip on my arm. His eyes were hard, almost too cold.

  “Yeah?” he growled.

  I gulped again. I tried to keep my knees from buckling. “I-I—”

  “Spill it, honey. You have five seconds.”

  Oh god.

  I swallowed over a basketball in my throat. “I—I know Carter Reed. Could I—I mean—is he-?”

  He smirked, the harshness of that look slithered down my back. “You and everyone else, honey. You wanna talk to him? Go to the end of that line and wait your turn. But,” his eyes slid down my body and up. “You’ll be wasting your time. You ain’t getting inside dressed like that. You’ve got a damn fine body, but you gotta show skin. You ain’t showing any, honey.”

  My stomach fell to the ground. This wasn’t how I thought it would be, but who had I been kidding? Carter Reed probably didn’t remember me anymore, much less give a damn about helping me. But I didn’t know what else to do so I wandered down the block and then turned the corner. I sighed. The line went past another block. There would be no way I would get inside, much less even close to the door.

  My phone buzzed at that moment, and I checked it. It was Ben. Where the f are you? Mal’s going crazy. Crying and stuff. Might go to the hospital.

  I quickly thumbed a response back. DON’T! Can’t. B smart. Will kill her and me. I sent it and then another one. u 2.

  U need to come back. She needs u.

  As I read it, tears threatened to spill, but I walked all the way to the end of the line. I heaved a ragged breath. This was what she needed. If I had to wait all night and through the next day, I would. I had to see Carter. He was our only real hope.

  I responded to him. Mite be gone awhile. Doing something to help. Trust me.

  She’s flipping out, Emma! Get back now!

  I felt more tears coming, but I couldn’t let them spill. This was on me. No matter her emotional trauma, I had to do this to ensure that we both lived. Ben didn’t understand that. He was thinking of the here and now, how Mallory had cried through the rest of the day and how Amanda and I had to help her shower because she’d been so sore.

  Her cuts and bruises would heal. The soul would as well, though it would take longer, but what I was doing would make sure that she had a chance to heal.

  I texted back once. U won’t hear from me for awhile, but I’m doing this so we can stay alive. Phone will be off for awhile. Sorry…

  As I started to power my phone down, a text flashed at me before my screen went blank. Bitch!

  I rolled my eyes. Mallory knew how to pick ‘em.

  The line moved at a snail’s pace. A few times bouncers would roam up and down the line. They would pick some of the better-looking girls and lead them to the front. As the hours went by, I noticed that they would pick eight girls to two guys. I checked my phone a few times and when it was around two, the line had shortened enough so that I was finally around the corner. I watched as cars drove up and people would hop out and dash inside. It seemed like an impossible job for me to get there, much less close to Carter. But every time I considered leaving, I remembered Mallory. The image of Jeremy with his hands on her throat flashed in my mind. I couldn’t go anywhere else.

  I had to stay and wait it out, but two hours later when the club finally closed, I hadn’t moved farther down the line. Most people left, but a few stayed like me. One of the girls in front of me told the other that celebrities would stumble out. Sometimes they would peruse the line and pick a girl to take home. Her friend squealed in excitement.

  Sure enough, as everyone started to leave, celebrities swooped out just as the girl said they would. However, they didn’t linger to look over the line. They had girls with them.

  An hour later, after everyone had finally left, I was the last in line.

  I had no idea where to go.

  The bouncer from earlier came out of the door. He noticed me and frowned. He came over and asked, “You crazy, girl? What are you waiting for? We don’t hand out numbers for the next night. You have to come back, and get in line. Maybe you should come earlier next time and dress a little less, if you know what I mean.” He sneered at me. “You’ll have no problem getting inside.”

  “I need to see Carter Reed.”

  His head went back, and he rolled his eyes. “Are you serious? You’re still on this?” He laughed. “Do you know how many girls come up to me and say they know the boss? I mean, really, take a guess.”

  I stiffened under his amusement, but I had to endure it. This was the only way. “I do know him. He was best friends with my brother.”

  “Say what?”

  I looked back up and spoke clearer, “He was best friends with my brother. I haven’t talked to him in years, but something’s happened. AJ told me to go to Carter if I ever needed something. He said he would help.” My throat burned. “I have nowhere else to go.”

  He heaved a deep breath as he looked me up and down. Somehow, I saw a twitch of pity enter his eyes. Then he mumbled under his breath, “I can’t believe I’m doing this. What was your brother’s name?”

  “AJ Martins.”

  I didn’t blink. I didn’t stutter. My brother’s name was spoken with respect.

  One of his hands came to the back of his neck as he stared again, long and hard. He rotated his head around before his hand fell abruptly back to his side. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.” But then he took out a radio and pressed the button. “Rogers, you still there?”

  He let go of the button.

  “Yeah. What’s up?”

  He shook his head, but he pressed it again. “Can you get a message to the boss for me?”

  “What about?”

  He cursed under his breath, rolling his eyes. “Can you ask him if he knows the sister of AJ Martins? I’ve got her on the street; she keeps asking to see the boss. She’s been here all night.”

  “I’ll radio him right now. Hold on.”

  The next two minutes were the longest in my life. I held my breath as I felt the bouncer’s eyes on me. He never looked away and at one point muttered, “This could be my job, you know, honey. I could get canned for even asking him this question. He doesn’t mess around.”
r />   I swallowed. I knew exactly who Carter really was.

  Then the sound of static came over the radio before Rogers’ voice replaced it with, “Boss said to bring her in and set her up in the penthouse. He’s coming in quick for this one.”

  Relief flooded me, so much that a whimper came out of my mouth and I almost dropped to the street. My knees hadn’t stopped knocking since the bouncer first radioed his colleague.

  “Hey, easy there.” He caught my arm as I started to fall and pulled me upright. All the disbelief and sarcasm was gone. He was the epitome of professional now and before I had a chance to thank him, he was leading me inside Octave.

  The last time I’d been in there everything had been dark. My college roommate dared me. Her boyfriend was a bouncer so he snuck us inside. I’d been scared to go, but Rosalie told me that she was wet between her legs at the idea of that nightclub. When we had gotten inside, I understood what all the rage was about. There were flashing lights, but the rest of the club was completely dark. As we went through all the hallways and mazes, circling the real dance floor, there were hidden corners around every bend. More than once we would touch couples in the throes before we even knew they were there.

  Once we got to the dance floor, we never left. Hypnotic beats sounded from the walls, floors, ceilings, everywhere. And since the club was so large, Rosalie and I stayed attached to the hip, but it had been worth the one night of risk. I’d never done drugs, but as we danced the entire night, I felt like I had.

  A shiver of anticipation went through me as I remembered the rest of the night, but instead of the darkness from then, the club was flooded in light now. A few bartenders remained behind their counters as they were drying off their glasses and a few waitresses were huddled in another corner with a wad of cash between them. As the bouncer led me down a back hallway, a few girls whisked by us going the other way. Their hair still looked styled, and heavy make-up covered their faces. They wore the same uniform, a piece of black string that crossed all over their body. A larger piece of black cloth covered their breasts, but one girl let it hang free. Her breasts bounced as she hurried down the hallway, but all of them had a cold glint on their faces.

  The bouncer murmured under his breath, “They’re the dancers. They like to head home as soon as they’ve finished with the private boxes.”

  I didn’t know what he meant, but nodded as if I did.

  We went through a bunch of hallways, then up some stairs. When we entered a tunnel, I grabbed his arm. “Where are we going?”

  The sound of traffic beneath was loud so he leaned close and kept me going. He yelled over the sound, “Boss owns the hotel behind the club. He said to take you to the penthouse so we’re going to the hotel. You’ll wait up there until he can get into town.”

  Into town? Carter wasn’t even in town?

  We neared the end of the tunnel and he pushed open a heavy door. As it slammed shut behind us, everything was suddenly quiet. Too quiet. Red plush carpet lined a hallway that had gold trimmings on the doors. There was even gold on the doorknobs. I tried to remember what hotel was connected to the back of Octave but couldn’t. It looked expensive.

  The bouncer took me to the elevators. A man was inside, wearing a grey uniform. No words were exchanged, but he pressed a button at the top. Then we waited. We went up ten floors before the doors slid open to expose a hallway with a bench and one door to the side. The man from the elevator halted the doors before he walked past us. He opened the room for us and returned to the elevator. The doors slid closed, but the bouncer didn’t move from the hallway.

  I looked at him in question. What was he doing?

  He gestured to the room. “You’re supposed to go inside.”

  “What about you?”

  He indicated the wall. “I wait until you leave.”

  Oh.

  And then I went inside to wait for Carter Reed.

  FOUR

  I walked into the penthouse with my heart pounding, my chest tight, and my hands ice cold. They should’ve been sweating. I felt like I was having a heart attack.

  I drew in a deep breath. Was this what I really wanted to do? Carter Reed was a killer. He was connected to the mob. I never knew how important he was to the Mauricio Family, but I knew he was powerful. AJ had always known that Carter would be someone. He boasted about it to me. He would tell me that Carter was going places, that he had the smarts to make a name for himself. Well, he had—a big name.

  The place was huge, but none of the lights were on. For some reason, I didn’t have the urge to search for a light switch. Through the glass patio doors, the moonlight shone inside and highlighted some couches that were in a circle, set below the rest of the penthouse in a middle valley. A fireplace was beside one of the couches. I doubted it was a real one, certainly looked like one, but I didn’t know how that was possible in a hotel. I stepped down the two steps and curled into a ball on one of the couches. Then I hugged a pillow to my chest and waited.

  My heart was still pounding. It hadn’t slowed down in days.

  I didn’t know how long I waited. It felt like hours, it could’ve been minutes. My phone was with me. I could’ve checked the time, but I was reluctant to turn it on. After Ben’s last message, I had turned it on and off at random moments, but it had remained off since the guard took me inside Octave. For some reason, I enjoyed the silence. Though I was scared and my pulse was still skyrocketing, I drew in another shuddering breath and felt something else. Sheltered. I felt safe, holed away in some glitzy penthouse. It was a relief to be away from what happened and what I had done.

  The first tear dropped to my hand. I stared at it, detached from myself. I hadn’t realized I was crying and I didn’t feel it on my hand. My hands were folded over the pillow, and as I stared, more tears joined it.

  How could I cry and not feel it?

  I couldn’t take my eyes from the growing wet spot on the pillow. It was soaked before long, and then exhaustion settled in. My eyelids grew heavy and I couldn’t keep them open. My head went down, but I jerked back upright. The pillow was clasped tighter to my chest and I sat as straight as I could. It didn’t matter. My head fell backwards this time and I caught myself at the last moment. I gasped again and tried to stand, but after I swayed and started to fall, I grasped the top of the couch and then gave in.

  My head rested on that soaked pillow and I curled around it. It wasn’t long before I faded away.

  Something woke me, and I stirred briefly, but sleep overtook me again. I folded back into the darkness. My bones thanked me. Then something woke me again. My eyes flicked open and I saw a dark silhouette. It stood above me. An alarm in the back of my mind told me to wake up, defend myself, but my body didn’t heed the alert. I slipped back into a deep slumber. It was heavy. It was welcoming, and I succumbed to it.

  When I woke again, it was still dark out. That couldn’t be, but I saw a clock in the corner. It said 8:00 o’clock. I had come in around four in the morning and it wasn’t eight in the morning now. I drew in a breath; I had slept through the entire day. Scrambling, I searched my pockets. No phone. Panic pressed tight into my chest as I ran my hands over the couch cushions, then around and underneath them. Still nothing. I sat upright and peered into the darkness. Where had my phone gone? It wasn’t on me, it wasn’t in the couch. I dropped to my knees and felt on the floor. Again, nothing. Then I started to fumble around until I found a lamp. When I tried to switch it on, no light came out of it.

  Was it broken? But no, it couldn’t have been.

  “Where were you when AJ was mugged?”

  The voice came from above me and behind me. I knelt on the floor as my heart started to pound. Oh god. What was this? My phone was gone. The place was in darkness on purpose. Carter didn’t trust me? I sucked in a breath. Was he going to kill me?

  He repeated, even quieter, “Where were you when AJ was mugged?”

  Thump. Thump. Thump.

  My hands started to shake again and my palms
grew sweaty. I rubbed them over my pants and opened my mouth, but nothing came out. A choked sound ripped from me.

  “I asked you a question.”

  My eyes clasped shut. He had stood, wherever he was. I could tell it was him, but his voice was colder. I’d known him most of my life, but I’d never feared him. This was the Cold Killer. He was in the same room as me. I had sought this out.

  “He wasn’t.”

  I waited. One second.

  Then two. Then a minute.

  He was so quiet. “Who mugged your brother?”

  I spat out, “He wasn’t mugged. He was killed.”

  My chest was heaving as I remembered that day. A sick helpless feeling came over me. I couldn’t do anything. I wanted to, I wanted so desperately, but AJ shook his head. He didn’t want me to help, but for a moment I considered it. I thought about crawling out from behind the vent so I could die with him, but I knew they would’ve done something worse to me. So I stayed.

  The old sobs were there again. I felt them climbing up, ready to come out again. I gritted my teeth and pushed them back down. I wouldn’t cry, not here, not if this Carter Reed was going to kill me. He wasn’t the same guy that I remembered. That Carter never would’ve done this to me, set me up, isolated me, and then started an interrogation.

  “How?”

  “How what?” Anger was starting to boil in me now. How dare he?

  “How did he die?” He never reacted. His voice grew colder, quieter, each time he asked. He wasn’t human. He didn’t sound like it.

  “With a bat!” I yelled at the dark room. “A fucking bat. They killed him with a fucking bat and I saw the whole thing.”

  I bent over and pressed my forehead to my knees. I had hoped that they would be cold, that they would cool me off, but they weren’t. My jeans were warm and sweaty. I could smell traces of blood still on them, though I had showered…hadn’t I? I didn’t remember anymore. Was Mallory’s blood still on me or was that Jeremy’s? Was their blood ingrained with me now? I gasped for breath. A part of me wanted to still have Jeremy’s blood on me. He deserved to die again. He deserved to die a worse way than a bullet to the head.