Page 2 of Devil’s Candy

My mouth drops open for a second because, one, I thought he was going to make a completely different kind of offer, and two…for whatever reason, the thought of ending Vinnie Morelli Junior makes me feel loads better.

I burst out with a laugh. “Now that is a satisfying thought.”

He chuckles too. “It is, isn’t it?”

I pick up my water glass, taking a sip, before I eye him over the rim. “My name is Candy, by the way.”

“Sver,” he answers, extending his hand. When I slide my fingers into his palm, a shiver runs through me. His eyes run over me as he holds my hand in his. “I like your name, Candy, and I love your hair.”

I feel a blush climbing up my cheeks. Which is crazy because I don’t blush ever. I work in a whorehouse, so you name it, I’ve seen it.

To be clear, I’m not a whore and I don’t sell myself, ever. I’d rather starve. Not that I’m judging the other girls. Everyone survives the best they can, and they all create their own code, but mine includes not trading sex for money.

I’m an esthetician. I help get the girls ready for their dates and then I put them back together when they’re done.

It’s not the most glamorous job, but it pays the bills and it keeps me safe. A very important detail.

Two years ago, in a move that is so typically me, I started seeing this guy named Marco who I thought was sexy, hot, exciting. Coked out of his mind, he took me to a drug deal that went wrong and I watched as he killed a man. But now I’m a witness and he decided that makes me a liability.

My boss, Angel, agreed to house and feed me, which keeps me hidden, in exchange for my professional services. I stay off the streets, stay safe, and keep out of trouble. The thing about working in a whorehouse is that a girl already knows the guys are sleazebags, so it’s easy not to be tempted to make a bad choice.

Except for Vinnie.

He came in a few months ago, a bachelor party I think, and scoped me out in the shadows. Didn’t even look at the other girls. He came and sat down next to me and we talked for hours. I thought he was different.

“So tell me about this guy. The one we’re killing,” Sver says, his fingers starting to skim up the inside of my forearm.

The blush deepens. “It’s a story that’s so deep, I don’t even know where to start,” I say with a shrug as I look away. This guy is overwhelming my senses and honestly, I need a second to breathe.

“Try me.”

I blow out a breath as somewhere in the background a slot machine sings out its winner’s song.

A group of us flew to Vegas this afternoon specifically for my boss to get married. My boss and I aren’t close, but his bride and I just clicked, and she wanted me to be here.

I haven’t had a female friend in a while, and Promise is seriously the sweetest soul I’ve met in a long time. She looks like the perfect socialite, but underneath her blonde hair and blue eyes is the kind of person I can understand.

“Well, I guess a good starting point would be that my boss decided to participate in an arranged marriage.” I fiddle with my glass, trying to order my thoughts. He gives my arm a light squeeze and I swing my gaze back to him.

Sver tilts his head toward his shoulder, seeming nonplussed by my first admission. “Not as uncommon as people think.”

That makes me smile, at least for a second, before my mouth turns down again. “But when he showed up for his wedding, his father-in-law had decided that Angel was no longer a suitable groom. And he’d picked…” This is where it gets sticky.

Sver’s eyebrows lift. “Your guy?”

“Yeah.” Vinnie Morelli was trouble and I knew it. Or I should have known it. Even though he zeroed in on me that first night, he also asked a lot of questions about Angel every time we were together. But he could also be really sweet, and he’d made me several promises about helping me with the dirtbag who’d sent me into hiding in the first place.

I thought we were getting serious.

“So your boss decided to come to Vegas and get married here instead.”

“Yeah.” I let out a long slow breath. “Somewhere along the way, even though their marriage was arranged, Angel and Promise chose each other.”

“Vegas is the place for a quick marriage. But he must be pretty powerful to have a reception room like the one behind us on such short notice.” Sver’s thumb is dancing circles in the crook of my arm as he stares into my soul.

I stare back, trying to make my brain work. “I guess he’s friends with the owner of this casino, so it all came together last minute.”

His fingers wrap around my bicep, his grip light as his fingertips tickle the skin just below my armpit. “Angel must be a very valued friend to them.”