Mafia Desire (Erotica)

The ladies pouted as they were looking forward to riding back with him… and perhaps having a little fun with him when they got home. He caught the look in their roaming eyes. He moved forward and gave them hugs.

When he pulled back, Charlize was looking at him nervously. “That- that felt like goodbye.”

He gave them a sad smile. “I think it is. I won’t be going back to Santa Barbara.”

“What?” Phoebe gasped but Monique held his eyes then nodded faintly. Once more, Kyle found her to be a remarkably perceptive woman.

“Fiona needs to move on and… so do I,” he finished. “I’m grounded until the concussion eases. Besides, you’re all going home today and have your lives to get back to. I have to figure out my next move. Working for Cam and his father is a non-starter.”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t feel that way, but I understand.”

Kyle looked to see Cam walking up with Fiona on his arm. They were pulling their luggage behind them. They really did make a lovely couple. That just made this harder.

“Sorry Cam. It’s not going to happen. Not now.” Kyle said with a frown as he fought back another surge of anger for Cam’s father and also for Cam’s willful blindness. He sighed as he wanted Cam to be a bigger man for Fiona.

The man’s body language and expression both showed a stiffness. Kyle could tell he wanted to be elsewhere but was being civil for Fiona’s sake.

“Where did you go?” Fiona asked.

Monique turned to her friend. “We went to the hospital. Kyle has a concussion. He’s not allowed to drive for three days.” Her eyes went to Cam and he had the good grace to look guilty at least.

“But we’re leaving today!” Fiona exclaimed.

“Not me. This is where I say my goodbyes,” Kyle said gently and watched her eyes widen.

“Goodbye?” she asked and he knew she understood.

He smiled and opened his arms. She was in them in a flash and he gave her a warm hug.

“You’ll always be in my heart as a dear friend. I wish you all the joy and happiness in the world as you deserve it,” Kyle whispered to her, his throat tight with emotion. He kissed her cheek and stood back. She had tears in her lashes but she forced a smile on her face.

“You’ve been such a positive influence on me, ever since France. I’m so glad I met you!” she exclaimed.

“Should I break out the violins?” Marion said as she walked up. She looked to Phoebe and Monique. “Are we leaving or not?”

Phoebe gave Kyle a tight hug then rushed off to get her bag from the room.

Chloe stepped up to Kyle again and he held her tight. He felt her tremble in his arms so he looked into her eyes and saw some tears in her lashes as well. His throat was becoming unbearably tight. “You take good care of Charlize as she’ll take good care of you.” Chloe nodded to him. She tilted forward to bring her lips to his ear.

“My ass will always be yours,” she whispered in her saucy Aussie accent.

It was Kyle’s turn to tremble as the blonde grinned cheekily at him and rushed off with her bags. Charlize waved sadly to him as she walked after Chloe and he waved back.

“We have to get going too- OH! Where are you going to stay tonight? Should I see if I can get you a room?” Fiona chirped.

“No! No thanks, I’ll leave the bike in their garage but I’ll find a less expensive hotel.” Kyle said with palms raised. He’d taken advantage of her generosity too much for his comfort.

“No need. My suite has a pull-out sofa bed. You can stay there,” Monique offered.

Heads turned to look at her in surprise.

“Aren’t you going back to Santa Barbara with us?”This content is © NôvelDrama.Org.

Monique smiled and shook her head. “I received a text from Dale last night. He’s going to be in town for some meetings on Tuesday so I thought I’d stick around and say hello. I’m keeping my room until Wednesday.”

“I- I still can’t afford to stay here,” Kyle said.

She smiled at him and patted his arm. “Not to worry, you’re my guest. We’ve seen how much of a gentleman you can be based on your evening with Phoebe, so I think I’ll be safe!” she said with a mischievous smile.

Kyle’s face flushed with embarrassment as Marion gave him a challenging look. She obviously didn’t believe he could resist Monique’s considerable charms. He looked away from her in frustration and heard her snort gently.

Phoebe came rushing back with her bag and a relieved look on her face as she saw the others were still there. She rushed up and hugged Kyle again. “Thank you so much!” she squeaked into his ear.

“Take care of yourself Phoebe. Remember, it gets better and you have so much to offer. You’re an amazi-”

He didn’t get to finished as Phoebe suddenly kissed him fiercely and he… went with it. She was a very good kisser. She pulled away, grabbed her suitcase, and rushed away with tears in her eyes.

Kyle wobbled a little as he turned his head to follow her departure in a daze. He looked to Marion’s self-satisfied smirk and frowned. “Hey! She kissed me!” he protested.

“Such a hypocrite,” she scoffed and followed Phoebe out the door. He could only shake his head in frustration.

Monique hugged Fiona then shook Cam’s hand before the couple left. Fiona gave Kyle a sad smile and Cam nodded stiffly to him then they were gone.

Then it was just Kyle and Monique. “I can trust you to be a gentleman, right?” she asked with a small smile. When he opened his mouth to protest, she touched his arm and laughed. “I’m teasing! Unlike Marion, I know you’re not a sleazy player.”

Kyle sighed with relief. “Thank you! It’s hard enough convincing myself sometimes!”

She snickered. “Brunch?”

“Yeah, that would be lovely.”

They dropped Kyle’s bags in her room then had a nice meal as they shared stories about growing up in their different worlds.

Monique came from a well to do family, the only daughter of surgeons. She had two older brothers who went into law. She showed Kyle a family photo and he noted that they were all very photogenic. From her dashingly handsome father and elegant mother, two younger versions of her father as brothers, Monique’s stunning looks proved beauty ran in the family.

She’d gone to the best schools and got top grades. She and Fiona had become fast friends in high school and they’d bonded for life. She was used to moving in the highest levels of society but found that bored her to tears. The group of friends she and Fiona gathered had grown organically and Monique loved them all for their individual and unique contributions to the whole.

She’d met her husband in university as he scouted some talent from the university basketball team. She pulled up a picture of him and Kyle noted to himself that he was… much older than she was and bore some resemblance to her father.

Monique quirked a crooked smile at him. “My brothers aren’t too fond of Dale. They think he’s too old for me.”