Uncomplicated: A Vegas Girl's Tale (18 page)

“Good Job, Sis.”

The first words Yan ever spoke to me. Sis?

F
AMILY
B
ONDING

(Mathis)

“Where’s your beautiful wife?” Yan asked me as we headed to my dining room table.

I cracked open two beers and handed him one of the brown ice cold bottles. “With her friend, Nora.”

“Is this Nora single?”

I smiled and sat across from him. “Not at the moment.” I didn’t know what her relationship was or if you could even call it a relationship, when it came to her and Dean. I did know though that whatever it was, it was solid. For the moment anyways.

“Hmm…too bad. She’s a hot little thing,” Yan said as he took a swig of his beer.

I did the same and placed the bottle in front of me. It was weird sitting there, at my table, talking, when we hadn’t seen each other in over fifteen years. The past couple of days we had bonded over helping Jenny with Jude but other than that, we never really talked about what our true issue was. “Why are we here?”

Yan’s gray gaze met mine and he sighed before drinking the rest of his beer. “I…I’m an asshole and fucked up when we were kids.”

I scoffed. “Well, our dad didn’t make it easy for either of us.”

“This is true but…” he huffed. “This is going to make me sound like a fucking pussy but I’ve missed you.”

I choked. If I was drinking something, it surely would have been spit out all across the table. “Excuse me?”

Yan rolled his eyes. “Don’t act so surprised, jackass.”

“Well I am. You’ve always hated me. Ever since we were kids.”

“I didn’t hate you. I hated our father for always comparing us. I joined the fucking military because of that dick head. I still have nightmares over the shit I’ve seen,” he explained, his voice going gruff.

I had no idea. No idea at all. The revelation hit me, punching full force into my face as I stared across the table at my brother. A man who I hadn’t seen or had a proper conversation with in as long as I could remember. Until now.

“I’m sorry. I am. For everything. I shouldn’t have blamed you.”

“Why now? Why after all of this time? You should have come to me sooner.” I didn’t want to second guess his motives but, I learned way too quickly that most people would do anything to get what they wanted.

“You have every right to be suspicious.”

“You’re damn right I do. Are you working with Antonio to try and sabotage me? Cause if you are, this shit just got real.” I didn’t want to believe it. I was done with the drama and so over people trying to destroy my life.

Yan shook his head and shoved a hand through his black hair. “No. Antonio isn’t either. He was just fucking with you.”

“Did you know that it was me he was meeting with for the business lunch that day?”

“Yes, I knew but when I saw the love you had for Jenny, I realized right away that I couldn’t go through with the plans to take your business from you,” he said in one breath.

“Why?”

Yan smiled. “I like your wife. She’s good for you. She keeps you in line. Now I know more than ever, that I don’t want to ruin you. I need…” I frowned.

“What?”

“I need my brother and my sister in-law. You’re the only family I have left.”

My heart swelled. It would take time. It had been way too many years to bond instantly, but we were brothers. Blood. We couldn’t deny that. “So what are you saying?”

Yan huffed, fidgeting in his seat. “You’re going to make me fucking say it, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Fine. I want back in your life so we can bond like normal brothers and shit,” he grumbled.

I cupped my ear. “I’m sorry. What was that?”

His jaw tensed. “I said, I want to be part of your life again.”

I laughed. “I know. I just wanted to hear you say it again.”

“Asshole,” he mumbled but a twinkle of amusement flashed in his gaze.

I smiled and sat back. So this was what being happy was about. I had a wife, my brother finally was speaking to me again and so far, my businesses were legal and going well.

Everything with Jude had simmered down a notch. It had been a couple of days since Jennifer went to see him. I didn’t know what she had said. Yan had given me the run down on the conversation that took place between her and Jude, and that she handled that shit well. She had him eating out of the palm of her hand by the time she was through.

I was fucking proud of my wife and the way she dealt with her problems. She was my rock. My solid. My center. She was the part that was missing my whole life. I was addicted to her like a junkie to their drugs. She was my drug. My high. And this addiction? I never wanted to kick it.

That night, I sat at my desk, writing up a spread sheet for Jennifer’s clientele when she strolled into my office carrying a handful of shopping bags. I smiled and pulled off my glasses before rubbing my aching eyes. “I bought some things for you, Mathis,” she said, placing the bags on the floor before sitting in my lap. Her fingers rubbed the tension out of my temples, making me sigh.

“Did you now? What kind of things?” I asked, leaning my head back against the seat.

“Lingerie, whips, chains, a strap on.”

I raised my eyes brows. “Lingerie? Don’t you have enough?”

She laughed. “You’re fine with a strap on but worried that I bought too much lingerie?”

I chuckled. “I’m all for trying anything once.”

Jennifer shook her head. “I was trying to be funny.”

“I know, love.” I kissed her arm and clicked a couple of keys on the computer, bringing up a different screen than the spreadsheet that I was working on. My wife started telling me about her day. About the shopping extravaganza she went through with Nora. About Nora and Dean. All kinds of useless shit, but listening to her ramble on was probably the highlight of my day.

“I think she’s in love with him. Of course, she falls in love with every guy she dates, but whatever. I really like Dean and I think he’s good for her.”

I smiled. I could listen to her speak for hours. Her feminine but husky tone washing over my skin like melted chocolate. Her eyes danced around excitedly, telling me about her day when they landed on the screen of my laptop. Her words trailed off, her mouth opening and closing.

I grinned. “What’s wrong, love?”

She pulled the lap top closer, her gaze moving across the screen. “Is this…are we…what…Mathis.”

“What?”

She punched me in the arm. “Are you fucking taking me to Italy for our honeymoon?” I shrugged.

“Maybe. Unless you don’t want to. We can always stay__” Her mouth crashed to mine and she reigned kisses all over my face. “Yes. Oh yes. I want. Please. Oh thank you.”

“Anything for you, Jennifer.” I chuckled.

She worked at my belt buckle, frantically getting it undone. “What are you doing?”

She licked her way between my lips. “Thanking you my dear husband.”

And thank me she did. She used her body to show me exactly how happy and excited she was for our up and coming honeymoon. Having her all to myself for the three weeks I had booked would help our relationship. Help us get to know each other.

Our trip to Italy couldn’t get here fast enough.

I
T'S
I
TALIAN

(Jenny)

The week flew by in a blur of packing, working on setting up my new business, and tying up every loose end I could think of before I handed everything over to Nora and Harper, my new personal assistant. As much as I tried to force Nora into the role, I knew if I left her with any real responsibilities the entire business would crash and burn.
Like literally, there would be actual fire
.

“I will have my laptop and cell phone. Mathis will have his as well. If anything happens I need to be contacted immediately. No questions.” I lectured both women before I stood from my brand new white desk across the room from my husband’s home office setup. He was over the moon with my new business interest, even if he didn’t want to admit it. Anything I wanted, I got.

The small office space was nothing compared to the moon and stars he tried to throw at me every chance he got.

“I will see you in two weeks anyway,” Nora reminded me. The last week of the trip Dean had convinced Mathis to fly her in so they could spend some
quality
time together. No matter how many times I asked my dear husband to leave Dean stateside, the answer always remained no.

“I can’t wait. We can go shopping. Italian outlets are supposed to be to die for!” My excitement was for more than just the shopping. Truth be told, I wanted to see all the sites. Every last one. From the museums, to The Colosseum. The Pantheon and of course, Mathis wouldn’t leave Italy until we had one of those romantic gondola rides down the beautiful Venice canals.

Yup, I was becoming spoiled very quickly. But, also remaining humbled to my roots. I could never forget the small Kansas town I hailed from. My parents would never allow that. But, the one place in the world I had always wanted to travel was mere hours away and this bitch was going to take full advantage of it.

I let out a sigh thinking about the possibility of us making a baby on our honeymoon. Wasn’t that what so many couples did? Truth be told, it hadn’t been long since I threw caution and my birth control pills to the wind. But the thought was still front and center in my mind.

“I’ve never in my life gotten sick from flying.” I hung over the stupid toilet in the tiny bathroom of the private jet Mathis had hired for our trip. We were somewhere over the Atlantic, deep in the night sky. I had been fine for most of the flight but once we hit a small patch of turbulence, all bets were off.

“This is so embarrassing,” I mumbled while wiping my face with a cool washcloth and rinsing my mouth. Nothing says sexy to a man like holding your messy hair while you empty your expensive dinner into the shitter. Dammit!

“Oh stop, I can’t even count how many times it has happened to me. I double up my dose of Dramamine every time I fly. Come on and lay down. I will get you some water and a couple pills and you can sleep until we get ready to land.”

What did I do to deserve him taking such good care of me all the time? I should be giving him an epic blow job or riding him in the reverse cowgirl while becoming lifelong members of the mile high club.