PRESLEY
After the weekend of a fiasco I had, I packed up my bags, requested my days off and traveled over to Chicago to visit my family. More specially my sister, Lotus.
I'd taken out of my braids the night before and I was now rocking my natural hair in its big, curly state. Every few minutes I'd have to gently detangle curls from my various ear piercings which seemed to be constantly getting tangled.
I was dressed professionally, fitted in a white dress shirt with a low V-cut and a plaid pencil skirt with black stilettos.
The flight time was about two hours and I knew it was best to be dressed professionally to avoid the stares of strangers as if they'd never seen a woman in their life before.
I checked in my bags, and prepared to check the status of my flight when I'd been notified my seat was upgraded to first class.
Walking over to the desk, I asked the flight attendant about it but she confessed she didn't know the details and it was an higher-up decision. Regardless I was grateful but still perplexed.
What kind of flight company handed out first class seats that easily?
After finding my extra-large seat, I relaxed under the blanket provided and began to do some work Desmond had asked me to follow through over my day off.
At first I'd been pissed he would have thought to still tie me down to the company when it was my day off but upon looking over the topic, I didn't mind.
The flight attendant came around with some food options but I'd requested champagne since I wasn't in a eating mood.
He wanted me to research a bit about this mysterious Mr. Darhk and scribbled in his numerous notes that this was the Capo of the New York crime family—or at least one of them.
I struggled a bit reading Desmond's handwriting but nevertheless I managed to retain a bit of his notes.
There was a problem. Whenever I searched up anything regarding the name or any syllables, the Google page automatically came up blank. Perhaps it was the Wi-Fi especially since we were about to liftoff.
A wild thought came into my mind and I followed through on it, searching Octavius' name. Images of the company he owned or companies appeared. Nothing more.
There was an article at the end of the page about the unusual influence and secrets of his family that'd run through New York and was decades old.
Frustrated, I typed Silvio's name into Google and it came up blank. It said it didn't match any document. This was weird because I knew Silvio was now in charge of Octavius' companies and he was the CEO.
Then I typed in Silvio's last name and the Google page told me I didn't have a stable connection.
It was a bit perplexing because I'd connected to the computer using my hotspot but regardless I exited the tab. I breathed a deep sigh shutting my computer with a hand and relaxed against the seats.
I planned to get a bit of shut-eye before I had to face my mother.
A few hours later, I arrived in the city of Chicago. The first thing I did was notify Lotus I had made it and then walked to the baggage claim area.
Even though I was only staying for a few days I came with everything I knew I would need. I was always like with packing, I didn't know how to prioritize clothes over other important things so I always brought it all.
Lotus replied she would be there soon to pick me up and I took the opportunity to reply to the rest of my messages. Beast and Finley had been worried when I hadn't responded for a few hours.
I notified her I traveled to spend some time with my family. It was more of an spontaneous trip; I hadn't even notified my mother I was coming but I knew going back home was what I needed.
Especially after the events and Silvio's involvement in my life recently.
I needed a few days away from him so I could think reasonably. He was now my fucking next-door neighbor who'd kissed me.
Fuck, it was a forehead kiss—the tiniest of kisses and if I wasn't paying close attention, I wouldn't even have known but it was still a kiss. And he was man with secrets in his past.
I could tell, I always knew there was something about that man since the day we met.
Especially since he'd planned to kill Jax and he didn't care much about the consequences of perhaps there was no consequences for him.
He seemed like a man who held power in every aspect of his life, a successful businessman it would seem. With this bad boy allure and a striking face. He wasn't normal, none of them were. I knew it.
Ever since Octavius took care of Enzo, I knew there was something dark and dangerous following that group around but I never wanted to seek answer because of the possibility I would be right.
Now, there was a need for answers.
My body's response to his actions was far too greater and I knew if I continued this past of self destruction I was on, it wouldn't end well for both of us.
When I would finally come up with a solution and return to New York, I planned to ignore and pretend he didn't exist.
I pushed my thoughts to the back of my mind when I caught a glimpse of bright purple curls—Lotus. The cracked windows of her small Toyata Corrola winded down and I lowered my head until she could see me.
A wide smile covered her face when she spotted me and she nearly flew out of the car. Rushed over to where I stood and flung her body over mine in her way of greeting.
The smell of her flowery, feminine perfume covered me in a sweet-scented hug and I accepted it.
Lotus Carmichael, lover of art and a menace at times. She was the opposite of me—literally. She preferred the hippy-chic clothes amped with bold prints, silver piercings looped around her nose and ears and couldn't go a month without dying her hair a bright and flashing color.
She wanted to stick out like a sore thumb in every way possible.
She released me, held tightly onto my shoulder and grinned. "Hi, big sis. Missed you."
"Yeah yeah." I rolled my eyes in pretense of not caring but pulled her against me again and just breathed her scent in. Lotus and I were close because of how we grew up, and it'd been a while since I'd returned home because of my mother.
Approximately four years.
I left Chicago the minute I finished high school, and traveled to New York for my Masters' and Lotus was about thirteen years old.
We often chatted through FaceTime whenever I got the chance but I'd gotten worse lately because of my work schedule.
And now here she was at seventeen years old, standing a few inches taller than me with a personality brighter than the sun.
We chatted about the recent updates in our lives and I learned she was planning to graduate early and get a head start at the University of Illinois.
I talked about my work, and left out parts I didn't want her to know—my friends and my new hot next door neighbor.
She pulled in the driveway of my childhood house, the memories of my teenage years hitting me like a slap to the fucking face and I inhaled a deep breath taking it all in. The bright red front door, the white picket fence I'd always climbed over to get to the other side of it all.
Dark brown eyes met mine and I was graced with the sight of my mother who suddenly appeared outside. "Hi, mama." I said softly walking up the stairs and leaving Lotus to fetch my suitcase. She could handle it.
Tears flooded her eyes and she made a move to hug me—I forced my body to stay calm and not appear rigid as I accepted her hug.
She held me for a few minutes sobbing into my shirt and I sighed, patting her back gently before she finally released me. We said our hellos, making small talk as we entered the house.
Everything was just as it was when I'd left with a heart filled with rage, and the only thing I noticed was different was the smell of homemade food. My mother never used to cook but I guess she wanted to cook for my arrival.
The table was filled with plates of her homemade Mac and cheese, ribs, and my favorite—chicken Alfredo. We sat at the table for lunch, engrossed in a causal conversation about New York and my boss while Lotus traded stories about her high school friends and her interest in fashion.
My mother asked me about every single thing I could have imagined—my friends, my life, and of course she didn't fail to mention how I'd gained weight over the course of four years.
The topic of my weight always left a sour taste in my mouth, but I sat at the table willingly and listened to her advice about losing weight. Lotus shot me an apologetic smile, trying to get my mother to back off but it was futile.
"Mom, stop." Lotus warned my mother with a glare I'd seen way too often.
My mother's face flushed but she continued speaking. "I'm just trying to tell Rae it's not a good thing to gain weight. She won't find a husband at this rate. Men don't like their woman big."
It'd always been like this. Lotus was more slender than I was because she'd inherited my mother shape but I was more curvier and carried most of my weight in my hips and ass.
I learned to accept this fact over the years and enrolled in pilates as a way to be more active so I definitely didn't have to sit here and listen to this shit at all.
I silently finished my meal and made my way upstairs to my childhood room—a place I'd spent crying over the death of my father and playing with Lotus whenever my mother would leave for days.
I flipped the lock on my door, slipped out of my slippers and flung myself on my bed.
My phone pinged, the same way I'd done consistently since I landed in Chicago. For the first time today, I was surprised when it wasn't Finley asking me how my family was.
It was an unknown number.
My first instinct had been to swipe to the left and delete the conversation because I was used to his texts but it wasn't him. It was my hot next-door neighbor.
My heart skipped a fast beat and I groaned into my pillow and let out a piercing scream like a teenage girl.
Hot next door neighbor: Hello. You have a package sitting on your doormat.
That was odd. There was no way any package could have gotten past the doorman and the security guy at the front desk.
The idea of someone getting to my front door confused the hell out of me, unless Silvio was lying.
Presley: I'm sorry. Who's this?
Hot next door neighbor: Presley.
I let out a little laugh to myself enjoying fucking with this man's head the same way he'd fucked with my head when he was all soft-looking, pressing a soft and gentle kiss on my forehead.
Did he think he was the only one who could play games? Oh hell no.
My fingers moved across the screen typing out a response but before I could do, my screen was filled with an incoming call from hot next-door neighbor, and I dropped my phone immediately.
My heart pounded hard inside my chest threatening to break out, my breath short and quick through my parted lips and I listened until the phone stopped ringing before I picked it up from the floor.
It began to ring again, and his name flashed through my screen. Taking a deep breath, I swiped my finger across the screen and accepted his call.
The sound of his heavy breathing filled my ears and instinctively, my nipples hardened at the sound. Betrayer.
"Presley," he murmured, the low vibration of his voice made me ache all over. Almost as if he was sliding a hand down my body and caressing me softly.
I snapped my eyes open and exhaled deeply. I don't know what it was but even the simplest sound of his voice was affecting my body. What the hell was I supposed to do with this information now?
"Silvio."
He was silent for a moment followed by heavy breathing. "So you do know who it is." Slight amusement covered his voice like a chocolate-coated cracker and my clit throbbed for attention. For his touch. "Does this mean we're on a first-name basis now, yes?"
"Maybe. Maybe not." I closed my eyes and slid a hand into my skirt before knocking common sense into myself. Jesus Christ. When was I going to become immune to him?
"How's your hand?" I asked him.
"Good," he said gruffly, and If I could imagine his perfectly sexy face, there was probably a scowl as his default expression. "How are you?"
"Good."
"Good." His voice was a deep velvet rasp, flooding my body with this relief and craving. "When can I—"
His question was cut off midway by disturbance of my sister and the sound of her knocking impatiently on my door. "Rae Rae? Mama wants us to take a trip to the store for dinner tomorrow."
The nickname brought a smile on my face; Growing up, my father always called me Rae claiming I was his ray of sunshine and even though Rae was my middle name, it quickly became my first name.
Everyone who knew me before I left for New York knew me as Rae.
I pressed the phone against my shoulder trying to muffle my voice as I spoke to Lotus. "I'll be right there!"
She responded with a low hum before I heard the sound of her black boots departing, and relaxed my body against the bed.
I pressed the phone against my ear and the sound of creaking leather sounded over the phone. "Rae Rae?" The teasing in his voice aroused me.
"It's my middle name and an nickname. Leave me alone, I'm visiting my family." I mumbled. I could feel my face heating up at the thought of Silvio learning more about my childhood.
A laugh trickled from the parting of his lips. Husky and raw. It lit up every nerve in my body like I had heard a song that was once my favorite yet I hadn't heard it in years. Amusement glided through me. I'd never heard him laugh before.
"You laughing at me, Mr. Rossi?"
"Never, I don't do that sort of thing," He murmured and cleared his throat. The lazy drawl of his voice sent butterflies fluttering to life in my chest. "Will you be back on Monday?"
"Mhm, yes." I couldn't help but smile at the casual conversation between us. "By the way, what's going to happen to Jax? We work together and I don't want you to get in trouble for—"
"It's been taken care of, Presley." He spoke my name in a sinful purr.
The crack of leather spilt through my ear and I imagined he was probably leaning back in his chair working. "Enjoy your time with your family. I'll see you on Monday."
I'll see you.
"You sound sure about that."
"You underestimate me, yes?" The edge to his tone rubbed me the wrong way. Why did he sound so confident? "I'll see you."
"Bye, Silvio." I hung up the phone and exhaled a deep breath. Jesus, the craving I felt around this man was growing a little too much for my liking.
I picked up my phone and the thought of the package he'd mentioned flashed across my mind but I noticed we hadn't talked about it at all.
What the hell was in that package?
I slipped out of the bed, changed into sweatpants and a hoodie and prepared myself mentally to spend the rest of my weekend with my mother and sister.