Take Me Apart (Vitale Brothers Book 1)

Throbbing. It was all I could feel at first. And then a weight on my chest, the feeling of Enzo’s soft sheets, and a blanket on top of me. I forced my eyes to open.

“Meow!”

Penelope yelled in my face. I groaned, rolling over until he hopped off of me. With the weight on my chest gone, I could breathe easier. I’m back in Enzo’s room. My mind was jumbled until I remembered what Enzo had done.

The throbbing in my body intensified as I pictured every moment from earlier. I didn’t even know how long earlier was, but I could still taste blood on Enzo’s kisses and feel his cock claiming me again and again.

I climbed out of bed, stopping as soon as the floor squeaked. When Enzo didn’t come rushing in, I kept moving. I rooted around in the drawer and found my clothes.

“We’ve got to get out of here, Pen,” I muttered. “For real this time. I’m not staying.”

My job was waiting; my career and future were on the line. If I stayed with Enzo, I would be throwing all of that in the trash. I walked to the bedroom door, my heart racing as I cracked it open.

“What the fuck are you thinking?”

“I know what I’m doing,” Enzo replied.

“Do you? Didn’t I remind you of what happens when you think you have shit under control?” The man snapped, slipping into rapid-fire Italian I couldn’t understand. “Where is he?”

“Leave him alone,” Enzo’s voice deepened, nearly a growl. “If you touch him—”

“You’ll what?”

“Will you two calm down?” That was a voice I recognized. Giancarlo. “Since when do I have to be the voice of fucking reason?”

Shit, is that other voice Benito Vitale?

A cold sweat arched down my back. Out of everyone in the family, he was the most dangerous. His file was thicker than anyone else’s, and the things he’d done… I shivered. Can’t think about that. Gotta get out of here.

It took everything in me to quiet my breathing. My feet padded down the cool stairs one by one. The shoes I’d been about to put on were by the front door. Could I even reach that? I kept Penelope clutched to my side. He was usually quiet when he was on me, and I prayed he stayed that way. I dipped into the guest room, grabbing my wallet from the pants I’d been wearing. No keys.

“You’ll get rid of him,” Benito growled.

“No.”

Silence.

“Enzo, I’m not asking.”

“And I’m not going to do it,” Enzo said evenly. “He’s mine.”

More silence followed,  so loud I could hear my heart pounding in my ears.

“I’ll do it myself,” Benito snapped.

My chest squeezed as I took a step back. The sound of Benito drawing closer made every hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Images of crime scenes and what he’d done played in my head one after the other. Severed limbs, empty eye-sockets, cold blue bodies. I imagined all of them being me, and fear trickled down my spine.

Come on, Caster. If you’re going to go down, then do it swinging.

I steeled myself, waiting to be eye to eye with Benito. Instead, I heard a grunt, a thud and the sound of fighting.

“Fuck. Will you two knock it off?” Giancarlo asked. “Goddamn it!”

I slipped Penelope into his crate. When I glanced in the direction of the kitchen, I could hear them fighting, but I couldn’t see them. That meant they couldn’t see me either. Turning, I examined the area around me. The bag I needed, the one with my most important shit, was still at the bottom of the stairs. I snagged it, juggling everything as I fled Enzo’s apartment.

I stopped outside of the opened door. I could still hear the sound of flesh colliding with flesh. Is Enzo going to be okay? He was a dick, but I didn’t want him to get hurt.

“Get off of him, Enzo!” Giancarlo yelled.

I took that as a sign. Enzo was winning. Besides, they were brothers. He would be fine. If Benito found me, I wouldn’t be.

The elevator dinged as the doors slid open. I checked on Pen in the crate. He yelled at me, letting me know exactly how he felt about the situation.

“I’m sorry, bud, but I can’t have you sliding around in the car.” I crouched down, rifling through the bag. I’d tossed my keys on top of it, but they weren’t there. “I guess we’re walking. Wallet,” I said, yanking it out. “We can get a taxi.”

When I hit fresh air, I took in a slow, even breath. I glanced down at myself. Walking around with no shoes on, disheveled clothes, a cat carrier, and a plastic bag full of clothes, I looked crazy. This is what my love of danger gets me. What the hell was I thinking?

My phone wasn’t even on me. I couldn’t call Chelsea and have her pick me up or Rourke. I was stuck. And I couldn’t go home.

Enzo knew where I lived and how to get in.

Glancing around, I made a decision. Rourke’s place wasn’t far. I had been there a few times to watch the game, talk shit about work, and drink too much beer. He’d give me a place to crash if I told him what was going on.

I just had to make it there. Half dressed, freezing, walking on the disgusting New York ground. All of the bad decisions I made as a teenager came flooding back to me. I thought I’d grown up, but apparently, I was wrong. I was still chasing the high, but this time the name of the drug was Enzo Vitale.

“What?” Rourke asked for the third time.

I rubbed the water out of my hair with a thick towel. Rourke had given me the couch and let me use his shower. Penelope was out roaming and pissed off. I couldn’t even look at him without him yelling at me.

“Caster!”

I jumped. “Sorry.” I plopped down on the couch. “I said I need a place to stay because of Enzo. He knows where I live. He already broke into my house. I can’t go back there.”

“And why the hell is he after you? Did you get caught or something?”

I glanced away. I wanted to stay silent while still protecting a man that I had no idea who he really was. However, I knew the rules. Partners were supposed to tell each other everything. If I kept lying to him, the case was going to bomb, and I would have no one to blame but myself.

“I’ve been living with him.”

Rourke choked on his beer. “What?”

“You’ve gotta stop saying that,” I groaned. “I went after him, things got complicated, and I moved in.”

He frowned. “So, what? You’ve got a thing for a mobster?”

“No,” I spat. “It was a small, stupid fling. That’s it.” My stomach clenched. “It was nothing.”

“You slept with a suspect,” Rourke said. “It’s not nothing. Do you know what this could do to your career?”

“I’m not stupid,” I said evenly. “And I don’t need lectures that I would be hearing if I was at my father’s house right now.”

“Your father did his job,” Rourke snapped. “He was a decorated officer. You’re fucking a mobster. Did you ever think he was right to get on your ass?”

I stared at Rourke, and he stared right back. My jaw clenched so hard my teeth ached. Fuck my father. Why was Rourke kissing his ass so hard?

Maybe he’s right. Everyone always says my dad is a hero. Am I the only one who resents him this much?

“Tex,” Rourke sighed. “I’m not trying to be an asshole, but you’ve got to know this is fucked up, right?” He pushed his fingers through his hair. “If anyone ever found out…”

“Don’t tell them,” I said quickly.

“If you have feelings for him, you could compromise this whole thing.” That frown was back. I was seeing it a lot more often lately. “I need to know if you’re willing to do your job. Can you put him behind bars?”

“Yeah,” I muttered.

“Could you pull the trigger on him?”

A scream echoed in my head, along with the desire to punch Rourke in the face. The violent thought was brief but strong. I sucked in a breath. Where did that come from?

Enzo. The answer was quick and clear. Ever since I’d met him, I started going backward. Yeah, I left the drugs alone, but I was back to being impulsive, short-tempered, and wild. Enzo had done this to me.

“Yeah,” I answered, feeling waves of apprehension wash over me. “I could.”

Rourke searched my face. I felt like at any moment he would call bullshit and yell at me for my stupidity. However, he nodded and passed me a beer after cracking it open.

I took it and gulped down half the bottle before pulling it away from my lips. Rourke stared at me. “Long day,” I muttered.

“We have work tomorrow. It might be a good idea for you to turn in early.”

“Do you think he’ll find me here?”

“Yep, and soon,” Rourke said. “These guys are not only smart, they have scores of people that will do whatever they tell them to do. I’m sure they know we’re close. Finding my place won’t be that hard.”

“Then I need to go,” I said, standing up. “I’ll look into staying somewhere else.”

“Sit down,” Rourke cut in, waving a hand. “No matter where you go, you would be in danger. At least here, it’s us against them. No one innocent will get hurt.” He shook his head. “This is an even bigger reason to shut the Vitale’s down and throw their asses in prison for a long time.”

I nodded, but my mouth felt like it had been glued shut. Enzo would be behind bars, and I wouldn’t be able to see him again. Was the last time we spent together really going to be angry sex and unspoken words?

My throat felt like sawdust was clogging it, and I swallowed down more beer to erase the feeling. I already knew that things between us wouldn’t end well. So, why did it hurt so damn bad?

Penelope meowed, hopped on the couch, and rubbed against my arm. I scratched behind his ears and moved to stroking the length of his body fast and hard the way Enzo did it. He instantly began purring, the sound so loud it rivaled the noise of the TV.

“What are you going to do with that cat?”

“Pen?” I asked. “I need to get him a few supplies, but he’ll be okay here.”

As I spoke, Penelope trotted over to Rourke. My partner frowned, lifted his hand, and tried to pet Penelope. A growl echoed from Penelope’s throat before he hissed at him. Penelope’s back raised, his tail high as he reached out a paw and struck out at Rourke.

“Goddamn it,” Rourke yelled, jumping from his seat as I joined him. “You need to take that thing somewhere else!” He looked at his bleeding hand. “Shit, that burns. I need to clean this. Find somewhere for him to stay until we finish this case.”

“He didn’t mean it,” I said. “He’s just stressed.”

“Yeah, stressed,” Rourke muttered. Turning on his heels, he walked down the hall. “I mean it. Find somewhere for him to stay. I’m allergic anyway.”

I gazed down at Penelope. “Why’d you do that?” I muttered. “You’re supposed to be a good boy.”

He grumbled again, the sound bordering on a growl. Shaking my head, I deposited Penelope back into his crate, but this time he went willingly. I knew where I could take him. Chelsea loved Pen and wouldn’t mind protecting him until the case was over.

The thought of Penelope not being by my side only made my shoulders slump more. Enzo was gone. Penelope was about to be sent away. All I had left was my dream staring me in the face if I solved this case.

Do I even want this anymore?

I stuffed that thought down hard and fast. Being a detective was everything I wanted. I couldn’t allow anyone to get in my way.