His Kingdom (Owning Vegas Book 1)

There’s something about this woman that’s pulling me towards her. My brain is telling me to get up and walk away. Let her swim to her heart’s content and leave her alone. My body, though… it wants to do everything but that.

I’m itching to jump into the pool, press her up against the wall, and sink my cock so deep into her pussy she won’t remember she was supposed to get married today. What kind of fucking idiot cheats on a woman like that? Like her. I can’t fathom it. If she were mine, she’d never have to worry about me even looking at another woman.

She can’t be mine, though. She’s too sweet, innocent, kind. She does not belong in the world I live in. She’d get eaten alive. She’d become a target—something my enemies could use against me.

One of the reasons I’ve never been in a relationship is so I don’t have any weaknesses. I’ve also never met a woman I’ve wanted to keep longer than a night. I’m not saying I want to keep Charlotte longer than a night, but I’m not sure I don’t want to keep her either.

My phone buzzes in my pocket. I pull it out while not taking my eyes off her. She’s swimming laps, continuous laps. Surely she’s going to wear herself out soon. Looking down, I open the message on my screen.

Sammie:

Bossman, you got a heartbeat still? If not, I better be in your will. Where the fuck are you?

Fuck, I was supposed to meet up with him an hour ago. I got distracted. And Charlotte is a distraction I’m not ready to get rid of.

Me:

Rooftop pool. I’m taking a pass on tonight.

I pocket my phone and go back to watching Charlotte. She wasn’t shy at all when it came to stripping down in front of me. I think her need to swim overrode any objections she might have had about getting nearly naked in front of a stranger.

When she comes back to the shallow end of the pool, she stops and looks up at me, her chest heaving as she takes a moment to catch her breath. “You should try this. You look tense and the water always eases my stress,” she says.

“I’m good.” I don’t tell her I’m tense because my mind is focused on trying to figure out if I can get away with fucking the sadness out of her eyes.

“You don’t have to babysit me, you know. I’m sure you have other things to do.” She looks away, and I follow her gaze to the strip.

I own this fucking town. Taking time out to sit by a pool isn’t something I’ve ever done. And yet, here I fucking am.

“Tonight just happens to be my night off. I’ve got no other plans.” I smile. “Besides, I’m happy to sit here and look at the view.”

“It is pretty,” she says, staring out at all the lights.

“It’s fucking breathtaking,” I reply, staring right at her.

Charlotte’s cheeks turn pink. It’s a faint change, and I’m sure I’d be able to see the flush in them more if I were closer. The sound of the door opening has me standing, ready to deal with whatever asshole managed to get up here without a damn pass.

And then Sammie saunters over. “Boss, not like you to go for a midnight swim.” He smiles and looks behind me. At Charlotte. “Ah, I think I see the appeal now.”

“Get your eyes off her.” I walk up to where he’s standing and grunt in a low voice so only he can hear me. Then I walk behind him so he’s forced to turn around. “What are you doing here?” I ask him.

“Checking up on your MIA ass,” he says.

“Well, now that you’ve seen I’m fine, you can leave.” I nod my head in the direction of the door.noveldrama

“Sure.” Sammie smirks. “Right after I meet your friend.” He pivots on a heel and strolls towards the pool again.

How much would it bother Charlotte if I drowned this fucker in the water right next to her?

“Hey there. I’m Sammie, and you are?” My soon-to-be-dead friend holds out his hand.

Before Charlotte reaches out to take it, I walk over and knock Sammie into the water. Then I bend down, pick Charlotte up, and drag her out of the pool. “Sorry about that. He looked like he wanted to sink.” I smirk.

“Fucker.” Sammie laughs when his head pops up for air. His eyes on Charlotte, who is wearing nothing but wet underwear.

“Turn the fuck around,” I tell him.

“Fine. Let me know when you two kids are decent,” Sammie says, holding his hands in the air in a surrender motion.

I grab my jacket and wrap it around Charlotte’s shoulders before I pick up one of the towels and pull the tie out of her hair. Letting it fall in long, wet curls down her back. I wrap the towel around her hair and dry it off the best I can.

Charlotte is as stiff as a board. I look down at her, tilting her chin upwards so she has to make eye contact with me. “You okay?” I ask, while using the corner of the towel to gently wipe the droplets of water from her face.

“Mhmm. I should get back to my room. Thank you for letting me swim,” she says.

“I’ll walk you,” I tell her before calling over a shoulder, “Sammie, get out of the pool.”

“You really don’t need to walk me back to my room,” Charlotte says.

“I really do,” I insist. “This city is full of drunk asses and, frankly, undesirable men who would take one look at you like this and… Well, you get the point.”

“Um, thank you. I’m sorry I took up your time,” she replies as the elevator doors close.

“What floor?” I ask her, swiping my access card over the panel.

“Five.”

We’re both silent as we descend to the fifth floor before the doors open again, and I follow Charlotte until she stops in front of room 527. She unlocks the door, and I wait for her to turn around. “Are you going to be okay?” I ask her.

“I’m going to be fine. I’m a southern girl. Nothing keeps us down. Tomorrow I’m going to put on my lipstick, straighten my shoulders, and move on as if nothing happened. Tonight, I’m going to grieve the loss of my sister,” she says.

“I understand that everything is fresh. Feelings are… intense. But your sister isn’t dead, Charlotte. Shitty, definitely. But she’s not dead.”

“She is to me.” Charlotte shrugs. “Oh, your jacket.”

When she starts to remove it, I place a hand on her shoulder to stop her. “Keep it. And just so you know, your ex is a fucking idiot for losing you.”

“Thank you.”

“Good night, Charlotte.”

“Good night, Louie,” she says before closing the door.

I take my phone out of my pocket and quickly call down to the lobby. “Good evening, Mr. Giuliani. How may I help you?” a young girl answers.

“There’s a woman in room 527… Have her upgraded to penthouse two, on the house. For two weeks. Tell her she’s won an all-expenses-paid extension,” I direct the girl.

“Okay, when would you like her moved?”

“Now.” I cut the call as I enter the elevator. When I walk into my own suite, Sammie is waiting for me. Nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. “Why the fuck are you naked in my apartment?” I ask him.

“Because some grouchy fucker pushed my ass into the pool.” He points at me.

“You deserved it.” Walking past him, I head for the wet bar by the window. The penthouse has views over the strip, the floor-to-ceiling glass now lit up with activity. I’ve always loved the hustle of this city.

“So, Charlotte? Where’d she come from and why are you hiding her?” Sammie asks.

“She’s nobody, and I’m not hiding anyone.” I turn and stare out the window.

“Nobody, huh? You never cared if I looked at an almost-naked nobody before,” he counters.

“I was being respectful. You should try it sometime.” My glass reaches my lips as Sammie’s laugh echoes off the walls.

“Yeah, respectful, good one. When have you ever wanted to be respectful to a woman?” His hand slaps my shoulder.

“Don’t touch me when you’re fucking naked.” I shove him aside, turn back to the wet bar, and refill my glass.

“I wouldn’t be naked if I didn’t get pushed in the fucking pool,” he grunts.

“Is there an actual reason you’re here?” I ask him.

“Yeah, asshole, it’s called being a friend. You should try it sometime,” he snaps.

If anyone else spoke to me like that, they’d have a bullet in their head before they could blink. Lucky for Sammie, he’s one of the few people I actually tolerate.

“I’ve heard it’s overrated,” I tell him.

“Yeah, sure. Are you going to mope around here all night or come out?”

“I’m not moping, and I’m also not going out tonight,” I say.

“Suit yourself.” Sammie shrugs, and I think he’s finally giving up and going to leave me in peace. “So, where’d Charlotte come from?”

My brows draw down at him. “Why are you so interested in Charlotte?”

“Because you are, so where’d you meet her?”

“Downstairs. She was sitting at the bar alone. I talked to her and she wanted to go swimming. It’s not a big deal.”

“Not a big deal? Okay, so you’re just going around talking to random patrons and taking them swimming now?”

“It’s my pool. If I want to let someone in it, I will. I also don’t answer to you.” I point a finger at him as the whiskey in my glass sloshes against the side of the crystal tumbler.

“Again, it’s called being a friend.” Sammie shakes his head. “I’m borrowing some clothes, since you destroyed mine.” He walks off towards my bedroom, while I make my way into my office.

I don’t know who this Charlotte is, but I’m intrigued enough to find out. So I fire up my laptop, log in to the guest details, and locate her reservation. It’s easy to dig up information on people, but it’s even easier when you have their full name, their date of birth, and their home address at your fingertips.