Bottled Up (A Broken Lives Short Story Book 4) Read online

  He resumed rubbing my clit, the bastard turning me on even more, making me want to come a second time. He smiled lewdly, fully aware of the effect he was having on me. For a second, I worried he was doing all of this to distract me from the talk about his alcoholism. But that thought flew out of my head as his thumb and fingers worked their magic, pulling out another orgasm. I cried out so loud that I was relieved that Jade, and more importantly, Dante’s father wasn’t home, because Tane would never let me hear the end of it.

  Dante leaned forward, kissing me as I came down from the orgasm. He pulled back a moment later, letting go of me completely. Winking at me, he leaned to one side, washing his hands in the sink, also giving his cock a quick clean. He dried himself off, then strutted out of the bathroom like a peacock in full bloom, leaving me still panting from the orgasm.

  After I’d finally gotten my breath back, I pulled my bra off and dumped it in the wash basket, grabbing a quick shower before following him into our room. I startled as he opened the curtains, the both of us butt naked. “Dante!” I cried out, snatching up the dressing gown at the foot of the bed. Once I’d pulled it on, I rushed over to yank the curtains across, lucky that I didn’t damage them in my panic.

  “What the hell did you do that for?” I snapped, not believing him.

  He smirked at me. “Showing our pervo neighbour what she, and every chick out there, can’t have.” He held his arms out wide, displaying his gorgeous body. “I’m all yours, baby.”

  I shook my head at him. “You’re impossible.”

  His smirk grew. “But you still love me. So, get dressed in something nice. Make it white.” He winked at me, before heading past me.

  “Why?”

  He stopped in front of the wardrobe. “Cos we’re gettin’ married,” he said, opening the door.

  “Ah... what do you mean? It’ll take months to plan a proper wedding.”

  “A registry wedding is proper enough,” he said, sifting through his clothes.

  “It’s too late for that, those places will be closing soon, and I want a full wedding, not a quick sign-here type.”

  He stopped searching through the wardrobe, and looked over his shoulder at me. “You can have one. We can have a registry marriage, then do a big wedding later, hell, we can even do a third one in Vegas.” He grinned. “One with a fake Elvis.”

  “But we’ll already be married, and I want it to be a special day.”

  “It’ll be special no matter what, cos you’ll be my wife.” He walked over to me and took hold of my face, giving me a kiss. My lips melted against his, no longer caring about the whiskey, allowing myself to enjoy this moment in time. But the moment ended far too quick. He broke the kiss and patted my arse like I tended to do to him. He usually pinched mine.

  “Hurry up,” he said, walking back to the wardrobe, clearly wanting to get married today.

  “God, Dante, we honestly don’t have enough time. We’ll also need witnesses, as well as people to distract the paparazzi.”

  “For once, I want the paparazzi there.” He laughed. “They can take care of the wedding photos.”

  I shook my head at him, but still smiled. “There’s still not enough time. And if you really want to have a registry wedding, we can get one tomorrow. First thing in the morning. It’ll give us enough time to ask Ash and Georgie,” I said, mentioning my best friend, “if they can be witnesses. Okay?”

  His smile grew bigger. “Yeah, and you can organise the white wedding for whatever day you want, just make sure you arrange a Vegas one as well. That’ll be so much fun. Three different types of weddings to make sure everyone knows we’re married.”

  My smile grew to match his, never having guessed the day would’ve taken a turn like this. But that was another thing I loved about Dante. He was so unpredictable.

  “Okay,” I said, more than happy to make the arrangements.

  “Choice,” he replied, grabbing his phone out of his leathers. He started texting.

  “Who are you texting?”

  “Ash, then Sledge,” he said, mentioning his two brothers, the younger one an adopted sibling. “I want ’em at all of my weddings. Ash can be my best man, while Sledge can be the groomsman.” He looked up. “That’s what it’s called, right, a groomsman?”

  I nodded.

  He continued tapping away on his phone. “Text Georgie, ask her to be your bridesmaid.”

  “Um... ” I frowned, remembering she was rostered on tomorrow. “I forgot, she’ll be working. Can we wait until next week? She has Monday off.”

  “Nope, I wanna do it tomorrow,” he replied, finishing his text. “She can pull a sickie.” He walked around the bed and grabbed my phone off the bedside table. Without blinking, he keyed in my password, clearly about to text my friend.

  I swiped my phone off him. “How do you know my password?”

  “You use Tyson’s birthday for everything.”

  I grunted. “Not for much longer, and I’ll phone Georgie,” I said, hitting the call button for her.

  My best friend’s voice came over the line with a hello.

  I barrelled forward, knowing I was going to hear one hell of a screech. “I’m getting married tomorrow morning. Do you want to witness it?” I asked, smiling as she split my eardrums.

  “To Dante?” she screamed.

  “Well, who else would it be?” I laughed at her silly question.

  “Where and when? Tell me everything!”

  And I did, smiling as Dante walked over to Tyson, cooing at our baby boy, who had woken up at all the noise. He picked Tyson up, making me smile so wide I wasn’t sure I would ever stop smiling. I knew Dante was hard work, knew he’d falter again, but I also knew he was worth it.

  Noise came from downstairs, the front door closing. Dante walked over to the bedroom door, totally naked, not caring about his nudity.

  Jade appeared in front of him, giving him a raised brow. “Don’t you think you should put some clothes on, Dante?”

  “You’ve seen it all before.”

  Jade shook his head, his gaze shifting to me. “Why are you two so happy?” he asked, looking suave in his smart charcoal-grey pants and white, open-neck shirt. His blacker than black hair was slicked back, Dante’s manager always impeccably groomed. I still couldn’t believe he was in his forties, because he honestly looked ten years younger. Though, at times I wondered whether he’d had work done, the man incredibly vain.

  “We’re getting married tomorrow,” Dante answered.

  Jade’s face dropped like a bomb over Moruroa Atoll. “No, Dante, you can’t!”

  “You bet I can, and three times. At a registry tomorrow, then in Vegas with an Elvis impersonator, followed by a big white wedding for Clara, so all the whanau can come.”

  Jade went to open his mouth.

  Dante covered it. “You’re not talkin’ me outta it, it’s happening, and by the way, we’re moving out as soon as we find a place.”

  Jade smacked Dante’s hand away. “Why?” he barked angrily.

  “I’m sick of the neighbours either whinging or perving at me, and even more sick of the paparazzi and fans dogging me. I’m gonna get a big place with a gate and a guard to keep all the nutters out, and don’t tell me that I can’t afford it, any bank would gimme a loan now. I’m worth a shitload. And you already have my dad living ’ere, so you don’t need me as well. And if you really want another Rata in the household, ask Ash. You can perv at him instead, though you might get bashed in the face for it.” He laughed.

  Jade scowled at him. “You know you’re a complete prick.”

  “Yup,” he ran his hand over his own cock. “And you love it.” He walked past him, heading down the stairs with Tyson against his chest.

  “The curtains are wide open in the lounge!” Jade yelled.

  “I’m going to the kitchen!” Dante yelled back.

  Jade shook his head and looked over at me. “Can you talk some sense into him? This won’t do his career any good.”
/>   “Honestly, Jade,” I said, already having finished my call with Georgie, “I don’t think it’ll make a difference. Women will still want him whether he’s married or not. They’ll still fantasise over him no matter what, and unfortunately, will still hit on him, even in front of me, like our lousy neighbour did.”

  He scowled. “You’re right, they will. Just be prepared, because they won’t just hit on him, they’ll throw themselves at him, and he’s not exactly the type to control himself.”

  “He’s been faithful. The only thing I have to worry about is his alcoholism.”

  Jade nodded. “That’s very true. He smelt of whiskey earlier. I told him to go home, ordered him a taxi.” He tutted like a disapproving grandmother. “We need to find his daughter as soon as possible, and if anything, you two getting married will at least distract him for a bit. Get married, take him to Vegas for a couple of days, I’ll get L or Juliet to look after Tyson for you, then come back refreshed. Hopefully, I’ll have a lead by then.”

  I nodded. “Make it L, she’s best with little ones. Juliet is a bit clumsy with the way she holds Tyson.”

  “I will.” He gave me a half-smile. “If I wasn’t so in love with Tane, you know I’d be fighting this marriage tooth and nail, don’t you?”

  “I’m well aware of that,” I said, happy that he was finally getting over Dante. Though, he had a massive task in keeping Dante’s father, because Killer would never give up on trying to win the man back. And like Tiana, I was worried Jade was in for a world of heartbreak, because Tane loved Killer like Jade loved Tane.

  Jade nodded at me. “Good luck, you’ll need it.”

  “So will you with Tane.”

  He scowled. “Yes, the Ratas aren’t easy men to love.”

  “But they’re worth it.”

  His expression softened. “They certainly are. Now, I’ve got to get changed and go see my man. Hopefully, he’ll be awake when I get to the hospital.” He turned and disappeared into his room, murmuring, “God, I love him.”

  I smiled, feeling the same way about Dante. Now in a great mood, I closed the door and slipped my dressing gown off, grabbing a fresh pair of knickers out of my cabinet. I pulled them on, along with a clean bra, then went to the wardrobe, picking out another dress. Once I was decent, I opened the bedroom door, stopping as my phone went off. I snatched it up off the bed, hitting the answer button before realising it was Dante’s mobile, not mine. But before I could say a word, a voice came over the line, one I recognised.

  “I have a trace on your daughter,” Killer said. “She’s in Taranaki.”

  “She’s in New Zealand?” I asked, surprised, since the girl supposedly lived in Australia.

  “Who’s this?” he growled.

  “You know who it is, Killer,” I replied, not understanding how he didn’t recognise my voice.

  “I’m not Killer.”

  “Murderer, then,” I said, the guy having multiple personalities.

  “No, it’s Jasper. Is this Mrs. Hatton?”

  “My last name is Hughes now,” soon to be Rata, “and I thought you were in prison?”

  “Which is where I’m callin’ from. Just tell Dante that I have some men on the outside working to get his daughter back.” He hung up without another word, leaving me a little stunned that I’d spoken to him, the man sounding so much like his uncle it was uncanny.

  “What’s wrong?”

  My gaze shot to the door. Dante was still holding Tyson against his chest as well as a bottle of water in his other hand.

  “Jasper called, said he has some men working to find your daughter. He mentioned that they’ve tracked her to Taranaki.”

  His eyes widened. “You serious?”

  I nodded.

  “Shit, didn’t expect to hear that. I didn’t even ask him to find her since he’s behind bars. I just hope he didn’t get Murderer involved, I don’t want that fucker scaring my girl.”

  He tossed the bottle of water onto our bed and walked over to the cot, laying Tyson down. He tucked him in, then took his mobile off me, calling someone.

  “This is Dante,” he spoke into the phone, “am I speaking to Murderer or Killer?” A look of relief crossed his face. “Killer, did Jasper employ you to find my daughter?” He frowned. “I don’t want you approaching her or her mother. Stay clear of ’em, I wanna get custody the legal way.” He nodded. “Good. Only keep tabs on her routine, just make sure that no one spots you.” He winced and removed the phone from his ear, a loud bark coming across the line. He placed the phone back to his ear. “Calm yo shit down, Killer, I didn’t insult your skills, I know you’re the best, it’s just... She’s my daughter, I’m allowed to be paranoid. If her mother gets spooked, that bitch will bolt with my girl. So...” He bit his lip, “does she really look like me?” He looked up at the ceiling and exhaled loudly. “That’s a total mind fuck. Looks like I needa get a lawyer onto this quick smart. And cheers, good job of finding her. Also, thank Jasper for arranging this. He’s a great mate.” Dante smiled, saying bye in Maori before hanging up.

  “So, I’m guessing she looks like you,” I said.

  He nodded. “Killer, and thank fuck it wuz Killer and not Murderer, said she looks like a mini-me, just a female version. Which means she is mine, cos Ash confirmed he didn’t sleep with her bitch of a mother.”

  “Does that mean we need to push back the wedding so you can arrange things regarding custody?”

  “Fuck no, it’s more of a reason to get married. If we’re in a stable relationship and Lavinia isn’t, that’ll count in my favour. Plus, with me being well-off now and her bein’ a blackmailing, broke-arse bitch, I think I have a good chance of gettin’ custody.”

  I frowned, not so sure, his past peppered with unsavoury elements that could see him never getting custody, let alone shared-custody. All the porn of him on the web, regardless of whether it was illegal or not, would definitely count against him. Add that to the mothers campaigning against him, trying to get him banned from YouTube, and it would be a hard task to get any judge to agree to giving him custody.

  He frowned right back at me. “You don’t want me gettin’ custody, do ya?”

  I shook my head. “It’s not that, I’ll be happy if you did, that is, as long as the little girl is happy. I’m just concerned that your past may work against you, as well as that mothers’ group. Also, what about my past? I could hinder your chances even more, especially with my conviction.”

  His frown dropped. “I have money to buy the best lawyers, who’ll be able to spin anything, while Lavinia has jack shit. If anything, I could pro’bly get her thrown into prison for tryna blackmail me, which means I’ll get custody regardless.”

  “Before you do anything that drastic, think about the girl first, imagine how she’d react to her mother being ripped away from her. Do what’s best for her, not you.”

  His frown returned. “I am. She’ll be safer with me.”

  “God, Dante,” I said, slipping my arms around his waist. I knew why he was doing this, the abuse he’d received at the hands of his stepfather making him worry about what kind of man was in his daughter’s household. “Don’t relate what happened to you to your daughter, she may be perfectly happy.”

  “And she might not be, which is why I won’t stop until she’s under my roof. I just wish that Jasper had gotten someone other than Killer to track her down, cos there’s always the risk of Murderer taking over.”

  “Who is Killer tracking down?” Jade asked.

  Dante pulled out of my grip and turned to find his manager standing in the doorway with a sour expression on his pretty face, the guy hating his rival with a passion.

  “My daughter,” Dante answered. “Killer found her.”

  Jade scowled. “You didn’t need to involve him, I’ve already paid a private detective to find her.”

  “I didn’t, it wuz Jasper, though...” Dante’s expression turned perplexed, “how did Jasper even know I have a daughter? Only you, Ash, Tia
na, Clara, and me know.”

  “I have no idea, though my money would be on Ash because I can’t see Tiana speaking to Jasper.”

  “Ash doesn’t speak to him either, he’s not his mate.” Dante scratched his balls. “So, how the fuck did he find out?”

  Jade’s eyes flicked to what he was doing. “Maybe Ash told someone else, and that person told Jasper,” he replied, seemingly entranced.

  “Oi!” Dante stopped scratching himself and indicated to his face. “Keep your eyes above board, pervo, and Ash isn’t one for giving out info... unless it’s to Juliet,” he said, mentioning his adopted sister. “She always blabs to her twin, who shouts everything to the world.” He grimaced. “Sledge has no filter.”

  “Like you,” Jade shot back, his face now bright red with embarrassment. “And I told you to put some damn clothes on.”

  “Not my fault you can’t keep your eyes offa my dick, and you can’t compare me to Sledge. Even I can keep my mouth shut when I needa. Him, he can’t at all. You tell him a secret and it won’t be one anymore. He just doesn’t understand that he shouldn’t say everything he thinks.”

  “Isn’t the psychologist helping him with that?” I asked before Jade could reply. Sledge’s unfiltered tongue was due to brain damage caused by a bullet, the guy lucky to have survived it.

  Dante nodded. “A li’l, but Sledge still blurts out things he shouldn’t. He’s like a li’l kid at times. Totally innocent, oblivious that what he thinks would offend anyone.”

  Dante went to say more, but Jade raised a hand, cutting him off. “I have to go, off to see your dad.” He pulled a face at Dante. “And please, no more walking around naked.”

  “My dad does the same thing and you don’t tell him to stop.”

  “I’m allowed to look at him naked, not you. He’s all I need and want.” Jade disappeared around the corner, thumping down the staircase.

  Dante shook his head. “Poor bastard.”

  “What do you mean by that?” I asked.

  “He’s wasting his time on my dad, my dad loves Killer. It won’t be long before those two are back together.”

  “But Jade is better for him.”