Unspoken Obsession (Casino King #4)

9. Frankie

FRANKIE

I wake up with a massive smile on my face. Last night was incredible.

Rolling over in bed I stretch my arms above my head, yawning, just as Damion runs into my room, slamming his little body onto my bed.

"Soft biscuit." He shouts, jumping onto me, and squashing the air out of my lungs. I wrap my arms around him and smother his little face in kisses. "You want a biscuit?" I ask. "With honey and or gravy?"

"Yes." He squeals, wiggling to get away from my hug.

"Yes - what, Damion?" I say.

"Yes, please, Mommy." He grins, sheepish, knowing he always has to remember his manners.

He's still so young, but he is so aware of other people and shows high amounts of empathy. He is a soft-hearted, old soul, and that is another reason I want to keep him safe from the world. He is too kind, and over time - I will teach him to set firm boundaries if he wants to survive this place.

For now - I will teach him manners. We all start somewhere.

He runs from my room, shouting please again while he laughs.

"I'm coming." I chuckle, throwing the blankets off and following him to the kitchen.

Damion insists on helping me when I make biscuits - but of course, that creates a nightmare of a mess and this morning I am not in the mood to clean. So instead of letting him help me with the actual batter - I break an egg into a bowl and hand it to him to mix.

He sits on the play mat on the kitchen floor and stabs at the yolk until it breaks then all of his focus goes into mixing while I make the batter.

I peek at the oven as the biscuits turn a golden brown.

I can't stop thinking about Dan.

The way he touched me, the way he kissed me. And how he filled my pussy. There was something so familiar about it. His entire demeanor reminds me of someone very specific, at first I pushed the thought aside, but there are so many small things about him. I might be right.

He told me he often stays at the Russo River Casino - and he is familiar. Those blue yes.

I shake my head.

The intensity of the nagging sensation is suffocating and unrelenting.

I think he might be the man from that night. The Shadow.

I think he might be Damion's father.

What are the chances of that happening? It's crazy.

But after last night my instincts tell me that it is true. Dan is The Shadow.

"Mommy. All done." I turn to see Damion holding a bowl of mixed eggs that he is about to tip onto the floor.

"Well done baby boy," I say as I take the bowl from him. I'll throw it into the pan once the biscuits are done and make a little scrambled egg. He loves eggs and will eat them with the biscuit.

"Are you ready for your first biscuit?" I ask, seeing that another sixty seconds in the oven would've burned it.

Oops.

I'm daydreaming too much this morning.

Last night has gotten to me more than I would like to admit.

I slide the first two biscuits onto a plastic plate for him, squeezing some honey over them. He places his bum onto the mat on the floor again and holds his hands up to take the breakfast from me.

I leave him to enjoy his food while I pour two more scoops of batter into the pan.

"Could it be him?" I talk to myself. "And if it is him - what does that mean? Is it good or bad? Would I tell him the truth? How do I know it's him?"

"Ok, Mommy," Damion says, joining the conversation even though he does not know what I am talking about.

After breakfast and a shower, I take Damion to the park nearby so that he can play on the little jungle gym and run around. I am meeting Dan at twelve, so Clarissa is coming to spend the afternoon with Damion. They are going to make pizza and watch cartoons. I don't like her to take him out of the apartment when I am not there. I just don't trust my father's men.

Even now - sitting in the park - I can see them, trying to blend in but sticking out like an alarm bell -- overdressed in dark suits with the bulge of their handguns beneath their jackets. Completely out of place at a kid's park.

I roll my eyes in annoyance.

I've got to be so careful. I don't want them following me when I go meet Dan. Especially if I'm right and he is Damion's father. The last person I want to be involved in that is my father.

I'll leave my car behind and catch a taxi, rather. That way I can sneak out unseen.

When I'm back from the park with Damion, Clarissa is waiting outside the door. "Sorry, I got here early."

"Clasa." Damion squeals in excitement, running to hug her. She scoops him up in her arms. "Guess what your mommy told me?" She asks, nuzzling his cheek with her nose. "What?"

"She told me we are making pizza."

"He helped make biscuits this morning."

"Did you? That's so clever." She grins at him.

I push the door to my apartment open and let them inside. Clarissa carries Damion towards the living room, and I head to my room to change.

I'm excited to see Dan again. And nervous. Butterflies take flight in my stomach when I think about it.

My lips tingle at the memory of his kiss.

I don't know what I'll do if he is Damion's father, but I cannot stay away from him.

I cuddle Damion goodbye, but he is so busy looking at photos of pizza toppings on my laptop with Clarissa that he gives me a second of his time. He's really into this pizza-making adventure he is about to embark on.

"I don't know how late I'll be —"

"Just enjoy yourself. I'm here. I've got your number if I need anything, and you've got mine. Don't stress about it."

I give her a quick hug, leaning over the back of the sofa, and then I turn to rush out of the apartment. Instead of going downstairs to the front of the building where I parked my car after coming home with Damion this morning - I headed to the underground parking lot where I asked the Uber to pick me up.

I can see the two goons sitting in their car opposite the street, watching my car. Well - they are going to be watching all day, I chuckle.

When the Uber pulls out of the building, I sink low in the backseat, wondering if he thinks I'm crazy. Then when we are far enough away, I sit up again and straighten my blue dress. It's a beautiful day outside so I chose this one. It's short, flaring out after my waist, and I think it's really cute.

I wore my white sneakers again because I didn't know where Dan was taking us, and I'd rather be comfortable than trying to walk around outside in high heels. That just isn't my style even though so many of the women around Las Vegas are happy to suffer for their fashion sense. I am just not stupid enough to pull that off.

The driver drops me outside the entrance to Russo River Casino. I am about to walk into the foyer when I hear Dan's voice from behind me.

"Hi, beautiful."

I turn to see him sitting in his car, grinning at me.

He climbs out and walks around towards me.

He gives me the quickest kiss on my lips, then opens the car door for me as though he is in a hurry to get out of there.

"Are you embarrassed to be seen with me? Or just in a hurry to leave," I tease him as he climbs into the car.

He laughs. "Quite the opposite. I think any man who has the chance to be seen with you in public would be the center of attention and would love it. But - I am excited to whisk you away for our lunch date."

I smile. I hate the idea of being the center of attention. But I love the idea of him being excited to share lunch with me.

He doesn't strike me as a man who gets excited about things. He doesn't seem like a man who gets excited about things, but in all the times I've spent with him, he has been gentle, playful, and soft. Attentive even.

I stare at his mouth, trying to picture a mask over the top half of his face. It makes my heart beat faster.

I am so sure it's him.

But - it can't be. That would be bad because it would complicate things, I might have to stop seeing him.

I'm not ready for that - not after last night.

He drives us away from the city to a rocky cliff. The sun is hot, shining down on us as we climb out of the car. I walk over to the edge of the cliff. It's a long drop, and the view is incredible. The entire city of Las Vegas is spread out at the foot of the hill.

I hear Dan busy with something behind me and turn to see him gathering things from the trunk of his car.

I walk over to see if I can help.

"Here, take this." He hands me a blanket.

Then he scoops up the enormous basket and another bag of items, slinging it over his shoulder as he slams the trunk closed. "Alright - follow me." He grins.

We don't walk far - just around the edge of the cliff towards some trees. He spreads the blanket out on the grassy area of shade and then opens the basket.

He has packed a really elaborate lunch of crackers, cold cuts, cheese, fruits, and chocolates. It looks incredible.

From the other bag, he pulls out champagne, water, juice, and glasses.

"Wow." I giggle. Surprised by the amount of effort he put into this. I am just not used to having someone do things like this for me.

"I hope you like all of this food," he asks, looking worried for a moment.

"Dan, this is amazing. Thank you so much."

He leans back on his elbow, propped up on his side as he places a few items onto a plate. I move a little closer to him, leaning my back against his legs and pouring us some champagne.

Again - everything with him is so natural and the conversation flows like I've known him my entire life.

We are laughing when his phone, lying face up in front of me, beeps with a notification. I look down at it and catch a glimpse of a message before he picks it up.

The goods were stolen. We didn't catch them.

I watch his face as he reads the same message, and whatever else the person sent him. His eyes grow dark and my stomach churns.

This is another glimpse at the side of him I should pay more attention to. He is hiding something so dangerous about himself—I should not be around him.

I do not know what he really does, and these red flags should not be ignored. If I had any common sense, I would leave right now and never see him again.

But my life, growing up in a dangerous world, has numbed me to certain warnings.

I have survived my father, so far, so why can't I handle a little danger from this man?

He puts his phone face down, further away from me. I watch him take a deep breath and then his face returns to normal. He is an expert at hiding. Switching between his different faces and personalities. Which one of them is the real him?

Just as easily as he pushes aside his anger—I squash my worry. I want to enjoy the moment. As much as this denial will get me nowhere in the long run, I can't walk away from him. So, I've got no choice but to pretend I don't notice.

Now and then he rests his hand on my back, sending heated shivers down my spine while he is chatting and telling me stories about funny things that happened in Las Vegas. When our food is finished, I lay down on the blanket, facing him, staring into his eyes, and listening to him speak.

He asks me about my family, and I shrug off the question, telling him about anything but that.

The connection between us is so strong it's undeniable. I can't imagine this.

The more time I spend with him the stronger it gets and to be honest - it scares me how much I want him.

I fear how quickly this became so intense.

I was supposed to stay detached - just have fun - but my heart has other ideas.