I've been stressing over how I was going to do this scene, but then a thought just crashed against my brain-pan. Pavi Largo isn't exactly a gentlemen when it comes to females…so I've been ignoring the most obvious and believable of solutions.
Not anymore. ^_^
As for the MANY cries for more Graverobber, don't worry ducklings. All good things in their time.
(plus, THAT chapter was the first thing I wrote *tee-hee*)
Also for those of you who are wondering what happened to the violence that usually governs my stories…don't panic. It isn't gone, just biding its time. You know how I love my shock-value scenes. :D
You do not think Pavi Largo is attractive. You do not think Pavi Largo is attractive!
Youdonotthinkpavilargoisattractive!!!
My fingers were white talons around the base of my crystal tumbler as I tried not to look up at his face. (or her face, whatever). The window, sure. His jacket. His chest…Later I would blame this whole situation on my addiction.
"Deep breaths, tesoro."
On reflex I looked up at him, then couldn't look away. "Sir?"
"You look'a terrified." He smiled, daring me to deny it. Which, of course, I couldn't, so instead I turned red and looked away. Pavi chuckled, shaking his head while I downed the rest of what was in my glass. He watched in amusement as I shook off the fowl taste while the alcohol burned its way down to my stomach.
"What exactly did you want from me, Mr. Largo, if you don't mind me asking?" Or quickly changing the subject.
"You've'a been here nearly a week, cara, and still the Pavi has rarely seen you."
"Did you just refer to yourself in the third person?"
"I thought that if'a you refused to make the first effort, I would'a gladly take over."
"What are you talking about?"
"Gioco d'amore."
"I don't speak Italian." But I knew what that last part meant.
He nodded once with the hint of a smile beneath his stolen face. "Perhaps'a for the best."
In other words, I didn't want to know what he was saying. Great.
"There is a function inside GeneCo this evening. You will come'a as my guest, si?"
Because I really had a choice.
"Wouldn't it be a little strange for the hired help to be your date?"
"The Pavi does not discriminate class, bella."
Which didn't answer my question.
The limo was beginning to slow, but the windows were covered by a dark cloth and I couldn't see out of them. Pavi glanced over my shoulder at the driver's window slot then took a slow breath, like he was readying himself for something. Which made me really nervous.
"You must'a forgive me, bella. It seems we will not'a be alone much longer."
Gee. THAT broke my heart.
I began to rethink those words when the limo pulled to a complete stop and the doors were wrenched open by muscular (bondage?) guards. Wearing only leather pants, straps, and black shades, the stoic young men trailed Pavi's younger sister, Amber. She wasn't someone I'd ever wanted to be stuck in a car with.
I hopped to the seat with Pavi before Amber's guards could crush me. They sat on either side of her, even in the car, which had to be irritating…though…on closer inspection, I noticed that her pupils were a bit large, even for the surgical enhanced things she had. Her head lolled back against the leather seat and she took slow, deep breaths.
Soooome-one was Hii-igh!!!
Part of me wanted to tell her daddy, the other wanted to ask if she'd gotten it from the Graverobber. I hadn't seen him since the night I'd signed over my soul.
I stiffened when my thigh brushed against Pavi's. Was he as aware of it as I was? Did that mean anything? This seat was shorter then Amber's, so there was only a few inches between us. As I pressed myself into the door, the Scalpel Slut started to drift back.
"What the fuck is she doing in here, Paviche?" She pressed her fingers into her hairline, feeling the newest changes now that her nerves were responding.
"Benvenuta, sweet sister. Come stai?"
"Wha…" she trailed off as she sluggishly tried to translate the Italian. "How am I?"
He nodded patiently, eyeing her newest look with a mild interest. Her hair was purple, today, cut in a downward slope toward her chin; which had also been worked on. Her dress was something from a millennium ago, in the 1960s. It was…different.
"I'm fine-uh..Bene."
Well, this was awkward.
"What the fuck, Pavi?" (Geez, this family loved their F-bombs) Luigi Largo glowered just outside the door. My eyes jumped around the car frantically as I tried to figure out where to move. There were only two seats in this place, and I was already crushed against one of the brothers. The only other place I could really go was…
Pavi's hands suddenly appeared on my hips and he pulled me back across his lap. My brows snapped up and I felt everything go rigid, but this only made him chuckle.
"There's'a room now, brother." The smugness in his tone made me think that maybe this hadn't been entirely accidental, which made my anxiety bleed into irritation.
So now he was playing with me? No sir…not going to happen.
I leaned back against the door and shifted as far from him as I could, pretending to make room for his temperamental brother. As the eldest Largo-spawn slid in, the tense vibe in the limo was nearly tangible.
"Why are we in this cramped-ass car together?" Luigi demanded, glaring at each sibling in turn. "Why don't we have our own?"
"I assume it is so that'a we arrive together, brother." Pavi slid me back down his lap while smiling at his sibling. I grit my teeth and despite my annoyance, had to wrap an arm around his shoulders to keep upright and out of Luigi's way. I'd watched that wrathful S.O.B. shiv one of the Genterns only two days ago! I had no intension of sharing her fate.
On the other hand, Pavi's fingers were brazenly skimming the line of my thigh. I looked up to give him a Stop-it-or-you'll-loose-them glare but he wasn't even paying attention to me. Could this just be an idle tick? A compulsion he could not control? I knew little about Nymphomaniacs and their habits, but perhaps I should learn quickly.
"Did you have to bring your toy along, Pavi?" Amber crossed her arms and gazed distastefully across the car at me. Her brother gave my thigh a slow squeeze and nodded toward the guards.
"You have'a yours."
To this, she could only smile, leaning back against one and looping her arm with the other.
Ok…
The leather of Pavi's jacket creaked softly as he shifted to angle me closer. I'd still managed to lean toward the window until now. Maybe he just knew I wouldn't make a fuss with the others so close.
The prick.
I could smell him from this close, and as I breathed in the scent, a chill passed down my spine. He smelled…masculine. Like leather and cologne and something dark and unique that was his alone. I don't think even Luigi wanted to get out of that car as I did, which said a lot as he was currently flipping a knife open and closed and glaring at everyone. I however was more worried about the Italian wannabe that now had his fingers gliding up my spine and back down in a slow path.
"Get a room, you woppy fuck." Luigi grimaced at the two of us then turned away when the limo pulled to a stop. He was the first to jump out, and I saw the huge, crowd-pleasing smile that plastered itself to his face once he did. Amber was next, sandwiched between her guards and smiling prettily at the flashing cameras.
"If'a you really want to stay in the car, I'm sure I can keep us occupied."
I jerked at the closeness of his voice then quickly slid from his lap and moved to the other seat.
"Af-" I cleared my throat so that I sounded like a big-girl again, "After you, Mr. Largo."
"I'll see you inside, M'bello." I stiffened when he caught my arm and pulled it, wrist up, toward him. His lips, or her's, brushed across the sensitive flesh and his eyes locked with mine before he stepped out of the limousine and began the work of wooing the crowd.
While the door shut so that the driver could take me around to the side entrance, I sank down into my chair and took a few measured breaths. This was a bit ridicules. Reacting this way to him made me feel like I was giving in, which in turn made me angry.
GeneCo's party was apparently for all the wealthy customers. Decorated in gold and marble with Geneterns milling about with drinks and food trays and sultry smiles. Rotti Largo could be seen at the head of the huge room, laughing along with the well-dressed muckety-mucks. How was it that no one could see the blackness that seemed to seep from the King? How did they ignore that all the warmth and goodness was sucked from the room when he simply entered? They would understand if their payments were ever late, but judging by their finery and stature, these people would never have to worry about such things.
Uhhhg!
I was tired, irritated, and ready to go home. God, how long had it been since I last slept in my own bed instead of those horrible cots in the staff quarters? My back was starting to resent me. When the next drink cart came around I pretended to be waiting a table and grabbed the first tray. A sixer. If I was going to be here, I would at least enjoy myself.
Standing near the door, I watched as Pavi and Amber played the socializing game. Luigi shadowed his father, playing the dutiful heir for all to see. My first flute was drained and I shivered off the taste of synthetic wine.
I needed to get home. Back to my life where face-wearing crazies were still freaks and dresses reached below the ass. This plastic bullshit over my eyes was also starting to get irritating. I wanted to see Grave and, damnit, I wanted to wear flat shoes for at least a day!
xXx
Several hours later I felt like jumping into someone's pants. Alcohol made me friendly, which I knew, but had conveniently ignored. I'd made several Aristocrat admirers as I walked the room with my tray and pretended to be collecting empty glasses. I'd since gotten a bit uneasy in my heels.
"Com'è il vino?"
I jumped, nearly dropping my tray and spun around. Pavi, grinning mildly, stood far too close behind me. The urge to roll my eyes was nearly too strong to suppress, but despite my current state of inebriation, I managed to be courteous.
"Mr. Largo?"
"How's the wine?" he translated, tilting his head a bit as if seeing something strange in my expression. In my drunkenness, honesty came quicker than intelligent thought.
"Terrible. Just like every other Synth-food out there being served."
He nodded once, glancing over my shoulder at the party. "Have you never had the real thing, bella?"
I didn't like starring at him through this haze of red, but the black ribbons that held my mask in place were looped through my hair. Far too complicated for my clumsy fingers now. I leaned back against the wall.
"In case you haven't noticed, Nature kinda lost the race around here. The only real wine left is probably in your father's cellar." Pavi stepped closer and I stood strait.
Then nearly collapsed.
The alcohol had finally hit, and though it wasn't real fermented grapes, the stuff still sent the world spinning long enough for me to open my eyes in a hallway.
"You look like you could use'a the air." Pavi stood a few feet away. Giving me space to breathe and center myself. Which didn't go unappreciated.
"Would you like'a to try it? Real wine, that is." Something in the way he looked at me said that was not a great idea. At the same time, maybe I was just letting my personal grudges cloud my judgment. Grave had often told me I was quick to categorize people between Like and Loathe. Not wanting to start something I couldn't finish, I whipped out a snarky comment, fighting hard against slurs.
"You know, I take candy from strangers too."
Pavi rolled his eyes then, and stepped forward too suddenly for me to react. I jerked back against something solid with a curse as he reached around me to open the door. When he did, I stumbled backward into it.
The world tilted a bit and I must have followed because, suddenly, the middle Largo had me bundled in his arms and was helping me toward the desk at the center of this apparent office. The leather of his jacket was warm against my skin, and though I should have pulled away, for a moment I snuggled closer. He still smelled wonderful, even after this whole night. I breathed in the heady scent, letting my eyes drift closed a moment.
"Ti desidero." His voice was a rumble that passed down my spine and into my gut. Tingles of sensation rippled along the edges of my skin. Clenching my jaw, I forced myself to push back away from the freakish temptation. He was looking at me intently which made my face flush. Not knowing what else to do, and unwilling to submit to him, I fired off.
"Speaking in another language isn't going to improve your chances, big boy." However cliché, his words had been strangely appealing, like everything else about him today. But he couldn't know that.
Damn you Alcohol!
"And if I get strait'a to business?"
"Would you know what to do once you started?"
He laughed at that, shaking his head. When he stilled however, I noticed just how bright his eyes gleamed from behind the mask.
"What are you saying, cara?"
Feeling playful and rude, I scoffed.
"I'm questioning you testicular fortitude."
He arched both brows as I cocked a hip to the side, and arched one right back. For a long time the room was silent and slowly my confidence began to waver. He didn't stop looking at me. I felt as if those eyes could see down passed the skin; felt the tingle as they picked through my emotional grid until he found what he wanted.
"You are'a serious?" The way he said it let me know that this was not an insult he heard often, if at all. Letting my expression slip into boredom, I crossed my arms and shrugged. Pavi nodded, looking down in thought, then, straitening himself, moved forward with determination.
On impulse, I backed away, hitting the wooden desk behind me. Pavi didn't stop until our breath mingled (mine coming faster and far shallower than his). His arms came down on either side of me, bracing against the desk and caging me between them.
"That wasn't an invitation." Though it sure as hell sounded like one.
Pavi smiled again. "You attack'a my pride, tesoruccio, but I can'a forgive you." When he leaned forward even more, my breath caught in my throat. "Now, what was that line you use for'a the customers?"
How can you use me…Which I would never say in his presence again.
Pavi wasted no time as I tried to make my brain come up with a reply. As my jaw bobbed silently, his hands slipped under both my thighs and I was popped up onto the desk. He nestled himself between them, one hand skimming up the front seam of my uniform. My own hands were frozen on the desk's surface, like the rest of me.
"Where's that snarky comeback, bella?" he asked and the first button popped open.
Like the world had been taken off its freeze-frame, mobility rushed back to me in the form of a swift knee to his ribs. I rolled with the blow, putting all my weight behind it, and smiled when it forced him sideways a few steps.
"Right there." I panted, pushing back into a sitting position as Pavi grunted and shook off the blow. Take that mother fucker. Laughter was bubbling up from my chest, until his eyes lifted to meet mine again and I caught sight of his expression.
Something had changed. Like the warmth being sucked from a room. His eyes were sharp, and his smile actually made me shrink away. It was so cold it scared me, and living in this world, that meant something.
This time, when he moved toward me, it was to capture both my wrists. I tried to kick out at him, but with a strength I hadn't expected, he yanked me off the desk and tossed me onto the floor. The impact on my hip made me hiss in a breath and my head bounced off the polished wood with a dull thunk. I scrambled back up, grabbing the desk, but he was already above me.
Pavi's fingers twisted into my hair, pulling tight. I clawed at his hands, but the man paid little attention. Instead, he hauled me, struggling like a feral cat, back to the desk and slammed me against it. I groaned softly, head spinning, legs weak as he laid me onto the desk surface and gathered my wrists in one hand.
"Get away from me you sick son of a bi-"
"That's mia madre, you're talking about, bella. Let's'a not be rude, si?"
He hadn't seen rude yet.
Jaw clenched, I yanked both arms as hard as I could from his grasp. Once free, I rolled onto my stomach on the desk and scrambled toward the opposite side, but Pavi caught my legs. He drug me back across the surface, pinning me down with the weight of his body. The heat of him scorched me from the backs of my knees to the nap of my neck and when his arm snaked around my front to pull me back against the proof of his excitement, my breath hitched audibly.
Pavi laughed softly, his breath stirring my hair. "You're move, bella."
He was too close, too strong and god damnit did he smell good. I shoved upward, but the action only managed to press us closer so I went still again, cheek pressed against the desk. My breath was quick, and shallow, my uniform open and spread around my breasts. Pavi brushed the crimson hair from my face and smiled.
"Is this'a all it takes, bella?" he asked, running his finger over the curve of my shoulder. "Is this'a what you like?" Then he leaned in closer, "Should I spank you over my knee like an obstinate child?"
I couldn't stop the flood of warmth through my body as his voice dropped an octave next to my ear. The arm that had circled my waist now dipped lower and his fingers teased the line of my upper thigh. I shuddered, despite myself and closed my eyes tight.
Weakness thy name is Domination.
From the party room came a swell of music and Pavi sighed. When he stepped away I was too shocked to really move. What would come now? How much would I hate myself in the morning?
"As much as I would'a love to throw you down and make you scream for me, bella, duty, unfortunately, calls." I pushed up slowly, looking back over my shoulder and trying to slow my breathing. Pavi straitened his leather jacket, and gave a gentlemanly bow. "But don't worry. We aren't finished."
With that, he walked out and I was left wondering what in the FUCK had just happened.
