Carmen pulled up to a Pyre Casino and took the hand of the valet who reached in to help her out. She unfurled from the car, grabbed her silver clutch, and headed toward the casino. Her hair bounced with every step, and the skintight dress with long sleeves and an open back hugged every curve. She wore the highest heels she owned, which made her feel invincible. She knew from experience that the diamond choker would catch the light and sparkle like a fucking disco ball. She felt like a million dollars, and the stares from the men and women confirmed it.

She absorbed the energy from the crowd as she blazed a path through the throng. She was ready to dance, drink, and drown herself in Sin City delights. A night on The Strip was a gamble, and she loved tossing the dice. She would take whatever came her way. No plans or responsibilities, just impulse and pleasure.

She ignored the losers who catcalled and the ones who tried bad pickup lines. She was an Amazonian, and Amazonians didn’t bother with boys. Maybe luck would be on her side tonight, and she’d find someone who could rev her engine. Her body hummed with energy.

Shonda, Keenan, and the other stylists were standing in line to enter Ecstasy. Carmen waved them over, and they ducked under the velvet ropes.

“Girl,” Shonda said and looked her over, “you look amazing!”

“Thanks to you! Come on, let’s get drunk.”

Carmen linked her arm through Shonda and Keenan’s and led the way to the entrance. The bouncers recognized her and held up the line so she and her squad could pass. She thanked them with a big smile and ignored the slew of insults from those waiting in line.

“Oh my fucking God,” Keenan breathed.

Ecstasy was a small, intimate club. For that reason, they were extremely selective of who entered. The club was built like an amphitheater with wide stairs for people to dance on since it was standing room only. The top tier of the club had a white backlight to highlight the silhouettes of the professional dancers. The floor glowed a glassy blue that made it seem as if they were wading into a sea of exotic people. Carmen and Keenan made a beeline for the dance floor while most of the girls headed to the bar.

Keenan wore a see-through plaid button up shirt and the tightest pants she had ever seen. He wasted no time twerking and grinding his butt against her crotch. Carmen laughed as she moved with him.

“Rules!” Keenan barked. “If he’s bi, then I get first dibs!”

She ran her hand down his chest and breathed, “If I want him, I’ll have him.”

“You’re so greedy!” he protested.

“I’m starving,” she said as she wrapped her arms around his waist and bucked her hips against his ass.

Keenan glanced back at her, brows raised. “If you do that in the bedroom, no man will leave you!”

“I know!” she shouted back.

Keenan shook his head. “Damn, girl. Let’s do this!”

Keenan had energy to spare. They took turns grinding against one another before Keenan spotted a group of gay men dancing outrageously on the fringes of the crowd. Carmen headed in their direction but was redirected by Shonda and the girls who joined her on the floor. They cheered as a Beyoncé hit blasted through the speakers. Carmen downed the drink they handed her. She couldn’t decipher the complicated mix of liquor and didn’t really care since it made her feel as if she had wings.

When the girls were ready to bounce, they searched for Keenan and pried him away from his new friends. Keenan’s shirt was unbuttoned, proudly displaying his new hickey. They laughed and stumbled into Kaleidoscope. It wasn’t a Pyre club, but they breezed in anyway because they looked so damn fine. The club had neon strobe lights and a DJ who knew what he was doing. They refueled at the bar before they made it to the dance floor, which was filled with half-naked people who were having a grand time. She accepted Shonda’s dare and took a shot glass from a man’s underwear using only her mouth before she headed to the dance floor.

Around two in the morning, they stumbled into Incognito. Carmen accepted a scarlet lace mask at the door and surveyed the crowd. There was a distant twinge in the region of her heart. She would never be able to enter this club and not think of Vinny. She made a beeline for the bar. Two shots later, she was feeling remarkably lightheaded and fuzzy. She headed to the main floor and danced with a bunch of strangers she would never see again.

Even though her feet felt like they were about to fall off and her calves were cramping, she kept going. The energy of the crowd was infectious. These people were living at the moment. No one was thinking about the consequences of tomorrow, so neither would she. When she found herself in the middle of a hot man sandwich, she didn’t try to get away. Her dress was now plastered to her body with sweat, and she didn’t give a shit. The feel of two hot muscular bodies pressed against her felt fantastic.

When one man tried to lift the back of her dress, she shoved him away and boogied through the crowd. Stupid men, always ruining her fun. She was a tease, yes, but that didn’t mean she was an easy game for just anyone.

She moseyed aimlessly through the crowd in a euphoric state of bliss. The press of bodies, the liquor, and the drugging music made her happy to be alive. She didn’t take being petted and kissed personally. She understood the need for human contact better than most. Besides, that was why most people were here—to live out their fantasy of hooking up with a stranger. That was part of the club scene, and something she’d been doing since her teenage years. The night swirled with possibilities, and she loved that about Las Vegas. Anything was possible in this desert oasis.

She cast her eye over the VIP section and felt her giddy delight dip when she spotted Regal, a sleazy pimp known for his brutal treatment of his girls. He dressed all in white with at least ten gold necklaces resting against his wifebeater. He was surrounded by women who were clearly on something. Regal was all flash and no brains. How he managed to stay in the game was beyond her. A nerdy man with a sour face sat on the edge of the booth, glaring at Regal, who looked like he was getting a hand job beneath the table.

Carmen stopped in her tracks when a beautiful brunette stepped in her path. Before she could go around her, the brunette kissed her. She closed her eyes as the woman pressed her soft marshmallow lips against her own. She’d had her fair share of kisses from women, but never while in this heightened state of awareness. The woman placed a hand on her chest and squeezed one breast while she tilted her head to the side and deepened the kiss. She tasted like Pina colada and smelled like Chanel. Although Carmen was intrigued, she didn’t feel any heat. As she ran a hand down the brunette’s cheek, she found herself more interested in her moisturizer than feeling her up. She was distracted by a slide of tongue before the woman pulled back. She was drop-dead gorgeous with full candy apple lips, dark eyes, and long, straight hair. She also had a great smoky eye, a dress with a daring plunge, and five-thousand-dollar shoes.

“You into threesomes?” she asked.

“No,” Carmen said apologetically. Apparently, a pretty face wasn’t all it took to get her in the mood. The human needed to own a dick. Good to know.

“You sure? I thought you’d be up for it.”

Carmen was too selfish to be involved in a threesome. “Maybe another time.”

The woman pouted. “Boo. That sucks. My boyfriend won’t let me invite a guy, only another woman. I’ve been scoping out the floor for an hour. You’re the only one we both agreed on.”

“I’m flattered, but I’m not into women, only men. Where’d you get your dress?”

The woman’s eyes lit up. “You a local?”

“Yes.”

“There’s this great boutique on Westin and Lincoln called The Look.”

“I’ll check it out.”

“You sure you’re not interested?”

“Yeah, but thanks for asking,” Carmen said courteously.

“You taste good. Just one more.”

Carmen accepted the second kiss. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation aside from the lip gloss, which was messing up her own.

“Looking for a third?”

Carmen pulled back and felt her euphoria vanish when she saw Angel. He was dressed much as he had been this morning in black jeans and shirt. He was seriously underdressed, but he stood out among the crowd. It was that face and his arrogant, bad boy vibe that made women take notice and men edge out of his way just in case he was the real deal.

“Hey, babe,” he said.

Did he think she was someone else?

“I like the red,” Angel said and winked. “It suits you.”

The fact that he picked her out of the crowd when they had only met once, and she had a new hairdo and wore a mask was stretching coincidence too far. “Are you stalking me?”

“Does that turn you on?”

“Yes,” the brunette gushed and flushed when Angel turned to her. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Angel said genially. “You two looking for a third?”

The brunette bit her lip. “I’m supposed to find another girl, but you’re …” The brunette cast a furtive look around. “If you’re around later, I think I could slip away from my boyfriend.”

Angel looked back at her with a raised brow. “And you, Carmen?”

“I don’t do threesomes. I’m selfish.”

Angel grinned. “What a coincidence. Right now, I feel the same way.”

Carmen tried to slip into the crowd but was brought to a halt by Angel, who wrapped an arm around her middle.

“Seems like neither of us can help you tonight,” Angel said.

The brunette opened her mouth to negotiate, but something over Angel’s shoulder caught her eye. She sighed and gave Angel a look full of yearning. “Maybe another time?”

“Sure,” Angel said, and she disappeared into the crowd.

“Seriously, what are you doing here?” Carmen asked.

“I’m working.”

It was a shot in the dark, but she tried. “You’re here for Regal?”

She saw a flash of surprise, which he quickly hid. “You know Regal?”

“Of course.”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry your pretty head about it.”

She scowled at the condescending tone. “He’s the most skittish man on the planet. This isn’t the place to approach him.”

His hand stroked her bare back. The streak of fire he left in his wake made her suck in a breath. It was only then that she realized they were swaying lazily to the music. She had no problem grinding against a guy she would never see again. Angel Roman was something else.

“You’re not wearing a mask,” she said.

“This is my mask.”

He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. His sharp gaze was a blatant contrast to the relaxed body moving in tune with hers. Behind that rough accent and pretty face, something twisted and ruthless lurked.

“I don’t know what to make of you,” Angel mused.

“What do you mean?”

“Just looking at you, I wouldn’t think you knew what to do with a gun, much less have the balls to kill a man. This morning, I pegged you for a smoking hot nanny, and now you’ve morphed into a man-eater.”

“I’m not a man-eater.”

“You have trouble written all over you.”

“Then you should stay far away,” she said.

His finger wove a distracting design on the small of her back. “I like challenges. Are you here alone?”

“No, I’m out with my friends.”

He made a show of looking around. “Doesn’t look like it.”

“They’re”—she waved vaguely—“around. Somewhere.”

He raised a brow. “How smashed are you?”

“Not drunk enough to fuck you.”

He threw back his head and roared with laughter as he drew her even closer. “When I fuck you, you’re gonna be stone cold sober. I don’t want to fuck a limp body. I need you to be able to brace yourself.”

Oh, fuck. Did her pussy just spasm? Angel smiled. He definitely knew what he was doing. Men underutilized their best feature, and it wasn’t their dick or muscled body. It was their mouth. Words could make a woman hotter than touch, and he fucking knew it. Damn Roman.

“You sober yet?” he murmured.

She bared her teeth. “No!”

He continued to move with her as if he had all the time in the world. Despite his words, he wasn’t feeling her up or trying to kiss her, which made her wonder how he kissed … which he also knew. He was definitely a playboy, the most dangerous type. He might not dress in suits, but his image was carefully crafted all the same. She bet his jeans were fucking tailored. Gavin and Angel were definitely cut from the same cloth. They were from wealthy families but willing to get their hands dirty. She inhaled his cologne. It was a light, clean scent. Not overpowering. She labeled him forbidden sin. Apparently, she wasn’t into women or the other males who approached her tonight. Instead, she was attracted to Vinny’s replacements in the business and underworld: Marcus Fletcher and Angel Roman. Not good news.

“You swing both ways?” Angel asked.

“No.” She liked dick too much.

“But you kissed her.”

Carmen shrugged. “Why not?”

He grinned. “So you like to experiment. You’re my kind of woman.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

“You want a pretty face, banging body, and a woman who will leave the moment you’re done with her. I’m not your gal.”

Some of the easiness faded from his expression, and the hunter that made him crime lord material examined her more closely. “You think that’s all I want?”

“For now,” she allowed. Maybe one day he’d want to settle down like Gavin. Maybe not.

She prided herself on her ability to size up a person. Angel Roman was hot. Make that smoking hot. That was enough reason to make most women go stupid around him. Add the fact that he was rich, dangerous, and probably had the skills of an assassin, and he became irresistible. Most women would be fooled by his friendly, easygoing demeanor, but she grew up around men like him. There was something vicious and insatiable inside him. She wasn’t dumb enough to think she could tame it. She liked her men civilized with a naughty streak. She wouldn’t bend for an alpha male and had no wish to be in a one-sided relationship that would end in death or more heartache.

“Don’t be so quick to judge me.” One of his hands left her bare back to play with the ends of her hair. He held it up to the light. “Looks like fresh-spilled blood.”

She made a disgusted sound. “You’re such a crime lord.”

“Does that turn you on?”

“Nope,” she said with complete honesty.

He leaned close enough for his warm breath to breeze across her lips. “You have a wild side, Carmen. I can taste it.”

Her insides squirmed. Yes, he was good at this. But then again, so was she. She cupped the side of his pretty face and ran her thumb over his bottom lip. She felt him tense ever so slightly against her.

“You can’t handle me, Roman,” she said.

He captured her thumb and sucked it into his mouth. She ignored the spark of heat that speared straight to her lady bits. Holy fuck. No wonder men liked to stick their hands in women’s mouths. They were thinking about being sucked off … and so was she. His wicked blue eyes told her he would make her scream, and she believed him. From her position, she could tell he was packing and ready. It wasn’t fair. A man with a face like his should have a small dick.

She ripped her thumb from his mouth. “That’s not fair! We can touch, but no sucking!” Sucking was too close to the actual act, and she needed to keep her wits together.

“Who said I play fair?”

“True. You are a Roman.”

“Right. And we play to win.”

He was clearly baiting her. It took every ounce of control she possessed not to challenge him. It would be monumentally stupid to get involved with the new crime lord and a Roman to boot. His eyes glinted in the dim light, enticing her to pit her will against his. He was so hot. He would be dirty, animalistic and raw … Carmen bitch-slapped her inner hussy.

“Not this time, baby,” she said and patted his cheek. She eased back and was relieved when he released her.

His eyes swept her from head to toe. “Damn.”

“Eat your heart out, Roman,” she said before she walked away.

She perched on a stool at the bar to give her poor feet a rest. This time she ordered a water. She twisted off the cap and surveyed the club. It was impossible to find Shonda, Keenan, or any of the others in the crush. A compulsive beat hit the club, and the urge to dance was nearly irresistible, but she was half convinced she might not have feet tomorrow if she didn’t have mercy on them. Instead, she was forced to shimmy from a sitting position while she turned down men left and right.

“No speak English,” she said in a heavy accent to an especially pushy guy.

As the song faded and another began, she spotted Angel meander toward the VIP section. When he approached the wall of bouncers, Regal glanced over. When he spotted Angel, he leaped to his feet and pulled a black pistol from his pants.

“Oh, fuck,” Carmen cursed.

Regal fired wildly and jumped off the VIP dais onto the dance floor. People fell like bowling pins. More shots were fired, and everyone scattered. Carmen climbed on top of her stool as the crowd stampeded like wild animals toward the exit, pushing and shoving at the people they had been making out with seconds before. Angel and Regal were lost in the crowd, but she caught sight of the nerdy man who had been a part of Regal’s party hiding beneath the booth with his hands over his head.

She kept her eyes on Regal’s assistant and moved when he did. She trailed behind him as he tried to shove himself ahead. His eyes darted in every direction like a trapped rat. She made sure to keep him within arm’s length as they poured into the casino. He made his way to the next casino and went out front to grab a taxi. She used tears and a glance down her tiny cleavage to get a taxi to agree to give her a ride. She made a show of seeing Regal’s assistant and waved to him.

“Do you want to share a taxi?” she called and was grateful she still wore her mask. She wasn’t sure if Regal’s assistant would recognize her, but it was always better to be safe than sorry. The assistant hesitated and looked around at the accumulating crowd before he ran toward her. “You don’t mind?”

“No, let’s get out of here. This is scary!”

They ducked into the cab and pulled away from the pandemonium in front of the casino. She waved her hands in front of her eyes as if she were fighting tears.

“We can drop you off first,” she said in a small voice. “I’m not sure where I’m going to stay tonight. I have to call my friends. I don’t want to be alone after that. I can’t stand guns.” She gave an exaggerated shiver.

Regal’s assistant gave the cabbie his address, and they were off. She texted Blade for Angel’s number and got an instant reply.

No.

She was amused rather than irritated. God, she loved Blade. He was like the disapproving uncle she never asked for. She liked pushing his buttons since he had no sense of humor.

He caused a shooting at a club. I have info he needs.

Her phone began to ring. She answered with a tearful, “Hi, Daddy.”

A pause and then Blade snapped, “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“T-there was a shooting at Incognito. I wasn’t doing drugs, Daddy, I swear.”

Blade was silent for a moment, and then he hissed, “Where are you?”

She sniffled. “Don’t be mad at me, okay? I wasn’t even drinking.”

“You’re with someone, aren’t you? Fuck, Carmen, can’t you stay out of trouble for a fucking day? Goddamn,” Blade growled.

“I don’t need this right now. I could have died, okay? Have you ever been shot at?” She milked her performance for all it was worth and felt tears trickle down her cheeks. “You’re being so mean. I can’t handle you right now.”

She hung up on him as the cabbie turned on the radio just loud enough to conceal the sound of her pitiful whines. Blade texted her Angel’s number and an order.

Call me as soon as you can.

She replied with, Thanks, Daddy.

She added Angel’s number to her contacts as the driver pulled up to the assistant’s house, and she made a note of the address. Regal’s assistant bailed out of the cab and ran to his run-down home. She gave the driver her mother’s address and texted Shonda and Keenan to make sure they were okay. They replied immediately, saying they went to another club. She gave her apologies and said she’d party with them again soon.

She paid the cabbie and walked up to her house while she dialed Angel’s number. He answered on the third ring.

“Who is this?”

The voice on the other end sounded menacing and definitely not like the man who danced with her half an hour ago. She paused with her keys in the front door.

“Angel?” she asked to confirm.

“Who is this?”

“It’s Carmen. I got your number from Blade.”

A pause and then, “He shouldn’t have done that.”

No charm or clever lines now. Angel was in business mode. This was the crime lord, the heartless asshole. “Didn’t I tell you not to approach Regal?”

He hung up on her. She sighed. Men and their egos. She walked into the dark and quiet house and tiptoed to her room as she redialed his number.

“I’m busy,” he snapped.

“So you lost him?”

Silence.

“Why do you want Regal?”

“This is underworld business.”

“Do you want Regal or not?”

“You know where he is?”

“Why do you want him?” she persisted as she kicked off her heels and sighed in relief. God, that felt amazing.

“Do you know where he is or not?”

“I might.”

“This isn’t a fucking game.”

“I know,” she said as she put him on speaker and peeled off her dress. “That’s why I want to know why you want him.”

A pause as he mulled that over. “He did a lot for Steven Pyre; things you don’t need to know about.”

That’s all she needed to know. “I’m going to text you his assistant’s address.”

“Why the fuck would I care about his assistant?”

“Because his assistant is actually his life partner. They’ve been together for years.”

“Isn’t his assistant a man?”

“Yeah. So?”

“But he fucks his whores.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She waved a dismissive hand. She didn’t have time to dissect people’s sex lives. “He swings both ways, and he uses the women as a cover since he knows people wouldn’t respect him. His assistant is really his husband. Not legally, of course, but you know …”

“How do you know this?”

“This is my city, Roman. My father was an enforcer, and I married Vincent Pyre.”

“How do you know the husband’s address?”

“I caught a cab with him.”

There was a stark silence on the other end. “Why would you do that?”

“Because I knew Regal would get away, and it must have been important if you’re looking for him.”

“Where are you now?”

“At home.”

“Send me his address,” he said and hung up.

“You’re welcome, asshole,” she muttered and texted the address.

She called Blade, who answered halfway through the first ring.

“How badly are you hurt?” he asked.

“I’m dandy. Angel tried to approach Regal in a club. He bolted, of course. I caught a cab with his partner and gave Angel the address. No biggie.”

She gaped at her reflection. Between partying like a rock star and her crying jag, her makeup had melted into a goopy mess that made her look like a nightmare.

“You’re a pain in my ass.”

“I know. I’m going to shower and go to bed. Thanks, Daddy.”

She hung up before he could say anything else and hopped in the shower.