"Tell me, please, what is going on?" Marcus searched her face carefully, grasping her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze for encouragement.
Dara shook her head fiercely, this was her problem, her personal life that *she* had to deal with. She had to get it together, not fall apart at the sight of Sonny, and leaning on Marcus for support was not in her plans either. She could do this alone. She took a deep breath, exhaling quickly, and rose from her seat, snatching two tissues from the box off her desk and dried her eyes. "I'm okay, just a bunch of stuff coming together and getting me upset. It's nothing, really," she insisted as he rose, his eyes displaying the uncertainty that he felt.
"Are you sure? It didn't look that way to me," he informed her gently.
"I know it didn't look that way, but that's what it is," Dara responded, her tone a little more indignant than she intended. Seeing the split second stunned reaction on his face, she quickly added, "can't a girl have a good cry once in awhile and not feel guilty about it?"
Marcus drew in his breath, wanting to point out more obvious signs of her distress, wanting to know the reasons behind her tears, but instead chose to keep his opinions, and questions, to himself. His face relaxed considerably and he offered her a gentle smile,"sorry Dara, I worry about you, that's all."
Dara offered a tentative grin in return, "I know, I'm sorry I snapped at you. Can we just go do something fun for the evening? I'm through with the legal work, I need a break," she lamented as she began to clean up the mess on her desk, encouraging a change in topic, anything to get her mind off the obvious. Marcus paused for a moment. He wanted to prod, he wanted to push aside her weak excuse and demand answers, both the detective and brotherly instinct kicked into high gear and he wanted nothing more than to follow those paths.
But he couldn't, knowing she'd only push him away, probing would lead to nothing. However, nothing was preventing him from doing some poking around her life, without her knowledge. It might be wrong, but when people he cared about were at stake, being a good friend would have to be done his way.
Marcus's heart twinged as a decision was made to go behind his good friend's back, but with a firm smile, he pushed the doubts from his mind. "How about the PC Grille? Haven't been there in awhile," he suggested.
Dara's frame froze momentarily. The last time she'd been to the Grille had been with, well, a certain individual. Flustered suddenly as she remembered her intimate encounter with Sonny, she was grateful her back was to Marcus. "Sure," she said brightly, composing herself with a few deep breaths before turning around, trying to appear relaxed and delighted at Marcus's innocent suggestion. "Just let me grab my bag," she said, reluctantly taking the leather briefcase from her desk before joining Marcus at the doorway of her office. A determined thought crossed her mind as the two left. She could do this.
Really.
*************
Vitali Estates
Dominik Vitali sat poolside under the shade of the evening heat, browsing through the daily newspaper, catching anything he might have missed this morning at work. He paused, stopping his reading, noticing how incredibly quiet it was. Most of the staff had gone home for the night. His Mother had long ago retired to her room for the evening and Danté, if he came home, wouldn't arrive home until the early morning. Silence was a newfound concept Dominik was beginning to enjoy. The hectic pace of running Vitali Inc. along with the ever increasing tension between his brother and Uncle did not allow him a moment's rest. With a gentle smile, he resumed perusing the article he had been reading.
"Danté? Are you out back here?" the woman's voice called from the back patio sliding doorway. Dominik gripped the newspaper slightly in irritation. Seeing that half the pool was hidden behind a huge wall of English Ivy, Dominik hoped she wouldn't come down the cobble stoned path, past his Mother's grand gazebo and around the wall of green to find him. Hearing the clicking of heels, he gave a small sigh, she was determined to find Danté.
Tori's head popped around the corner, an expectant look on her face. It dropped the moment she saw Dominik. "Oh, it's you. Do you know where Danté is?" she asked with an edgy tone, her eyes darting back down the path she'd just taken.
Dominik shook his head, "you know his schedule Tori, I'm surprised you aren't with him. I'm sorry I can't help you," he said evenly before turning his attention back to the paper, hoping she'd take that as her cue to leave.
Tori frowned with mild frustration, before an idea came to mind. Turning back to Dominik, she'd approached him carefully, her heels clicking slowly against the concrete. "I'm not with him because I went shopping," she informed him.
Dominik's insides churned slightly. She was at it, once again. Her attempts at seducing Dominik were almost daily now. He wasn't sure if Danté was aware of it, but he would soon if she became more daring in public with what her intentions were. He'd found it amusing at first, almost admirable, but now it was turning into something quite different.
Ignoring his silence, Tori continued, "I was buying him a gift. It's nothing special, but I think I need your input before I give it to him," she said coyly as she stood just a few feet from him. Seeing no reaction, she undid the knot on her black trench coat. "Dominik, please, I really need your opinion on this," she requested, hoping this time he'd respond.
Dominik's eyes slowly rose, he was only willing to go so far with Tori. "What is it?" he asked slowly.
Tori threw him a grin, her eyes flashing, the challenge set in her mind. Effortlessly she let the coat drop in a pool around her feet and placed her hands on her hips.
"What do you think?" she asked seductively.
Dominik's face revealed nothing as he gazed at the two piece bit of lingerie, a basic bra and panties, black of course, leaving not much to the imagination. Danté, naturally, would love it. "It's very nice," he stated, unwilling to commit his opinion to either side of the spectrum.
"Nice?" Tori wrinkled her nose in displeasure, "Danté doesn't like things with the word 'nice' attached to them." She took a few steps towards him, standing mere inches from where he sat. Tori delicately took the newspaper from Dominik's grasp and placed on the table beside him. "Maybe you should take a better look," she suggested.
Dominik leaned back, crossed one leg over the other and rested his chin on his right palm, his fingers curled inwards, as it sat vertically on the armrest. His eyes rose slowly, carefully, almost adoringly along her well built, curvaceous frame. She was an incredibly beautiful and alluring woman and her long fiery red, curly locks that hung loosely, almost wildly around her shoulders would alone tempt most men.
But Dominik was not like most men.
Women, even gifted ones like Tori, did not seduce him.
HE was the seducer. The hunter. The man who laid his eyes on what he wanted and stopped at nothing to claim it.
Dominik rose, surprising Tori. He slowly, purposely, backed her against the Ivy wall, his dark eyes boring into hers. He exuded the dominant strength most knew him for and as Tori pressed up against the mass of greenery, he gave her a small smile, knowing she'd take it as victory on her part. A triumphant grin formed on her face as she gazed at him. She placed her hands on his chest, pressing them gently into his long sleeved shirt. Dominik immediately grabbed them, grasping them in his strong hands and removed them quickly. Tori frowned, slightly confused at this gesture until Dominik slowly pulled her hands upwards, over her head until her arms were resting against the wall. Dominik said nothing as his free hand slowly ran across her naked abdomen. Tori trembled slightly at his touch, her breath becoming shallow. Dominik proceeded to torture her with his slow, attentive, exploring hand along her body. As the seconds grew into minutes, Tori was slowly losing control of her senses. She'd attempted a few times to pull her hands down, wanting to explore him as well, only finding that his powerful grip prevented it, pining her against the wall.
Dominik smiled inwardly as Tori twitched and trembled further under his expert touch. Truthfully, he himself was growing aroused by this game, but a greater task needed to be made clear here. As she moaned and whimpered, painfully almost for him to please her, Dominik abruptly removed his hand from her rib cage and placed it above her head, helping the other hand keep hers pinned. He looked solemnly at her face, the flushed expectant need written all over her. Tori licked her lips, waiting for his next move, barely hanging on. All he had done was explore any part of her body that wasn't covered with the thin lacy fabric. It had driven her wild and she was craving more.
Dominik leaned forward and possessively claimed her full lips, pressing his whole body against hers, grinding against her gently. Tori eagerly complied, noting deliriously how much the two brothers were alike. Dominik's tongue demanded hers and powerless, she gave into his every whim as his mouth devoured hers. After what seemed like forever, Dominik pulled back, examining her bruised lips with satisfaction.
Carefully keeping an unreadable expression on his face, Dominik spoke. "You would betray my brother so easily?" he stated coldly. "You do not challenge anything in me and this game is a waste of my time and a sore picture of you, I'm surprised my brother is so enamored with someone like you," he said, his voice detached and emotionless. With that, Dominik released her and strode away.
Tori, suddenly aware of what Dominik had pulled, gave a frustrated screech and stomped her foot against the ground. "You can't do this to me and get away with it!" she howled with rage.
Dominik walked briskly back to the house, ignoring Tori's irate tantrum. Grabbing his coat from the closet, he informed the maid to have the Jaguar brought around to the front of the house.
"I'm heading off to the Grille for dinner, if Danté needs to reach me, he can call my cell, only if it's an emergency," he instructed the maid before roaring off into the dusk.
********
Sonny's PH
Sonny's deep concentration in his work was interrupted by the shrill of his phone. Sighing he jogged across the room and picked up on the third ring.
"Yeah?"
"Hey, it's me, I was wondering how hungry you were," Jason asked in his ever present blunt manner.
Sonny ran his fingers through his hair contemplating the answer when his stomach gave a low rumble. "Actually, very hungry, you got something in mind?"
"The Grille, you in?"
Sonny paused, closing his eyes brieftly. The last time he'd been to the Grille was when Dara gave him a whole new appreciation for maintenance closets. But that was over. His eyes opened, "sure, sounds good, I'll see you in about fifteen minutes?"
"Sure, later."
Sonny sighed as he hung up the phone. Life without Dara in it seemed to be moving at an excruciating pace. Maybe tonight he could take his mind off the beauty that occupied his every waking thought.
*********
PC Grille
"Wow, it is so busy tonight," Dara remarked as the host finally was able to seat them. Anxiously she glanced around the animated restaurant, looking only for one individual in particular. Finding he wasn't there made her both relieved and disappointed.
"Yeah, good thing we got here before the rush," Marcus said as he glanced over the menu. Within a few minutes, their orders were placed and the two settled into an easy conversation, free of the concerns that occupied the place at the back of their minds.
********
"Mr. Corinthos! Mr. Morgan! How good to see you both again!" the host welcomed them warmly, a tinge of nervousness surrounded him as he grabbed two menus and led the two former mobsters to their table, releasing them to their waiter, before retreating to the safety of his post.
"Our reputation still lives," Jason murmured with amusement as their waiter approached them, ready to take their drink requests.
Sonny smiled, the first time that day and with that admission, his body seemed to relax and settle into the comfortable chair. Maybe tonight would be a good night for him.
*********
Vitali Estates
"Where the hell is my brother?!" Danté hollered at the front entrance of the house. Spotting the maid as she emerged from the hallway, he pounced on her. "Hey you," he rudely said, "where's my brother, did he say? The Jag is gone, where did he go?" he demanded.
Flustered, the maid gathered her composure to relay the elder Vitali brother's message. "He-he said if you needed to reach him, you could phone his cellular," she managed.
"Where did he go?!" Danté barked with annoyance. Honestly, the hired help were incapable of answering the most basic of questions.
"The PC Grille, sir," she answered meekly before rushing into the sanctuary of the kitchen.
Satisfied, Danté snatched the keys to the BMW. He had a bone to pick with his dear brother.
********
PC Grille
Dara's eyes shone as Marcus detailed a prank Garcia had pulled on him that afternoon, concerning a pick pocket. As he delivered the punchline, bursting into a fit of giggles, Dara threw her head back, letting loose a delighted laugh.
Across the room, Sonny's relaxed expression vanished as he heard the distinct laugh. Instantly his eyes were up, roaming the room, she was here, he knew that sound anywhere. God, where was she? His gaze frantically raced around the busy restaurant, trying to find the only one he wanted to see.
A waiter approaching a nearby table, caught his eyes.
"Sir, a message was left by Commissioner Scorpio concerning a certain case? He says it's imperative you come down to the station," the waiter informed Marcus.
Marcus grimaced, "he wants me there now?" The waiter nodded quickly.
Marcus turned to Dara, the apology already in his mind when she held up her hand. "Go, I understand, I can finish dinner by my lonesome self, just call me tomorrow okay?" she said understandingly.
Marcus rose from his chair and gave her a quick peck to the cheek, "you are a doll Dara, I promise I'll make it up to you," he said before leaving the restaurant.
"You bet you are, this bill is coming your way, and I am a long way from finishing my meal," Dara murmured to herself as she dug into her main course.
Across the room, Sonny simply gazed at her. She was still beautiful beyond belief. Her radiant face bright and at ease, obviously showing she'd been enjoying her dinner with Taggert. Somehow, perhaps arrogantly, Sonny figured she'd be less relaxed than what he was presently seeing.
"Don't do it man, going to her is only going to make that smile disappear," Jason told Sonny, his tone serious, but he already feared that his warning had fallen on deaf ears.
Sonny licked his lips nervously, feeling himself rise from his chair. Seeing her now, all he wanted to do was get a little closer, nothing more or less.
So fixated on her, he didn't notice any of the movement around her.
"Hey, who is that guy, what's his name? The guy heading to Dara's table," Jason asked aloud, trying to place the name with the face.
Sonny's gaze turned to the man striding confidently towards the table. His expression darkened immediately. "Vitali," he said, his voice low and suspicious.
"Yeah I know the name, just which one is it?" Jason asked impatiently as he narrowed his eyes at the man, unaware of Sonny's demeanor to the man who had now stopped at Dara's table.
"Dominik."