Identity Pt. 03

When he stepped outside Vin stopped, standing at the bottom of the stairs looking around. "Boss?" Manuel stared at his Alpha feeling the same itchy feeling through their pack bond.

Vin took another whiff of the air turning about as if looking for an invisible man. "I just could have sworn..." he paused thinking again before he spoke realizing how crazy he sounded. "Never mind."

"Do you believe him?" Manuel asked.

"Not at all. Josiah's had many business partners. I never said I was referring to Vance. No matter, now we just give him enough rope to hang himself."

Rico helped Carmen out of the limo that dropped them off directly in front of the hotel. The building had to be at least 40 stories high with large windows and beautiful white brick that gave it that brand new feel. The name was hung in huge cursive letters that read "The Martyr" in flashy red light just above the revolving door.

Carmen stepped out of the limo wondering just what she had gotten herself into. Rico licked his lips as he eyed the dress his designer had picked out for her. The dark red looked amazing against her light brown complexion and the plunging neckline had him adjusting his pants to hide the bulge forming down there. Her breasts were tastefully covered while showing off the valley between them and the tone of her stomach. It flowed nicely into the satin like fabric that flowed down her legs in waves and the material was slightly see through, allowing him to see just enough to tease him to attention.

Rico's phone rang for the umpteenth time and he answered it , knowing exactly who it was. "I'm walking in right now. Relax, hermano." He didn't give his brother the chance to respond, hanging up and turning his attention back to his "not-a-date."

"I'm starting to have second thoughts about this. I feel like this is going to go horribly wrong." Carmen told him as she looped her hand through his proffered arm.

"Don't worry. I'll be near the whole time, okay? I got your back." He flashed her that dazzling smile and all of her fears began to slowly fade away.

"Ok." The two entered the hotel together and found themselves the center of attention when they did.

Vicente wondered what all the commotion was about as people began completely ignoring the speaker and whispering amongst themselves. He was becoming impatient with his little brother's tardiness with the event having begun over an hour ago. Rico and Carmen stepped into the banquet hall with all eyes on them, including Vin's grey ones already flaring white.

"Your brother's pissed." Carmen whispered in Rico's ear noticing the glare he was firing at them. Rico simply shrugged and led her toward the table where his brother had reserved a seat for him and his date.

They took their seats, Rico next to Vin and Carmen at his left at the round white cloth covered table. Vicente leaned into his brother, "is this a fucking joke?"

"Can we do this later?" Rico brushed his brother off.

"We can do this right now—" Vin began, but his thought was cut short as the owner of the hotel announced his business partner.

"I'd like to recognize my business partner, Mr. Vicente Cruz. I would not have been able to open the Martyr Hotel without him. Please, stand up, Vin, let the people see you." Vicente growled before standing up and giving the crowd a wave. "Now I think its time to get to the fun stuff. We have an amazing band with us tonight so please eat, dance, and once again, welcome to the Martyr Hotel."

Vicente tried not to focus on his brother and Carmen, but he just couldn't believe Rico had actually been crazy enough to bring her. He could feel Manuel seething over the fact that the former beta was receiving so many luxuries after what she had done to their pack. Rico and she seemed to get along well but as the minutes passed agonizingly slowly, Vicente began to feel out of place. The way Carmen just continued on blabbering completely oblivious to Rico staring at her lips as she spoke was becoming irritating. Vin suddenly wished he had taken the time to look for a date.

Vicente had already begun to question his decision to extend her hospitality, but he had never expected a fling with his younger brother. Rico's attraction to Carmen was unmistakable to anyone with eyes and the thought of them together made Vin very uneasy.

But with all that was going on in his head, he couldn't miss that unmistakable itch he felt whenever that one woman was near. He could smell her faint scent of lilac and vanilla, and the animal roaring to life under his skin only confirmed that she was in fact here. Vicente took a look around the large hall feeling like a child playing "Where's Waldo." When his scoping returned no results he figured he would get up and actively search hoping he might just bump into her.

Gabriella spotted Vicente Cruz at a round table near the front and decided to take her time getting to him. She could see him looking around for someone and she began to wonder if maybe he'd come with a date. Part of her hoped he had and it would give her an out to leave, but a larger part of her spiked with jealousy over the thought of him with another woman. She tried not to think about his hands on some other girl's body or him kissing someone else as passionately as he had kissed her the last time she'd seen him. The images just continued to run through her mind until she could barely see anything in front of her but the red tint of the blood she would extract with a punch to the other girl's face. What the hell is wrong with me? She asked herself as she pushed her way through the crowd no longer sure where she was rushing off to.

Vicente felt her slam into his solid six foot frame before he actually saw her. Each of them had been so caught up in their own thoughts that they hadn't even realized how close they'd gotten to each other, but Vicente was more than happy with any touch he received from her, even if she nearly tackled him.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." Vicente looked down at her placing his hands on her waist. He decided to take the casual road and act like he hadn't been searching for her.

"You," Gabriella whispered also choosing to play innocent. "You're that guy from the club."

"Please, just call me Vicente." He cracked a half smile that she found so cute that it drew her teeth out as well. "I don't think you ever gave me your name, and I'm willing to bet Esperanza isn't it."

Gabriella laughed, "Brielle Ortega."

"Nice to officially meet you, Ms. Ortega." He reached out and took her hand, guiding it to his lips to dust a soft kiss across the back of her palm.

"I don't think there's a need to be so formal here— you have already had your tongue in my mouth." Vicente decided that he was beginning to like that brazen mouth of hers.

"Fair point." He had never appreciated his fine tuned sight as much as he did at that moment drinking her in like a masterfully painted piece of art. Her black dress was tastefully crafted to cover her body but conform to her hourglass figure. The diagonal strips of solid black material covered her chest but swirled into pieces of sheer see-through material from her shoulder to just above her tits and across her naval. At her hips it narrowed into covered territory but the way it hugged her ass left little to imagination. The dress stopped just above her knees showing off the toned calves of a very talented dancer. Vin found his gaze drawn to the shining jewel hanging from her belly button that the dress allowed to be clearly seen.

Gabriella saw him looking her over and her skin began to tingle under his gaze. She was used to men ogling her, but not the way her nether regions were responding.

She licked her lips feeling her mouth too dry to speak. "So, half owner huh?"

Vin tried to focus on her words and not all the dirty thoughts that were racing through his mind. "Of what?"

"This, of course. The owner just recognized you as his business partner, right?"

"Right."

Gabriella watched his eyes snap back to hers, but she had already made the decision to play on his obviously intense attraction to her, glad that she wasn't the only one in heat when they were around each other. "You dance?" She asked.

"Not usually, and I'm sure you'd dance circles around me." He asked eliciting a smirk from her.

"I'll take it easy on you," she reached out and took his hands in hers pulling him toward the marble rectangle in the open space between the tables.

Carmen watched as Vicente twirled some girl around the dance floor wondering how long it would take him to get bored with her. Rico continued talking, doing his best to overlook the fact that she hadn't taken her eyes off his brother and the stripper. He had spent a good portion of their night so far wondering if she still had feelings for Vin and if so how strong they were. Now his frustration was growing to an extreme and he was ready to implode.

"Could you at least look at me and pretend you're listening?"

"What?" Carmen shook her head and then turned her green eyes on him looking like a surprised deer.

"Never mind." Rico looked up realizing there was a bar and that all this dry night was missing was some libations. "I'm going to grab a drink. Would you like one?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Alright then. I'll be right back, ok?" He rubbed his warm hand on her forearm and she noticed how nice it felt when he touched her.

Carmen found herself feeling vulnerable once Rico made his move to the bar. She knew she wasn't really much company tonight, but confusion was warping all of her feelings so much that she barely knew which way was up. She and Rico were six years apart in age and she had known him since he was eight years old, but she couldn't deny the chemistry between them. Maybe she could out loud, but not to herself. The two had been extremely close when she came to the pack at 14. They had bonded over a love for playing practical jokes on others and their friendship had always had a big sister, little brother dynamic to it. Rico was a scrawny kid when she'd left two years ago, but now he had morphed into a young man that could make a girl swoon with just a look.

She watched him from their table ordering his drink at the bar, that suit perfectly tailored to cling to him in all the right places to show off that manly body of his. His face was more chiseled now with a goatee and mustache combination that made him look like a dignified rebel. He had cut his hair down, but still long enough to run your hands through as opposed to the mop he'd worn two years ago. The most amazing feature about him were those eyes, those electrically charged pools of blue that could make her bare her soul in a heartbeat. That hadn't changed since the day they met.

But no matter how much Rico had changed, the influence of his big brother was still very evident. The way he could disarm her with his words, the way he took charge and commanded the lead— she often forgot he was human. He was smart and funny and those things were nice, but the thing that truly scared her was how much he seemed to care about her well-being. When she and Vicente had begun their fling when she was 20, he had been very clear that feelings had nothing to do with their relationship, and he had stayed true to that promise. Rico seemed content with whatever she was willing to give him, even if that was just friendship. But she could see they way he looked at her-- hell a blind man could see he had feelings beyond just friendship for her— and she had no idea if she would ever be able to see him like he saw her.

As he ordered his drink, Carmen noticed some floosy walk up and say something and she went rigid. The girl was obviously flirting with him, but Rico didn't seem to be paying her much attention. Carmen tried to focus in on their conversation reaching into her wolf abilities.

"Come on, I see how bored you are." Carmen couldn't hold back a snarl when the girl touched Rico's elbow and then ran her fingers down his arm. "I can think of plenty of ways to keep you occupied better than her..."

"Maybe I didn't make it clear, Mila," Rico turned those blue eyes on her and Carmen noticed they had changed color to a deeper blue more like the ocean than the typical icy color. "But my answer is still no. Go pimp yourself out to some hopeless sap on the corner."

"Why you gotta be so mean?" Mila continued to caress his arm making his skin crawl as if he'd just seen a Praying Mantis bite the head off its mate. "You used to be real interested in me once upon a time."

Rico gripped her wrist with his long fingers and threw her hand off of him. "That time has passed. Now move on before I get really mean." Rico took his drink and shoved past her into the crowd of people surrounding the bar making his way back to his table.

Carmen tried to look innocent as Rico approached, but she was sure she looked like she was smuggling illegal drugs across the border. She just couldn't figure out what to do with her hands.

"Why are you so fidgety?" He asked reclaiming the chair next to her.

"I'm not fidgety... is that even a word? Fidgety." Carmen could hear for herself how idiotic that had sounded.

"You saw the girl at the bar, huh?" Carmen didn't say anything and Rico took it as a sign that she was upset. "Look, she was just an old fling, but—"

"Oh stop explaining. This isn't a date Rico. You're free to flirt with whoever you want. You should go back over there and see of she wants to dance or something."

"I'd rather dance with you." Carmen began fidgeting again under his gaze as if he could see all of her imperfections when he looked at her that way. Rico flashed her a smile that only made her even more uncomfortable.

"I'm not much of a dancer."

"That's not what I remember."

"Seriously, Rico if you want to go after that girl, don't let me stop you. This isn't—"

"Yes, I know!" He snapped pounding a closed fist down on the table with much more emotion than he'd meant. "This isn't a date, I get it." Rico took down the rest of his drink and rose to his feet. "I need some air." Carmen watched as he made his way to one of the huge red doors at the edges of room and bulldozed through it as if he were attempting to break them.

Gabriella laughed as she twirled into Vin's arms and he dipped her back and held her there for a few seconds before returning her to her upright position. "You are such a liar."

Vicente feigned hurt looking deep into those tragically hidden eyes seeing past those plain contacts to the sparkling blue behind them. He would have to make it a point to ask her about that someday. "How so?" He lead her by her hand over to the bar.

"You're a fantastic dancer."

"I didn't say I wasn't."

"You did so," she jabbed him in the chest playfully with an accusatory finger.

"I said you would dance circles around me, which you did."

"Oh you're good." She laughed and Vicente decided right then that her laugh was his new favorite sound in the world. She laughed like a little girl being tickled, so genuinely joyous. He had never professed to be a comedian, but he would work on his ability to bring humor to others if it meant he would get to see that gorgeous smile and hear that childlike laugh over and over again.

"You have no idea, Cariña." Just then they heard the doors across the room bursting open and witnessed his little brother storming out leaving Carmen sitting at their table. "Crap," he muttered under his breath.

"Uh oh. Think your brother's having a rough night." Brielle observed.

"Yes, it would seem so."

Gabriella could see the inner battle he was fighting of whether he should leave her and go check on his brother or ignore it and continue what he was doing. "Go, it's alright."

Vin didn't want to leave and risk that she not be there when he returned but his brother needed him. So he smiled and took her hand in his and brought it to his lips placing a chaste kiss on the back of her palm.

"I won't be long. Please don't leave."

"I'll be right here." She took a seat in one of the cushy red bar chairs and he snapped his fingers at the bartender.

"Anything she wants," he told him dropping 3 Hundreds on the bar in front of him. The bartender nodded and Vin took his leave after one last longing look at Brielle and headed outside to find his brother.

"If you're going to smoke cigars at least smoke the good stuff," Vin chided as he stepped out the front door of the hotel finding Rico smoking a Black and Mild.

"Yeah, yeah." Rico waved him off and took another slow drag.

"So, things not going so well with your date?"

"It's not a date, at least that's what she keeps saying."

"And you want it to be."

"I know what you're gonna say. That it's dangerous for a human to be involved with a Lycan and she could hurt me and blah blah blah."

"I wasn't going to say any of that."

"So what are you going to say? I know you don't approve."

"It isn't about my approval, hermano. Its about her intentions. I just don't want to see you chasing after a dead end."

"Why is it when I go after Carmen it's a dead end, but you screw her for 3 years and that was, what? An Alpha spending quality time with his Beta?"

"This isn't about Carmen and me."

"Then what the hell is it about?"

"Are you sure you want to date a woman in her position right now?"

Rico narrowed his eyes at his older brother. "What are you saying, Vinny?"

"She wants to come back into the pack. How do you know she isn't using you to do it?"

"What you think she's using me to get to you?"

"I wouldn't put it past her."

Rico shook his head and took another pull off his cigar. "That's just like you, you know? Everybody's got to have an angle, she can't just like me for me."

"If she liked you then why is she saying this isn't a date?"

"Screw you, Vin. Everything isn't about you."

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Yea you did, but I don't give a damn." Rico took one last pull off the Black and Mild before throwing it on the ground and stomping it out. "There's something between Carmen and me, and I'm gonna make her see that, regardless of your little conspiracy theory." He turned to head back into the hotel shocked to see Carmen standing in front of the revolving door.

"Can we talk?" She asked.

"You mind?" Rico commanded his brother not really caring if he did or not.

Vin felt the Alpha in him trying to take over not taking too kindly to Rico's challenging tone. "Just think about what I said, hermano." He begrudgingly bit his tongue and nodded before going back into the hotel to find his dancer.

"How much of that did you hear?" Rico asked.

"Enough to know that I was right about this."

"Right about what?"

"This!" She motioned to him and herself, "Me and you. Rico, I knew coming back here would make a mess, but I never intended to start a war between brothers."

"You didn't start a war," he scoffed reaching for her hands, but she drew back away from him.

"Not yet. But if we keep forcing this you know that it'll just drive a wedge between you two."

"Dating me isn't going to make us fight because my brother is just going to have to get the hell over it." Rico stepped close to her and she inhaled deeply allowing his masculine scent to waft through her nostrils. She then cursed herself for feeding into these wretched feelings that she was trying to push out of her head. "But knowing that he forced me to lose the opportunity again, now that might make me a little murderous."

Carmen sighed looking up into those eyes that were a soft baby blue as he gazed at her like she were some rare flower. "I'm being serious, Rico."

"So am I, Carmen. I've had a crush on you since the first day I met you. It took me eight years to work up the courage to step to you, and he runs you off before I even got the chance!"