Finding What's Real

After four hours, he sneaked upstairs to check on her. She was snuggled down in bed and breathing deeply with both kittens curled up in the crook of her legs. He decided to let her sleep a while longer. He leaned against the door frame and lost track of time just watching her sleep.

*****

Kira knew it was probably time to get up, but the feather bed she was sleeping in was so comfortable and smelled so good, she thought she might never want to leave. She opened her eyes slowly and saw Vinnie's frame in the doorway. He looked damn sexy with his legs and arms crossed, clothes just snug enough to show off his toned body. She ached to run her fingers through his fashionably disheveled hair. The glasses just set everything off. She knew that she wasn't completely awake yet, but she was enjoying the few moments before her brain kicked in to turn off the male receptors.

"Hey, you," she said sleepily.

"Hey yourself, sleepy head."

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Just a few minutes. I was contemplating whether or not to wake you up."

"I think that may have been the best nap I've ever had. What time is it?"

Vinnie glanced down at his watch and his eyes widened. "3:00."

She sat straight up in bed. "3:00?! I slept for four hours?"

He grinned. "Clearly, you needed it, Spice."

"What time do we have to leave for the gala? I have to get ready!" She scrambled out of bed and started rummaging through her suitcase.

"Spice, relax. We don't have to leave for three hours. And unless you take after Angie, I doubt it will take you that long to get ready."

"I guess not." Her stomach chose that moment to growl.

"Come have a snack first. I made a fruit salad and I have some cheese."

"Fruit salad? So, you've grown out of your favorite snack of Pop-Tarts?" Vinnie used to be addicted to the things and would eat them at every meal if allowed. Mama D never could turn him against them.

"There may be a stash of those hidden somewhere in my kitchen, too," he said with a wink.

Kira picked up both sleepy kittens and kissed both soft heads. "I'm glad some things never change."

Chapter 5

Kira stood wrapped in a towel after one of the most luxurious baths ever and stared at the dress that Angie had picked out for her. It definitely wasn't off-the-rack and didn't have any kind of label in it. It was beautiful, but a lot more daring than anything Kira would have picked for herself. It was a deep purple with a scooped neckline and the back was laced with ribbons that followed her spine and showed skin in between. The bust area was darted and had a built-in corset, negating the need for a bra. The length looked like it would touch the floor. Luckily, she had packed her flat iron at the last minute, and she would be able to manipulate her hair to cover most of the back. No one wanted to see her Casper-the-Ghost skin tone anyway.

It took her an hour to wrestle her hair into shape, but only another few minutes to apply the shimmery makeup that Angie had also helpfully provided. The dress felt like pure silk as she draped it over her body, and she was right, it nearly touched the floor. Glancing in the full-length mirror, she was shocked at what she saw. The dress was slenderizing and tasteful. While the corset pressed her breasts up and together, the neckline was high enough that she didn't look like a Renaissance maiden. The deep purple against the red of her hair was stunning, and the makeup made her eyes pop. She only needed shoes to finish the outfit. She searched the closet but didn't find anything. She walked downstairs to see if Vinnie had any idea where they might be.

He was leaning against the banister at the bottom of the stairs in a tux, looking like he would fit right in for a hunk-of-the-month calendar. This was her date for the evening. Hot Damn.

"Hey, do you know what Ang did with my shoes? I know she doesn't want me wearing my red Converse."

*****

Vinnie stared up the stairs and was completely speechless. His sexy little firecracker had transformed into a hot little glamour girl. He had to force himself to remember to breathe.

"Earth to Vinnie...shoes?"

He cleared his throat and tried to recall what she was saying. "Oh, shoes, right. I have them."

"Why do you have them?"

He gave her a sheepish smile. "The note from Angie said that if you saw the shoes before you were completely ready, you would probably back out, and she also wanted to save you potential fall down the stairs."

"Wow, they must be worse than I was expecting." She took a visibly deep breath and lifted the hem of her dress, presumably so she wouldn't fall down the stairs anyway. "Okay, let's see these shoes capable of causing suicide, and well, homicide if the heels are anything like I'm imagining."

Vinnie laughed and picked up a pair of deep purple, satin, strappy stilettos.

"I hope you don't mind that I'll be stuck to you like glue all night."

"We'll see how you look with the shoes on and then I'll decide if I mind," he said teasingly. Yeah, right.

She petulantly stuck her tongue out at him. There's my girl. She sat down on the couch and slipped (well, strapped, buckled, and strapped some more) the shoes on, then reached for Vinnie's hand to help her up. She held onto his hand for several seconds before seeming to find her balance.

"Turn around for me so that I can get a good look at you, Spice."

She gave him a mock frown and very slowly turned in a circle.

"Wow, your hair is really long now that it's straight." He ran his fingers through the shiny, fiery mass and shifted it to the side. He wasn't expecting what he saw and had to keep from tracing the ribbons down her milky-white spine and kissing the skin that peeked through. He mentally counted to ten and then swallowed before speaking again. "I don't know why you feel like you need to cover yourself up. This dress is amazing on you."

She stood still for a moment before pulling her hair over her left shoulder. "Better?"

"Much," he said gruffly and reached down to adjust himself.

She turned back to face him, and her eyes revealed a mix of vulnerability and determination.

"So, the glue thing, are we cool?"

He nodded slowly, unable to stop staring into her eyes.

"Good, then let's go, because my feet will only last so long."

He escorted her to the car and knew for sure that he would have bruises tomorrow from her fingers digging into his bicep. He couldn't help chuckling.

"What are you laughing at? I told you that heels and I don't get along." She gave him an irate look.

"Honestly, I think it's refreshing."

She waited until he got into the car and pulled out of the driveway before responding. "Refreshing?" she asked dryly. "Watching a wallflower struggle in heels is refreshing?"

"You're real," he responded, wondering how to best explain himself. Maybe he could get away with not explaining for now.

"Well, that was clear as mud."

He was saved from explaining when she noticed the invitation to the gala on the dash.

"Wow, this is really fancy. The invitations alone must have cost a fortune. Do you know how much money they could've given to the shelter if they would have just cut a few bucks out of the invitation budget?" She sighed. "Politics at their finest."

"How many wealthy people, and I mean really wealthy people, do you know that would attend a gala with the intent of donating money if they received a hand-written or basic, printed invitation?" he countered.

"Point taken, but in this day and age, e-vites are even acceptable for that kind of thing. I'm sure that would have gone over better than a hand-written or basic, printed invitation. That would have benefited the shelter even more."

"Yes, but you're much more likely to pay attention to a fancy invitation than to an e-vite, thus ensuring a higher rate of attendance."

He had a feeling she was going to be a clever sparring partner. They continued their easy banter all the way to the event hall.

*****

Kira was nearly shaking as they pulled around to the valet area. She had boxed herself in for so long that she felt like she no longer knew how to interact with large groups of people, never mind large groups of wealthy people. She took a deep breath. She could do this. She knew that self-confidence was half of the battle, well, most of the battle. Plus, she was on Vinnie's arm, which could only help.

He walked around the car and opened her door, and she gratefully took his arm.

He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "By the way, Spice, you look amazing tonight."

The feeling of his breath on her ear sent shivers running down to her toes. They walked into a large hall packed with people and Kira braced herself for the inevitable anxiety to hit, only, it didn't. She grinned over at Vinnie, who was almost at eye level with her. Maybe she would actually have fun tonight.

As they made their way through the crowd to the bar, they were approached by a loud, robust, balding man. "Vinnie, my boy, how wonderful to see you. Where's our Angie tonight, hmm?"

Kira startled and grabbed Vinnie's arm tighter. Vinnie immediately took on a different air. "Good evening, Mr. Baldwin. Angie is actually in Paris. Allow me to introduce our good friend, Kira."

"Ah, a friend, eh? I didn't think she looked like your normal type."

Kira tried not to visibly flinch but interjected before Vinnie could respond. "How nice to meet you, Mr. Baldwin. And what would Vinnie's normal 'type' look like, if you don't mind my asking?" She wondered if the sweetly venomous tone was only in her head.

"Oh, well, uh, they're usually more, uh..." The man started making erratic hand gestures that she supposed meant height and build. His face was becoming flushed, and it was obvious that he had realized his rudeness. "Please excuse me, I think I hear my wife calling me." He walked away quickly, mopping his now-perspiring brow with a handkerchief.

Kira turned to look at Vinnie with a raised eyebrow.

"I think he's already had a bit much to drink," he responded, not meeting her gaze.

"Hmm." She was curious and amused, but her self-esteem had taken a tiny hit.

"Can I get you a glass of wine?"

"Just water with lime, please."

He walked her to an empty table and pulled out a chair for her before walking to the bar. She looked around and was impressed by the turnout. She shouldn't have been taken aback at the number of people that were already quite obviously sloshed. I mean who was she kidding? Half of those people probably came for the free booze, never mind the fact that they could afford to buy the liquor store. Wow, when did I become so judgmental?

As a pair of women sat down at the table adjacent to hers, she caught part of their conversation.

"Have you seen Vinnie yet tonight?"

Her ears perked up and she listened more closely,

"I saw him walking towards the bar. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you know he always brings his sister to this event, leaving him free to dance with me."

"He's expecting you to be here, then?"

"Of course! I got to know him a lot better last month and there was definitely a promise for more."

Kira could hear the devious smile in the woman's voice.

"No way! So, spill, spill! How was it?"

"Wouldn't you like to know? Let's just say, I plan on it being a very long night tonight."

Kira waited a few seconds and glanced around to get a look at the slut. Whoa! Slut? She rolled her eyes at herself but still couldn't stop herself from looking. Oh damn. At least 5'10, perfect figure and a dress showing 90% of her clearly surgically enhanced boobs. At least Kira's massive banes-of-her-existence were real.

Kira continued to people-watch and try not to mentally judge the people around her—who am I kidding...I'm just as judgmental as the people I'm constantly afraid are judging me—until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Vinnie handing her a drink.

"Long line at the bar?"

"Something like that," he responded without meeting her gaze. She had a feeling that the long line wasn't at the bar, but to get to Vinnie.

"Vinnie!"

Kira looked back to see where the exclamation had come from, only to find that the voice belonged to Ms. Boobs.

Boobies hopped up and hugged Vinnie, then gave him a big kiss on the lips. Kira narrowed her eyes and looked forward to watching how 'Vinnie the Player' would handle it. To her surprise, he took Boobalicious's elbows and stepped back.

"Brandi, how are you?" he asked in a formal voice but managed to give her a charming smile, all the while, discretely dabbing at his mouth with a handkerchief, removing the brash lipstick.

"Much better now that you're here, stud."

Wow, this woman was forward.

Vinnie laughed and then, to her surprise, let go of BoobyTown to extend his hand to Kira. She took his hand and allowed him to help her up.

"I'd like you to meet Kira."

Kira held out her hand like a good little girl. "Nice to meet you." She noticed that Vinnie didn't assign her a label this time, unlike when he introduced her to Mr. Baldwin.

Boobs-A-Lot looked her up and down with a snide expression before plastering a fake smile on her face.

"Hello. How are you?" She continued before Kira could answer. "I like your, uh..." she seemed to struggle to come up with a compliment, "...hair. Is that your natural color?" The quirk of her lips broadcasted her insincerity.

Kira laughed inwardly at the attempted insult. "Why yes, it is. Tell me, is that shade of...whatever that's supposed to be...your natural color?" She turned to Vinnie without waiting for a response. "Would you like to dance?" Umlauts 0, Kira 1.

Vinnie gave her a genuine, relieved smile. "Brandi, it was nice seeing you again."

They turned and walked to the dance floor. Kira had to force herself not to look to see the expression on Brandi's face. Aloof. I can be aloof.

*****

Vinnie was quite embarrassed at Brandi's behavior, but maybe he should be thanking her. It was obvious that his little Spice had gained some confidence and was staking a claim, whether she realized it or not.

He pulled Kira to an open spot on the dance floor and turned to face her, pulling her arms around his neck before putting his own around her waist.

"So," she began with a mischievous look on her face, "tell me about boob-uh, Brandi."

He watched a blush creeping up from her neck and grinned. "What were you going to call her? I heard that little slip-up."

"I don't know what you mean. You must be hearing things." He could tell she was trying not to laugh. Her fingers tickled the nape of his neck causing goosebumps to break out.

He tugged her closer and whispered in her ear, "I guarantee it's nothing that I haven't already called her."

Kira let a giggle slip out. "So, you're not dating her, then?"

He kept his mouth close to her ear. "We've had exactly one date, in which she spent the entire time droning on and on about how difficult it was to find dates worthy enough to take her out. I guess she thought it was a compliment. Then she went into how she was forced to look after the kids at the picnic for her father's company, and I quote, 'the disgusting little beasts messed up my manicure and got mud on my Louis Vuitton shoes.'"

Kira was all out laughing into his neck now. "What did you do?"

"I sang the 'bottles of beer' song in my head- to keep from laughing in her face- until I could get her back to her house, kiss her on the cheek and make up an emergency at the office."

"The b-bottles..." Kira erupted into an all-out giggle attack. It wasn't very loud since her face was in his neck, but he could feel her body shaking, filling him with euphoria. He wanted to keep making her laugh every day and he'd be happy for life. Dramatic much, Vinnie?

The song changed from slow and sultry to something Latin and upbeat. "Mambo with me?"

She looked at him as if he had grown two heads.

"Come on, Spice, I'll lead, you just follow. Take off your shoes, though."

"What am I going to do with them?"

Just then, Brandi appeared at Vinnie's shoulder with a sultry look on her face and it appeared that she had tugged her already low-cut dress down further. "Vinnie, you owe me a dance." She was swiveling her hips in a move meant to be seductive, but it just made her appear desperate.

"I'm sorry, I promised Kira a Mambo. You can do me a huge favor though."

Her eyes lit up at the chance to do anything to get his attention.

"Take these to our table, would you, please?" He handed her Kira's shoes.

Her face turned to one of disgust, but she took the shoes—between just the tip of her index finger and thumb—and walked off to the table in a huff.

"Now then, let's do this." He pulled Kira firmly into the proper hold and met her eyes, making her gasp.

He showed Kira some basic steps and they launched into a beginner's version of the sexy dance. Their eyes stayed locked, and he could feel her hips twitching to the beat under his fingertips. She stepped on his toes a few times, but he just laughed and kept her dancing.

When the song ended, he pulled her flush against his body, hoping that she couldn't feel the hardness in his pants. He pulled her hair back over her shoulder and traced the laces down her back, making her stiffen and then shiver before relaxing against him and sighing into his ear.

*****

Kira hadn't had anything to drink, so she couldn't blame this floaty, content feeling on the alcohol. She knew she should put some space between them, but it just felt so good. She could feel his erection against her hip, and she reveled in the knowledge that it was because of her. She looked up and met his eyes and leaned closer to brush a kiss across his cheek. Vinnie's eyes were heavy-lidded as he nuzzled her cheek. Her heart started to beat faster, and she started to turn her face to meet his lips, but she was interrupted by someone tapping insistently on her shoulder. She stiffened and turned to find that it was none other than the bitch herself drilling her nails down into Kira's shoulder.

"Brandi, I..." Vinnie did a poor job hiding the annoyance in his voice.

Kira interrupted Vinnie before he could send her away. "He did promise you a dance, didn't he? I need to sit down anyway." She bussed his cheek and turned towards their table, laughing internally.

She collapsed in her chair and couldn't help but smirk at the arms-length that Vinnie was keeping between them on the dance floor. He had a blank look on his face, and she snorted, wondering if he was singing 'The Song That Never Ends' or something equally as ridiculous.

*****

"Oh my God, I think I'm dying. Never, ever, ever, ever again will I wear heels that high." Kira collapsed into the passenger seat of the SUV and promptly removed her shoes, carelessly chucking them into the backseat.

"Okay, Angie." Vinnie playfully shrank away knowing that either a punch to the arm or that look of death—the one that all women seem to possess— was coming his way. He chuckled as she got him with both the punch and the look at one time. "Did you have fun at least?"

Kira mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that, Spice?" Vinnie cupped a hand around his right ear.

"Yes, dammit. Especially when you made Boob-Zilla take my shoes."

Vinnie burst out laughing and almost bumped the car in front of them in the exit line. "What other names have you come up with, oh witty one?"

Kira snorted. "My witticisms aren't very reliable. I wouldn't want to get your expectations up."

"I'll bet you aren't giving yourself enough credit."

"Seriously. By text, sure. In-person, not so much. By the time something funny pops into my head, that narrow window has passed so I just sound like an idiot. You'll see."