Dante by Bethany-Kris Page A

he was kissing her was because of the man sitting beside them.
    That feeling only lasted until Matty cleared his throat loudly, breaking the trance Cat was in. Finally, Dante began to pull away, an arrogant smirk twisting his lips and approval glimmering in his gaze. He didn’t let go of Cat as he canted his head to regard Matty.
    “Happy birthday, old friend,” Matty said, smiling almost sardonically.
    Dante’s cold expression didn’t change. “I didn’t realize you were invited to the party.”
    “It was an open invitation, wasn’t it?”
    “Sure, but for the Marcello clan.” Dante stood straight, released his hold on Cat’s waist, and stepped to her side. He turned his back to her as if to block her from Matty’s view. “Where is your wife tonight, Matty?”
    “At home.”
    “Too bad. She might have enjoyed a night out with her husband. Then again, if she had seen you talking to my fiancée like you just were, I bet she wouldn’t have been pleased.”
    Cat snickered into her hand. Dante didn’t bother to beat around the bush. She had to admit she liked that about the man.
    “I was just having fun, Dante.”
    “Catrina doesn’t have fun with any other man but me.”
    Matty laughed. “That’s not what I hear. She just gave a pretty damn good show. The little queen over there has quite a reputa—”
    His words were gut off with a thick humfp sound as he was knocked from his barstool. Cat hadn’t even seen Dante’s hand fly up to hit the man until his arm was lowering back to his side. Matty managed to keep his balance enough that he didn’t hit the floor. Unfortunate as that was. Cat would have liked to see him kiss the ground at Dante’s leather shoes.
    Dante took the man’s barstool without a word, smiling with enough scorn to mock the man below him. Matty stood straight and fixed his slacks, glaring. “You should wish Lucian a happy birthday, Matty. He’d appreciate it. And my future wife would love for you to get away from her. Tell your father I said hello.”
    With another glower tossed in Dante’s unbothered direction, the man left. Dante sighed, his frustration showing.
    “That man is always causing some kind of trouble. His father, Carl, lets him and his other brother do whatever the hell they want. It isn’t often we welcome them as we don’t need to.”
    Cat placed her clenched hands in her lap, willing away the strange aftereffects lingering from the kiss. Like the fact her back ached as if he had fucked her against a wall and there was a pulse beating between her thighs, demanding more.
    “Why is that?” Cat asked, tampering the lust in her voice.
    “Because we have a great deal more power than the Calabrese family in New York. They know it and wisely choose to bend to our control.” Dante slid off the stool, offering his hand for Cat to take. “Come, dance with me for a little while. That asshole isn’t the only one in the room tonight who has been running his mouth. Might as well give the gawkers a good show.”
    “Dance?”
    “Oh, don’t tell me you can’t dance, Amore .”
    “I can,” Cat said. She didn’t know if it was such a good idea right now. “Can you?”
    Dante scoffed. “That’s just rude. Come on, Cat.”
    Cat took his hand and let him pulled her off the barstool.
    Dante could dance, quite well, actually. He liked to lead and she didn’t mind letting him. Cat shouldn’t have been as surprised as she was that he moved with her swaying body in perfect harmony. The man seemed to be damn good at everything else he did, so why not this, too? With her backside tight against his groin, their hips grinding to the fast pace beat of the music, his hands roamed her curves with an affectionate touch.
    What the feeling of his hands left behind, however, was anything but tender. Cat’s skin burned, desire lighting a wicked fire. She could still taste the remnants of his kiss and feel how his lips felt pressed to her mouth.
    She was wading into dangerous