Chapter 4
Chapter Four
G ian Cucciolla died two days later during a drug deal gone wrong, they think. “Rif” Raf Citti got caught in a random drive-by. There were no other deaths. I hadn’t seen Vincenzo at all and Agent Seli didn’t want to exchange friendly pleasantries anymore.
I took a seat directly beside the kitchen door and waited for the staff to come in. Brogan was the first one. He came in first every day. He also didn’t look surprised to see me.
“Your glove,” I announced and held it out for him.
Brogan stopped at my toes. He looked down at me. His hand opened. I carefully set the glove where he wanted.
“Thanks.”
“Have you been doing your side job?”
“This is the only job I have.”
I took a beat and stared at him. “Who else? You said not Aureliu.”
“ You said that. I agreed.”
My eyes narrowed. “Severino, Mansueto, Sergio “Slick”, Eufrasia, Paolo “The Jackal”, and Enrico. Did I miss anyone else on this hit list? ”
“Not any that are still alive,” he agreed as if the topic felt natural.
I nearly growled in frustration. I knew my cheeks were pink and his fa?ade remained firmly intact.
“Look. I’m not emotionally invested.”
“Okay?” He shifted his feet and folded his arms loosely. I was glad one of us was amused.
“They’ll kill you. They won’t think. They find out and you’re done,” I whispered. “You managed more than I thought you would, if you did anything at all. Soothe yourself with what you’ve done so far and forget this place.”
He nodded. “I’ll go if you go.”
My stomach flipped and then soured. “You got my number. I can’t leave unless I tell Cabbrieli the truth, which will never happen.”
He stepped in close. “Then beg him to leave with you. Tell him you want to leave this life.”
My eyes darted between his as he revealed my deepest wish.
“Hey!” Aureliu shouted. “Get away from her!”
The shouting jarred me out of Brogan’s trance. Aureliu stepped between us and shoved Brogan with both hands. I gasped and grabbed the back of Aureliu’s button up.
“What are you doing,” I argued. “This is my employee!”
Aureliu shook me off. Brogan’s expression turned hard as he looked from me back to Aureliu.
“I don’t like you,” Aureliu pointed in his face. “Don’t make me say it twice.”
I scowled and shoved my way around him. “Said what twice?”
He grabbed my arm and yanked me back to him. Brogan sneered and took a step forward.
“Stop!” I shouted and tore my arm from Aureliu’s grasp. “We were just talking! He wasn’t being rude.” I exhaled heavily. “ You are.”
Aureliu looked down his nose at me. “This is who you’re seeing behind Vinnie’s back now?”
I scoffed and smiled. “Let’s not. Huh?”
His lips pressed into a hard line. He glanced away and I saw his throat work. “Alright. I just wanted to make sure you were…” he trailed off and he couldn’t meet my eyes.
“I’m okay,” I murmured. “Don’t worry about me.” I’m tough? I’m good? Neither of those were true.
His lips turned down. “Severino,” he scowled. “Was he doing that...?”
I shrugged and clasped my hands to pick under my nail. “We’re with mixed company.”
Aureliu shot Brogan another annoyed look but neither spoke.
“He was,” I whispered. “Right up until the day I moved out.”
His face went slack. He shrugged his shoulder and turned around. He dragged himself out of the restaurant and left.
Brogan stood beside me. I felt his knuckles brush my arm. I turned into him and collapsed to his chest. He held me there for as long as I needed. Tears wouldn’t come and he wasn’t great at soothing. Presence counted for something.
I looked up at him, and he shifted his face to look down at me. “Come to my office with me?” I breathed.
Brogan inhaled deeply and softly shook his head.
“Why not?” I asked. If he thought I was easily deterred, he’d be wrong.
He licked his lower lip and rubbed his arms down over my shoulders. “Listen to my pitch at least. Come to where I’m staying and hear me out.”
I frowned. “You think the dick’s that good?”
Despite his face not losing an ounce of intensity, he blushed. “It’s not?”
I sighed. “You’ll hear me out on leaving?”
His hands wound around my back and caressed. “You want me to leave you?”
“You don’t want to leave me?”
Brogan brought his hands back to my shoulders by sheer force of will. “There are things we should talk about other than what I have planned.”
An “us” talk? Already? He sure didn’t seem interested since he’d been letting Sade and Chloe flirt with him.
“I’ll come. Text me the address.” I drew my arms down.
He let his hands drop from my waist. “I’m only trying to look out for our interests.”
“Good morning!” Chloe grinned at us as the morning light made her teal waves glow around her face.
“Good morning,” I said before going to my office.
The meeting never happened. I followed his motorcycle to the extended stay motel rooms. Honestly, he didn’t seem all that shocked when I jumped him. He didn’t try to stop me.
Brogan pulled me over his body so my hips fell between his legs on the bed. The sheets tucked under my arm as I laid naked over him. We were like animals. It was fantastic. I feared that his ability to give me orgasms might’ve been swaying my opinions.
“Check out of this dump and stay by me.”
His hands stopped there gentle stroking of my brow. “I’m not going to live past this and not doing this prevents me from living. I don’t have a choice. I shouldn’t have gotten you involved.”
“I want to help. With two of us we’ll be even harder to suspect.”
He sighed loudly. “I won’t tell you no.”
“What’s with the sighing?” I asked.
“It’s nothing.”
I pushed up on my palms so the sheet fell to my hips. Brogan sighed again and reached up to fondle me.
“I’m twenty-four,” he said. “My brother was having a sleepover so I went to my friend’s house on that night. Don Caruso didn’t know Severino Pannareli would have them kill children, too. There was a code until that point.”
I shifted, and he lightly helped me settle on his chest.
“My point being that I stayed away from women before this. I didn’t want them clouding my judgement or distracting me from my plans.” He inhaled deeply. “You have a fiancée. I don’t want to do that to someone else when this will go nowhere.”
I stared at him. He couldn’t have made it clearer.
“I said yes because he asked,” I said point blank.
Brogan caught my jaw and forced me to look at him. “There were ample opportunities. It wasn’t about want.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Don’t say it.”
“They always came up against my need to right things. It wasn’t worth the risk.”
“The risk of distraction?” I asked dryly.
“Yes,” he said seriously. “You’re the only one I couldn’t turn down.”
I leaned and brushed a kiss over his lips. “Pack up. Let’s take this back to my place.”