Marco Bianchi hugs me tightly and claps me on the back. He smells like cigarettes and booze, but I probably still smell like Julia’s pussy, so I give him a pass. I left prison with the clothes I walked in with and that was it, but a quick trip to the bank fixes that. I’ve been the best at what I do for as long as I’ve done it, and in my world, guys like me cost a premium. My own family doesn’t have much use for muscle anymore ever since Vince started steering them toward the straight and narrow, but I could’ve found a way to make myself useful if I had wanted.

My little brother Angelo is an ambitious hot-head though, and he stormed off to join the most fucked up, bloodthirsty family he could find. That’s how I ended up working for the Bianchis. I hate their guts, but I love my little brother, and I need to be around to keep an eye on him. So like it or not, I headed to the Bianchis after my session with Julia and got back to work.

We’re in the smoke-filled basement of Marco’s place where most of the higher-ups hang out. My little brother Angelo is over in the corner talking in low tones with Carlito. I wish Angelo wasn’t so fucking ambitious. All I really want to do is keep him out of trouble, but it seems like the only thing he wants to do is find it. I guess I can’t blame him. If I didn’t have him to worry about, I probably would’ve wound up in prison a long time ago for a lot longer stint by now.

I force myself to smile as I grease palms with the top guys of the Bianchi family. They’re all ancient, and you’d never guess how bloodthirsty they are by appearance. I appreciate a good fight and a cold stack of cash as much as the next guy, but I don’t ever confuse money for power like they do. Power is in the man, it’s in his core. It’s not in how you can throw your money around and get other people to do your dirty work. I have no respect for these men.

I interrupt Angelo and Carlito by clapping my little brother on the back. “The fuck are you two talking about over here?”

Anglo licks his lips, glancing at Carlito for approval. “We got wind of an opportunity, and we were thinking with you out of prison, we could actually pull it off on the side, without…” he glances toward the Bianchis. “You know.”

I discreetly make sure we’re out of earshot and signal for him to go on.

“The Morettis are getting involved in some big shit. They are sending shipments of weapons to cartels in Mexico, and it’s bringing in boatloads of cash.”

“And you want to get in on some of that cash?” I ask.

Angelo and Carlito nod, smiling. Angelo has my dark hair, but his features and body are softer. He’s never been as strong as me, and I think that always made him overcompensate by trying to do the craziest shit he can think of. Carlito is a young guy, maybe twenty, like Angelo. I can’t help seeing how bad they need me to look out for them when they smile up at me. How the fuck did they survive while I was in prison? The answer is they probably played it cool for a while, but they think with me behind them, they can pull off anything.

“How do you plan to keep the Bianchis from finding out?” I ask.

Angelo looks down. “We don’t have all the details worked out, but you can help us with that. You’re always good with that kind of thing.”

I smirk. It’s a stupid plan. It’s reckless, and if the Bianchis even catch the slightest whiff of it, they will be after our blood right beside the Morettis. But stupid plans have always been the most fun.

I wait in the parking lot outside Julia’s office, leaning on her car. I saw the keys to an Acura on her desk and there are only four cars in the lot, one of which happens to be an Acura, the same one I saw in the lot the day I met her. I thought I would be able to put her from my mind and move on after I got a taste of her pussy, but it has been two days and I’m still thinking about her constantly. Seeing her car here means she must not have lost her job after all. I’m surprised by how much that relieves me. I normally couldn’t care less. I get what I want from a woman and move on, even if I’ve left their life in chaos. This time…it feels different. I don’t think I realized it until now, but part of the reason I’ve been thinking so much about her is because I know I made her risk her career. I wanted to make sure she was still doing okay.

Seeing her car here means she’s fine. I could just leave and be done with it, but that’s not true. There’s still something hanging between she and I, something I can’t put my finger on. I want her.

I distract myself a little while I wait by thinking about Angelo’s plan. I did a little digging and found out that he’s right. The Morettis are being reckless as hell. They are driving unarmored cars from Texas to New Jersey with up to a hundred thousand cash, and they’re doing it on a regular, predictable basis. They’re practically begging to get ripped off. The only wrinkles are how to spend the cash without drawing their eye, and how to keep the Bianchis from finding out we were behind the robbery, because the Morettis will definitely point the finger at the Bianchis before any other family. It could be an easy payday, or it could be a bloodbath. But I like our odds.

She finally leaves the office almost an hour after I arrive. I straighten the wrinkles from my clothing. I’m wearing a white undershirt and a new Brione suit. I run a hand through my hair and smile at her. But she looks pissed to see me standing here. Her lips press angrily into a single, thin line and her eyebrows draw down as she approaches.

“You’ve done enough damage. Can’t you just leave me alone?” she says, trying to push past me to get into her car.

I put my hand on her waist, turning her so her back is against the car and our faces are inches apart. “I’ll leave you alone. As soon as I’ve got what I want.”

Her eyes roam my face, lips parting. I fucking love how quickly I can break through her anger, how badly she wants me even when she knows with every fiber of her being that she should stay away. “What do you want?” she breathes.

“I want to get to know you.”

She frowns in confusion, pushing me back a little. “No. No. Out of the question.”

“Then I’m not leaving you alone.”

“I had to scrape and beg to keep my job, and now Ted is holding what he saw against my career like a loaded gun. I make one wrong move and he can ruin my life. I’m not risking that again for you.”

I’m surprised by how much her words sting. Since when have women been able to say anything that bothered me? It’s always been so easy, so simple. I fuck them and forget them. No strings. No problems. Why can’t I just forget her?

“Give me one more chance. Dinner. I’m not your patient anymore. It’s not risking your job to have dinner with me.”

She looks at me for a long time before grabbing her keys, opening the door, and sitting behind the wheel. I move inside the door, keeping her from closing it while I write my number on a gum wrapper from my pocket. I hold it out to her. “Call me when you change your mind,” I say.