SEALed Bride: A Bad Boy Romance (Includes bonus novel Jerked!) (30 page)

I shook my head, refusing to let my mind wander over him. My phone vibrated in my hand, giving me an excuse to ignore the strange desire that flooded through me every time Colin appeared in my mind.

I looked at the screen and my heart almost stopped.

Vince: Philly is such a piece of shit city. It smells awful.

I stared at the message for what felt like an hour.
He’s in the fucking city
, I kept thinking over and over. He had actually followed me. I never thought in a million years that he would follow me. Sure, there were threats, but this text was different. I stood up and had the absurd desire to throw my phone off the roof, but decided to close the text instead.

What was I supposed to do? My first instinct was to call Colin and tell him about the message, but I stopped myself. Was I going to go running to Colin every time there was a problem? I couldn’t let myself get involved with that. I sat back down, heart thumping, confused and angry and upset. Vince knew the kind of people that I came from. He knew that it meant following me back to my dad’s city.

He must have been insane.

And he was insane. The blonde sucking his cock, the sting of his palm, it all came rushing back all over again. I clenched my fists as fear filled me. The piece of shit was an abusive asshole, and I had let him rule my life long enough.

Philadelphia was a big place. There was no way he knew where I lived, let alone would randomly find me out on the street somewhere. I wasn’t going to cancel on Nick just because my psycho ex sent me some crazy text.

I went back inside and resolved myself to getting dressed. Going out with Nick, although a tiny act, was going to prove that I had control of my own life.

Even if it didn’t feel like I did.

––––––––

“S
o, what are you doing home?” Nick said as we opened our menus.

It was one o’clock in the afternoon, and Sabrina’s was packed. It was one of my favorite places to eat, though, and just had to go there for my first meal back in the city. It was absolutely adorable, with a classic diner counter running down the right side, and home-style booths set up all over the place.

“I got sick of New York, I guess.”

“Well shit, I’m happy to hear that. New York is the worst.”

Nick made a face. He was handsome, my age, and skinny. His hair was long and pulled back into a ponytail and he was wearing a fashionable cardigan over a thin T-shirt and cut-off jeans. His Converse shoes were old and dirt-spotted, but were probably dirty on purpose. Nick had an energy about him that I had always liked, and it made me want to have fun when we spent time together.

“New York is okay, I guess.”

He made a face. “Whatever. You were brain washed up there.”

I laughed. If only he knew.

“Anyway, where are you staying?” he asked.

“At my dad’s place.”

“That old mansion? I thought you two didn’t talk?”

“We talked, but we hadn’t seen each other since I left. We spent time together for the first time in a while last night, actually.”

“Whoa, what happened?”

I shrugged. “It was pretty good. He had a little welcome home party. I guess things are okay between us now.”

He nodded. “I’m glad to hear that. I never really understood what happened.”

I shrugged. “Teenage drama, mostly.”

“Well, here’s to being home.”

We clinked water glasses and I laughed.

“So, is that other guy still living with you? What’s-his-name?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, Colin. Yeah, he lived with you, right?”

I laughed. “I can’t believe you remember him.”

“I don’t forget a guy like him.”

“What’s that mean?”

He gave me a look like I was an idiot. “I guess he moved out by now.”

“Actually, he’s living there right now.”

His whole face lit up like I had offered him a million dollars.

“Really? Is he home right now?”

“No, and he’s straight, so relax.”

“Straight or not, I would love to see him again. He’s hot as hell.”

“Okay, that’s enough. He’s supposed to be like my adopted brother or something, remember?”

“I remember, but I also remember you didn’t think of him as a sibling at all.”

I cringed. I had forgotten that I told Nick about what had happened between us.

“That was a long time ago.”

“Not
that
long ago. What’s he look like now?”

“The same, I guess.”

He laughed. “That means he’s even hotter.”

I was definitely not going to admit it to Nick, but he was absolutely right. The feeling of my body crushed up against Colin’s sculpted chest, all the dirty and flirtatious things he kept saying to me, it all came back in a rush and I had to sip my drink. Nick didn’t seem to notice how flustered I was because the waitress came over and took our orders.

“So, what’s it like sharing a house with your hunky step?” Nick asked as the waitress walked away to put our orders in.

“He’s not my step, and he’s not hunky.”

“Oh, come on. Can we cut the act?”

I laughed and shook my head. “Never going to happen.”

“Fine. Still, it must be a little weird after ....” He trailed off, giving me a look.

“We’re not talking about that.”

“You and him?”

I laughed. “Everyone, anyone. That was a long time ago.”

“You’re going to tell me that this sexy as hell guy that lives in your house is no big deal? This guy you have an unfinished past with?”

“It’s not like that.”

He grinned and leaned forward. “Come on, Bren. It’s me. We both know it’s exactly like that.”

For half a second I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to tell him how I had practically drooled all over Colin’s post-shower body wrapped in a towel, and how he had pulled me against him in my bedroom.

But for whatever reason, I decided to keep that to myself.

“Nope, not at all.” I sat back and crossed my arms.

He sighed, mirroring my pose. “Fine, whatever. Be like that if you want.”

“I will.” I smirked at him.

He laughed and shook his head as the waitress came back with a plate of nachos we decided to share. I grabbed a huge, multi-chip portion and took a big bite. Nick laughed at me as he deftly swallowed three chips whole.

“Anyway, hey, speaking of guys, whatever happened to that dude you were dating the last time we talked?” he asked suddenly.

I blinked. I had totally forgotten that I told him about Vince. That must have been pretty early on in the relationship, before Vince had turned full-on psycho asshole and I wasn’t allowed to talk to Nick, or really anyone for that matter. I tried to think back to what Nick knew about Vince, but genuinely couldn’t remember. I decided to keep some things to myself, even though I was beginning to feel a little guilty over withholding so much information from him.

“We’re over.”

“Oh yeah? That sucks, you were pretty into him the last time we talked.”

“Yeah, well, he turned out to be an asshole.”

He gave me a look. “Shit, don’t they all.”

I laughed and we dove back into the nachos. Mention of Vince, though, put me back on edge, and I found myself glancing over my shoulder toward the entrance as if he was going to sneak up from behind me and steal me away right then and there. Vince was crazy and dangerous, but he wasn’t that crazy.

Nick launched into a story about his most recent conquest, some college boy at the University of Pennsylvania, and how he was so close to landing an actual gallery spot for his paintings. I found myself only half paying attention, and almost jumped out of my seat when the waitress interrupted to remove the demolished nachos and to place our actual meals in front of us. Nick resumed his story, oblivious to my small freakout moment, and I forced myself to smile and ask questions.

But no matter how distracted I tried to make myself, Vince kept bleeding in around the edges.

I
was sweating a little bit as I pushed open the cheap metal door and walked into the deli. Air conditioning blasted me in the face, and so did the smell of meat and more. Two guys in white stood behind the counter, slicing and packaging, but I wasn’t there for food. I walked directly toward the back door where a big guy in a tracksuit sat on a stool. He looked up at me as I approached. He was your typical mob muscle, probably pretty low down on the totem pole. Definitely not a Made Man, at least.

“I’m here to see Jimmy.”

The guy’s expression didn’t change. “Who the fuck are you?”

“Colin Blake. He’s expecting me.”

The goon knew exactly who I was, but we had to play our parts. Sometimes it was exhausting trying to keep up with all the bullshit.

He stood up slowly, frowning. “Got to check you.”

I nodded, knowing the drill. I spread my legs and arms and let him pat me down. His clumsy, ham-like hands found the small piece I always carried when I was out running errands tucked into my waistband. I wasn’t exactly trying to hide it from him, but he gave me his triumphant look anyway, like he'd pulled one over on me.

He pulled it out and held it up. I shrugged and gave him an innocent smile. “I forgot about that one.”

He didn’t laugh, just jerked his head at the door and held onto my gun. I grinned at him and pushed through.
Humorless goons
, I thought to myself.

Inside, the room was dark and smoky. Sitting around a poker table playing cards were six men, four of whom I recognized, plus a few women sitting on stools around the perimeter, chatting and watching TV. I looked at the girls for a second, and was suddenly reminded of Brenna. Where those women were all rail thin with huge tits and big hair, Bren was curvy and pouty and fucking sexy beyond belief. That was the problem with mob girls; they were all over-the-top and fake. But Brenna was natural, normal, and something about that drove me insane. It was her curves and the way she carried herself, like I couldn’t resist it.

As I moved further into the room, one of the guys caught my eye.

“Well look who it is,” he said.

“How are you, Jimmy?”

“Fine, I’m fine. The fuck you doin’ here?”

“I thought we could have a little conversation.”

I look at Jimmy and smiled. The men were all wearing dress shirts and suit pants, and Jimmy was the best dressed of the group. He was a few years older than me, though still young to be a boss. His hair was cropped short and he was starting to go a little soft in the middle, but he was still athletic and strong.

There was a strange, tense moment as all the guys stared at me, but I looked back without flinching. I knew it was just a scare tactic, trying to set me off-balance before we began to speak in earnest, so I didn’t let it get to me. I would never in a million years enter one of the Italian Mob’s places without announcing myself first. It wasn’t like our two organizations were at war or anything, but we were competitors in most deals, and it was best to keep a level head and to play by the rules when dealing with them. Jimmy knew that I was coming and absolutely expected me, but it was part of the game that we played.

Finally, Jimmy laughed and stood up. “Come with me.”

The other guys grinned at me then went back to playing cards. I noticed more than one of the girls staring, and I went to lengths not to stare back. Normally, I would have taken a pass at one of them, if only to try and piss off Jimmy, but suddenly I wasn’t interested at all. Not since Brenna had come back, at least.

Jimmy led me into a little back room and sat down behind his desk. He was a mid-level boss, nothing special or important, but we had a good relationship. I had helped him out with some legal troubles a while back, and he hadn’t forgotten that. Ever since then, we would trade information and exchange favors when possible. Although I could have gone higher up in his organization because of my promotion, I trusted Jimmy. At least, I trusted him as much as was possible in our line of work.

“So, what’s going on?”

“Not much, the same old shit.”

He laughed. “Same old shit? I heard you got a big promotion.”

I shrugged. “I guess so.”

“And here you are, still coming to see the lowly likes of me.”

“I have to be out among the common people every once in a while.”

He laughed and reached into his desk to pull out a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. He poured generously and nudged mine toward me. I took it.

“To our continued friendship, and to your success,” he said.

“Salute,” I replied.

“Salute.” We clinked glasses and drank.

That was the traditional opening.
Now, down to business,
I thought.

“Okay, what can I do for you?” Jimmy leaned back in his chair.

“I’m looking for some information.”

“What sort of information?”

“Do you know a guy named Vince Fabrizio?”

He paused and cocked an eyebrow. “He’s one of ours, from New York.”

“Yeah, he is.”

“He’s the son of one of the biggest bosses up there. What do you want with him?”

“You know Boss O’Brian has a daughter.”

He nodded. “What’s her name? Breanne?”

“Brenna.”

“That’s right, Brenna. Pretty name.”

“She lived in New York for a while. Got involved with the wrong people.”

Jimmy sighed. “Always a dangerous thing.”

“She dated Fabrizio. Got pretty close, apparently.”

He frowned, but didn’t say anything.

“Jimmy, he’s been making some threats. Even smacked her around a little bit. She’s back home now, but she’s scared.”

He held up his hands. “This is a bad situation.”

“Boss O’Brian is understandably pissed off. We can’t be having this sort of thing.”

“Of course. That sort of thing, it’s unacceptable.”

“We both know it gets overlooked all the time. That shit happens sometimes and sometimes we turn a blind eye on it because of our rules. But this, it’s different.”

“Of course, of course. Boss’s daughter can’t be treated that way.”

“What can you tell me about him?”

Jimmy sipped his drink, frowning. “First, what do you intend to do?”