“I swear to you on my grandmother’s life.”
Crunch.
“I would never betray you, Mr. Bennici, but I can only speak for myself.”
So he did it.
“Why are you looking at me?” The other man frowns. “Thirteen years I’ve worked for Mr. Bennici without incident!”
“You scheduled the delivery,” Ponytail counters. “I’ll tell you exactly what happened.”
“Start from the beginning,” Benny says.
“No.”
Did I say that out loud?
I push my food away. Benny’s glare is still deadly but shows no signs of immediate harm. I’m eighty-nine percent sure.
“What’s your name?” I ask Ponytail, who’s mugging me.
He glances at Benny for approval. “Dante.”
“Hi, Dante. Would you mind starting from the end and working your way to the beginning?”
“Why would I do that?”
I lift a shoulder. “Humor me.”
“Do what she says.”
It’s not my proudest moment to admit I’m turned on, but my kitty purrs, like these men won’t get chopped up and thrown into a garbage bag. In seventeen years as an HR manager, no one has defaulted to my recommendation so easily. It took crossing an ocean for a crime boss to do it, but my God today.
I want to thank Benny while dragging my fingers through his thick hair, but I refrain for the sake of my dignity and to stand on business.
Dante narrates an over-the-top story that’s missing explosions and a Hans Zimmer score. The man next to him narrows his eyes at the part about him running an errand.
“What store did you go to?”
“Mr. Bennici. I respect you, but who is this woman to question me?” Dante snarls. “Was there a change in leadership I don’t know about?”
Pow.
He’s on the floor, clutching his leg. Blood spills over his hands as he wails.
“Watch your fucking mouth if you want to make it out alive.” Benny lifts his gun to Dante’s other knee. “Answer her question.”
Lord, I know you’re not done with me yet, but please forgive my heaux thoughts for wanting to suck the skin off this man’s dick.
“Okay, okay!” Dante cries. “What was the question?”
“Trouble.”
And if you could keep me alive, I’d appreciate it—with a new living arrangement that’s not a dungeon. A villa would be preferable; the pool is optional.
“Trouble,” Benny says again.
Amen.
