Page 3 of Mafia Baby

“You need to go home, Guy.” My phone is in my bag, but I can’t feel it with the fingers that I’ve slipped inside. If I can get hold of my brother, I might be able to have him come and pick me up without this becoming too much of a scene. My father would hate for me to cause a scene.

“No, I jussht neethd…” He grabs my arm and starts pulling me toward the road. He might be a pale and sweaty drunk, but he goes to the gym every day, and I know I’m not strong enough to fight him off.

“Stop it, Guy, get the fuck out of here!” I project my voice to scare him, but his grip on my arm tightens. I stay calm, still trying to get ahold of my phone with my free hand.

“Let go of her.” A deep voice comes from the shadows. An arm attached to the voice grabs the back of Guy’s neck and pulls him backward. Guy’s eyes bulge as he lets go of my arm, stuttering and trying to convince the man holding onto him that there’s nothing going on.

As a car drives past us, its lights illuminate the man standing in front of me. I get my first glimpse of the face of the hero who stepped up to save me.

He’s tall, with dark hair that falls slightly around his eyes. His jaw is well-defined, although it looks like he’s clenching it. I see his arm, too, which has a cluster of tattoos on it. I’m instantly curious about what they mean to him.

Guy is trying to tell the man that I’m his girlfriend and that it’s none of his business. As strong as Guy is, he’s also not an idiot. I know he isn’t about to fight someone who is almost a foot taller than he is.

“She doesn’t want to go with you, so I’d suggest you respect that. Get in a cab, leave, and don’t come back,” the voice says again, and Guy nods, whimpering. That grip on his neck must be harder than it looks.

The man waves down a cab and pushes Guy into it, slamming the door shut in his face. Then he turns and walks inside without saying a word to me.

“Wait!” I call after him, following him back into the hot and noisy club. He keeps his back to me, refusing to turn around.

“Hey!” I yell.

He swings around, his face in a scowl. I see a scar across his left cheek and one on his neck. They intrigue me more than the tattoos I saw on his forearms outside.

His eyes, even in the dimly lit club, are a striking blue, which is a stark contrast to the rest of his dark features. The almost glow in the dim light of the club, and I feel my heart skip a beat.

“I—” I’ve lost my ability to speak, which isn’t normal for me. “I just wanted to thank you. He’s an ex-boyfriend, and he—“

“Look, I was just doing my job as the owner of the club,” the dark-haired mystery man cuts me off, and I stare at him in shock.

This isn’t what I expected from someone who just saved me from being tormented by my ex. My brain catches on him saying that he’s the owner of the club.

“I can still be grateful, can’t I?” I say, lifting my head. I can give this guy his own attitude right back. “I was going to offer you a drink as a thank you, but I guess that’s silly if you own the place.”

He nods and turns away again.

I watch him walk away, shouldering through the crowd. His shoulders are broad enough that it’s easy for him to push people out of the way. I admire the narrowness of his waist as he swivels to gently move a woman in a skimpy, skin-tight dress out of his way.

What the actual fuck was that even?

One of my friends that I came here with comes stumbling up to me, drunk and probably on something. She’s giggling and trying to tell me a story of some guy she just hooked up with in the bathroom.

I’m not listening because I still have eyes on Mr.-I-don’t-care. He’s leaning against the bar, talking to one of the bartenders. A dancer passes by him, and he reaches out to touch her shoulder.

I’m surprised by his gentle touch on her body and he seems to be having a cordial conversation with her by the bar before she moves away.

My staring at the handsome owner of the bar is interrupted by my friend running to the bathroom to throw up. I look after her with a sigh.

That is not how I wanted to be spending my night. I bite my lip and look after the mysterious man who just saved me. Something dangerous weaves its way through my veins, and I grin.

I’m tired of being just boring, good-girl Gianna and I’m about to kill that part of my life off, for good.

Chapter Two

Dominic

“Dom! It’s been way too long since we saw you! What have you been up to?” William Bianchi’s enthusiasm on the other end of the phone makes me smile just slightly.

My friend doesn’t ever seem to let the world get to him, which is a pleasant change from the people that usually surround me.

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