Page 10 of Desperate Desires

Just as I was grabbing my coat and making to leave, I heard the door slam open. I spun around to see two ex-employees standing there with a pair of sawed-off shotguns pointed right in my face.

“Yo, Bottarelli! Happy New Year, motherfucker!”

Fuck.

Usually, when you were facing weapons like that your first instinct was to turn and run.

But if these assholes wanted a shot at me, they were going to have to take it head on, and there were plenty of guys who didn’t want that on their hands.

But fuck them. If they wanted a piece of me, they were gonna have to find their balls and take it.

I recognized them. Anger boiled inside my blood as I clenched my jaw and faced my assailants.

Frankie and Vic D’Amato.

Brothers.

Idiots.

And soon to be dead men.

I didn’t run.

I charged them.

And yeah, I got shot, but I took both those fuckers out with one of their own guns before turning to Tony.

“Call Big Mike. Tell him to send a cleaner, and I’ll be in touch,” I growled, and hauled my shot up ass out of there.

“Yes, sir, Mr. Bottarelli,” Tony said, face pale, but hands steady as he started dialing.

The fuckers had double parked, blocking my Lincoln.

No way I could fucking drive out of there, and I had to go. I was losing too much blood.

The sounds of sirens were drawing nearer as I ducked down alleys and tried a few backdoors until I remembered her.

See, Sammy had told me when his cousin—Shelly, he called her—took an apartment in my town. He explained she wasn’t a blood cousin, but she was family, and he asked me to keep an eye out.

So, I did. Yes, I was very aware of Michelle Davis moving to Hoboken. And out of courtesy to Sammy, I kept a distant eye.

But that was all about to change as I walked into the courtyard behind her rented apartment.

Of course, I didn’t know she’d be home, at first. Figured she might be out or away for the holidays.

I hissed at the pain writhing through my body and used my good shoulder to bust in the back door.

She should have a better lock.

It fucking angered me that she was so careless with her person. That she lived without any good security.

No alarm.

No storm door.

No lights.

What the fuck?

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