Page 3 of Gangster Daddy's Girl

“What I do is my business,” he says, his tone hard.

Tyson’s icy blue eyes bore into mine, making me shift in my seat. I’m so wet it’s uncomfortable. I am so incredibly conflicted. I shouldn’t be feeling so turned on by a man like this. I’m under no illusions about who and what he is. He’s a gangster. He’s a drug dealer. And who knows what else he gets up to in the shadows? I should be disgusted and repulsed by this man. But there’s something about him that intrigues me. Compels me. I’m drawn to him in ways I know I shouldn’t be.

“What do you do?” Tyson asks.

I open my mouth, fully intending to tell him what I do is my business, but when the words come out, I’m dismayed to hear something completely different fall out.

“I’m a nursing student,” I tell him. “I go to Southern Coast.”

He nods. “Nursing. That’s a good career. I’m sure you’re going to help a lot of people.”

There’s something in his voice, some strange tone beneath his words I can’t quite interpret. It almost sounds to me like he’s envious. The car stops, and when I look out the window, I’msurprised to find that we’re outside my building. There’s some small part of me that’s surprised he actually took me home. Tyson’s gaze lingers on me, sending a shudder that’s not all that unpleasant through my body.

“You’re home,” he says.

“Right. Well, thanks for the ride,” I say, tearing my eyes from him.

I climb out of his SUV and close the door behind me. Even through the smoked glass windows, I can feel his gaze on me. I shouldn’t want it to be. I should turn, walk into my building, and put him out of my mind forever. But there’s some small piece of me that likes the hunger I’d seen in his eyes. I hate that I do, but … I do.

Shaking my head and trying to slap some sense into myself, I walk into my building.

3

TYSON

“Where’s your head at today, man?” I raise my head and look at Marco, who’s staring back at me, his dark eyes filled with curiosity. Marco’s been my best friend since we were kids, and he’s my most trusted lieutenant. He picks up my slack and pretty much runs the business alongside me. There is nobody I trust more in this world. “You all right, bro?”

“Yeah. I’m fine. Why?”

“Because you’re staring off into space with this stupid look on your face,” he says. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you looked like a lovesick fuckin’ puppy.”

“Fuck off,” I say, and we share a laugh.

“Seriously, what’s up?”

“Nothing’s up.”

“Then why’d you beat the shit out of Dawson and Rico last night?”

“Because they’re idiots and deserved it?”

“They’ve been idiots who deserved a beating a long time,” he points out. “Why now? What did they do to finally push you over the edge?”

I let out a long, loud sigh as I sit back in my chair and think about it for a moment, trying to decide whether to share what happened last night or not. It was so out of character for me that I honestly don’t know if I should. But if there is anybody I’m going to talk to about this, it should be Marco. Part of me wants to. No woman has ever had the sort of impact that Tabitha had on me. Even today, I can’t stop thinking about her. But I don’t think I’m ready to talk to anybody about this yet. Not until I’ve figured it out myself.

“I stopped by to check on them last night and found them harassing a young woman.”

Marco’s eyebrow immediately shot up. “A young woman, huh?”

“I don’t pay those clowns to harass women on the street.”

“But it’s never bothered you like this before. I mean, that’s like their entire personality,” he says. “So, what is it about this particular woman that got you so riled up?”

“Nothing. I guess they just caught me on a bad night.”

He stares at me for a long minute then chuckles. “I guess so. Anyway, they came to me earlier. They want a second chance.”

“And they can fuck right off. I’m tired of those idiots.”

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