Page 11 of Mimosa

Mims knew Cosmo meant him and Abs, the two smallest and least likely to get into a knife fight. Well, it was true, but Mims wouldn’t stand around and let his family be hurt. “I’ll…I’ll do what I have to, you know, too.”

“I’m sure you will,” Sonny said, smiling.

Chills and sweats at once. Mims was having a reaction to the guy that he wasn’t used to.

Sonny was too young, and he was a cop. Two things that were far from his wish list when it came to boyfriend material. Still, whenever those dark eyes locked with his, he couldn’t form words or breathe.

“Well, we can iron out the details soon enough,” Murphy said, and Mims was glad of it. He didn’t want to be pushed to agree to pretend to be the guy’s boyfriend. He feared he’d fall for the guy and that never turned out well.

The old men he dated, well, he’d never been truly hurt by them. He went in fully expecting them to break his heart, so he was prepared. A guy like Sonny, well, the pull to him, he feared that too much. It might feel too real and his heart couldn’t take a rejection like that.

“I think,” Cosmo started, waving his hand in front of him to indicate all the cops, “this is the perfect amount of people that know about this. I mean, it’s a lot already. Too many people and the secret would be out. We’re small targets for them now, but if we become bigger targets, the kids and others in the pub would have to leave, and I think most of us would be nervous about doing the shows with the big crowds. There’s too much risk.”

“You all are risking a lot stealing. Don’t you worry about the kids if you get caught?” Sonny answered Cosmo, even as he glared at Murphy.

Murphy wasn’t one to back down to anyone. “I have contingencies that I won’t be discussing with you. Besides, my sister is already set to be their guardian if something unfortunate happens to their fathers. Is that enough for you?”

“Your sister is every bit as guilty as you are,” Sonny grunted.

“Prove it, snitch,” Murphy said with a smile.

Murphy rose from his chair and Sonny moved closer to him as they squared up to one another, and Mims was the one that stopped them that time. He got between them and said, “Enough, okay? Paps, Officer Sonny, whatever your name is, we shouldn’t be fighting each other.”

Sonny was close, and Mims smelled his cheap aftershave, but the thing was, it fit him. It was a scent of a working man, someone that put his heart and soul into his work. Or maybe that was in the man’s dark eyes. Narrowed in hatred for Murphy one moment, and widening, smiling, when they turned on him.

Taller than Mims, which wasn’t hard, Sonny cast his eyes down to look Mims in the eye. “Sorry. Just because I’m working with you all doesn’t mean I agree with what you do.”

“I’m a bartender and I do stuff on the computer.”

“Well, the rest of your crew does a lot more than that, and computer crimes are still crimes.” He was saying gruff things, and Mims could tell he wanted to sound that way too. He didn’t, however. His deep, sexy voice was warm and almost cheerful.

“I…know that, but…I try to work in the confines of the laws of this country and state,” he said flirtatiously.

“Do you?” he asked with a crooked smile and his eyes absolutely smoldered.

“Um, guys?” Sandy said near them. “Should we leave the two of you alone?”

Murphy pulled Mims away from Sonny and said, “One of my guys fucking a cop is already plenty, Mims.”

“Paps!”

Cosmo pulled him over and had him sit. While the others hammered out more of the details, Cosmo leaned over and whispered, “Are you into him?”

“Who wouldn’t be? He’s hot, but he’s not my type.”

“Yeah, he’s about fifty years too young. Maybe that makes him perfect for you.”

“You heard Paps. He…won’t let me.”

Cosmo laughed and said, “I doubt he’d deny you anything.”

Mims wasn’t so sure of that.

When they left, Sonny shook his hand and lingered there for a long moment. “I’ll, well, I’ll probably see you soon. When I first start going in, try to act like you don’t know me.”

“Idon’tknow you, but I know what you mean.”

Cosmo turned around from the front seat to speak to him on the way back to the pub. “Are you okay?”

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