Jerked: A Stepbrother Mob Romance (City Series) by B. B. Hamel Page A

looked up at me as I approached. He was your typical mob muscle, probably pretty low down on the totem pole. Definitely not a Made Man, at least.
    “I’m here to see Jimmy.”
    The guy’s expression didn’t change. “Who the fuck are you?”
    “Colin Blake. He’s expecting me.”
    The goon knew exactly who I was, but we had to play our parts. Sometimes it was exhausting trying to keep up with all the bullshit.
    He stood up slowly, frowning. “Got to check you.”
    I nodded, knowing the drill. I spread my legs and arms and let him pat me down. His clumsy, ham-like hands found the small piece I always carried when I was out running errands tucked into my waistband. I wasn’t exactly trying to hide it from him, but he gave me his triumphant look anyway, like he'd pulled one over on me.
    He pulled it out and held it up. I shrugged and gave him an innocent smile. “I forgot about that one.”
    He didn’t laugh, just jerked his head at the door and held onto my gun. I grinned at him and pushed through. Humorless goons , I thought to myself.
    Inside, the room was dark and smoky. Sitting around a poker table playing cards were six men, four of whom I recognized, plus a few women sitting on stools around the perimeter, chatting and watching TV. I looked at the girls for a second, and was suddenly reminded of Brenna. Where those women were all rail thin with huge tits and big hair, Bren was curvy and pouty and fucking sexy beyond belief. That was the problem with mob girls; they were all over-the-top and fake. But Brenna was natural, normal, and something about that drove me insane. It was her curves and the way she carried herself, like I couldn’t resist it.
    As I moved further into the room, one of the guys caught my eye.
    “Well look who it is,” he said.
    “How are you, Jimmy?”
    “Fine, I’m fine. The fuck you doin’ here?”
    “I thought we could have a little conversation.”
    I look at Jimmy and smiled. The men were all wearing dress shirts and suit pants, and Jimmy was the best dressed of the group. He was a few years older than me, though still young to be a boss. His hair was cropped short and he was starting to go a little soft in the middle, but he was still athletic and strong.
    There was a strange, tense moment as all the guys stared at me, but I looked back without flinching. I knew it was just a scare tactic, trying to set me off-balance before we began to speak in earnest, so I didn’t let it get to me. I would never in a million years enter one of the Italian Mob’s places without announcing myself first. It wasn’t like our two organizations were at war or anything, but we were competitors in most deals, and it was best to keep a level head and to play by the rules when dealing with them. Jimmy knew that I was coming and absolutely expected me, but it was part of the game that we played.
    Finally, Jimmy laughed and stood up. “Come with me.”
    The other guys grinned at me then went back to playing cards. I noticed more than one of the girls staring, and I went to lengths not to stare back. Normally, I would have taken a pass at one of them, if only to try and piss off Jimmy, but suddenly I wasn’t interested at all. Not since Brenna had come back, at least.
    Jimmy led me into a little back room and sat down behind his desk. He was a mid-level boss, nothing special or important, but we had a good relationship. I had helped him out with some legal troubles a while back, and he hadn’t forgotten that. Ever since then, we would trade information and exchange favors when possible. Although I could have gone higher up in his organization because of my promotion, I trusted Jimmy. At least, I trusted him as much as was possible in our line of work.
    “So, what’s going on?”
    “Not much, the same old shit.”
    He laughed. “Same old shit? I heard you got a big promotion.”
    I shrugged. “I guess so.”
    “And here you are, still coming to see the lowly likes of me.”
    “I have to be out