Free Captive of the Hitman: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance Novel by Alexis Abbott, Alex Abbott Page B

she can see right through me to the core, to the truths I hide away from everyone.
    “How is it you know this place so well?” she asks, perceptive as I feared.
    I lick my lips, hesitating a moment. I’m not a very personable guy. You share too much with people, it gets used against you. I’ve seen it a thousand times, over and over again. If it’s not a fellow gunman in the bratva, it’s a man’s wife ratting him out, or his best friend. His brother.
    But I can’t help myself with her.
    “It was where I first arrived in America. Hidden in one of those shipping containers back there,” I say, hooking a thumb over my shoulder. “The bratva arranged it all with the Union Club, and from there…I went on to New York to really sink my teeth into business.”
    “Oh,” she says, accepting it all as if that were the normal way to come to America. Her brows furrow in thought, and I can’t help but wonder what’s racing through her mind. She’d been clever, locked in her little cell. I had to keep a close eye on her the entire time, making sure she stayed put, but someone like her can’t be locked up forever. A keen mind and a youthful exuberance for life...
    At least here she’d have some entertainment, some other people to talk to who can keep her out of trouble. It’s for the best.
    “How long ago was that?”
    “Very long ago,” I say, not wanting to go into any more detail than that. I am a few years her senior after all, and I don’t care much for reflecting on the passage of time my own self.
    It’s a nice little town, all in all, and I decide to change the subject with some info on the place. “This is a quiet place, the club keeps things like that. Keeps the violence and drugs out.”
    I see it up ahead, the club we’re headed towards. The Glass sounds fancier than it really is, and that much becomes apparent by the rows of motorcycles lined up outside.
    “Yea, I read about it in the news, a biker gang that helps 12 year old girls stand up to their abusive parents. I guess they can add helping out damsels in distress to their list too,” she says, her saucy mouth curling into a wicked smile that makes me instantly want to crush her lips against mine.
    Her emerald eyes twinkle as she looks at me, and I think she’s even daring me to.
    And just about as my resolve is about to crumple, a knock at the window cockblocks me.
    It’s Leon.
    I push open the door immediately and stand up to the guy. He’s a big man himself now, but I do my best to loom as ominously over him as I can.
    “ The Lone Wolf ,” he says darkly to me. “You’ve got some fucking nerve coming back into this town.”

10

Alicia
    T he entire drive , Mikhail seemed different. But for those few seconds, I really thought he’d return some affection, or at least acknowledge it. It’s not that he’s been distant, not really, because he chatted more casually the entire trip. It took longer than expected, since when we first arrived Mikhail took one look at the bar and somehow instantly knew the guy he wanted wasn’t there. He plays coy, but I’m guessing it’s just because the guy’s motorcycle wasn’t out front. We drove around, and he treated me to a meal before we returned at night.
    I just don’t know where we stand, and it’s super awkward to not know if it was a one-night stand, and if I’m just blowing things out of proportion. For all my partying, I’ve never done what I did with Mikhail last night, and I can still smell his skin on mine.
    But now he’s standing toe-to-toe with some guy who looks built like a brick wall, same as him. I feel like I’m going to finally see what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, and I shrink back in my seat.
    The two men have an ominous stare-off, both huge and looking ready for a fight. This new guy is wearing leather, and has the appearance of a more traditional thug though, some motorcycle gangers. I have no idea what to expect, so I just hold my breath