almost insane with the need to be free of his memories.
“Take it out,” he demanded, and she didn’t hesitate as her fingers nimbly undid his fly. When her hand wrapped around his dick, he growled, “Open your mouth.”
She was practically panting as her mouth opened for him. He stifled a moan when her lips closed around him and she pulled him in deep. She worked him, her tongue running up the length of him before she sucked him halfway down her throat. He grabbed her hair as his hips rocked back and forth, but instead of losing himself in the moment, all he could see was Darcy. When he came, the experience left him empty. The girl licked her lips before she stood; despite the fact that the encounter was unsatisfying, he reached for his wallet.
She touched his arm and smiled. “That was a freebie for the new kid.”
And then she sauntered off. He watched as she walked away with an emotion he wasn’t too eager to examine roiling in his gut. If you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas. One of Sister Anne’s favorite expressions. Trouble was, he was beginning to think that he was the dog. He silently cursed Darcy as he made his way to the owner’s office.
Mr. Santucci looked like a cliché of an Italian mob boss. He was big, tall, and thick, and hairy as hell. As soon as Lucien entered, Mr. Santucci looked up from his desk, a stogie clenched in his teeth.
“You the new kid?”
“Yeah.”
“You know the deal?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. You get pinched, you keep your fucking mouth shut, feel me?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll spring you, we’re a family, but only if you keep your mouth shut.”
“Got it.”
“You get a trial run. If that works, I’ll expand your route. Stay loyal to me and I’ll be loyal to you. We got a deal?” He reached his big, meaty hand across his desk, nodding at his bodyguards as if to indicate Lucien could approach without being shot. Lucien didn’t hesitate to step up and shake the older man’s hand.
“We got a deal.”
Lucien did his runs, got paid, and put a nice chunk of change away, and, though this wasn’t where he thought he’d be, he wasn’t alone anymore. That bubble burst about a year later when he got nicked by the cops. He did as instructed and kept his mouth shut, but he was soon to learn that Santucci wouldn’t be true to his word.
Jimmy came to see him on the day he was being transported to juvie.
“Jimmy, man, what the fuck took you so long?”
“Got bad news. Boss man is going to let you hang.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Lucien demanded.
“Too much heat, dude. He’s got to cut you loose. You’re on your own.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? What happened to the ‘we’re a family’ shit?”
“Sorry, dude.”
And without another word, Jimmy turned and walked away.
Lucien spent only two weeks in juvenile detention, and on the day he was released, he stood on the curb outside the building, planning to check on his money when the banks opened. He had been smart enough to open an account, because had he left it in a coffee can like Jimmy did, he knew it wouldn’t still be there. Yet his room at the club had been a perk of the job and, without that job, he was homeless—again.
His mind drifted to Darcy. He had a constant emotional tug-of-war over her—one minute he wanted to forget her and the next he missed her like hell.
He was bitter, yes, but it was Darcy, and all the bitterness in the world couldn’t turn his heart from her. He loved that girl and probably always would.
“Hey, you Lucien?”
As he turned, he moved up onto the balls of his feet just in case he needed to get away quickly. He eyed the kid—a couple years older than himself, dressed nicely, good haircut, fancy shoes, but there was no denying he had that hardness that only came from living on the streets. You could polish them up all you wanted, but underneath, he, like Lucien, was still a kid from the wrong zip code.
He gestured to the building behind Lucien before he said, “Did six months a few years back. Not too bad as long as you keep one eye open.”
“Shit, if that ain’t true.”
“I’m Dominic. I’ve been asked to offer you a job.”
Lucien was immediately skeptical—random people didn’t just stroll up to you and offer you a job. Not to mention