KYLE: A Mafia Romance (The Callahans Book 4) by Glenna Sinclair

pays for what he gets.”
    “You calling us cheap?”
    I shrugged. “If the shoe fits.”
    The man charged me like a bull looking for easy prey. It was a dance of machismo that I’d found myself drawn into a million times before. He wanted to prove that his group was bigger and more dangerous than mine was. The thing was, no one was bigger or more dangerous than the Irish mob.
    He got in a few good shots, a blow to my jaw and a couple of quick punches to my ribs. But then I flipped him over and made sure he’d need a plastic surgeon when it was all said and done.
    I spit on him when I stood to my feet, a little bit of blood splattering on his shirt. He probably wouldn’t notice, however, because he had plenty of his own blood there already.
    “You’re a fool,” I told him. “Should have kept your dirty mouth shut.”
    I looked at his buddies, waiting for them to try to defend their friend. But they simply picked him up and carried him out to their car.
    “Sorry about that,” one of the men said, coming over to me with his hand extended. “He’s a little bit of a hot head.”
    “Maybe he just learned a good lesson.”
    “I hope so.”
    We shook hands, and I waited until they were gone.
    Could’ve been worse. Could’ve been six on one.
    Killian pulled up out front a few minutes later.
    “You look a little worse for the wear,” he commented, holding out a handkerchief as I climbed into the car. A quick glance in the mirror and I realized that the blow to my jaw had split my lip.
    “Just a little scuffle.”
    “Looks more like a big scuffle, brother. You’re getting a little slow in your old age.”
    “If I don’t let them get a few blows in first, they cower the next time we come face to face. At least this way, they have a little spirit left.”
    Killian laughed. “Leave it to you to worry about their spirit.”
    He pulled away from the curb and sped through the streets, headed toward Beacon Hill and my house.
    “When do we get to meet her?”
    “News travels pretty fast around this family, doesn’t it?”
    “Well, when our rebellious, I’m-never-getting-married brother comes home with a new bride, you have to forgive our curiosity.” Killian glanced at me. “Stacy’s worried. She thinks someone is playing a game with you.”
    “It’s not like that.”
    “Then you really like this girl?”
    “You’ll like her, too, once you get to know her.”
    “What’s her name?”
    “Amelia.”
    “Classy. Much better than Candi or Cookie.”
    “She’s not like that. She’s not like the other cocktail waitresses.”
    “Good.”
    I looked at myself in the mirror again, dabbing at the blood that refused to stop seeping from my lip. And then I noticed the dust stuck to my jacket. I sat up a little, slipping the jacket off and brushing at the dirt adhering to my cuffs. I didn’t want to freak Amelia out when I walked into the loft.
    “You’ve got someone with her?”
    “Colin.”
    Killian nodded. “Good man.” He gripped the wheel a little harder. “Pops wants you, me, and Ian at the house tonight. The Italians are making a move on the McKinnon warehouse. He wants to talk about what we’re going to do about it.”
    “Jack doesn’t want to lose that warehouse. It’s one of the few left that the cops haven’t been watching.”
    “Yeah, well, I’m not as worried about the cops as I am the Italians. The cops we can deal with. The Italians…we’ve lost half a dozen men in the last week alone.”
    “That many?”
    “Make sure you’re watching your back, brother. And keep a close eye on Jack, too.”
    I nodded, but I had to admit there was this little trickle of regret that I wouldn’t be able to spend as much time in Amelia’s company as I’d hoped. It sounded like things were going to be crazy for the unforeseeable future.
    We’d just have to make the most of what time we did have.

Chapter 9
    Kyle
     
    Amelia was lying down when I got home. I sent Colin away and took the stairs two