Filthy: A Mafia Romance

Louis frowned a little, whether at my gratitude or my trembling words, I couldn’t say.

Before he could say anything, Ethan shifted me in his arms and looked hard at his trusted enforcer. “You saved her?” he confirmed, though it was obvious. I sure as hell hadn’t killed Tommy.

Louis nodded. “Yeah. Son of a bitch thought he could get the drop on me, but I wasn’t down for the count.” He fingered a spot on his head that I now realized was red with drying blood. It looked swollen and a little gruesome, but compared to the general size of the man, it wasn’t much. He was still larger than life and that bump on the head could have been a mosquito bite. “Guess I should be lucky he didn’t shoot me.”

“Why didn’t he?” Ethan asked, and I could hear the low, dangerous suspicion in his voice. A small part of me worried for Louis.

Louis didn’t waver as he said, “Probably didn’t want anyone to know he was here. Sound would’ve given him away.”

Ethan said nothing. Instead, his large hand rubbed along my back, soothing away the rawness in my nerves. I leaned on him a little harder, grateful for his presence and for the fact that I didn’t have to stand on my own.

There’s a dead man right there. How can there be a dead man right there?

I was probably in shock. I was a goddamned hairdresser for Christ’s sake. For a long, hard second, I found myself thinking I was in way over my head. This wasn’t my world and I shouldn’t be involved in things like this.

But even as I thought it, I had another thought: this is my damn shop. This is my damn life. And I wasn’t going to let people bully me anymore. Screw that.

I’m glad he’s dead, I thought and it was a little jarring to have a thought like that, but instantly I knew why.

Death meant he couldn’t hurt Cody—or me. And it also meant Ethan’s operation was safe and my business could continue as it had. When I looked at it from that perspective it was easy to see how killing someone was a lot more effective than calling corrupt cops.

“Are you all right?” Ethan mumbled into my hair.

I realized he was holding me tighter and he had been kissing my hair softly.

Pulling myself together, I nodded, my head still resting against his chest. “Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

I heard the worry in his voice, so out of place in a man like Ethan, and pulled away a little so I could look up into his face. His brow was furrowed and his full lips were pursed together, the corners of his mouth pulled down into a heavy frown. I studied that expression, deciding it was just as strange to see on him as it was to hear concern in his voice. He just wasn’t the type of man to show those sorts of things, even when he felt them.

It touched me to know I brought that out in him.

Swallowing back what lingered of my fear, I nodded. Then I pushed up onto the tips of my toes and pressed my lips against his. He responded immediately, melding his mouth to mine and using the strong arms wrapped around me to pull me closer to him. I had meant for the kiss to be reassuring, but not really lingering.

But I should have known better than to assume that any kiss with Ethan would be less than explosive.

One hand wound into my hair, pulling it free of its bun so he could clutch tightly at the strands. The other went lower to move over the pockets of my jeans. He squeezed my ass tightly, pulling me against his crotch at the same time. I felt his tongue slide against the seam of my lips, demanding entrance. And like all his demands, I obliged.

We tasted each other. I let his hands explore my body all over again, dipping beneath my shirt to my bare back. I knew I wasn’t wearing a bra. I was waiting for that moment when his fingertips would reach the underside of my breast.

When they did, I heard the clearing of a throat.

Breaking the kiss instantly, I flushed with embarrassment, glancing over at Louis. He was the standard picture of calm. Our little display hadn’t bothered him, but he must have wanted to get back to work.

“Don’t worry. Louis doesn’t mind,” Ethan told me in a low husky tone, repeating those same words he’d used on me that first time.

I swatted at him. “Yeah, well, I mind. There’s a damn body on the street!”

Ethan shrugged like it didn’t bother him, but he didn’t try to pull me back in for another kiss. Instead, he turned to Louis. “Did you actually call Todd?” he asked and I winced. I worried that if Louis answered yes, it would not be good for his health.