Captivated by the deadly mafia boss

Jakub

It’s been a week since we exchanged vows at my father’s home. Seven nights that I’ve gone to bed after having a mind-blowing orgasm. Nicole is as voracious and delicious as I remember her being, and now she’s all mine.

“Hey, boss.” Marcin enters my office, making sure to close the door behind him once inside.

“Marcin. What did you find out?” I ask right after our greeting. I’ve known Marcin since we were in school together. His father and mine worked side by side for much of their lives, making Marcin as much family as my own blood. After his father was killed during a drop gone bad years ago, Marcin came to work for me.

“You were right.” He rubs the back of his neck. A drop of sweat rolls down his temple, a testament to the humidity outside. “Henry didn’t go back to New York. Just like you thought, he’s still in Chicago.”Belongs to (N)ôvel/Drama.Org.

“And what’s the prick up to?” After seeing the way Henry sized Nicole up after the last meeting, I put Marcin on his trail. Piotr assured us Henry would be on the first flight home, but I wasn’t willing to bet Nicole’s safety on it.

“He’s been hanging around the bars, drinking himself stupid. Talking more trash than his ass can back up, but he’s doing it on Kaczmarek territory so he’s safe.”

“Of course. He wouldn’t open his fucking mouth around us.”

“You want me to keep following him?” Marcin asks, and I can see the hope in his eyes to be let off the detail.

“Have someone follow him; you can stop babysitting him. But I want eyes on him, Marcin. I don’t want him getting a block within this club or anywhere Nicole sets foot. Understood?”

He nods. “Of course. He won’t get near her.”

“Good.”

“How is married life treating you?” he asks, his tone dipping more casually now that business is settled.

“Fine.” I laugh. “Maybe you should look into it?”

He raises his brow. “Hell, no. I got plenty of time before that noose needs to tighten.”

“Yeah.” I sober a bit. “I said the same thing.”

“There’s the difference between being a hired hand and the second son, huh?” He grins. Marcin has never envied my position, but there have been plenty of times I wondered what having freedom like his would be like.

“Yeah, I suppose so.” My stomach grumbles, reminding me I haven’t eaten since breakfast. It’ll be dinnertime soon and I’m not sure if Nicole has had anything to eat besides some appetizer from the kitchen. She’s been chomping down nachos for the last few days while working in her office.

“Jakub.” Nora peeks her head in, sees Marcin then walks right in.

“How do you know I’m not in a private meeting?” I question her.

She gives me the same casual shrug as usual. “If it was private you would have locked the door.” She grins. “Bobby wants to talk with you about the build.”

My jaw tenses. “Don’t tell me he’s going to beg for more time.”

She shakes her head. “No. In fact I think he’s going to finish before the scheduled date and wants to talk about pay for the crew if they finish early.”

“They’ll just drag their feet if you don’t,” Marcin adds.

“Yeah, let him in. If they can get it done before schedule, I’ll give them a damn bonus. Anything to get the project rolling. The sooner the opening happens the sooner things will calm down around here.”

Nora’s lips spread into a knowing grin. “You mean, the sooner your wife won’t be tied down with so much work.”

“Don’t start.” I shoot her a chastising glare, which she just ignores.

“I’ll send him in.” She wiggles her fingers at me on her way out.

“Hey, Nora,” I call before she disappears. “Call over to Somsri’s and make a reservation for seven.”

She narrows her eyes. “You hate Thai.”

“Just make the reservations.” I wave her away. “And send Bobby in.”

“Will do,” she says.

“Thai?”

“Don’t touch it, Marcin.” I point to him and march to my desk.

“I can’t remember the last time you dared to eat somewhere that wasn’t your choice,” he continues, disregarding my directive.

“I can’t remember the last time I gave a shit about your opinion,” I throw back at him.

He laughs. “Okay, okay. I’ll leave. I’ll get eyes on Henry and report back to you anything I hear.”

“Oh, sorry. Nora said you guys were done.” Bobby, the foreman on the construction project, enters the office.

“Yeah, we are.” Marcin walks past him and closes the door on his way out.

“So. Nora says you’re ahead of schedule. That’s good.” I sink into my chair.

“Yeah. Instead of four weeks, we’ll be done in two,” he says, but there’s a hesitation.

“Our contract says you get paid for the whole thing even if you finish early,” I remind him. “So that’s not the issue, right?”

He steps closer to my desk, his hands flex at his sides. His hair is matted down from the combination of sweat and the hardhat he wears for his work. Dirt streaks his cheeks and his arms. His boots are discolored from paint, concrete, and whatever other mediums he uses on a daily basis.

“No, that’s not a problem.”

“Okay, then what is it?” I ask, giving him my full attention.

“Piotr Kaczmarek has offered a new contract.” He drops the information on me with the right amount of hesitation. The union Bobby works for belongs to us. We dictate what jobs they take and redirect them when projects become more profitable to employ other crews.

“Oh. And what did Piotr offer?” I force my tone to even out. My father doesn’t know anything about this, otherwise he’d be banging down my door to get ahead of it. For once, I have intel he and my brother don’t.

“One and half of yours.” He doesn’t sound like he’s happy with the offer though. “Look, Mr. Staszek. I couldn’t care less where I take my men to get work. If we work here or on the west side, it doesn’t mean anything to me, but I don’t want to put them in a middle of any bullshit that could get them hurt.”

His loyalty to his men is admirable.

“And you think taking the deal will put them in harm’s way?” I ask. How much does this foreman know about what his union leaders are doing beneath the table?

“I think when you make a deal, you take it seriously. If that deal gets broken because someone else stepped on your toes, there could be… trouble.”

Smart man.

“And you want to be sure there’s no trouble if you take the new project.”

He shakes his head. “We’re just the worker bees, but we don’t want the new project. We’d like to stick to the original contract. I’m sure the union will have their votes and do what they will, but I want you to know what’s happening.”

I narrow my gaze on him. He’s not in charge, not with any real authority, but he’s passing on this information.

“And how do you know this deal is being struck?”

He shrugs. “Sometimes people talk around the muscle because they think we don’t have brains.”

So true.

“I appreciate the information.” I stand up from my desk and offer him my hand. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I’m sure your crew will be working with my family for a long time.”

His hand is callused and hard when it wraps around mine. With a quick shake he releases it.

“Good to hear.”

After he’s gone, I pick up my phone and call my brother. Whatever Kaczmarek is trying to do, we’ll be ready for the move.