Gangsters with Guns Episode #3 (16 page)

“Firing me won’t change anything,” he said. “I care about you too much to let anything happen to you. Even if that means risking my life.”

She opened the door then. “You’re insane.”

Maybe she was right. Love was its own kind of insanity.
 

He ended the whole ridiculous argument with a kiss. His lips moved feverishly on hers with the soul-bearing truth of his need and desire for her. She made a startled gasp, and then, miraculously, yielded and opened to him.

He clutched her to him. His whole life might be wrapped in deception, but this much—this passion, this intensity—was absolutely real and couldn’t be denied.
 

With his kiss, he told her everything she wasn’t ready to hear, all the true and loving words he couldn’t say when everything else about him was a carefully constructed lie.

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Read the rest of the
Kings of Brighton Beach Series
. The gang will be back in
Part 2: Mobbed Up
, with the first episode to be released in summer 2015. Visit
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There’s an excerpt after this.

ACADEMIA HAS NEVER been so naughty.

The university men in Professor Melanie Stevenson’s life pressure her to take her proper place—under them. While the proper professor indulges in daring daydreams of … submitting to their will, her “evil” twin cracks the whip, so to speak, to work out the kinks in higher education.

Keep reading for an excerpt from the first short story in the series,
Pleasing Professor
.
 

HE WANTED THINGS his way, on his terms, and he would crush or damage anything that got in his way. Melanie would have been quaking in her sober pumps from fear … and lust.
 

Too bad for him she wasn’t Melanie. Or maybe that would be good for him… and for her. She would be more than happy to play professor and teach the haughty Hunter a thing or too.
 

“This is a bullshit course, and everyone knows it,” he said.

“Then why’d you take it?”

“Because it was supposed to be easy. I already know everything I need to know about sex.”

“Do you? Close the door.”
 

He glanced at her with surprise, perhaps because he expected Melanie’s Sesame Street voice and sweetness, or perhaps because he thought he was in charge and this interview was going better than he’d hoped.
 

He pulled the door shut. “I’m willing to show you—in exchange for a better grade.”
 

“Oooh. The ultimate sacrifice,” she said.
 

He stalked toward her and pulled her out of her chair. “I know you want me. I’ve seen how you look at me. I’m willing to give you what you want.”

“I bet that’s what you tell all the girls.”

“Only the hot ones,” he said.

“I bet they line up for the honor.”

“They do,” he said, with the confidence of someone surrounded at all times by sycophantic admirers. “I’m a sex expert.”

“Who told you that? The inexperienced college girls you fumble in the dark? Forgive me if I’m unimpressed.”

 
“I’ll make it good for you,” he said.
 

She didn’t need a doctorate to read the raw desire in his eyes. What would he do if his professor gave him
exactly
what he wanted?
 

“How’s this supposed to go?” she asked. “Am I supposed to say, ‘Oh, yes, Hunter, I want you’?” She mimicked Melanie’s sweetest, squeakiest muppet voice. She slipped out of his hold and perched on her desk. “Take me, Hunter. Right here. Right now. Brighten my miserable life with your godlike touch. Oh, oh, Hunter, I
crave
you. I’m incomplete without your golden hands kneading my skin.” She leaned back on her elbows, spread out on the desk, her legs falling open. “Take me. Take me now. Give me the orgasm I’ve never had, and I’ll give you the A you want.”

He moved toward her as if her invitation were real.
Seriously?
 

I have been the fortunate recipient of a number of blessings in the process of creating this series.
 

Dina Fishbein and Lisa Shiroff, comrades in the writing trenches, critique partners, and most importantly friends—these incomparable women push me to bring out the best in myself and my writing. My life and my work are both infinitely better as a result. I trust we will celebrate many books, theirs and mine, together.

Producing these first episodes has been a team effort. I am immensely grateful for the beautiful work of editors Denise Vitola and Lynne Cannon Menges and of cover designer Asha Hossain. I also thank the brave beta readers who shared their impressions and critiques of early drafts.

Steve Bennett appeared in my life at exactly the right moment with his wisdom and enthusiasm, joining me on this adventure and convincing me to follow my vision for publishing this series in episodes instead of novels. I am ever so grateful that he has taken me under his wing. I also thank him and his talented team at AuthorBytes for creating a website home for my series and opening the world of social media to me.

Joseph Pascarella, retired Captain of the Brooklyn Police Department, has been another unexpected and wonderful blessing. His guidance on police procedure, jargon, and “mobbed up” crime scenes has been invaluable. Any mistakes are, of course, my own.

Thank you to my friends and family for believing in me and loving me, my neurotic obsession with my fictional characters notwithstanding. I gratefully acknowledge the first readers of this work, especially those at my day job, who didn’t laugh when I told them what I was doing and eagerly demanded to see more. Thank you for being my first fans. I especially thank my mother, who taught me that every blade of grass has its own angel telling it to grow and that I should listen to that special voice.

Finally, I thank my husband and children—for your love and support, for the beauty and meaning you bring to my life, and for your humor and caution in entering my dangerous writing lair where I am prone to bite your heads off.

D. B. Shuster is married to a Russian man, who regularly assures her he is not a member of the mob. By day, she is a professor of Sociology, and her research keeps her busy with facts and numbers. By night, she lets her imagination run free with dark and twisted tales of crime and intrigue. Sometimes she sleeps. She lives in New York with her family.

I love to hear from readers. Here are some ways to connect with me:

Email:
[email protected]

Website:
dbshuster.com
 

Twitter: @DBShuster

Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/dbshuster/

Aleksei.
Aleksei Koslovsky. Katya's husband.
 
Son of Artur and Maya.
 
Inna's brother.
 

Anya.
Young waitress at Troika.
 

Artur.
Artur Koslovsky. Maya's husband.
 
Father of Inna and Aleksei.
 
Ivan's former partner. A powerful figure in the Russian mob.
 

Dato.
Dato Dzhugashvili. Head of Georgian crew.
 

Dr. Kasporov.
Psychiatrist on Artur's payroll who used to treat Inna.
 

Dr. Shiffman.
Marjorie Shiffman. Inna's therapist.
 

Frankie.
Francesca Salvatore. Nick's stepsister.
 

Gennady.
Gennady Morozov. Representative of the Directorate.
 

Goga.
Dato's bodyguard.
 
Member of the Georgian crew.
 

Gregorovich.
Artur Gregorovich. KGB agent who Nick believes murdered his family and now goes by the alias Artur Koslovsky.
 

Hershey.
Saul Hersh. Homicide detective who sent Ivan to prison on trumped up charges.
 

Inna.
Inna Koslovsky. Daughter of Artur and Maya Koslovsky.
 
Aleksei's sister.
 

Ivan.
Ivan Chertoff. Vlad's father.
 
Notorious vor v zakone, currently in prison for murder.
 

Jack.
Jack Roseman. Co-owner of Troika with Aleksei.
 
Katya's brother-in-law.
 

Katya.
Katya Koslovsky. Aleksei's wife.
 

Kolya.
Nikolai Salvatore. Kolya is the Russian diminutive of Nicholai and Nick's Russian nickname.
 

Marano.
Tony Marano. Police officer on Artur's payroll.
 

Marco.
Marco Salvatore. Nick's stepbrother.
 
Roman is his twin.
 

Maya.
Maya Koslovsky. Artur's wife.
 
Mother of Inna and Aleksei.
 

Mikhail.
Mikhail Gorki. Aleksei's best friend.
 
Member of Artur and Victor's crew.
 
Maya's lover.
 

Mimi.
Sofia Salvatore. Nick's mother.
 
Paul's wife.
 
Frankie, Roman, and Marco's stepmother.
 

Nadia.
Nadia Ambramovich. Vlad's estranged mother.
 
Ivan's lover.
 

Nick.
Nikolai Salvatore. Katya's co-worker.
 
Believes Artur is the KGB agent who destroyed his family.
 

Nonna.
Nick's step-grandmother. Paul's mother.
 

Paul.
Paul Salvatore. Nick's stepfather.
 

Philip.
Svetlana's son.
 

Roman.
Roman Salvatore. Nick's stepbrother.
 
Roman is his twin.
 

Rosales.
Detective from Brooklyn Police Department.
 

Saul.
Saul Hersh. Homicide detective who sent Ivan to prison on trumped up charges.
 

Sharp.
Detective from Brooklyn Police Department.
 

Slim.
A member of Ivan's crew.
 

Sofia.
Sofia Reitman. Artur's lover.
 
Nick's mother.
 
Artur suspects the Directorate of her murder.
 

Stan.
Pharmacist who works for Aleksei.
 

Sveta.
Svetlana Timoshenko. Bartender at Troika.
 

Svetlana.
Svetlana Timoshenko. Bartender at Troika.
 

Torpedo.
A member of Ivan's crew.
 

Victor.
Victor Zhirov. Artur's partner in his work for the Directorate.
 

Vitaliy.
Mikhail's friend and co-conspirator.
 

Vlad.
Vladimr Abramovich. Son of Ivan and Nadia.
 
Handles security for Artur's operation.
 

Zviad.
Member of the Georgian crew found murdered at Troika.
 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 2015 D. B. Shuster
 

Cover Illustration Copyright © 2014 Crime Bytes Media
Cover design by Asha Hossain, Asha Hossain Design, Inc.

Editing by Denise Vitola

Copy editing by Lynne Cannon Menges

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