Guns n' Boys Book 1 Part 1 (24 page)

“It’s trial and error.
That’s how I learned to do it.” Domenico started slowly circling Seth, whose
flared nostrils were an indication of how hot he was getting.

“I don’t believe you.
You don’t just come up with Jackie Chan shit like this!” Seth didn’t even
blink, watching Dom’s every move and backing off whenever Dom approached him.

“Martial arts you have
to learn, but fistfights are mostly strength, which you have, and reflex, which
you need to practice.”

Seth nodded and
attempted a punch to Dom’s chest but got distracted when two girls walking
their dogs whistled at them and laughed.

“Easy now,” said
Domenico, before shouting something to them in German.

“How many languages do
you speak?” Seth cocked his head to the side. Focus wasn’t his strong side, so
much was certain.

“Six.” Domenico grinned
at him. “Plus accents and variations.”

“Wow.” Seth’s body
relaxed. “Your German is like… it has no accent. You should speak to me in
German in bed sometimes.” He laughed and moved again. He was looking for a hole
in Domenico’s defenses, which was a futile attempt at his level..

“German has many
accents, which one do you prefer?” Domenico smiled at the appreciation. He knew
he deserved it, but he enjoyed actually hearing it from Seth.

“Oh wow, I probably
wouldn’t know the difference. But that’s amazing. I can’t even do English
without an accent.” The twinkle of adoration in Seth’s eyes was worth learning
an extra language.

“I can speak with the
British, Irish, Scottish, standard American, Australian accents. Oh, and the
southern US states.” Domenico grinned, boasting with pride. He loved seeing
Seth’s eyes go wider.

“You’re shitting me!
That’s amazing. You must have acting talent.”

“I do. I could have been
a movie star if I weren’t an assassin. This shit requires a degree of
anonymity.”

Seth wouldn’t stop
grinning, and his fists were up just for show, jeans hanging low on his hips.
“That is so true. When I first saw you, I thought you were a model. Like, you
know, that they hired an actor or something. Couldn’t you be like a double
agent? Actor by day, assassin by night.” Seth wiggled his eyebrows. He wasn’t
the best liar so he really had to find it all exciting.

“Would you like that? If
I were a model for Armani, or Prada?” Domenico moved as soon as he saw an
opening in Seth’s defenses and smacked him next to the eye.

“That’s not fair, model
boy! I was distracted.” Seth moaned and put his fists closer by his face,
taking a step to the side. “I’d like to fuck a model though.” He stuck his
tongue out at Dom.

“Yeah? We could pretend
we don’t know each other, and I’m a high fashion model.”

Seth zeroed in on his
eyes and licked his lips. “I’d take you shopping, Pretty Man.”

“You’d let me fuck you
in the backseat of my car.” Domenico launched himself at the beautiful beast
again. Putting sex on Seth’s mind made him an easy target, and Dom hit the side
of his head without effort. Seth turned and tried to elbow Dom’s stomach, but
Dom managed to take a step back.

“Try harder, of I’ll use
my fist next time.”

The punished Labrador
eyes he got were priceless, but before he could go through with it, his phone
rang.

“Break,” he told Seth
and reached into his pocket, picking up a call from Luigi. “Good afternoon. How
are things back at home?”

Seth instantly took the
opportunity to sit down in the grass.

“Tense,” Luigi said.
“Dino’s decision is not going down well.”

“I can imagine that.”
Domenico dropped to the ground next to Seth and leaned into him, pleased with
the smell of fresh sweat. Ah, the labor of love.

“No decisions, no
movement has been made, but Vincente went to Palermo today. With the
consigliere
and his son.”

Domenico frowned, not
even noticing when his hand went behind Seth’s back. Things were moving faster
than he had expected. “What is the Don saying?”

“I don’t understand it,
Domenico. He is as happy as ever. Always has that greasy smile on his face.
Just today, he went for some tennis with an associate.”

Seth smiled at Dom and put
his cheek on his shoulder, happy as ever.

“Well, you’ll be happy
to know Seth is trying very hard to step up to the plate.” Domenico nuzzled his
cheek, although his mind was already racing to the three men in Palermo.

Seth’s smile got wider
at those words, and he started picking on bits of grass.

Luigi growled. “How
hard? Can you feel it in him? Does he have drive?”

Domenico sighed and
briefly switched to German. “I don’t think so, but I’m doing my best. He’s here
by the way.” He then smiled and rustled Seth’s hair as he turned back to
Italian. “That’s what she told me.”

Luigi was silent for a
few seconds. “I want to talk to him,” he said finally.

“Alone, or do you want
us to use the loudspeaker?”

“Put the speaker on,”
said Luigi and continued when Dom confirmed it had been done. “Good afternoon,
Seth. This is Luigi Tassa speaking. How are you doing? Adjusting well?”

“I’m, um… hello, yeah, I
suppose. Domenico is teaching me lots of stuff.”

“We’ve been training
since the early in the morning,” added Domenico, smiling at him.

“And we went to church
of course.” Seth winked, but Dom knew Luigi wasn’t big on joking around.

“Good, it’s Sunday after
all.” Luigi thankfully didn’t get Seth’s sarcasm. “I chose this mission myself,
Seth. It’s crucial for you to understand how important loyalty is. I believe
that finding the rat in the Family and getting rid of him or her will be a good
show of power, a first step. You need to learn quick.”

The smile on Seth’s face
faltered. “Yes, sir.”

“Do you know anything
more about her background now?” asked Domenico, petting Seth’s back. Tension
was clear in his body, and his tendons had to be stiff enough to hurt.

“Yes, the Triad made
contact with her in Beijing, when she was on a trip, but the insider from our
Family actually met with her in Berlin. We suspect it was the insider arranging
her meeting with the Chinese, and that they knew Vera by further family ties,
but we can’t trace it. Seth, do you understand we put extreme trust in you that
this knowledge is shared with you?”

Seth swallowed, without
looking at Dom, focused on the grass instead. “Yes, sir. We’re working on it.
We’ll get the bitch to talk.” It sounded more like something Seth thought
sounded good than what he would actually say.

“We’re acting according
to plan, but we’ll soon be able to seize her.” Domenico sighed and looked at
his mentor’s name on the display. The more he thought about Vincente and the
consigliere
going off to Palermo together, the more nervous he was. Especially that it
couldn’t be for a fuckfest in an expensive hotel.

“Good. Don’t rush Seth
though. Keep your head cool. I know you want revenge.”

“Sir?” Seth cleared his
throat. “How did she track me?”

Luigi let out a sigh.
“She found you through the university records. Then your IP was tracked and
when you placed an ad online, she used the opportunity to lure you. Then the
Chinese took over. Whoever gave her the order used her as a smokescreen to keep
their hands clean.”

Seth rubbed his forehead
with a scowl. “Thank you. I… yeah. I will never make a mistake like that
again.”

“I’ll make sure he won’t
be in any danger,” added Domenico, never stopping to touch Seth. He even slid
his fingertips into the back of Seth’s jeans. They were alone on a meadow
between the trees, in a public park, but without that many people around, they
could relax or train in peace.

“I will keep you both
informed about anything necessary. The Don is grieving.”

“Thank you,” Seth said
and after a curt goodbye, Luigi disconnected. “Show of power,” Seth whispered,
never looking up at Dom.

“What?” Domenico pushed
the phone back into the pocket of his jeans.

“It’s getting real,
isn’t it?”

“It has been real the
whole time.” Domenico rubbed his hand over Seth’s back. “You chose not to see
it.”

Seth hid his face in his
hand. “I’m super-fucked.”

He was walking
desperation. Soft, weak, inexperienced, he had to rely on Domenico. It was
peculiar to have so much control over someone who had no choice but to stick to
you, especially when you found them insanely attractive.

“Seth, what did I tell
you? As long as you do as I say, you will be safe.”

“You know,” Seth started
without taking his hand off his face, “I wouldn’t even need to be a hooker. If
I run for Siberia, I could open a bistro there. I bet they could use some nice
Italian food.”

“Right.” Domenico
scowled. “How about a trial run in the wilderness tonight? We could go
camping.” It was a good idea to intensify their training very,
very
soon.

“You will teach me how
to hide from the mafia?” Seth whispered and looked up at him, dead serious. The
guy had so little clue it was sad. There were wolves out there, and he would
walk straight into their jaws.

“It’s the basics, but I
will show you certain things. We will do this on a regular basis. That okay
with you?”

Seth nodded with a deep
breath. “Will you help me?” A man had to be desperate for his pride to drop so
low.

Domenico watched the
tense heartbeat in the bulging vein on Seth’s neck, continuing to pet his back.
Seth was the fucking ice cream man about to melt. With a sprinkle of fear.

Chapter 11

Seth was not prepared
for as much ‘action’ as he thought he was. He trained with Dom for three hours
before they got to eat something. Instead of invigorating him, the fights
depressed Seth, as they showed him just how little he could do. He wanted to
learn, he needed to, but at the same time, all attempts to do so made him feel
useless. If having bruises all over wasn’t bad enough, they went shopping for
camping equipment, and Seth only had an hour alone at home to prepare a quick
and messy frittata. It was still hot when he packed it in his brand-new
backpack. Not his idea of fun. Fear was pushing him on though. Maybe someday he
would need to run in the woods, hide.

The sound of his cell
phone ringing got him on the brink of a heart attack, but Domenico’s name on
the display was like a balm to his nerves. That was his signal to leave, so he
gathered two big backpacks and inched his way through the narrow door, and then
farther down the stairs. Dom didn’t say where he was going when he left earlier
so Seth had no clue how they were supposed to leave the city. By bus?

But when he got to the
street, his question was answered when he saw Dom leaning against a pale blue
Volkswagen Beetle, a cigarette firmly buried between his lips. Seth raised his
eyebrows, confused by the dissonance. It was like seeing a puma trying to fit
into a Chihuahua kennel.

“Are you trying to be
inconspicuous?” Seth asked and put the bags in the backseat.

Domenico smiled and
raised his shades, revealing the bright eyes Seth was already getting all too
fascinated with. They stood out so much against Dom’s dark complexion and hair
that is was difficult not to stare. “It was available right away.”

Seth shrugged and sat in
the passenger seat. He knew he wouldn’t get away from whatever torture Dom has
planned for him. And staring wasn’t good. Staring got him attracted, and he’d
end up letting Dom into his pants like when he got drunk the day before. Sure,
it was hot and he’d probably do it again if he had a do-over, but his ass still
hurt, and it was embarrassing. And it wasn’t the type of pain like after
getting punched in the face, but a small, constant, annoying soreness. It kept
reminding Seth that he already bottomed for the guy four times. He didn’t even
notice when it happened. It was okay when he was drunk, or when it was dark, or
when he was
really
horny, but it wouldn’t do in daylight. He didn’t want
to seem like an easy lay, a comfortable place for Dom to leave his spunk.
Though mostly, he didn’t want to talk about being a bottom.

Domenico yawned and
dropped his cigarette to the street before getting into the car. It was indeed
much smaller than Seth was used to, but at least it wasn’t him who had to
maneuver his body so that he could reach the steering wheel without having to
pull out several ribs. Domenico, however, didn’t seem to mind. “We’ll go
through a drive in on the way out of the city. I need caffeine.”

Seth raised his
eyebrows. “If you’re desperate…”

“I am, and we don’t have
time for lounging around in a proper café. Which is a shame because I know a
great Italian bistro in Kreuzberg.” Dom sighed, somehow managing to move the
ancient vehicle. It didn’t look modernized on the inside, but at least it was
clean and smelled nice.
Eau de Domenico
.

“I could use a nice
Italian wine.” Seth fought the urge to lean over and play with Dom’s hair. His
life was bound to become one big fucking test of willpower.

“You can’t have any
while we’re training.” Domenico moved along the street, driving past a colorful
kindergarten building, with a yard full of carefree children. “And if I were
you, I would ditch alcohol altogether. It clouds your judgment.”

Seth frowned, unsure if
it was a dig at yesterday, or an actual piece of advice. “Huh? How come? It’s
normal to have a glass now and then.”

“Not when you’re the
resident bull’s-eye.” Domenico let out a tired sigh. “It’s much better not to
slow down our reflexes.”

Seth leaned back in his
seat. “I’m a bit hungover. I actually think I’d be better off if I did drink
something. Don’t they sell beer in McDonald’s in Germany?”

Domenico looked at him
with a deep frown. “Never seen it. Maybe it’s only for Oktoberfest, or
something? But no, you can’t have any.”

Seth let out a pained
groan. “Have your shitty coffee then.”

“Caffeine’s caffeine. I
didn’t get much sleep last night either.”

Seth pulled his lips
into his mouth and shut up.
It didn’t happen.

“I would kill for an
espresso. Double.”

“Is there anything
non-Italian that you like?” Seth rolled his eyes, happy to be off the subject
of yesterday. Food was always a good, inclusive topic. Even with a mafia hit
man.

“Belgian chocolate. Made
in Belgium,” replied Domenico, leaning forward to see the streetlights ahead.

“No Snickers or Hersheys
for you?” Seth snorted.

Domenico frowned,
looking at the street from behind his shades. “I like maple syrup.”

“Domenico Acerbi,
Pancake King.” Seth put on his sunglasses.

“Of course. Every time I
look at those thick pancakes on your chest, I think about bathing them in maple
syrup.”

Seth blinked. Did Dom
just joke? “That your thing? But I supposed only in Canadian syrup? Only the
best quality for the Pancake King?”

“Only the Pancake King
for the Bottom King.”

Seth slapped Domenico’s
arm, holding back from a punch only because Dom had his hands on the steering
wheel. “Shut your pancake face!”

“You were the one who
started this, so you shut up,” groaned Domenico, taking a sharp turn with the
car.

Seth closed his seat
belt and grumbled. “Sure, I can do that.”

Domenico didn’t. “None
of those foreign restaurants can be trusted. The last time I ate in one that
was neither Italian nor French, it ended in disaster.”

Seth wasn’t physically
capable of biting his tongue. “Yeah? What could possibly happen? Who forced you
to go?”

“I was meeting a client
in a fucking sushi bar.” Domenico’s face fell as if there were stormy clouds
gathering around his head.

“Oh, I don’t like
sushi.” Seth scowled at the memory of Peter taking him out to a fancy sushi
place.

“Modern shit. I can’t
possibly think people can like something so tasteless,” grumbled Domenico.

“Spanish food can be
good.”

“The guy who took me to
the sushi place said the same thing.”

“I suppose you just
can’t trust people, can you?” Seth said, looking out the window as they
approached the window.

“No. People are always
out to get you,” said Dom just before opening the window to speak into the
microphone.

“Yep, especially if
you’re Seth Villani,” Seth said right after Dom closed the window.

Domenico never missed
the bull’s-eye. Seth stared at the holes his new mentor made in their practice
target. They were spot on. Right in the forehead of the generic cardboard guy.
They had spent the last hour practicing disassembling and reassembling
semi-automatic pistols, and Seth was getting optimistic because it wasn’t all
that hard, but he couldn’t match Domenico's speed. Getting shown how to do it
properly was kinda impressive but made him realize Dom had to perceive him as a
proper cock-up. Most of the time, Seth hardly even hit the target board, let
alone the head or chest. He almost killed a squirrel though.

Trees surrounded them
from every side on the clearing. They were about two hours drive from Berlin,
and Seth was hoping there wouldn’t be any tourists wandering around when he was
trying to hit the cardboard target Dom put on a tree across from them. They
were using silencers so no one should be alarmed by shooting, but he supposed
that made the whole ordeal even more dangerous to accidental trekkers. Even
with the strong smell of pines and earth, the green color around him did
nothing to soothe his nerves.

“Focus.”

“I am focused.” Seth
groaned. Dom approaching him from the back didn’t help with the task at hand.
Even Domenico’s T-shirt couldn’t be completely casual. Fitted, but not too
tight, with a slight v-neck, and three small buttons. Seth could bet it was
some fancy brand like Armani or D&G. As much as Seth wanted to mock Dom for
his stylish choices, he had to admit that the guy just knew how to dress to
impress.

Domenico shook his head.
“You miss your target every time. Even first timers can actually get a bullet
into the cardboard man when they try hard.”

Seth
was
trying
hard to focus, but the heat of Domenico’s body behind him, a sharp contrast to
the cool dampness in the air, wasn’t helping.

“Is that what they tell
you in assassin teacher training? To put down your students?” Seth rolled his
eyes and moved away.

“I’m not putting you
down. On the contrary, I’m helping you stay alive.”

Seth tensed when he felt
Dom’s body melt into his. It was almost like an embrace, but the wiry arms went
straight for the gun Seth was holding. He felt the shiver of excitement go all
the way from his ass to his balls. Dom’s breath was right under his ear, like a
never-ending whisper.

“What do you think this
is?” hissed Seth “A rom-com?”

“A what?” Domenico
curled his dry, warm hands around Seth’s, and made him raise the gun.

Seth sighed, his palms
all sweaty around the gun. “A romantic comedy movie. The guy always takes the
girl out to golf or some shit, stands behind her, and shows her how to hold the
stick
. It’s one big innuendo.”

“That’s not a stick.
It’s a gun. And secondly, how the hell do you know that?” growled Domenico. He
was all business-minded now.

“Peter used to make me
watch them.” It was only partially true, since Seth did enjoy some of them.
“Can I get some personal space then?” He breathed in deeply, enjoying the
pleasant smell of trees and wet grass. He rarely got to go to the forest since
he had moved out to New York City.

Domenico’s sigh sent
vibrations down Seth’s neck. “How else am I going to show you how to do this?
You’ve forgotten how to do it since your first time.”

“It’s making me
uncomfortable, like you’re molesting me, Mr. Teacher.” Seth inched away. No guy
in his life had ever gotten his heart racing so hard. And Dom wasn’t even
bigger than him, just intimidating. In a sexy kind of way, which got Seth all
sorts of confused.

“Oh, man up. We’re
fucking already, what’s the big deal?” growled Domenico as he pressed even
closer and forced Seth into position with the frame of his own body. “Stop
thinking about my cock and focus.”

“Do I look like I care
about your dick?” Seth snarled and looked back at him, only to stare into the
intense eyes.

“It’s you thinking about
sex all the time. I’m just trying to show you how to shoot a fucking tree.”

Seth’s body was getting
even hotter, and he looked back at the target, pointing the gun at it. “Don’t
overestimate yourself.”

“Don’t give me a reason
to. Now pretend it’s a fucking romantic comedy and do as I say,” hissed Dom,
forcing Seth’s fingers to grasp the heated steel.

Seth swallowed and tried
to imagine the head of the Triad member, who spoke to him after the kidnapping,
on the target. Surprisingly, it only made him feel more uncomfortable. Sure, he
wanted revenge, but did he actually want to blow someone's head off? The way
Dom gripped his hands suggested he didn’t have such scruples. His fingers were
slimmer than Seth’s, yet their strength was unmistakable. It made Seth think of
an article he read about people only using a small percentage of their brain.
Seth was probably using a small percentage of his body potential, whereas Dom,
muscular but not as big, was filled with skill and the capacity to use it.

A brush of warm air
against his ear did its job frighteningly well. “Breathe slowly. Take three
deep, slow breaths.”

Seth inhaled, trying to
force his body to relax. He focused on the target, and with Dom’s body almost
melting into his, he felt more powerful, as if Dom’s muscles supported his own
and assisted his strength. The heat against his back was empowering. Dom was
holding the gun and Seth’s hands in a vise-like grip as they breathed together.