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illegal."
    That didn't sound too bad, but Nick already had a job that he liked most days. "What about Ms. Liza, Mom? Who'll help her in her store?"
    Kyrian frowned at him. "Liza Dunnigan?"
    "You know her?" Nick asked in surprise.
    Another tight-lipped grin broke over his face. "Yeah. We go way back. And I think she'd understand if you worked for me for a while."
    His mom's hand tightened on his. "I don't know ... what do you think, Nicky?"
    Nick looked at the sling on his arm. There really was no way they could afford this bill. If Kyrian would pay and his mom wouldn't have to suffer .
    "As long as he's not a pervert and Liza doesn't mind, I can work for him, I guess."
    Kyrian laughed. "I'm not a pervert."
    "You better not be 'cause I'll quit if you are."
    Kyrian shook his head. "So it's settled?"
    Indecision played in his mom's gaze before she nodded. "Thank you."
    "No problem. Now if you two don't mind, I have an appointment I need to keep." Nick frowned.
    "This late?" his mom asked suspiciously.
    Kyrian nodded. "I do a lot of international business that requires me to work late at night. Like I said, I don't sleep much." And with that, he was gone.
    Now that they were alone, his mom gave him her full attention. "What do you really think?"
    "I think I'm really glad I'm not dead and you're not killing me over getting shot and being in the hospital, running up bills we can't afford."
    Her lips trembled. "Baby, how could I be mad at you for something like this? I just wish I made enough money that you didn't have to work too. If you'd been at home--"
    "Don't, Mom, please." The guilt of it was killing him.
    She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed his bruised knuckles. "All right, sweetie. You just rest. Don't you worry or think about nothing except getting better." She pulled one of her black hair bands from her pocket and slicked her hair back into a sedate ponytail.
    Nick smiled, knowing she did that for him so he wouldn't be embarrassed by her over-teased hair. Then she went to the sink to wash off her makeup and pull off the fake glitter eyelashes. She was so much prettier without all that goop on her face that he didn't understand why they made her wear it.
    Once she looked like his mom again, she slid into the bed beside him and held him close.
    Normally, he'd be pushing her away 'cause it felt like she was stifling him. But tonight, while he ached and hurt, he was glad to have her hold him close.
    It'd always been just the two of them in this world. Team Fabulous. That's what she'd called them as far back as he could remember. Together they could make it through anything.
    She brushed his hair back from his temple and gave him a light kiss there. "You are my little man, Nickyboo. And I'm so grateful I have you. You're the only thing I've ever done right in my entire life and if anything ever happened to you, they'd have to dig two graves 'cause I couldn't live a single day without my baby beside me."
    Her words almost succeeded in making his eyes tear up, but he was too tough for that. Nothing could make him cry. Nothing. "I love you, Mom."
    "I love you too, baby. Now go to sleep. You need to get better so I can beat your butt for getting hurt."
    Smiling at her empty threat, Nick closed his eyes, but he couldn't sleep. His mind kept replaying the look on Alan's face as he'd pulled the trigger. The creep had tried to kill him. .
    And if it was the last thing he did, he was going to get even. As his dad would say, Our blood dont run. Sometimes we want to. Sometimes we ought to. But we dont ever run from anyone or anything.
    Next time he met up with Alan's "crew" they were going to feel the full wrath of Nick Gautier. ...

CHAPTER 3

    Nick learned a new lesson in misery as he lay in bed, alone, in the hospital for days on end, bored out of his mind. His mom stayed with him as much as she could, as did Menyara, but they couldn't be here constantly. Kyrian would stop in and visit at night and some of the dancers from his