For once, I knew exactly what to say.
“No.”
She stopped, then turned toward Guido with a frown.
“He means not to call him ‘Boss’ until you get to know him,” my bodyguard assured her. “Around here he’s just known as Skeeve.”
“Gotcha,” she winked. “Okay, Skeeve … ya know, that’s kinda cute.”
“No,” I repeated.
“Okay. So it’s not cute. Whatever you say. You’re the Boss.”
“NO!”
“But…”
I ignored her and turned directly to Guido.
“Have you lost your marbles? What are you doing bringing her in here like this?”
“Like I said. Boss, she’s a present from Don Bruce.”
“Guido, lots of people give each other presents. Presents like neckties and books … not girls!”
My bodyguard shrugged his shoulders helplessly. “So Don Bruce ain’t lots of people. He’s the one who assigned us to you in the first place, and he says that someone with your standin’ in the Mob should have a moll.”
“Guido … let’s talk. Excuse us a minute. Bunny.”
I slipped an arm around my bodyguard’s shoulders and drew him off into a corner. That may sound easy until you realize I had to reach up to get to his shoulders. Both Guido and Nunzio are considerably larger than me.
“Now look, Guido,” I said. “Remember when I explained our setup to you?”
“Sure, Boss.”
“Well, let’s walk through it again. Don Bruce hired Aahz and me on a non-exclusive basis to watch over the Mob’s interests here at the Bazaar. Now, he did that because the ordinary methods he employs weren’t working… Right?”
“Actually, he hired you and included your partner. Except for that… right.”