by Cecy Robson
He must have me on speaker. I hear Apollo’s voice. “Her cheeks get all red when she sees you, and every time we say your name. She plays it off and keeps on talking, but it’s obvious she’s into you.”
He laughs then and it pisses me off. “What are you laughing at?” I snap.
“You,” Apollo tells me.
“You seriously better watch the next few words that come out of your mouth,” I warn.
“I’m not trying to piss you off.”
“Too late for that,” I say, causing his humor to immediately vanish.
“Sal . . . you didn’t see yourself when she came to our place, the way you acted around her. I thought you were going to kill me, but she calmed you down with just her voice. You didn’t argue, you didn’t fight her, and you let her touch you like you were already fucking her―”
“I’m going to stop you right there, because I’m seconds from driving home and pounding the unholy hell out of you. This bullshit match-up you pulled did nothing but embarrass Aedry and make me look bad.”
“Sal, we’re sorry,” Apollo begins.
“Save it,” I hiss through my teeth. As I watch, Aedry returns to the VIP section. Her arms are crossed and she keeps her focus far away from me. I disconnect the call, not bothering to say goodbye and pocket my phone.
“Fuck,” I mutter.
She slinks in beside her friend, the one currently not straddling some douche. Her friend stops smiling when she sees her and leans into her. “You okay?” I see her mouth.
Aedry nods carefully, the way women do when they’re trying not to cry. I swear, if my brothers were here, I’d wring their necks. Someone like her doesn’t belong with someone like me. If anyone should know this, it’s them.
Donnie wraps her arms around me and rests her head against my shoulder. “Tell me who she is.”
“No one,” I repeat.
“Then why are you so pissed?” When I don’t answer, she starts pushing like only Donnie can. “She’s really pretty. Nice legs, body. Hmmm . . . I wonder which of those men are going to get to taste those perky tits.”
“Shut it, Donnie,” I grind out.
One of the dickheads trails his hand up and down her spine like he owns her. My blood boils as she stiffens. But what I’m feeling doesn’t brew from anger. It’s from shit I’m not ready to deal with that Donnie quickly points out.
“You like her, don’t you?” she teases, appearing to enjoy the show.
“She’s my brothers’ teacher. That’s all.”
“Mmm. I think it’s more than that.”
Maybe it is, but I don’t tell her that.
Donnie’s friends show. I’m hoping they’ll distract her, and for a long while they do. But she catches me eyeing Aedry and how that fucktard makes his way closer and closer to her, ignoring the fact that she’s not even talking to him.
What does Donnie do? She sends a round of shots to Aedry’s table telling her they’re from me. At first, I don’t like it. I don’t want these pricks to think I play nice. But then I think it could be a way to make amends.
They all raise their shots and toast me.
Everyone, except Aedry.
She slides her shot across the table to her friend, not bothering to glance my way, even when she stands and edges her way around the table. I think she’s headed home alone―at least, that’s what I’m hoping. It’s not until I see her cut left that I realize she’s headed to the restroom. The moron who’s been trying to hook up with her all night follows, not that any of her wrecked friends notice. They’re too caught up with the men groping them and kissing their necks.
Shit.
I want to go after her, thinking this guy is up to no good. Donnie catches her leave and notices the guy trailing her. “I want to dance, Sal,” she says, shoving her friends ahead of her.
Like I said, Donnie’s not stupid. She’s been at these clubs enough to recognize a predator when she sees one. And she knows me well enough to know I’m plenty pissed, especially when another idiot hurries to catch up to her first.
Donnie moves ahead, stopping near the hall that leads to the bathrooms to grind with one of her girls, allowing me to keep an eye on her while checking on Aedry. This way, when shit goes down, I don’t have to tell Vin I left his woman. And judging by the way those two dumb fucks are waiting for Aedry by the bathroom, I know there’s going to be trouble.
Just like I know both are going to walk out of here bleeding if they touch her.
Aedry
I don’t feel well. Something’s . . . wrong. It’s more than the shot and the sips of champagne I’ve had. And it’s more than Salvatore’s rejection.
My hand sweeps along my brow as I shift through the fog clouding my mind and recall our encounter. God, I feel so stupid for thinking someone like him, so hard, different, and gorgeous would take interest in someone as average and clean cut as me.
I slip out of the stall, taking a moment to run cold water against my wrists after washing my hands. My mouth is strangely dry and I can’t seem to snap out of this haze.
I reach to grip the granite counter when I stumble to the side. The women beside me laugh.
“Oh, looks like Snow White got something good,” the brunette says.
“Give me some of that,” someone else says, giggling in a way that suggests she’s more than drunk.
My eyes widen as I realize what they’re saying. Those men must have slipped me something. I have to get my friends, we have to get out of here. I force myself forward, stumbling through the door.
I’m not expecting Dean and Mark to be waiting for me. They haven’t kept their hands off me all night. If I wasn’t so messed up, I would have known they’d follow me, and been more careful. I edge back, my hand sliding along the wall to keep my balance as they slink forward.
“Hey, sexy,” Dean says. “How you feeling, baby?”
“Stay away from me,” I mumble, inching back. I know I’m headed in the wrong direction and toward the men’s room. I know I should scream and charge forward. But the most I can do is remain standing.
Mark clasps my wrist, pulling me to him. “It’s okay, Aedry. I just want to kiss you.”
I try to stomp on his foot and miss, but somehow manage to break free of his hold. Three other men exit the bathroom, laughing when they see me.
They stop laughing when Salvatore suddenly appears. “Get the fuck away from her,” he rumbles.
His tone is enough to keep me still, but the menace in his stare and the pure fury etched into his features hitch my breath.
Mark is a big guy and he’s not backing down. “Mind your own fucking business.”
He lurches forward, only to whirl back when Sal shatters his nose with a sickening crunch. Blood spurts from his face, splattering the wall.
Dean lunges at him. Sal hits him so hard, he flies into one of the men piling out of the bathroom. The man shoves Dean off him, his face tightening when he sees his shirt soaked with Dean’s blood. Instead of attacking Dean, the man takes his anger out on Sal.
“What the fuck, bitch?”
They’re nose to nose like predators squaring off. I don’t see Sal move. I only see the man spin and fall to his knees when Sal locks his wrist. “Try it,” Sal rumbles when a man in a suit reaches into his waistband.
My shoulder blades slam against the wall when I see the very large gun in Sal’s hand pressed against the man’s skull. I don’t dare move, terror steeling me in place. Unlike me, Sal remains in complete control, his composure as cool as an ice-covered lake.
“Oh, shit,” someone says.
From my periphery, a swarm of bouncers crowd the end of the hall, rushing forward. “He didn’t do anything,” I stammer, my knees practically knocking with how hard I’m trembling. Salvatore has a gun, a mammoth pistol he pulled to defend me. “Those men were trying to hurt me.”
The bouncers ignore me as if I never spoke. Two of them haul the man Sal had subdued to his feet, while the others seize more guns
from his friends. They were all armed and ready to kill us. It’s all I can do to remain upright.
The lead bouncer, the one who cursed, stomps to Sal’s side. “How you wanna handle it?” he asks.
Sal whispers something I can’t hear, and motions to Dean and Mark. The bouncer nods once, and he and his crew start leading the men out. Sal pulls me to him, shielding me with his body, until every man who threatened us is led away. “Come on,” he says, slipping his arm around my waist. “I’m getting you out of here.”
I don’t argue, succumbing to his magnetic pull with ease, despite how my mind continues to spin from whatever I took and everything that just happened. Still, I’m not so confused that I don’t see how those gathered react to Salvatore’s presence.
Everyone gives him ample space, despite the densely packed dance floor. It’s not simply because of his lethal stride or the stone-cold glare in his eyes. They’re scared of him. Everyone here is terrified of the man holding me carefully against him.
What remains of my common sense implores me to run and to put as much distance between us as possible. He’s dangerous. Those around us shrinking away and avoiding eye contact as we pass is proof enough. Yet, as he pulls me closer when we round the corner, I don’t attempt to lurch free. If anything, my body melds further against his.
His hold is secure, yet oddly gentle, assuring me I’m safe regardless of those cowering in his presence. “I can’t leave without my friends,” I manage, my voice desperate to compete with the blaring music. “I think those men slipped something in our drinks.”
“Your friends have been taken care of.”
“What?” His hand slips lower to clutch my hip when I hesitate.
“Don’t be afraid,” he murmurs, his eyes meeting mine. “The bouncers are rounding them up. An Uber’s been called to take them home.”
“They’re safe? All of them?”
“They are now. Those pricks who were with you are being searched and bounced. Based on how you’re acting, they gave you some ‘E’ hoping for a good time.”
“Oh, God.” I jerk my head in the direction of the VIP section where my friends are being collected. They appear confused and very wasted, but also annoyed. I don’t want them angry, or to worry about me and start to turn in their direction. “I should go with them.”
Sal’s grip pulls me closer, pressing me against his hip. “No. You’re staying with me.” His determined brown eyes drill into mine. “I’ll be damned if I let you go.”
Chapter Eight
Salvatore
Where the hell is Donnie? I catch her in the corner, leaning against the wall and laughing with her stupid friends. Shit, I leave her alone for fifteen seconds and she’s already high. As I near her, Aedry stiffens and tries to ease away.
“Your girlfriend will get mad if she sees you touching me,” she says.
“She’s not my girlfriend.” I hold tight. No way am I letting her go, not after she’s been doped, and especially not after what those pricks tried to do to her. God damn. It’s taking me all I have not to order Stefano to bring them out back so I can beat the unholy fuck out of them.
I spent years ripping my father off my mother. Nothing sets me off more than a man trying to hurt a defenseless woman. Ma never fought back unless she was protecting us. She’d shield us with her body, taking the blows for us. She even went after Pop with a pan the time he was wailing on me, just because he could. She was a good woman, sweet and kind like Aedry, which is why I saw red when those bastards tried to herd her into the men’s room.
Donnie laughs when she sees us. “Just your brothers’ teacher, huh, Sal?” She flicks her tongue over her teeth playfully. “Did you feel her up yet? Or are you waiting for the next parent-teacher conference to make your move?”
I don’t have to look at Aedry to know her face is red. She tries to be strong, but there’s an innocence to her I’ve never quite seen.
Donnie wraps her arms around my neck, giving me an excuse to focus on her. “What the hell did you take?” I ask her.
“Does it matter?” She doesn’t wait for me to answer, lust creeping into her glazed stare. “Vincent called. He wants me back at my place.”
“Fine. Let’s go,” I tell her. I snag her wrist, but keep Aedry against me.
I don’t have to tell the bouncers shit. By the time we hit the street, my ride is already hugging the curve. “Later, Sal,” Stefano says to me.
I nod, my way of letting him know I owe him. Another bouncer, one I don’t know, opens the rear door for Donnie and helps her inside. I cut in front of him when he tries to do the same for Aedry, the lingering anger in my expression forcing him back.
He edges away, hands up. “Didn’t mean any disrespect,” he tells me.
He thinks Aedry is my woman. I don’t bother telling him otherwise, mostly because that crazy instinct to protect her is searing a hole straight through my gut.
“Here, get in,” I say, helping her up.
The second I pull away from the curb, Donnie lights up a joint. “Christ, Donnie,” I mutter when the smoke drifts to the front.
Aedry’s eyes widen. First “E,” now some potent ganja by the smell of it. This little thing is going to take the first train back to Georgia, or wherever she’s from, and never look back.
Donnie takes another drag, blowing it out slowly before leaning forward. “What’s your name, sweetie?” she asks.
“Leave her alone, Donnie,” I growl.
Aedry frowns, angling her chin like she’s trying to figure me out. “It’s Aedry,” she answers. “Adrianna Daniels to be exact.”
“I’m Donnie. Donatella to be exact,” she adds, laughing. “Do you want a drag?”
Aedry shakes her head slowly. “No, I’m getting more than enough from you, thanks.”
And then she giggles.
I cover my mouth, trying to hide my smirk. This woman is seriously cute.
Donnie laughs. “Is this your first time getting high, Aedry?”
Aedry nods in that slow way of hers, like she’s worried her head will fall off her shoulders if she moves it too fast.
“Do you get drunk?” Donnie presses, having her fun interrogating Aedry.
“Not really,” Aedry answers her. Her words are simple, but it takes her a long time to say them. “But I did tonight. It didn’t take muck.”
“Muck?” Donnie asks.
“Ah-hah,” Aedry answers.
Donnie turns to me. “She’s adorable. I can see why you like her.”
“You don’t know shit, Donnie.”
“Yeah, I do.” She takes another long drag, releasing it slowly and leaning in to whisper in my ear. “A whore will never get to you. But someone like her, hmmm, I can see why you went all alpha tonight.”
I stop at a light, cupping her chin so I can get a good look at her face. Her eyes are so glassy, I’m surprised she’s as coherent as she is. “What did you take?”
“Just a little blow and a few drags.”
My hand slips from her face. “You have to stop doing this shit,” I tell her.
She holds onto her smile, despite the misery dulling her stare. “I will if Vincent keeps wanting me.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
She doesn’t have an answer, at least not for that. She motions to where Aedry is slinking into her seat, her eyes closing. “Take it easy on her, Salvatore. Someone that good doesn’t belong around people like us.”
“This the place?” I pull into an open spot along the curb.
“Hmm?” Aedry mumbles. Since dropping off Donnie with Vincent, Aedry’s fallen asleep half a dozen times, impressive, seeing she only lives fifteen minutes away from Donnie’s.
I kept her awake long enough to ask for her address and punch it into my GPS. I reach out, intent on clasping her shoulder and shaking her gently. Instead I lift my hand to her face and carefully stroke my knuckles against her cheek. “Hey, Sleeping Beauty. Wake up. You’re home.”
“I’m Snow White
.”
“What?”
“That girl called me Snow White,” she slurs.
“Nah. Snow White’s too pasty.”
She laughs, causing her head to slide against the side window where she’s leaning. She stretches slowly, blinking her heavy lids open.
“Thank you,” she says. “I appreciate you looking out for me.”
I clutch her arm. “Hold up. I’ll walk you in.”
“You don’t have to,” she mumbles.
Her lids start to close again. “Texas, you’re as high as a Learjet. No way are you walking in alone.”
She tilts her head. “Why did you call me that?”
“What? Texas?” She barely manages a nod, so doped up I’m sure she’ll fall asleep. “Isn’t that where you’re from, cowgirl? I heard the accent.”
She laughs again. “I’m from North Carolina, just outside of Raleigh. Huge difference. Huge.”
“Sure it is,” I tell her, smirking. I slip out of my ride. She doesn’t wait for me to come around and all but slides out of the passenger seat.
Her dress rides up to her waist. I barely catch her before she falls.
“Oh, God,” she says. She pulls down the skirt, but not before I get a nice view of the perfect round globe that peeks through her tiny panties. “I’m so sorry.”
I’m not. Damn.
“Don’t worry about it,” I respond, lurching my attention ahead and away from her body. “Do you have your key?”
“Yes. Just give me a second.” She rummages through her purse and pulls out a set of keys as she reaches the top of the concrete steps.
She opens a heavy metal door, revealing a brightly lit foyer with white tile. On the left, wide plank stairs lead up to the next level. To the right, a long hall with several doors on either side extend to the rear of the building.
“Thank you, again,” she offers.
“You on this floor?” She shakes her head. “Then I’m not done with you yet,” I tell her.
Her eyes widen. “I’ll be okay.”
