“I’m many things, but your enemy has never been one of them.”
“I don’t know, people who hurt me aren’t my friends.”
Her words hit their target, but I refuse to let it show. “Not what you said the last time we had a run in.”
“So, you make my pussy wet. You taught me all I know; it’s a matter of muscle memory.”
I lean down and whisper in her ear, “Fucking bullshit.”
“I’m sorry, did I hurt your feelings?” she retorts.
“Takes more than that. I want to bring this shit out in the open.”
“What?” She blinks owlishly. “No, you can’t do that. I won’t let you do that.”
“You think you control me?”
“I swear if you do this, I will hate you forever,” she growls.
“Ashamed of me now?” I ask, pissed.
“No longer willing to take on the shit storm that would come with you.”
“Fuc
k this.” I lift her up and toss her over my shoulder.
Her beer bottle crashes to the ground. “No!” She pounds my back.
I give her ass a few playful slaps and lead her through the crowd. I catch my father’s gaze.
His face goes flush, his eyes are full of rage, and his lips form a thin line.
I stare him down. He fucked this up for me before, I’m not about to let it happen a second time. I stride through the club and down the hall to my dorm room. Questions will follow, and I’ll answer them truthfully. This is my fucking old lady. She wears my brand, and it’s time she brings her ass home for good and learns that her place is beside me. If we’d hashed this out earlier, it never would’ve come to this. I open the door, step in, and kick it shut with my boot. I toss her to the bed and move quickly, pinning her arms above her head.
“You son of a bitch! You had no right to do this.” The shimmer in her eyes tells me she’s close to tears.
“I know you’re mad at me. I deserve it, but I had to let you go for your safety.”
She stops struggling. “What are you talking about?”
“You always wanted to know what happened that night I was supposed to leave with you. I’m ready to tell the story if you’re ready to listen.”
“And if I want to leave afterward?”
“You can go, but I’m telling them the truth either way. I’m sick of hiding shit and letting him win.”
“Who?”
I sigh. “My father.”
Understanding dawns in her expression. “I should’ve fucking known. I’m not going anywhere.”
I pull back and move off the bed. “We thought we were so careful, always meeting up places, and keeping our visits sporadic.” I laugh thinking how naïve we were. “I was prospecting and of course, my every move would be monitored. I can’t believe how stupid I was. I told you I’d take care of you. Thought I was a big man, but he showed me just how false that belief was. You know, he was my sponsor. It was never a question. He’s a hands-on man who likes to do shit himself. The brothers understood that. They knew he was impartial enough not to be soft with me because of blood…hell, I’d say he was harsher for that very reason. I did whatever he wanted without complaint. I wanted him to be proud of me, you know?” I glance over at her.
Biting her lip, she nods.
“Only thing I could never do was follow his crooked ass belief system. I get that he lost his dad, but blaming an entire race for it? And shit, did I hate the way he treated you. I thought once I claimed you, he’d be forced to show you respect. It was all figured out in my mind. Then that night, before I could come to you, he caught me.”