“Baby, it’s me.”
“Axel.” She throws her arms around my neck, crawling up my body. In an instant, that rage pulses through me. How dare anyone scare her? I hold her tight and let her straddle me, her ballerina legs easily holding on to me.
I let myself smell her, feel her. Fuck, I let myself have this with her, savoring her vanilla and grapefruit smell along with her cunt pressing against my erection. She buries her nose in my neck.
“Goddamn it.” I kick the office door shut and my mouth takes hers. It’s this kind of insanity that I need to get ahold of. But thinking it and doing it are two different things. Our tongues tangle and everything fades but us. The need to pull her jeans down and fuck her is so great that I force myself to pull away. If the sicko does have cameras, he doesn’t get to see my girl come.
“Get your stuff. Let’s go,” I growl in her ear.
“What?” Her eyes are slightly puffy, probably from crying. Nothing about this day has been great.
“Not now.” I adjust myself. She looks confused but grabs her bag, and I lace our hands together as I walk us out.
A cool breeze flows in through the back door to the kitchen. Rather than deal with questions from Cindy and Charlie, I steer us around the bucket of soapy water that props open the door. Victor is busy spraying the mats as we pass, and Antoinette smiles and waves at him. Smiling back, he shakes his finger at me.
“I’ll take good care of her, Victor. Don’t you worry.”
“I have faith.” He smiles and for a second, I’m uncomfortable. What the fuck am I doing?
“Today’s been rough. Let’s go home and order pizza. We can watch whatever you want.” She looks up at me and flashes a genuine smile. Stopping, I pull her to me, our lips inches apart. “I want to fuck you in your ballet shoes.”
She tilts her head so that her puffy lips almost touch mine. “They’re called pointe. You want black, pink, or white?”
“Well, black of course. You gonna dance for me?” I inhale and take her lips as if we’re one. She moans, and her nails dig into my shirt as I deepen the kiss. Something is changing. Maybe it’s the adrenaline of the day, the thought that something bad could have happened. Whatever it is, I want her home, in my bed.
“Let’s go.”ANTOINETTEMy stomach, which was iffy all day, has magically recovered. I guess all I needed was him. Maybe the crappy start of my birthday will end strong, considering his vibe is different. It’s much better than when he pulls away. To be honest, this roller coaster is exhausting. If we could cuddle and sleep, I’d be happy as long as we’re connected.
As we enter the clubhouse, he takes my hand, and I smile at a few of the guys. Rip seems to be the friendliest, although I do like Ryder. For whatever reason, he seems to be on the fence with me. Maybe it’s because I’m close with Cindy. Whatever, I like him.
A few are playing pool and talking in the corner. Other than that, it’s quiet, as if we’re waiting. God, if this has to do with creepy guy… I shiver and tighten my hold on his hand.
“Is something happening?” I whisper as we walk up the stairs.
Axel looks down at me. “Yeah, the creepy guy at the restaurant is Eve’s brother.”
I almost trip on the next step. “What?” I hiss.
“Yes.” It’s clipped. He pulls out his phone, which is vibrating, and the queasiness in my stomach is back. Holy shit, that’s who he reminded me of. Why is Eve’s brother a creeper?
We stop at his door and he unlocks it, swinging it open. “Axel, I feel bad. I think he’s insane.”
He snorts. “He’s a murderer, and I’m ready to put a bullet in the guy I had watching you for not alerting me earlier.”
“Wait. What?” My head is spinning.
Grabbing his pipe from the dresser, he lights up. “I have a guy watching you.” He holds the smoke in, his eyes narrowing on me, and I feel warm all over. He’s had someone watching me. That has to be positive.
“Why?”
“Because you’re mine.” He says it so matter-of-factly I almost start crying or dancing. Either way, my heart flutters at the way his eyes have darkened.
He wants me.
Kicking off my shoes, I stretch, arching my back, trying to be sexy.
“Come here, Antoinette.” His sapphire eyes are like sparkling black orbs and I’m instantly wet.
As I walk toward him, he tosses his cut, followed by his shirt. Without warning, I struggle to breathe. He brings the pipe back to his full lips and lights up again. My stomach flutters as his tan hands reach for the back of my neck, and I part my lips and inhale the smoke he gives me.