Savage Beast (Savage People 2)

“In your dreams,” was my super sophisticated rebuttal.

“And soon to be in your fucking panties,” he quipped, grabbing my jaw in his huge palm and leaning down so we were face to face. “I let you walk out of O’Leary’s once, Butterfly, but I’ll be damned if I set you free again. You’re mine.” I hated to admit that I secretly loved his words. They started a fire in me. A fire only Cole could put out. Afraid of caving to his will, I rolled my eyes and pivoted back toward the stairs, shaking my ass a little more than necessary. Right before I reached the stairs, I looked at him over my shoulder and smirked, catching them standing there, staring at my body like he was about to eat me alive.

“You may think I look like a butterfly, but I sting like a bee.”

She made a goddamn Muhammad Ali reference. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. If her fate hadn’t already been sealed before then, that would’ve done it. I’d overheard Graham informing someone, Quinn probably, that Jade would be starting that night. I didn’t know what I thought was going to happen. I just knew I had to be there. Just seeing her in that fucking lingerie was enough to have me blowing up… and blowing my load. Her body was unreal. I’d wanted to shove her into the nearest corner, tray of drinks still in hand, flip up her skirt, and bury my face in that pussy until she screamed. When I followed her up those stairs and saw that dickwad put his hands on her, though, I saw red. The only thing that kept me from killing him was the fact that Jade was about to eat shit. Even after I’d steadied her, I held on. If I let go, I’d have gone to jail that night. You never caused a scene in public, especially when you were a Savage. But that time, I was close to losing control. For her.

I didn’t even know what it was about her that made me react that way. When we’d met at Graham’s, I’d wanted to fuck her, sure. Maybe even a few times. I didn’t do the girlfriend thing. But after that night, I hadn’t seen her again. I won’t lie and say that I never thought about her over the years. An ass like that was hard to forget. It was that same ass that had me needing to have her that night at O’Leary’s. She still had that spunk from four years ago, but this time she was using it to hide the pain in her eyes. And all of the sudden, I wanted to know who’d put that pain there and make them pay. I didn’t understand why Jade seemed to be fighting this. Fighting me. I saw through her, though. She still wanted me. She just didn’t want to want me. And I was going to find out why. That meant I needed to see a man about a job. And that was what brought me to Graham’s home office.

“I want a job,” I informed him. I was met with a sardonic laugh and a shake of his head. The bastard was as pleasant as a fucking STD, even to the people closest to him. Well, other than Dahlia.

“You have a job. It’s called fucking fighting.” He didn’t even look up at me, still going through his spreadsheets.

“Yeah, and you also need me to win. You wouldn’t want me to accidentally lose, would you? I’d hate to slip and fall on a fist.” I sucked air between my teeth for dramatic effect. “You’d probably lose a pretty penny.”

That got his attention.

“You win when you need to win and lose when you need to lose. You have no say in this shit. What the fuck are you playing at, Cole? Are you threatening me? You don’t fuck with my money.”

“I don’t want to play that card, but I will. I need a management position at Hot N’ Bothered.”

“Now, why the fuck…” he trailed off, and I saw when the light bulb finally went on.

“This wouldn’t be about our little friend Jade, now, would it?”

Graham shook his head in disapproval, his green eyes turning two shades darker.

“I swear to God, you better not fuck this up. I’m not listening to Dahl bitch about you. You better wrap it up, too, son. Babies are expensive. I would know.” I wanted to slap the smirk off his smug face.

“Got it. No knocking her up, no breaking her heart. I can do that.” I nodded, but I didn’t actually stop to think about that. Though Jade didn’t give me the vibes of a needy girl. “I’m starting tomorrow. It won’t interfere with my fighting.”

Before he had a chance to process it, think about it, and realize that it was probably a stupid idea and that I couldn’t be trusted, I stalked out of his office, hearing his laughter trailing behind me.

“You’re damn right, it won’t! And if you ever try to threaten me again, I’ll cut your fucking tongue out myself!”

I got the job. Next on the agenda: get Jade out of those skimpy clothes and into a secluded office. No more working the floor for her.

The next night, I was waiting for Jade at the bar right before her shift was supposed to start. She walked in looking fuck-hot in an all-black and yellow, lacey one piece and sky-high heels. She wore those same garters that drove me fucking crazy, but this night, her hair was full of messy curls. Before she could even greet Quinn, I grabbed her by the elbow, leading her to one of the offices upstairs.

“Ow, Cole, what the hell are you doing?” She tried to tug her arm out of my grasp. I loosened my hold, but didn’t release her. I’d never release her.

“You’re coming with me,” is the only explanation I offered.

“Jesus, you caveman! Use your words next time you want something from me,” she screeched, earning the attention of everyone around us.

When we reached the office, I slammed the door behind us. Jade looked at me expectantly, and a little suspiciously, not knowing why I had her there. I held up my arms, gesturing to the room around us.

“Welcome to your new office, Butterfly.”

The office was basic, but nice. Bare except for a desk with a computer, a couple filing cabinets on one side, and a couch and coffee table on the other. There was a double-glazed, soundproof window that overlooked the dance floor, but the people down there couldn’t see through it.

“Uh, say what, now?”

“You heard me. You will come to work every night, but instead of serving, you will come straight up here and help me sort out this clusterfuck of files. You’ll wear your normal clothes…”

I made a show out of eyeing her scantily clad form from head to toe, licking my lips in the process. Come to think about it, I couldn’t concentrate at all while she was wearing this little number.

“Do you have a change of clothes?”