Holy shit!
My heart now skips a beat.
It can’t be.
His eyes slide my way. He looks away, but they slam back to me, and I see recognition dawn on his face. His blue eyes stare at mine with a look of annoyance. The same way he did in college.
Weston Mathews is standing next to me. I used to date … well, date isn’t the right word. I used to fuck his best friend. There was a group of four of them known as Kings. The Dark Kings—Bones, Titan, Cross, and Grave. Each one darker, more enticing. Titan, Cross, and Bones were all two years older than me. But Grave, Bones’s little brother, was only one year older than me.
The bartender walks up to them and hands him two shots of dark liquid. I’m not sure what it is, and he removes his eyes from mine.
I finally take in a shaky breath and drink my second shot.
I gotta get out of here. If Titan is here, then Bones isn’t far behind, and I can’t be around him. Not after what happened between us. I’ve heard stories about what kind of men they are today, and none of them are good.
He says something else to the bartender, and he looks at me and then nods. I swallow nervously and down the third, before digging the fifty out of my clutch and dropping it on the bar. I spin around to leave but run into someone. The guy I have successfully avoided who was standing at the end of the bar is now right here. In my space. Staring down at me.
“Hey, baby.” Dark blue eyes meet mine, and the stranger places his hands on my hips. I shove him back, but he doesn’t budge. Dick!
I go to walk around him, but he grabs my upper arm and pulls me to a stop. “Hey, I’m talking to you.”
I yank my arm out of his hold, surprised that he let go, and the momentum has me falling back. Right into the side of Grave. Just my luck.
“What’s going on here?” Grave demands. His hands grip my hips, steadying me. Once he helps me to stand, he doesn’t let go.
I close my eyes and pray that I can get out of here before he recognizes me too. Please, God. I need luck on my side.
“Nothing,” the stranger answers. He’s half Grave’s size. Grave will murder him. He was a fighter in high school. He did it for sport. The douche’s eyes land on mine, and he winks at me.
I pull my lips back in disgust.
“I just wanted to know why you’ve been ignoring me,” the man asks.
I place my fingers behind my ear and lean my head forward like I didn’t hear what he has to say. Being the bitch that I can be. Too bad their music isn’t louder. At least then I’d have a legitimate excuse for ignoring the fucker.
His friend taps him on the shoulder. “Oh man, she’s deaf.” They laugh.
“Run along,” Grave announces to the guy and his friends, still holding my hips. He hasn’t seen my face yet. He has no idea who I am.
“You can have her, man. A deaf bitch is useless. No fun when they can’t take orders.” The man laughs at me.
I open my mouth to give him a piece of my mind, but Grave pushes me to the side, my side hitting the bar. Then I see Titan walk up to stand next to Grave. Neither one of them looks at me as they advance on the man and his friends.
“What did you say?” Titan asks.
A shiver of fear runs up my spine. I almost forgot what his voice sounded like. Powerful is an understatement. The Kings ruled everything they touched. If their words didn’t get the job done, then their fists did.
“You know what I mean, man.” Mr. Blue Eyes laughs, and his friends follow.
“Enlighten me.” Titan lifts his chin.
“How is a man supposed to be in charge if a woman can’t hear our commands.” He spells it out.
“That’s what I thought you meant.” Titan speaks and looks at Grave. He starts laughing, and Grave follows suit.
Then without warning, the laughter stops, and Titan clocks Blue Eyes in the face, knocking him back into the other three guys he walked over here with. Like dominos.
Shit!
Then they’re dragging him through the crowd of people and to a back door that reads exit above it. I turn to face the bar, and the bartender places a shot in front of me. “I didn’t order that.”
“Titan did. And don’t worry, he paid your bill.” He slides the cash I put down back toward me.
Just fucking great!
I pick it up as he walks away and inspect it. Never drink anything given to you by a stranger. My mom’s words remind me. Titan isn’t a stranger, but that also doesn’t make it any safer. The guy could have poured acid in it for all I know. They were mean in high school, and college wasn’t any different.