I shrugged off his touch. “Don’t you dare touch me again.”
His smile was wolfish. “No nothing. Just a plain face and a nose that’s always buried in a book. You’re so… bland.”
“Get the hell away from me.”
“Know what I think?”
“I don’t give a shit what you think.”
He chuckled. “I think your pussy’s tight, and that’s why he keeps you in his bed.”
I tried not to let him ruffle my feathers. “At least I have more going for me than a handful of STDs and an inferiority complex so obvious anyone with half a brain could spot it.”
He arched an eyebrow. “What did you just say?”
“I thought you were smart enough to be in college. You don’t know what I just said?”
He snarled. “What did you just say to me, you bitch?”
I lifted my chin. “I’m not afraid of you. And no matter what you do to me, that isn’t changing.”
“You should be, little one. You should be very, very afraid.”
“Well, I’m not. You don’t make much of a formidable enemy. Plus, you can’t touch me. Max is going to beat you to a pulp anyway when he feels the knot on the back of my head. He’s going to ask me where I got it, and I’m going to be completely honest with him.”
“Oh, I’m really hoping you will be.”
I blinked. “What?”
He chuckled. “I like it when you challenge me, little deer. Makes my days more interesting.”
I felt his hand gripping my forearm and I shook him off.
“Put your hands on me again and see how loud I scream,” I hissed.
He smirked. “Oh, I bet Max’s entire block already knows that sound.”
I wouldn't let his quips get to me. No matter how frightened I really was of this asshole, I wouldn't give him the pleasure of seeing it. I held my ground, locking eyes with Benji and refusing to look away. This little dickhole needed to be taught a lesson in the consequences of being a bully. He wouldn't get away with it when it came to me. I’d stand up to him. I’d give him a taste of his own medicine so he knew he couldn't intimidate me. He moved closer to me. My back was flush with the wall as I pressed my palms into the cool surface. And when Benji’s pelvis fell against my own, I wiggled my hands between us.
Before I planted them on his chest and shoved him away.
He stumbled backward as laughter fell from his lips. I glared at him with wild eyes as he slouched against the wall on the other side of the hallway. He licked his lips and blew me a kiss before running a hand through his hair. And as I watched him walk off, his voice hit my ears again.
“You got lucky this time, Bambi. But I wouldn't count on it for next time.”
22
Max
I stared at my brother John as he shrugged his shoulders. Rolling my eyes, I settled my ankle against my opposite knee and leaned back into the plush leather chair of the fireplace room. A room that had held many murder plans and money laundering issues and other ‘business decisions’ my father made on a weekly basis. This place was my father’s true office. Not the one down the hall with books and a desk that never got used. This room was where my father built his empire. At the back of the house, in the shadows, without a place for anyone to hide and eavesdrop.
Just how my father liked it.
John’s good leg jiggled up a storm. I could swear I felt the foundation of the house wobbling with every jerking movement. He kept looking around, as if he were expecting some sort of a surprise. I needed him to calm down, though.
He’d never been good at covering up his emotions.
“John, take a breath.”