“The bitch who just snapped a picture of you with her phone after you broke a restraining order,” Brin says flippantly, making my stomach lurch.
She’s being way too brave. With a guy like Pete, you play submissive even if it’s just an act. He’s not a bully; he’s a psychopath. Standing up to him is the same as goading him to do his worst.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Ash says, joining us, my metal bat in her hands. “Cops are already on the way.”
Pete looks like he’s about to take on all three of us—and he probably could—but after a beat, he curses and turns to stalk away, leaving my door wide open and an ominous chill in his wake.
My sanctuary is gone. This place was supposed to keep me hidden from him. Sterling Shore is a place packed full of homes and condos, so how did he find me?
Ash blows out a breath while putting the bat down, her hands trembling. I can’t believe that was enough to intimidate him.
“Who the hell was that?” Raya asks from behind us, startling the hell out of me. I turn to see her lowering her Taser gun. When the hell did she pull that thing out? How long has she been in here?
“Pete Mercer. I guess he was a little surprised. You have a Taser gun?” I ask, noticing her poker face in place of her teary-eyed one.
“Yeah, my dad’s FBI partner gave it to me as a birthday gift. Pepper spray, too.”
“Man, I thought he was scared of me and the bat,” Ash says, laughing humorlessly while leaning back against the wall.
Raya runs a hand through her already disheveled hair, and then she looks back toward the door.
“Good thing you weren’t here alone. You need to go stay with someone,” Raya says, her own troubles forgotten as she focuses on my crazy drama.
“You can stay with us,” Ash immediately offers.
“Or you can stay with me and Maggie. You won’t have a parking spot unless you use the space across the road that my jackass neighbor doesn’t use,” Brin adds, forcing humor into the situation, something she always does to make people more at ease.
“I’ll let you know,” I say with a harsh breath. Shit. I don’t want to stay with anyone. I hate feeling like I have to hide.
“I need to get back to check on how the guys are doing with Kade,” Raya says while putting away her Taser gun, tucking it back into her purse.
“You heading to Maverick’s party?” Brin asks, running her hand over my arm in a comforting motion. “To see Rain, I mean.”
She means Kode, but she can’t say that aloud. Oddly enough, I really do want to see Kode right now. More than I did. It feels safe and peaceful in his arms, and right now, I’d give anything to feel that.
“Um… yeah. I think so. I don’t want to be here alone; that’s for sure.”
“We wouldn’t leave you alone,” Ash says promptly, reminding me how amazing she really is. “I didn’t really call the cops. I just ran out here with the first big thing I could find to hit him with. But you need to call them.”
The police won’t do anything, and I know it. They never have really been of much use to me. I think they believe I’ll only go back to him, so they don’t see the use in stopping him before he hurts me.
“I’ll go talk to them tomorrow. Not tonight.”
She frowns, but nods. “You’d better.”
I smile and head into the bedroom to change. No matter what, I won’t say anything to Kode about this. I’ll just suggest we go to his house tonight instead of hanging out at mine the way we planned.
I’ll worry about finding somewhere to stay tomorrow.
Chapter 10
KODE
Without Tria here, I’m half dr
unk with no one to take advantage of me. Maverick is facedown on the table after doing his row of birthday shots. Pansy.
Corbin is surprisingly sober, considering the occasion. And he’s relaxing in the booth next to me while the madness rages on.