I lock the door behind me and groan before dialing the number I’ve been getting all those missed calls from. The line rings, but someone quickly picks up, already sounding annoyed.
“Gunn?”
“That’s right,” I say. “Dragon cartel, am I correct?”
“We’ve been waiting for your call,” the voice hisses. “You’ve been avoiding us for weeks. Perhaps it’s because of that new house guest of yours?”
I narrow my eyes. They must have a spy around here, because nobody knows about Rain being here. Fucking hell, I’m going to have to do another background check on all my people.
“Get to the point,” I growl instead of threatening them.
“We want a meeting, now.”
“Then let me meet with your leader.”
“We cannot.”
I rub my temples, asking, “Why the fuck not? I don’t do business unless it’s eye-to-eye. And we both know how pressing this matter is.”
“A face-to-face meeting is not something we can offer.”
“Well, then you can kiss your deal goodbye,” I growl. “It’s off.”
“You can’t do that.”
“I can do anything I want. I control the borders, and you know it.”
I hear the hesitation on the other end. It’s enough for me to know they’ll cave eventually, so I cut the call. Heading back downstairs, I prepare myself for the sight of Rain. No doubt she’ll make my cock rock hard again. I can only hope she won’t be giving me a reason to punish her.
“Heath.”
I turn to face Cannon, who’s just exited the salon, looking pale as fuck.
“What?” I demand.
“Don’t go in there.”
“Why the fuck not?”
“Trust me,” he mutters, his nerves betraying him. “Just don’t-“
I ignore him, pushing him to the side. My heart jumps as I enter the salon in anticipation of what I’m going to see before me. My worst fear is Rain being gone. Either killed or taken away by the man who ruined my life once before. But she’s in there alright, happily laughing along with my friends.
She’s sitting on Phoenix’s lap. As I walk in, Rain leans forward, and he kisses her deeply.
I was worried about how I’d control myself in a situation like this, but the calm that takes over is more frightening than anything else. I walk up to them and pull Phoenix to his feet, pushing Rain aside. She screams as I force him to his feet and punch his face so hard his head snaps back, hitting the wall.
“Are you fucking insane?” Rain demands. “He’s your friend!”
I growl at Phoenix, who’s barely staying on his feet before burying my knee in his stomach. While he keels over on the floor, I approach Rain, who stumbles back to get away from me.
“Are you fucking serious, Rain?” I hiss at her.
“Fuck off,” she snarls back, turning feral as she stares at me with a gaze full of hatred. “I’ll do anything to escape. You don’t even know me.”
She hasn’t just betrayed my trust, she’s betrayed our connection. My jaw sets as I glare at her.
“You’ll be punished,” I hiss while the rest of the men quickly file out of the room. “You realize how badly you’ve just fucked up?”
“I knew you were testing me,” she snaps back. “I’m nothing to you, just another paycheck, just another toy to fuck. Just admit it.”
I laugh out loud, incredulous at what she’s saying. She couldn’t be farther away from the truth. The whole reason I wanted her here tonight is because I want her as part of my life. Her reaction makes me want to reconsider, though.
“Don’t you dare talk to me like that,” I tell her calmly. “You take me for an idiot. You kiss my friends. You act like a whore. You want me to hurt you? Because now, I will.”
“Nothing happened!” Her voice has quickly turned pleading, and her eyes beg me to forgive her.
“I saw you,” I roar. “I fucking saw it with my own eyes. Don’t lie to me.”
She leans forward then, her soft lips pressing against mine as if a kiss can eradicate everything she’s done wrong.
But this kiss actually might just do that. There’s so much passion in it, it fucking kills me to raise my hands to her throat and choke her.
She kisses me despite what I’m doing, adding extra attention to the way she deepens our lip lock.
Then, her nails find their way under my shirt and buttons fly off as she claws at me, never taking those lips off mine.
She’s impossible to resist, but I force myself to pull back, not giving her the forgiving kiss she’s so damn desperate for.
“You naughty little thing,” I mutter against her neck, leaving punishing, bruising kisses as I kiss a line down her throat. “I trusted you to be a good girl. I gave you this opportunity so you could show me how well-trained you are. Why did you do that, Rain?”
She doesn’t answer, just whimpers raspily, making me realize I’m still choking her. I slowly move my hands away and she stumbles forward, desperate to catch her breath. I don’t try to grab her. I groan and rub my eyes. But then she shrieks and runs forward, making me curse out loud as I realize she’s still intent on escaping the Palacio.