He grins and shrugs. “I’m not thinking a thing.”
“Gav. Stop bullshitting me.”
His smile falters. “I’m just worried is all. You had a fit—”
“I’m fine.”
“—And now you’re staying out all night with Nico. I thought you hated him?”
“Turns out, he’s my only hope so I’m learning to love the monster under my bed.”
Gavino rolls his eyes. “How dramatic.”
“Steps aside, brother dearest. I need to shower and wash the stink of mafia dickhead off my body.”
“Oh, god, disgusting.”
I shove past him. “Don’t worry, I’m just messing with you.” Sort of.
He says nothing as I hurry upstairs, smiling to myself. Maybe Nico’s right about one thing—it is kind of fun to mess with people.
“Shoe girl! Customers!”
I smile as I help a young couple get all set up and ready to bowl. The girl’s maybe sixteen and the guy’s around the same age. They seem sweet, almost innocent and naive, and the girl looks at him like he’s the greatest thing in the world, and he looks at her like she’s some kind of anointed saint.
“Have fun,” I say as they head off to bowl.
I lean my elbows on the counter and sigh.
Nico will never look at me like that.
No, Nico only looks at people like he’s about to tear them open with his teeth, and I’m no exception. To him I’m just a pretty meal with a bit of a chase attached, but beyond that I’m just another cute little bunny ready to get slaughter at the altar of his wolfish excellence.
And for some reason, I don’t mind it.
If anything, the thrill of his danger, the excess of his hidden anger, the pure lust, it makes me feel more in control than I’ve ever felt before—which is strange, given that I’ve never been more powerless in my life. There’s something about choosing this, choosing to submit to him, choosing to let that bastard guide me through this nightmare and into something else that makes me feel as though I can make it through anything.
Even the fits. Even the black hole in my mind.
I blink a few times and a shadow enters my vision. Nico’s cocky smirk brings a smile to my face—when even just a few days ago, it would’ve made me scowl.
“I thought I’d find you here,” he says, casually running a hand through his hair.
“Oh, you mean the place where I work? Very smart, I can see why Papa likes you.”
He grins bigger. “I love when you’re a brat. It’s adorable, like a fluffy white dog yapping at the foot of a bull.”
“It’s great when you call me a dog. So romantic.”
“If you want romance, you’re with the wrong man.” He comes close, eyes locked on mine. “Speaking of which, I want to see you in the break room.”
My eyebrows raise. “I’m not sure that’s how it works.”
“Tell Dave you’re taking fifteen.”
“Nico—”
“Tell him, Karah. Right now.”
His tone isn’t teasing or playful.
It’s the tone of a man that wishes to be obeyed, and this strange tugging sensation takes hold of my heart and makes me turn my head toward where Dave stands organizing the cheap socks we sell to people that don’t have their own—although why you’d come to a bowling alley without socks is absolutely beyond me and a sign that our society is crumbling into anarchy.
“Hey, I need a break. I’m taking fifteen.”
He frowns at me. I can tell he wants to argue, but he glances at Nico and nods once. “Enjoy, shoe girl.”
I hurry around the counter and Nico follows me into the back. My heart’s racing the whole way. I know what he wants—I know what he thinks happens in the break room.
His hands on my body.
His mouth on my throat.
And any other time in my life, I would’ve fought against this, but not now, no, not anymore.
Not when I know what’s in store for me.
Instead, I’m buzzing with anticipation. As soon as we get inside and he shuts the break room door, I turn on him, advancing like a lioness on the hunt. He catches me by the hips and turns me, pushing me up against the wall as I smother my mouth against his. I want his tongue on mine, his teeth, his lips, his everything. His taste floods me and I’m wrecked with dopamine in the best kind of way, dizzy and lightheaded and basically floating into lust.
“Hold on,” he says, pulling back slightly.
“Hold on? Fuck that.” I grab his hair and he laughs.
“That’s not why we’re here.”
“It’s not? Maybe it should be.” I bite his lower lip. “You dragged me into the break room, so you better give me what I want.”
He pulls at my wrists and pins them above my head. I gasp as he bites my collarbone and kisses my neck, his lips lingering on the hollow of my throat.
“No, princess, that’s not how this works. I tell you what I want and you give it to me with a smile.”