This was it, the moment of truth. Were they going to drag me right out of the house?
My stomach bunched up as I waited for him to answer. He glowered at me. “Get out of my sight. We’re done here.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” I said. “You saw one bad moment after I’ve proven myself in every other possible way. We still have a deal. You swore on your blood; you promised me you weren’t going back on it. I’m not leaving until I see my side through. You don’t trust me to stand with you when you come down on Colt? Fine. I’ll stand back and watch. But it’s going to happen.” And we’d see whether he could hold me back when the chips were actually down.
Kaige and Gideon stared at me in disbelief. Even Anthea looked surprised by my refusal.
“Your stubbornness isn’t going to work when you don’t have the actions to match your words,” Wylder said.
“I already told you, this may be my weakness but it isn’t a failure, and I’m sure as hell not weak.” I managed to stand up, wiping my hands on my jeans, and met each of their gazes one by one.
I saw grudging respect in Gideon’s eyes, and Rowan was looking at me in a way that I didn’t want to delve into further, even if he’d protected me in the end. I expected Wylder to order Kaige to knock me out and then kick me down the front steps, or worse just put a bullet in my brain and get it all over with. Well, they could try.
Wylder spun on his heel, not even bothering to look at me. “If you insist on hanging around, you can go back to the groupie room. That’s the level of company you clearly fit in with. I’m sure you’ll be incredibly welcome there.”
Gia’s face flashed through my mind and then the mess some of the women had made of my room. My teeth gritted.
“Sure,” I forced myself to say. At least I was still here. I hadn’t failed completely, no matter what the guys said.
“Go,” Kaige said with a jerk of his chin.
I stalked out of the room, not waiting for them to change their mind. My anger was building steadily inside me, and I needed to find a way to put it to good use.