Chapter 3 #3
“I wasn’t serious, asshole, get out so I can get dressed,” I snap when he’s still lingering.
Shit, I’m not sure what’s come over him or me.
I know who he is, and I can trust him about as much as Kasen, and that is not at all.
He needs to stay the hell away from me, yet the way he’s looking at me with hunger has me all hot and bothered.
“Got mouthier too,” he complains before the door closes behind him with a click.
Ha. I huff to myself. That was strange, awkward, when it never would have been in the past. But I guess the both of us have changed a lot over the last ten years.
He’s not the curious kid genius anymore.
He’s grown into something sharper—tall, controlled, inked skin stretched over quiet strength, his intelligence somehow more intimidating than it ever was before.
No, not just intimidating but attractive, and that’s dangerous.
Trying to snap my brain back to reality, I assess the pile of clothes on the bed, the pink making more sense now that I know his sister helped him.
She might have been a year older than me, but that chick never had any taste.
The lollypop-pink lipstick she used to wear to school was enough to make me cringe.
And even though she clearly shopped at some expensive store, she managed to find the cheapest-looking items.
I drop my towel and squeeze into the way-too-bright bra she’s selected.
It’s a good two sizes too small and push-up, the last thing I need with my natural double D’s.
I’m going to look like a porn star in this, but it’s all I have.
I shimmy into the matching thong and almost laugh at myself, knowing how ridiculous I must look.
That fabric is super soft and luxurious, but the color is all kinds of wrong.
The tops she’s picked are all teeny-tiny, the kind that hug every curve and leave nothing to the imagination.
In the small size, they won’t cover my left tit, let alone the right one as well and my stomach.
But there is a cute pair of faded denim cut-offs that fit perfectly.
They are more tailored than my usual style and don’t have any rips, but they are close enough.
I grab my make-up bag from my backpack and move back into the bathroom and grab up the button-up I slept in.
I throw it on, tucking it in on one side so I’m not swimming in it.
Until I can swipe my stuff back later today, this will have to do.
I towel-dry my hair and leave it out and hanging down my back, then do my best to apply some concealer to cover the worst of the bruises and paint my eyes with dark liner and mascara.
My warpaint, or it used to be at The Silver Room, the club I was working at.
With a shaky breath, I take hold of the door handle and try it.
To my surprise it opens, and I step out onto the sleek marble floor of the hallway, looking left and right.
The hall has another few doors as well, but all of them are closed up tight.
But it’s the delicious smell of butter and bacon wafting through that has my interest piqued the most.
Slater is clearly waiting for me and tucks the phone he was madly typing on into his back pocket when he spots me. “You took your time,” he mutters, unimpressed.
“I’m not sure what size your sister is these days, but it isn’t the same as me,” I snip as I adjust the underwire of the bra stabbing me in the side of my boob.
He chuckles to himself, his eyes lingering on my tits way longer than they should. “Noted.”
I go to pass him, but he crowds me, forcing me back into the wall behind as he stares down at me. He has that same damn intimidating look that was always there. “What made you come back, sunshine?” His voice is low, his jaw tight, like he’s not happy about it.
I huff out a laugh. “Yeah, good to see you too, asshole.” I shove under his arm, not wanting to stick around for whatever Slater interrogation this is. He has been hanging round with Kasen too long, he’s picking up on his alphahole energy. It doesn’t suit him.
“There is nothing left here for you…”
I spin round on the spot, a fresh wave of rage bubbling up through me.
His words eat into my soul and cause pain I thought I had gotten over long ago, but no one can reject a girl quite like Bodhi Slater.
I should know. “No fucking shit. And who made sure of that? The Throne family business and the goons who work for ‘em?” I throw right back at him. If he wants a fight, he’s going the right way about it.
I’ve done my research, I know he’s Kasen’s bitch these days. Head of security blah, blah, blah.
He’s chest to chest with me in one step, towering over me in a way that makes my heart leap into my throat. But I don’t shy away, I pin my glare right back on him. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I know you would sacrifice it all to never be that lost boy no one wanted ever again.”
His stone-cold expression says it all. I just hit him where it hurts. But what did they expect, that they could drag me home with them and it would be like the old days? No chance in hell with what I know.