CHAPTER FIFTEEN
DAMON
She just had to be here, didn’t she? Like the constant appearances she’d been making in my head wasn’t enough. Now I had to look at her.
Correction. I didn’t have to look at her.
Just because Athena was across the yard laughing and chatting with her friends didn’t mean I had to acknowledge her.
I’d only come to this gathering because Noah had insisted that I needed to get out of the house.
He thought it was unhealthy for me to spend all day sleeping and all night taking on various jobs from our clientele.
The last few nights I’d spent in a neighboring city taking care of business. Anything to keep myself busy. Whatever it took to stay away from her.
I didn’t like the way Athena had wormed her way into my thoughts. Since the night I took her to the warehouse arson job, she’d been plaguing me like an illness. A sickness I couldn’t shake.
“Are you listening to me, Damon?” Noah nudged me with an elbow right between my ribs, making me grunt.
“Obviously not. Was that really necessary?” I rubbed the place where he’d elbowed me, resisting the urge to thump him.
The jerk snickered. “Well yeah. Got your attention, didn’t it? Here.”
He shoved an icy cold beer into my hand before passing another to Dominik. Hanging out with the Graveyard Kings was more Noah’s thing than mine. At least there was food. It was a relatively small gathering. The Kings, their women, and a handful of so-called business partners.
I stood with Noah and Dom, nodding along as they made conversation with the others.
Every time I was around the Kings I felt more like I didn’t belong.
I’d accepted that Noah had made his choice, having fallen for one of them.
I suspected we both knew that eventually I would have to part ways with this group.
The sound of Athena’s laughter carried across the yard. Something about it set me on edge, making my teeth clench. She’d been such a stone-cold bitch to me that night. Now she had the nerve to toss her head back and laugh like she didn’t have a care in the world.
I suspected this woman may very well be a diabolical genius. Knowing exactly how to get under my skin. Making me regret manipulating Andy the way I had. If I’d known how many times I would flashback to fucking her, to how it felt to be inside her, I never would have done it.
“So when is the wedding?” Noah asked, like he really gave a damn.
Stray looked longingly toward his fiancée. “We haven’t settled on a date yet. Codie wants a winter wedding. Not too close to Christmas though. Basically, she’s in charge, and I’m along for the ride.”
I barely resisted rolling my eyes. These guys were fresh out of college and already caging themselves. I never understood why people rushed into marriage. Who needed that legal headache?
I couldn’t even fake interest while they talked. Instead, I checked the time on my phone, wondering if it would be rude of me to leave already. Did I even care though? Noah was the only reason I had even come. He was happy to be here. I was counting down the minutes until I could escape.
“Why don’t you go talk to her?” Noah leaned in to speak quietly next to my ear when the others were occupied with their conversation. “I can feel how tightly you’re restraining yourself. Why bother? You want her, so go have her.”
Irritation furrowed my brow. “Why in the world would you ever think I want anything more from her than what I’ve already had? She and I don’t have a damn thing to talk about. Stop looking at her.”
He laughed beneath his breath, clinking his beer against mine. “Don’t you ever get sick of being so uptight? Life is too short to be so pissy all the time.”
I wasn’t uptight. Maybe on occasion. I had my reasons. Usually they had something to do with stupid people pissing me off. Lately I found myself more irate at having to be dragged along to these damn Graveyard Kings events. I didn’t belong here. Noah and I both knew that.
Choosing not to have this conversation in front of witnesses, I kept my mouth shut. Waiting impatiently for the evening to reach a point where I would be able to slip away unnoticed. I sincerely doubted anyone gave a shit if I was present or not. Including Athena.
Despite my great efforts to ignore her, I couldn’t help but be aware of her as she left her friends and crossed the yard to the guys standing with Casper and Auryn near the back door to the house. I watched as she extended a hand, introducing herself. Hmmm. What exactly was she up to?
Screw it. It didn’t matter. I didn’t care. Athena meant nothing to me. She was an opportunity that fell into my lap and nothing more.
Once Rebel began to talk about a new potential deal with a biker gang in a neighboring city, I did my best to throw myself into the conversation.
Anything to keep from watching Athena. Yet in my peripheral view I saw the way she tossed her hair, batting those long lashes as she smiled at one of the guys.
Everything about her little performance felt obviously fake.
He either didn’t know that or he didn’t care.
Was she doing this to get a reaction from me? Possibly. She had proven already that it was in her nature to be a constant flirt, always needing male attention. Of course, a gorgeous woman like her had no problem obtaining such attention. The guy she flirted with was practically drooling.
There was no reason for me to care. She and I were nothing to each other. The last thing I needed was to catch feelings for some random chick I fucked once in an alley. Even if she had been a phenomenal fuck. One that left me thinking about her days later, unlike any who had come before her.
I told myself it was time to leave. There was no reason for me to stay.
I would make some bullshit excuse and take off.
Except my feet refused to move. Trying to be sly, I darted the occasional glance in Athena’s direction.
When the eager recipient of her flirtations made the bold move of brushing a lock of hair back behind Athena’s ear, I turned into a whole other person.
Something inside me snapped. Before any part of me could acknowledge that what I was about to do was absolutely insane, I was already in motion. Moving swiftly across the grass, my beer bottle clenched tight in my hand.
Athena glanced up as I approached, her green eyes widening when she saw the expression I wore. It must’ve been downright maniacal. The jackass she flirted with turned toward me about to say something. He never got the chance.
I smashed him across the head with the beer bottle hard enough to make it shatter over his skull. Driven by the force, he went down with an agonized yelp, clutching his head. I didn’t stop there. Grabbing him by the front of his shirt, I dragged him back to his feet.
Holding the sharp, jagged neck of the bottle next to his face, I snarled, “Stay the fuck away from my girl unless you have a death wish. Do you understand?”
“Damon,” Athena shouted, nervously backing away. “What the hell are you doing?”
Casper was quick to shove between us, careful to avoid the broken bottle in my grasp. Noah immediately joined him. He grabbed my arm, pulling me away from the guy with blood gushing from a cut on his head.
“Damon, man, what the fuck?” Noah’s eyes frantically darted about. “Have you completely lost your mind? What were you thinking?”
I shook him off, holding up both hands to show that I was finished. After placing the broken bottle neck on the patio table, I grabbed Athena by the hand and dragged her toward the house.
Nobody was stupid enough to follow. We disappeared alone into the house, leaving the chaos behind in the yard. I dragged her through the kitchen and into the living room toward the washroom on the main floor.
“What is wrong with you?” she hissed. “Why are you being such a possessive asshole?”
“This is what you wanted, isn’t it? Why else would you have put on that little performance in front of me?” I shoved her into the washroom before following her in and locking the door behind me.
She pressed herself against the far wall as much as the small room would allow. “I did no such thing. Why are you pretending you care? You didn’t even acknowledge me until you saw me flirt with someone else.”
Placing a hand on either side of her head, I trapped her with my body. “So then you did do it to get my attention. Just as I thought.”
“You are so full of yourself. And for the record, I am not your girl. Don’t tell people that I am.” Athena did her best to look me right in the eye and stand her ground. Never backing down. Just the way I liked her.
“You are whatever I want you to be until I’m done with you. You still owe me.” Overwhelmed by the fury still riding me, I jerked her away from the wall, shoving her against the sink.
Stepping up behind her, I met her wide-eyed stare through the mirror. Watching her face as I lifted her skirt, jerking her panties to one side. She gasped yet made no effort to stop me. Shoving my pants down, I thrust into her in one fast stroke.
The sound of voices in the kitchen reached us beyond the door. I placed a hand over Athena’s mouth to muffle the noises she would inevitably make. Nothing was stopping me from fucking her until she knew exactly who she belonged to.