Chapter 23 #2
Killing the engine, I pulled the keys from the ignition, climbed from the car, and made my way inside the club.
Xander spotted me the moment I walked through the door and gave his head a discreet tilt toward the bar.
I joined him at the far end closest to where I used to sit when I came in to keep an eye on Gypsy. Obscured by the shadows in the dimly lit corner, I kept my voice low as I asked, “He here?”
He studied me for a beat before speaking. “Gotta say, I’m not surprised to see you in here, but I feel I have to ask anyway. You sure you wanna do this, brother?”
My jaw ticked, and my fingers clenched as I gritted out my response.
“That motherfucker broke into my woman’s house,” I hissed.
“He waited until she was alone to take her by surprise. He fucked with what’s mine, and I’m gonna make sure that shit doesn’t happen again.
Now you want to answer my question, or keep wasting my time? ”
Xander heaved a heavy sigh before giving his head a single nod. “He’s in his office. Try not to do too much damage, yeah? We still need to take that asshole down.”
I was on the move without so much as a backward glance, rounding the bar and heading down the hallway that led to the office in the back. Putting my hand to the knob, I twisted and threw the door at the very end of the hall open hard enough to make it crash into the wall.
The room erupted into a flurry of motion, starting with the startled squeak of the woman on her knees beneath the glass-topped desk.
“What the fuck!” Black bellowed, shooting from his chair and tucking his dick the girl had just been sucking back into his pants.
Looking to the woman, I gave her a cursory glance, just long enough to come to the conclusion that she was one of the dancers. “Get out,” I barked, my tone leaving no room for argument.
She easily rose from the floor and scuttled past me as fast as her feet would carry her. The second she cleared the threshold, I slammed it closed, leaving me and Black alone in the room.
“Hey, asshole,” he clipped, buttoning his fly. “You have any goddamn clue who I am?”
“I know exactly who you are,” I seethed, moving forward and bracing my hands on the top of his desk. “You’re the fucker who came into my woman’s house early today uninvited. What you don’t know, what I came to make sure you read loud and clear, is that you picked the wrong woman to fuck with.”
Understanding flashed across his face, and a second later his lips tipped up in a sneer. “And you thought you needed to come in here to stake your claim?” he mocked. “Worried she’ll see you for the pussy you are and trade up to a real man?”
I mimicked his smile. “As far as I’m concerned, only a pussy breaks into a woman’s house, hoping to catch her off guard.
” His smile instantly fell, and an angry red flush slipped over his cheeks.
“And only a pussy has to offer a woman money in the hopes of getting her in his bed. I got Gypsy in mine without having to flash an envelope full of cash, so believe me, man, you are no threat.”
“Yeah?” he seethed. “Maybe I should pay your woman another visit, take my time with her. Then she can decide which of us is a real man.” He tipped his hand with that threat, letting me know he was a hothead with no impulse control whatsoever, something I could use to my advantage.
It was only a matter of time before someone as easily provoked as Malachi Black lost control and fucked up.
And when he did, I’d be there to finish him.
Moving quick as a flash, I made it around the desk before he had a chance to register what was happening.
Grabbing him by his throat, I slammed him into the wall and squeezed hard enough to cut off his air supply.
We were roughly the same height and weight, but his size was nothing compared to the years of training I had, so when I pressed my fingers deeper, there was no chance of him escaping.
“You just fucked up,” I informed him, my voice low and menacing as I leaned in so close we were nose to nose.
He sputtered and fought against my hold, but it was no use.
“You just made an enemy of the wrong guy. From this moment forward, I’m dedicating myself to ruining you in every single way possible.
And believe me, I’m very dedicated. I won’t stop until I’ve dismantled every single goddamn piece of your life.
” His eyes bugged out and his face began to turn purple as I pressed him harder into the wall and hissed, “Consider this Gypsy’s resignation.
From here on out, she’s nothing more than a memory to you.
You understand me?” His mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.
Using my hold on him I pulled him back and slammed him into the wall again, making his head crack against the plaster so hard it left a dent.
“I asked you a question, motherfucker. You understand me?”
“Y-yes,” he wheezed, nodding frantically.
“Good,” I replied, curling my lips to bare my teeth. “And if I ever find out you so much as looked in her direction, I will end you. That’s a fucking promise.”
Letting him go, I turned on my boots stomped out of the office to the sounds of Blacks struggling for air.
Xander was waiting for me at the mouth of the hall. “He still alive in there?”
“Just,” I answered. “But he’ll probably have to suck his meals through a straw for the next few days.”
A knowing smile spread across his face. “So you think you got your point across?
“Only time will tell. If he’s smart, he got it.”
That smile turned positively vicious, revealing the darkness that Xander Caine had lying dormant just beneath the surface.
He hid it well enough, but me and the rest of the guys at Alpha Omega could sense it was there, and I think we all secretly worried about the day he finally lost his tenuous grip on that control.
“Know you probably won’t agree, but I’m kinda hoping he’s stupid.
Be fun to teach that prick a harder lesson. ”
He was right. I didn’t agree with him. I’d made Gypsy and her family a promise I had every intension of keeping. I was going to give them a great life, and I couldn’t do that if Malachi Black was still in the picture, casting shadows.
“Need to get back to Gypsy and the kids,” I said. “See you tomorrow.”
“You got it.”
With a flick of my wrist, I exited Pink Palace.
As I made the drive to that shitty trailer park in a not-so-nice part of Hope Valley, I did it with a smile on my face. Because it didn’t matter where I was going.
As long as Gypsy was there, I’d be home.