It’s him again and, needless to say, he’s not simmering as I hoped, but obviously working himself into a demonic fury that could melt steel. On the warpath and raking the club to find me. Which means I’m not going in there for anything, not even a million dollars.
Not when he is like this.
I’m not that stupid.
My feet decide for me, turning on my heel and heading away from the club to put some space between us, where he won’t think to look. I will call him back but not until I’m out of sight and far enough away that he won’t be able to come and drag me indoors without looking for me. Lots of space is a good thing. Behind a building, out of his view and reach, until we talk it out—a lot.
I might talk him down from the ledge before seeing him and give myself a fighting chance at surviving this. No one knows more than me how filthy a temper he can have, and how much aggression pulsates through that cold body when he is riled like this. I spent enough time with him to know you don’t go facing this version of him by choice. You have to caress and smooth down the fire before you attempt to get close. We are very alike in that way.
He is mad at me for multiple things at this moment; I need to treat him like a venomous snake someone has trodden on. Very, very, carefully, soothing words, great distance and a lot of nerve.
I walk another few feet before my phone vibrates again, but as I can still see the club from here, I hold off, duck my head and walk a hell of a lot faster. It’s panic walking and I’m very aware my steps match the speed of my erratic heartbeat.
If he can’t immediately see me, then I’ll feel better. Safety in distance and all that.
Walking, walking, walking—in stupidly high shoes until I get past a few alleyways and find an opening leading onto the main road further down. A couple of blocks should do it and then I will answer.
He isn’t giving up. My phone gaining missed call after missed call and I have had to mute the ringer to stop myself jumping every time it goes off. I get another text after another string of calls.
“I have walked this building twice, where the fuck are you hiding?”
Alexi obviously doesn’t think I would venture outside, given the fact he told me I should never do it and another wave of cold fear runs down my spine. Like I suddenly just slapped myself in the face with that fact and remembered all the reasons I was never ever to go anywhere without security.
I literally freeze in the middle of the pavement and make an absurd ‘arghh’ sound out loud.
In all of this, I completely forgot about the fact he said I should never leave the club alone, and I just gave him yet another layer of disobedience to go volcanic over. Because all the rest was not enough, and I clearly have a death wish today.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
This is all me. Rash decisions without thought that always leads to me being in hot water and worse shit. Story of my goddamn life.
I stand very still, dead in my tracks and turn around with a ‘fuck’ falter of my heartbeat. Eyes wide, as blood drains from every inch of me and I realise how far I have actually walked, being completely oblivious to my surroundings while caught inside my own head. I wasn’t even looking around me like I normally would, so preoccupied and obsessing over Lexi. I have wandered out to the other end of our very long street where roads cross and traffic is flying past the end and down by me every few seconds.
I really am trying to push him to the max today, aren’t I?
Jesus Christ.
Dawning on me that this is possibly the worst idea and only going to add rage to the pot, I decide heading back is a much more sensible option before I answer. Maybe hide in the basement and lock the door, add a few crates behind it and maybe anything heavy, like the safe, to barricade me in and deny all attempts at leaving the building.
If I can’t get in the front door unseen, then I can leg it to the side entrance at the gate, dodging the men outside if I can. If I’m in the car park and omit the fact I wandered off, then maybe he might not kill me.
God, he is going to kill me.
This wasn’t just disobedience; I have put myself in danger and in his eyes that’s unforgivable. He spends his life busting his arse to protect me. He will flip and make the club scene seem marginal if he finds out I came walking out here.
Goddammit. I’m completely idiotic. I’m such a wanker.
I only take a few steps homeward bound, pulling my head out of my arse to pay attention to the street when something catches the corner of my eye. Yanking all my dulled senses back onto high alert and homing in on something in my peripheral vision. Knocking me out of Alexi agony and into ‘pay attention to your surroundings’ mode.
A black car, long and sleek, moving very slowly at a walking pace, and I don’t know why but it draws all my focus as something stirs in my gut. Trepidation and unease and a heightened awareness of how far away from the club I have strayed on foot. It’s two minutes in a car, but for me, it’s a six-minute run at the very least in stilettos. Oblivious, the whole time, to whether someone was following me, or if I’m just overly suspicious because Alexi will be volcanic about this. Maybe it’s a coincidence.
I lift my chin and walk on, pretending I haven’t clocked it, internally praying it’s nothing but a car looking to park. As the car slides past me and pulls in, butting its nose up on the pavement in front of me, my eyes instantly travel to the man on this side getting out and grinning at me. No attempt to do anything except face me. Eyes pinning me with a look that leaves no misunderstanding.
A butch rugged sort of man, short and stocky with a snarl and a skinhead. He’s dressed head to toe in standard Mafia uniform and I know he is not a Carrero. He’s all wrong, far too white supremacist and looking at me like a starved dog who just came across his dinner.
I turn quickly to make a run for it, head screaming, even if the direction is further from Alexi, and gasp as I realise another male is walking up behind me, and shudder to a standstill in fright. He’s a bookend as far as attire is concerned to his obvious partner. They must have been following me after all and waited until I was out of the Carrero danger zone before risking getting close.
That inner panic rearing her hysterical head, my body runs cold and prickly with the sudden shock of what I have walked into. Heart hammering through my chest and my body fires into high alert. My brain scrambling for a plan.
“Be a good girl now, Miss Walters, and don’t cause a scene.” He grins, all toothy and snarly, sadistic hints in that ugly eye and my stomach drops to my feet.
Shit.