Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
“Yeah, but when? It couldn’t have been anytime I was there. I know. I waited for you and—” Her mouth clamps shut instantly, and she backs away, her face turning rosy red.
I don’t speak right away.
I can’t.
Look at her. She doesn’t even want to be near me.
I stand up again, spraying a few spritz of cologne on. “Who’s the guy you were with at the fight?”
Her big brown eyes meet mine. “Shane.”
“And who exactly is this Shane?”
She folds her arms. Her lips are sealed. Her eyes move away from mine to focus on the door.
I place my cologne back in the bag and walk in her direction. She hears me coming and turns with haste to meet my eyes. She backs away rapidly, until her back hits the wall.
When I’m close enough I study her, how hot and crimson her face is. Her breathing is shaky, her body language showing immense signs of interest. Though her mind doesn’t want to be interested in me in the slightest, her body begs to differ.
“Hmm.” I smirk, running my eyes down the length of her, my hand gripped on the door handle.
I swing the door open and she releases a ragged breath, relieved.
“Hey, Preach, get my bag for me. Take it to the hotel.” Preach, my security guard, steps around the corner with a nod. He walks past us to grab my gym bag and then comes back in my direction.
Before he walks out, he asks, “You don’t need me to walk you out past that crowd?”
“Nah. I think we can handle it.”
Preach looks from me to Jenny. “You sure now? They see you with a chick on your arm they’ll be hounding your ass all night. I’m talking no privacy.”
“She’s not just some chick. She’s important and the whole fucking world should know it.”
Jenny steps forward. “Um, Drake. I don’t think that’s smart. You’re only seeing me once. After we discuss some stuff, I’m out of here. You’ll never see me again.”
“Is that what you think…Snoop?”
Her eyes narrow. “Don’t call me that.”
“You came back here to see me—not because you hate me, because if you truly hated me you wouldn’t be standing right here—but because you were curious about me. It’s not just that cross that has you questioning things… Snoop.”
I’m being a jackass. I know it.
Her shoulders lift. “I won’t walk out of here with you.”
“Fine. Then we’ll stay here in this cold-ass locker room.”
“I can go down the hallway by myself and get through the crowd without any trouble on my end, you know that, right? They know nothing about me, but the whole world seems to know all about Doomsday.” She says my name with a sneer.
“You leave, and I will be following right behind you. Hell—I’ll let everyone out there know exactly what you are to me if they ask. I won’t hold back, Jenny. I’m not afraid of anything. You seem to have forgotten that.”
“Are you fucking kidding me!? What is it that you want?” she screeches. “I’m back here. I had questions and you’re beating around the bush about them. Why don’t you just answer them and leave me the hell alone already?!”
“If you really wanted me to leave you alone you wouldn’t fucking be here, Jenny. You’re a smart girl. I hate when you pretend to be stupid.”
Her eyes bore into mine.
I return a similar glare. She’s not winning this battle. I will talk to her. I will get her to hear me out.
“All I need is a chance, Jenny. Let me explain my fucking self. I won’t go out towards that crowd with you. I’ll sneak you out back, take you away from here, and we’ll talk somewhere in private. No one will know who you are—no one will be in your face. They won’t ask you any questions. If that’s what you want, we can do that.”
She crosses her arms tightly. “I can’t be alone with you.”
I look between us, and then at Preach. He’s mostly confused, and slightly amused. “Go ahead, Preach. I’ll be good.”
He nods and takes off immediately.
Jenny watches him leave, and I swear I can hear her heart sink and plop right into the acid in her stomach, shriveling away. The fact that we are alone now weighs heavy on her shoulders, and she looks up at me instantly.
“You’re alone with me now.”
“I have a boyfriend,” she blurts out. “Shane, the one you saw me with?”
I freeze. My jaw locks.
“Is that who keeps calling you?”
“Yep.”
I hold back on my irritation. “Is that supposed to make me back off? Make me feel some type of way?”
“You should respect that I’m not single.”
“Well, guess what? You’re in fucking Vegas, and while you’re here, none of that shit matters.” I grab her hand and lead the way out of the locker room before she can say anything more. I can hear the people down the hallway, loud and anxious—waiting for nothing.