Part 4 (2/2)
”You heard a rumor?” I snapped and spun towards him.
He stopped in his tracks with a smile on his face, gold teeth s.h.i.+nning.
He was much taller than me, but I didnt care, I got close enough for him to hear my hiss, without touching him. ”Id be f.u.c.king careful what you say next, because some rumors are true.”
A hint of understanding flashed across his face, maybe realization, or maybe acknowledgment that I was crazy. I certainly felt it. But then his eyes rose above me, and Gage pulled me back.
”Is there a problem? I thought I told you to leave.” Gage squared up to him. The other man was taller and had more muscle, but Gage still managed to look down on him.
”I was just talking to your wife about rumors. What about the rumor that youre a pimp now, running a wh.o.r.e house in New York?”
Gage stiffened, and my heart leapt in my throat. Both of the other men were laughing.
The tall man reached past Gage, towards me. ”Is she one of them? How mu-” Suddenly, he was on his knees, arm twisted high behind him.
”Dont f.u.c.king touch her.” Gage shoved him flat on the ground, and the s.p.a.ce around us cleared as dancers took notice of what was going on. Gage stepped back as the shorter man lunged towards him and used his forward momentum to push him to the ground.
Before the men could get up, Magnally stepped through a break in the crowd. ”What the h.e.l.l are you two doing?”
Then bouncers were there, lifting the men to their feet and dragging them away. No one even questioned Gage.
He wiped his hands on his pants like they were only a minor annoyance. His bright eyes met mine. ”You all right? Ready to go?”
But I stood still, the mans accusations running through my head.
What about the rumor that youre a pimp?
This wasnt something I was willing to wait to talk about. I needed to know if this was just a rumor. But fear strangled me.
Some rumors were true, and I couldnt handle this one if it was.
6: Need To Know.
I WAS FROZEN IN s.p.a.cE, WORLD SPINNING around me. The clubs ba.s.s was drowned out by the words screaming in my head, ricocheting through me like a stray bullet.
Pimp.
Wh.o.r.e house.
As much as I wanted to dismiss it as the ramblings of an a.s.s, I couldnt. Not with the way Gage had been acting since he started working there.
Gage. He was hovering over me now, saying something, hand on my elbow, trying to usher me off the dance floor.
I pulled free from his grip and pushed through the crowd to the front of the club. I had to get out of here. The room was closing in on me, the rumors thick and choking. I couldnt breathe. There were too many people around, too much smoke, too much noise. And Gage at my back only made it worse.
He was usually the one to calm me when I panicked, but not now. Not this Gage. He felt like a stranger.
The front of the club didnt release to outside, but to the inside of a hotel and casino. The bright lights, noise of the slots, and people streaming past did nothing to ease my vibrating muscles and straining breath. I needed fresh air, but before I could even spot the exit to the hotel, Gage stopped me.
”Our rooms not that way.” His hand gently guided me to face the right direction. ”The elevator is over there.”
I pulled away, wrapping my arms around myself, holding it all together as I walked towards the elevators. We had checked in here before going to Dexters, but I didnt have the key on me or remember exactly where the room was. Room 2119. I could figure it out.
A small group of men were waiting outside the elevator doors, talking and laughing in Spanish. I stood back, willing the doors to open so I could get away.
I turned to Gage. ”Give me the key. You should go back. Check on Dexter and them, I dont know what happened.”
”Theyll be all right. They have the limo for the night and my number if they need something.”
The door slid open, and I followed the group onto the elevator with Gage right behind me. He pressed the b.u.t.ton for our floor and then stood between me and the other men, blocking me from view. I knew what he was doing; it must have been obvious that I was freaking out.
The doors slid open and the group exited, never breaking their conversation. With their chatter gone, the faint sound of cla.s.sical music filled the car.
The moment the doors closed on us, Gage turned to face me. ”You scared the h.e.l.l out of me.” His voice was low as he stepped close, but his bodys warmth didnt reach me. His closeness only increased the chill seeping into my bones, making them ache. ”Why did you get in that mans face? Youre strong, but... you cant challenge people like him.” He gripped my elbow, head dipping to catch my eyes.
”He was running his mouth about you.” I leveled my glare at him, and his hand dropped from my elbow.
”What did he say?” He questioned softly.
Wrapping my arms tighter around myself, I dropped my eyes to the bright blue carpet. I couldnt stand to keep looking at him. He heard what had been said at the end, and thats the only thing that mattered.
The elevator doors opened, and I stepped past him without responding.
Once we were in our room, he stopped me from escaping to the balcony by wrapping an arm around my waist from behind, lips in my hair.
”So you were defending me?” his low rasp held a hint of amus.e.m.e.nt, but his body was turned on as he pressed against me.
I spun on my toes, shoving him away. ”Dont touch me.”
His brows knitted together, deep lines creasing between them. ”What the h.e.l.l? We fought for each other again, I thought-”
”That you wouldnt have to explain? That Id forget what he said? Wrong.”
”Explain? You said it yourself, he was only running his mouth.”
”Except, half of what he said was true.” Now I was the one stepping closer to him, wanting to grab him and force him to speak. He was retreating, hiding behind his frustration.
The tension between us was solid, like a rope in tug of war. Both of us struggled for the upper hand.
”Just what, exactly, are you accusing me of?” He crossed his arms over his chest, leaning away with a smug self-righteousness that momentarily took away my words.
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