“But she came here to work 1st Circle.”
My jaw aches from grinding my teeth. Fury—jealousy wraps around me, strangling to the point of suffocation. The monsters in my head scream at me to put him down.
It’s worse than the guy who touched her and makes less sense. Nothing fucking makes sense anymore.
I don’t understand why the hell she is under my skin, but I’m not willing to dig her out.
“Why would you care about a girl you know nothing about when just last week you left Slippery with two other girls?” he asks, continuing to poke at the wound he’s created.
“Cut the shit,” I hiss, shaking Will’s grip. “You know that we know each other.” I jerk my head at the man next to me, who seems just as angry as I am. “Same way he does. Because you don’t know how to mind your own fucking business.”
“Knowing about who works for me is my business. I know she lives alone, has a twin sister, and owes the bank a lot of money. And her dad is a piece of shit.” He walks across the room, unbuttons his jacket as he sits in the chair behind the dingy desk, kicking his feet up. “But the question remains. Why doyoucare?”
I throw my hands in the air, frustrated with how the conversation turned, wondering why it matters before my brain snags. “What do you know about her dad?”
“Enough to know he doesn’t deserve free oxygen.”
“Care to elaborate?”
“Sure. As soon as you do.”
“Goddammit.” I turn away from both of them. “I don’t know, okay. I have no idea why I fucking care. But I do. What difference does it make anyway?”
“Because I won’t have volatile boyfriends in my club. Especially when that boyfriend is one of my fighters and doesn’t know when to stop. Other than that, it doesn’t matter.” I can feel his shrewd gaze raking over me from head to toe. He’s looking. Too hard. Too deep. It makes the urge to punch him grow.
No one noticed me for years. Now everyone watches like they are expecting me to detonate. Searching and assessing every damn thing I do. They have been for months, and I don’t like it.
It’sherdamn fault. Just like everything else that’s wrong with me.
“Keep it out of my business, Jagger. Or next time I won’t be as forgiving.”
“Then keep her out of your damn whore house. She doesn’t belong there.” It would seem that while Poppy makes me forget aboutmyshit and the desire for all the mind numbing vices that will eventually kill me vanish, she’s just as hazardous to my health.
“Five seconds is a record. People usually take longer to forget my warnings.”
“Go fuck yourself, Dom,” I say, walking out the door, not waiting forpermission.
As the door slams behind me, I can hear him and Will arguing. Good. Maybe that means my brother’s spy won’t follow me out.
The thought is short-lived when a heavy hand lands on my shoulder, spinning me around. Lifting my hand, I shove it through my hair as I take a breath, then dig my fingers into the base of my neck. “Shouldn’t you be arguing with your brother about whether you’re part of thefamily business?”
“Shouldn’t you stop being an asshole for five minutes?” he counters, looking as annoyed as I feel. “What are you doing, Jagger?”
“Trying to leave.”
“You know what I mean.” He steps back, leaving against the wall with his arms folded over his chest as he glares at me. “What are you doing with Poppy? What’s with all the caveman shit? What’s with all the fights? You’re fucking spiraling.”
The words land harder than any punch. Not because they’re true. Because they’re not. Not when I’m with her.
That awareness doesn’t explain the volatile reactions I’ve had tonight. They make no sense, but spiraling? If anything, it’s the opposite. Days like today would’ve sent me head first into a bender of alcohol and cocaine, with or without sex and fighting. But I haven’t touched a thing. I feel…in control.
Not a single thing about it is healthy. Using Poppy is the last thing I want to do, but it’s what’s happening. It’s not fair to her, and more than a little toxic.
But I can’t bring myself to stop.
And that’s what he’s hinting at. He wants me to back off. He may not have said the words, but it’s there all the same. “Mind your business, Will. All of you need to mind your business and leave me the fuck alone.”
“Do you think it’s a good idea to get involved with her?”
