The shoes she gave me were just as beautiful. Strappy black heels encrusted with little silver spikes on the straps. The ensemble was definitely different from my usual wardrobe, but I somehow still felt like myself.
“Jessie, I don’t know how I’m ever going to pay you back for these things.”
“Girl, don’t worry about it. Your guys are taking care of everything.” She said with a wink.
“They aren’t my guys.” I said, shaking my head.
“It doesn’t seem that way.” She said, giving me a pointed look. “They’ve never brought a woman here before.”
I didn’t respond as I eyed myself in the mirror one last time and let the weight of her words sink in. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that the only reason they were so protective over me was because, for all intents and purposes, they owned me.
I didn’t give a fuck about their reputation, but I didn’t want Jessie to feel sorry for me. After getting to know each other, Jessie felt like a friend. She grew up in Caspian Valley, like me, and she understood how out of my element I was.
“Come on, you look fab. They’re literally going to be eating out of the palm of your hand.”
That made a small smile slip to my lips. Maybe I could find a way out of this. A man’s greatest weakness was his cock. If I could get The Reapers to think with theirs, I might stand a chance of getting out of here in one piece.
After finishing up my makeup, Jessie led me straight to the bar for a drink. I leaned against the cool granite countertop and fought the urge to search for the guys in the crowd. Something about her words struck a nerve with me. I wanted to see what kind of reaction my new wardrobe would elicit from them.
As Jessie began collecting the ingredients to make me one of her signature Hellhound cocktails, my eyes wandered around the crowded room in search of The Reapers.
Scanning the crowd of people swaying to the music, my eyes caught on a light streaming in from the outside. The front entrance. A figure appeared in the light, and I had to do a double take to make sure my eyes weren’t deceiving me.What the hell was DC doing here?
I don’t know why it surprised me. This place with its classy suede furniture and extravagant cocktails seemed like a place someone like DC would love. I just never expected to see someone from my old life in this new world.
If he knew what happened to me, knew what kind of danger I was in, surely he’d step in and save me from these assholes. We never spoke about what he did for a living, but he seemed like a guy that had connections in high places.
I broke away from the bar and pushed into the crowd, trying to move towards him. Body after body banged into me, but I couldn’t stop now. The asshole Reapers had probably seen me leave Jessie’s side, and if I turned back now, they’d be waiting for me and I’d miss my one shot at escaping.
DC looked as stoic as ever as his eyes searched through the crowd. He hadn’t seen me, that much was obvious because he made no move to step towards me. As I pushed my way through the crowd, a window opened, finally giving me a better look at him.
Relief swelled in my chest. I would tell him everything and maybe he could help me get out of here and get back to Alex. I’d run forever if I had to, but I couldn’t risk being stuck with them for good. DC was my way out.
The moment a slim blonde woman stopped in front of him and wrapped her slender arms around his torso, my heart sunk. DC pulled her in for a kiss on the cheek and whispered something in her ear before grabbing her hand and rushing her to the other side of the room. I stood there in shock, unable to move or think as dancing body after dancing body bumped into me.
I felt a small hand grip my wrist and physically yank me away from the dance floor. I knew I should have moved my legs and helped whoever it was get me out of there, but all I could focus on was the feeling of my heart shattering.He had a fucking girlfriend.
“Are you okay?” Jessie asked, a look of concern furrowing her brows.
“I’m fine.” I responded, trying to hold back the tears welling in my eyes.
“What happened? Why were you staring at him like that?”
“Nothing.” I said, shaking my head. “It’s stupid.”
“It’s okay babe,” she said, squeezing my hand, “don’t take it personally. Out of all of them, Atlas is the one who cares the most about appearances. He may want to fuck a girl that comes from our side of town, but he’ll never love someone without status.”
“A-Atlas?”
“Yeah, I saw you staring at him and Melanie Diaz.”
I stared at her, unmoving.Atlas. DC was Atlas.
“The engagement news is all anyone can talk about. Let me guess, you guys were fucking around?”
“Something like that.” I bit out, my eyes looking everywhere but at hers as deep shame flamed my cheeks.
“You’re better off without him. Don’t waste your heart on him or any of his brothers. I don’t know how your paths ended up crossing but trust me, they may be a good fuck, but none of them would ever settle down with a girl like us.”
