Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
“Leave me alone.”
He doesn’t stop, though. Instead, he continues on with his bullshit. “Then again, you might just be two of a kind. We all know there’s something off about him.”
Red.
It’s all I see through the haze of rage caused by this asshat. Instinct to defend Aiden. The insinuations that there’s a problem with him are enough to make me murderous.
“Leave me and Aiden the fuck alone.” My voice trembles slightly as I try to maintain my composure. The dimly lit room seems to close in on me, the shadows dancing menacingly on the walls.
“And why would I do that?” he says, a cruel smirk playing on his lips. The way he looks at me makes a chill run up my spine. His gaze feels cold and hard as steel. It causes my heart to pound in my chest.
“I…” I start, my voice barely a whisper. I can feel the tension in the room, thick and suffocating, like a heavy fog making it hard to breathe.
This isn’t just about him. It’s about the past. Another time when I felt out of control.
His hand reaches out to grab me, his fingers closing around my arm like a vise. “Let me go.” I try to pull away, but his grip is too strong.
I’m no longer in the bar.
No, I’m back at the trailer park, back to the place that broke my soul.
Back when Aiden didn’t protect me.
15
AIDEN
“The way I see it, there’s something you have…something special enough to entice the great Aiden Slate, and I want to know what that is—”
I walk up in time to hear Billy’s words as he grabs Cassidy and traps her.
“Get the fuck away from her,” I say, voice menacing. “Or I’ll kill you.”
Cassidy shakes her head frantically, blinking away tears that threaten to fall.
“Get your girl out of here.” He’s leaned back so casually, so fucking cocky, and I snap.
Before I can even process what I’m doing, I have him pushed up against the wall. My hand held tightly around his neck.
“Don’t you ever fucking touch her.”
“Aiden.”
Someone tugs at my arm, but I’m too far gone. Too out of control.
I’m thrust back to another time, a different place.
One filled with pain.
“Aiden, please stop. He’s not worth it.”
Cassidy.
It feels like cold water is poured over my head. My memories fade away, and I’m brought back to the present.
I drop my hand locked around his neck and step back, breathing ragged.
“There will always be villains like him. Don’t let him win.”
My head snaps to Cassidy. “What did you say?”
Those words. I’ve heard them before. They aren’t something I’ll ever forget because, at the moment, they were profound. It’s ingrained in my memory, never to be forgotten.
She blinks, tilting her head. “There are plenty of vain guys like him.”
I stare at her for several moments, and she holds my gaze. My eyes roam across her face, and she shrugs. “He’s not worth it.”
I’d just been in my head, remembering things from the past. Clearly, I’m losing my mind tonight.
I shake my head, trying to brush off the anger still boiling under the surface. I need to get the fuck out of here.
I look toward the front of the bar, then the window. Hockey fans, mostly women, line the street outside.
They’re everywhere. Like a swarm of vultures circling above, hungry for the kill. But instead of meat, they’re desperate for a night with a hockey player. Most likely Hudson.
Shit.
On the few occasions I have joined the guys, this was not a problem for me. For one, I typically participate when they’re going places the paps don’t frequent for news. The times they were around, they were too busy trying to get the scoop on one of the other guy’s escapades. Unlike me, they don’t mind airing their laundry.
But mostly, I simply stay home, and for good reason.
If you don’t go out, there’s nothing for them to report.
But because of my “relationship” with Cassidy, the luxury of being a recluse is just beyond my grasp. To sell the story that I have a girlfriend, I have to periodically agree to outings.
I glance from the spectacle outside to the crowded room, searching for a way out of here.
“Can we go? I have a headache,” Cassidy says, following my train of thought. “Or are we stuck here?”
I grab her hand, trying to offer a modicum of comfort. Tonight has been too much. She’s just started, and already, I think I owe her a massive raise.
“I’m going to ask if there’s a back way out of here,” I say.
When I release her hand, a bracelet falls to the ground, and I bend to grab it. Cassidy and I do some strange dance, both going for the object. I win out in the end; picking it up and grabbing for her wrist to put it back on.