Page 128 of Exposed

“No, baby. Not after what I heard on the wire. I want to hear it from you.”

“Take me home,” I demand as my pulse starts to race. I turn on a heel and head for my purse. “I’ll call an Uber. I’m done. When I say done, I mean done.”

I get to my cell and almost have the app pulled up to call for a ride when it’s ripped from my hands. I’m about ready to push him away but he backs up giving me space.

So much space.

Like he’s afraid to touch me.

My eyes sting as tears threaten to overwhelm me. I’ve shed way too many and hated every one of them. They remind me of another time when I was alone and scared.

But I got past it.

And I did it on my own.

King might’ve dragged me back into The Pink, but I won’t allow anyone to throw me back into the darkest place I’ve ever been.

“Goldie—” he starts, but I don’t let him say another word.

“You don’t get to do this. You have no right.”

“Know your heart, baby. I’ve fucked you. Touched every inch of your body. On top of that, I brought you back to Carter and made a promise to keep you safe. I’m a serious fucking guy, and I takemy promise to you more seriously than I have anything ever before. You and me together has shit running through my head that I’ve never once thought about in my whole life.” He takes a step closer and leans far enough to look me in the eyes. “So you’re wrong, baby. I have a right to know.”

I rush forward and put a hand to his chest and shove. It’s like my touch scalds him, because he puts more space between us, and it has nothing to do with my attempt to get his attention. “Rights. Men think they have all kinds of rights to women. My mind and my body are mine. No one decides what I do with either but me.”

His square jaw turns to cement.

I reach forward and yank my cell from his hand. “You can’t keep me here. I’m going home.”

“Remember my promise. If you try to leave me, I’ll follow you.”

I don’t look at him when I pull up the app to order a ride, and mumble, “If you turn into a stalker, then I guess I’ll have to call the police.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Goldie. You know Rand is watching your place. He’s already threatened to come back and finish what he started.”

My gaze jumps to him.

I freeze.

He stands in front of me, crosses his arms, and widens his stance. “And after tonight, I know exactly what that means.”

My stomach drops. “You don’t know anything.”

He shakes his head, but his words don’t match the action. “I do. The thing about wires is you get to be a fly on the wall. No one is more honest than they are on a wire, baby. So Rand was telling the truth when he told your brother tonight that his number one goal is to get Anderson Marshall out on bail so they can get their private network back up and running. He was also speaking plainly when he said the next thing he was going to do was finishwhat he started with you since you reneged on your deal with Dex.”

“Stop it,” I whisper.

He shakes his head. “I’ll never stop.”

I turn to go to the kitchen where I left my things from earlier. “In ten minutes, you won’t have a choice, King.”

His footsteps echo close on my heels. “If there’s any reason to not leave, it’s Rand threatening to finish the rape that was interrupted, Goldie.”

I stop on my way to the kitchen, but King doesn’t. His chest brushes my back, and the feel of him is familiar.

Warm.

Strong.

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