Page 8 of Obsessions of the Heart

Rachel nodded at me, her smile sparkling while her eyes assessed me. It felt like a lioness sizing up competition, cold and calculating, but I stuck my hand out anyway. “Hi, I’m Layrin. I work with Vivian at the diner.”

“And my best friend!” Vivian giggled before looping her arm into Rachel’s. I got the feeling that move was more for me than for her by the way her eyes kept bouncing from Rachel’s to mine. I didn’t know what was up with this chick, but I wasn’t competing with her for anything.

Suddenly, I felt those two drinks I’d pounded earlier and needed to go ASAP. I touched Vivian’s shoulder to get her attention. “Hey, want to come with me to the bathroom? That badass moment is coming back to bite me.”

Rachel interjected, “Aww, Viv, I wanted to talk some more. The bathrooms are just right over there.” When I eyed Vivian and nodded toward the bathroom, Rachel followed with, “Don’t worry, girl. I’ll watch out for Viv, and we can keep dancing! I promise we won’t move from this spot.”

Vivian gave me a shrug and a smile. “I went before.” She tapped her nose, and I took a breath. She winked at me. “I promise I’ll be a good girl and wait right here for you. Scout’s honor and shit.”

I grumbled, “You were no scout.” Then I felt the urge again. “Fine. Stay here.” I glared at Vivian and Rachel, who rolled their eyes as they nodded. I didn’t like leaving her behind. I felt responsible for her since this was all my idea. An old voice filled my mind. Remember the orphanage. You look out for yourself, no one else. Three golden-haired boys flashed in my mind, and my heart gave a painful tug. If it wasn't for them, I might’ve really lived my life that way.

Nodding to both of them, I turned around. I needed to trust Vivian. She seemed like she knew how to handle that girl, and she was coming down off the coke high, so she had her mind about her. I should only be gone for like ten minutes.

I hadn’t gone to a lot of clubs in my day, so I was stunned when the line for the women's room wrapped around the wall and along the side of the dance floor.

What the fuck? It was going to take me fifteen minutes just to get through that line. I glanced at the guys and noticed no line and very few guys even going in. Well, fuck this. I would just have to go super fast. I darted for the men’s room, continuing on despite voices calling out that I was going into the wrong room.

“What the fuck?!” Some guy standing at the stall was looking at me in shock.

“I’m just going to pee, then I’m out of here, okay?” He nodded despite his open mouth and dazed eyes, so I stomped to the stall and locked it shut. I easily took care of my business, getting it done as fast as I could, and left that stall.

The guy was still there, holding his dick, while I washed my hands. He tried to give me his best sultry voice as he said, “Did you want to get a peek at the goods? I can show you if you're that thirsty for some dick.”

I grabbed the paper towels and wiped my hands clean. “Nah. That one has piss all around it. That's gross, dude. Maybe clean your dick off before offering it to someone.” He stuttered as I made my quick escape.

As soon as I took a few steps away from the door, a familiar slimy gaze landed on me, and I shuddered. Before I could react, a hand grabbed my arm and yanked me back down into the inky shadows of the hallway. I was shoved up against the wall before I could scream. Hands caged me in, and Finn’s face flickered beneath the shadows.

He bent his head near my neck, the scent of booze came off him so strongly my head hurt. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming out tonight, Layrin? I would’ve got you and your friend in the VIP section with me.” His lips hovered over my shoulder, and his body tightened. I looked next to my head, where his hands were curled into fists.

“I have been very gentle with you, Layrin. Been slow and kind, because I know what you went through.” My whole body jerked at his words. What the fuck did he mean by that?

He chuckled and stepped closer to seal our bodies together, making us look like two lovers. All I realized was that it was going to be harder to knee him in the balls with his body this close, but balls weren’t the only weak point on a man.

“Yes, my little bird. You flew away from that orphanage, from the town that called you the black cloud.” He ran a finger down my cheek. “One of my new guys is from that backward ass town. They saw you and immediately told me about it, so I kicked his ass for you. Do you like that, Layrin? I can protect you from all of them.”

His lips were just a breath away from my neck when he sighed. “God, you smell so good. I’ve been waiting so patiently for a taste, but I think my resolve is waning.” I tried to keep my breathing soft and even, not letting myself get worked up by the situation I was in. I needed to keep my wits about me to figure out how to get out of this.

A finger ran down my neck, along my collarbone, and down my shoulder. I suppressed the shudder that I was sure he would interpret as excitement even though it was really disgust. “Then I saw you like this, looking like a dime for me, and I knew this was my moment. I'll make you mine, tonight.”

His eyes changed in an instant, going from sleazy to predatory. His hand ran down my body, grabbing at it like it was already his. His salacious smile caused my stomach to curdle because I knew that look—this man was about to take what was in front of him, willing or not.

I needed to think of something to get myself out of this.

When I felt his fingers curl around the bottom of my dress, I remembered I was in heels. While I didn't have enough room to knee him in the balls, I did have enough to hurt him in a soft spot and get away.

I sagged against the wall, making my body relax so he’d think I was giving in. His eyes sparkled at my defeat, his tongue swiping at his bottom lip as he backed up just an inch to look down at my body with hunger. Letting one of my legs fall to the side, he gave me the room to widen my stance.

It only took a second, just a second, to lift that escaped leg and slam my heel right into his foot with all of my might. He swiped at me with his fist, but I bent down to dodge it as he crumpled over, howling at the pain in his foot. Not wanting to waste any time, I had turned to run when I heard a very familiar sound, followed by blood curdling screams.

Pop, pop, pop, pop.

Chaos descended on the dark hallway, with people scrambling to get away. Everyone was pushing me back when all I could think about was Vivian. I needed to get Vivian out of here.

Pop, pop, pop.

“Finn! Get out here, you motherfucker! I know you stole my money, bitch!”

Fucking Finn! He’d brought his fucking gang shit down on us. If I wasn't so locked on trying to reach Vivian, I might’ve turned around and kicked him in the stomach, but that didn't matter now. I needed to get Vivian out of here.

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