Page 152 of Bona Fide

“Or something,” he deadpans.

“You need to go.” He remains planted to his spot, clearly not going to be taking orders from me.

"Stay away from me. Keep out of my business. Leave the Hardisons alone." I swear when the words leave my mouth, Wade appears larger and broader.

It could be the single step he took in my direction or the fact that I know I'm on the wrong side of him right now.

“You said that I’ve never fucked with a bitch like you,” he mutters, eyes trailing to my lips. “You wanted to fuck two men and make a video just to send to me—fine, Shelton, well fucking played. But then you wanted to make a sequel—” Blue eyes slam into me. “—so now I’m going to play out the next scene in your movie. Sorry to steal your leading role, baby, but I’m looking to make fireworks at the end of this.”

“I didn’t send you—”

“Watch it,” he quietly fumes. “Your level of petty doesn't fuck with mine.”

“What are you going to do?” I taunt. “Destroy some lives, Mr. President? Use your almighty power to take down another man I slept with because you didn't like it? I never sent you another video, so I don’t know—”

“I might be a cocky son of a bitch, Reagan, but I’ll get what I want in the end.”

“And cause me all sorts of pain.”

He rolls his eyes. "Jed might be someone you care for...but I'm the one you can't seem to shake. Your affliction is me."

“You think too highly of yourself.”

“And if you think highly of Jed, you’ll end it. And you’ll do it within the next forty-eight hours.”

“And if I don’t?”

“How did that alleged sex tape work out for you?” My jaw aches from trying to keep a straight, emotionless facade, but my eyes give me away. They widen, and his lips perch higher on his face.

“You’d do what your wife did to me?”

“I’d blur all of you out.” His eyes take me in slowly. “We don’t need to attract more attention, do we?”

“Then what?”

He checks his watch on his wrist. "Then, we'll see."

“We’ll...see? Motherfuc—”

"The only one I'll be fucking, Miss Shelton, is if I decide to keep you after this." He gives me a bored look. As though this conversation isn't worth having—it's not. Hence why I'm super confused about why he's even here to seek me out in the first place.

He suddenly pivots on his feet, dismissing me like he does, and can, everyone else.

But not me.

My hand latches on to his tee, and I yank him back in my direction.

Wade doesn’t stumble backward but peers over his shoulder at me. “Was there something else you wanted?”

“You’re not going to step into my life and start telling me what’s going to go down,” I seethe. “The Hardisons are something you’ll never understand.”

He shrugs. “I don’t need to. I’m not the man who turns the other cheek.”

“You’re not understanding the whole picture here,” I impart through clenched teeth. “So let me paint it out for you. I fucked both of them to keep you away from me. The point of all of it was to get you to fuck off. So, fuck off, Lockwood. I’m never going to be kept by you again. You’ll never touch me, feel me, see me ever again.”

“Wade!” His name is exclaimed from behind me like it’s the best thing ever echoed in the history of mankind.

But it’s his shit-eating grin that makes my stomach drop.

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