Page 22 of Devil's Vengeance

He shoved them into place, completely ignoring the system they had to be sorted in. I didn't mention it. It wasn’t his job to put them away anyway. I would just fix it later.

His helpfulness put him right next to me, and he took full advantage, caging me in with his hands on the shelves on either side of me. He smirked. “What do you think? Did I earn a treat for that?”

Biting back a smile, I raised an eyebrow at him. “What kind of treat?”

Cupping my jaw, he dragged his thumb along my bottom lip. “I was thinking this kind of treat.” His voice had dropped lower, huskier, and sent shivers up my spine. I glanced around, worried we’d be seen, but Trick’shand tightened just enough to get my focus back on him. “Eyes on me, gorgeous. There’s no one else here but you and me.”

He leaned in and I felt his breath on my lips just as my eyes fluttered closed. Before he could close the remaining distance, though, he jerked away. Or was pulled away. By a seething Chase.

“Get the hell away from her.”

My mouth fell open in surprise as Chase shoved Trick against the opposite shelf, knocking books to the floor from the force.

“Chase! What the hell!” I screeched.

He ignored me, as usual, drawing his fist back. Trick ducked before he could hit him, knocking Chase away with an elbow to the gut. His normally playful expression turned serious, and he shoved Chase away with a growl.

“Chase! Stop!” I shouted, trying to get between the two of them. Trick stopped me with an outstretched arm, shooting me a smirk.

“Babe, this ain’t your fight. Wait for me at the desk, alright?”

Like hell. I wasn’t going to abandon him while Chase attacked him. But before I could say so, Chase tackled him, knocking them both to the ground. I wasn’t sure how they knew each other, or if he knew Trick at all. It wasn’t like he was going to stop and explain himself. And I wasn’t sure what to do about two grown men wrestling and punching each other on the floor between two bookshelves.

“Mariah! Come here!” Regina snapped, waving me over to the end of the aisle. She had her phone pressed to her ear, and she grabbed my wrist when I got close enough, tucking me behind her as she spoke to the police. “Yes. Two men in leather vests. They look like bikers. They’re attacking each other in the middle of the library.” She put her hand over the speaker, shouting louder so the two men on the floor could hear her. “I’m calling the cops! You need to leave!”

They shoved apart, and Trick rolled to his feet, giving Chase a scathing look. He left out of the other end of the aisle, heading for the exit with all due haste. I didn’t have time to ask why. He bypassed me completely, ducking out the door and jogging to his bike without a backward glance.

Stunned, I swung around to ask Chase what he was thinking, but he was on his feet too, wiping blood on his lip as he edged past us and ran outafter Trick. It looked like he wanted to keep the fight going in the parking lot, but Trick was already pulling away on his bike by the time he got out there. Chase shouted something and Trick flipped him off, disappearing out of the parking lot just as the sounds of sirens filled the air. Chase looked back at me through the glass door, a deep frown on his face, before getting on his own bike and driving away.

“In twenty years as a librarian, I’ve never had an experience like that,” Regina breathed, her hand pressed against her chest in shock. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

I shook my head quickly. “I’m fine.”

“What was that even about?”

I didn’t even have to lie when I replied. “I have no idea.”

The police came and asked questions, but because we didn’t have funding for any cameras in the library, they didn’t have a lot to go on. I wasn’t about to name names, especially knowing at least one of them was in a notoriously dangerous biker gang. I didn't want to put a target on my back. I vaguely mentioned that one of them had flirted with me a few times, but it never went past that. They gave us their card and said to let them know if it happened again before leaving for the night. Regina was so shaken up about the experience, I convinced her to go home early, promising I’d be alright until we closed. The experience was shocking, sure, but not as terrifying as she was making it out to be. I’d experienced way worse.

The rest of the night was quiet, and it wasn’t long before I was locking the front doors. When I turned toward my car, I came up short, nearly jumping out of my skin when I noticed Chase leaning against it.

“Jesus! What the hell, Chase?”

Pushing off my car, he stalked closer, still seething. “What the hell were you doing with him?”

I shot him an incredulous look. “Excuse you. How is that any of your business?”

He bared his teeth, frustrated. “He’s bad news, Mariah. You need to stay the hell away from him.”

I rolled my eyes, shoving past him. He sounded jealous, and he had no right to be. He made it perfectly clear where we stood, and I wasn’t interested in games like that.

Grabbing my elbow, Chase stopped my forward momentum, his voice gruff. “You’re making a mistake.”

Spinning around, I ripped my arm from his grasp, glaring at him. “Tell me why. Because from where I’m standing, it sounds like you don’t want me to see anyone, but you don’t want anything to do with me either. So what? Because I slept with you once, I’m suddenly off limits to everyone?”

Grimacing, he shook his head. “It’s not about that.”

I huffed out a laugh. “Sure it isn’t. Look, Chase, I appreciate what you did for me and I had fun the other night, but I’m not interested in playing games. You need to leave me the hell alone.”

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