“Nyx.” Liam’s voice is hushed but urgent. “Nyx,stop.”
“What?” I push away a little, tilting my head up to him. He’s staring past me, his jaw tight, his eyes wide.
I glance over my shoulder.
Savage has his gun out, and he’s pointing it right at Liam’s head.
“Oh for fuck’s sake!” I bark. I turn and storm up to Savage, grab his wrist, and wrench his arm down to his side. “They’re my friends!”
“I know who they are.” Savage shows me his teeth. “But they’ll be yourdeadfriends if you don’t control yourself,” he mutters, his voice just loud enough for my ears. When he looks down at me, my stomach takes a slow tumble. “Or should my men hold you down on that table so yourfriendscan watch me fuck you?”
Ice shoots through my veins. My lungs collapse, rendering me speechless as my ears start buzzing in panic.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen such callous determination in his eyes.
He’s serious as the fucking apocalypse.
Swallowing hard, I reign myself in. I turn and step back, half a second away from dropping my head like a meek little schoolgirl whose teacher just crapped her out.
Slowly—sofucking slowly—Savage tucks his piece back in its holster under his leather jacket. “Have a seat,” he tells the Brennans, waving out his hand like he’s a fucking maître d’ at some fancy restaurant.
I hurriedly back up when he glances at me, but Vito’s sprawled on the couch I was sitting on, glaring at me like I tried to choke him to death or something. I go to where Savage was sitting and sink down onto the cushion, trying to tug down the hem of my skirt and pull closed the two halves of my bodice. Pulling my hair forward, I hurriedly arrange it to hang down over my breasts.
When Savage looks my way again, there’s a hint of satisfaction somewhere in his tar-black eyes.
He sits next to me.
Vito struggles up and goes to stand close to the ropes, rubbing the heel of his palm over his breastbone and throwing me a grimace.
The Brenanns reluctantly take the couch where I’d been sitting. Liam keeps glancing from me to Savage and back again, his gray eyes wide and concerned. His father, however, has Savage locked in a death stare.
I end up looking down at my hands where I’m gripping them in a tight ball. Hopefully, Liam will get the point and stop looking at me.
Why thefuckdo I have to make everything so difficult? I could have chosen something modest and respectable to wear, but instead I chose exactly the wrong thing. Just to get a rise out of Savage.
I was happy to tease Caesar until he felt the need to punish me. Fuck, I was actively working toward it. But now?
Now I regret eventhinkingit would be funto piss him off.
Not with my friends’ lives at stake.
It takes every inch of self-control I have not to look up when Savage starts talking. Instead, I focus on Liam and Patrick’s shoes. They’re both wearing sneakers. Jeans. They didn’t dress up, and I’m proud of them for that. But from the brief glance I got of them, I also realize they’re way out of their depth here.
My mouth twists.
I turn and look up, straight at Savage. Our thighs are pressed together, but I could be made of glass for how much attention he’s paying me.
Sick fuck.
He brought the Brennans here to Seven Sinsknowingthey’d feel awkward, surrounded by Savage’s people and not theirs.
He’s a fucking coward if he thinks he needs that kind of advantage against two guys who run a small boxing club no one could possibly care about.
I don’t think I’ve ever hated him as much as I do right now. But he doesn’t notice my scowl. Doesn’t even noticeme.
I’m bait. That’s it. A lure and nothing more.
“Tell me about Donny.”