Page 92 of Queen Of Dark Money

No.Itwas becauseIwas afraid of myself.Ofwhat was rising to the surface beneath my skin as he looked me up and down, making me squirm in waysIhadn’t anticipated.Theway he regarded me like some piece of meat was both exciting and infuriating.Ididn’t want to react to him, but something in me, some tiny part, did.Rightalongside the thrill was the desire to put him in his place, too.

Wonderwhat he’d think of being dominated by a woman?

No, bad girl.Terriblethoughts.

Rafesmiled that lopsided, half-assed, shit-eating grin that men in power wore when they thought they’d won.Whenthey fancied themselves on top.

Iwanted to wipe it right off his stupid ass face.

“Ifeel like you aren’t showing me the level of appreciationIdeserve for saving your ass,” he teased, his nose nearly against mine as my shoulders pressed insistently into the surface of the car. “Wouldn’tyou agree?”

“Thanks,”Igrumbled, pressing my hands against his chest to shove him away. “Nowget the fuck off of me, you creep.”

Hiscackle was eerie asIput space between us, propelling him backward soIcould stand back up, the sound echoing off the walls of the garage with a menacing undertone.Ispotted the flash of a gun at his side and winced, wondering if he’d planned to use it tonight.

Imean, not thatIwould have felt bad about him using it on the guy chasing me, but still.Youhad to be a certain kind of person to come armed like that, and usually, that kind of person was ready to use it.

“Comeon,Kerenza, don’t be like that,” he taunted me, following my eyes to where they rested on his side piece. “Oh, you like guns, do you?”

Iwinced, shaking my head almost immediately. “Notin particular, no.”

Hepulled it from his waistband, twirling it around on the end of one finger.Fuckinglunatic that he was, he didn’t even seem phased in the least when it pointed at him on each loop. “Howcome?Toodangerous for your womanly sensibilities?”Thedamn thing stopped twirling, and he stepped closer again, his finger absently flicking the safety off and on, off and on.

Thisfucking fool.Hewas toying with a dangerous weapon as if it were a toy.AndI’drelied on this fucking insane asshole to save my life tonight.

“You’regonna kill someone with that,”Ispat, trying to glare him into submission. “Couldyou get rid of it?”

Hewatched me cross my arms, that leering grin intensifying as he took another step forward.Icould see now the light in his eyes had shifted.Gonewas the grown man who’d fucked another grown man in front of me for shock value.Inhis place was a cocky, power-hungry young man whose only goal was to make a point, leave his mark.

Itfelt oddly familiar, somehow.Iknew this man, but from where,Iwasn’t sure.

“Sure,” he said simply, and with that, he tossed the armed, loaded, and very dangerous gun in the direction of the car, both our sets of eyes following it—mine with apprehension and his with a sort of sick entertainment. “Better?”

Thisman was no safer than the fucker who’d been chasing me through the back alleys and across rooftops.MaybeIshould have taken my chances with him.

Iwas losing my temper, all logic, reason, and common sense fleeing from my head like rats in a rainstorm.Imarched up to him, put both my hands on his chest, and shoved–hard.Hardenough to unbalance him.Hardenough that he took several steps backward before he got himself under control.

Hardenough that his sassy smirk turned into an irritated scowl.

Hestood his ground, marching right back up to go toe to toe against me, no matter the cost.

Now, it was a battle of wills, and just like the first timeI’dfaced off against him andRiver,Irefused to back down first.

“You’rea fucking idiot,Rafe,”Isnarled, baring my teeth at him like a dog. “Youcould have made sure the safety was on before you threw it!”

Hishands came up to my shoulders and shoved me back, though nowhere near as hard. “Getoff my back about it, already.Itdidn’t go off, so what’s your deal?”

“Mydeal,”Ishouted, punctuating my words with a jab of my pointer finger in his chest, “is that you put me in danger needlessly because you’re careless-” jab, “-reckless-” jab, “-and stupid.”Jab.

“Imight be all those things,” he started, stepping toe to toe with me again, his left hand darting out to grip my chin. “Butat leastI’mnot a liar.”

Isearched his eyes for what the fuck he really meant.Therehad to be more behind this bullshit he was going on about.Whateverit was, he hid it well, the only things on the forefront of his face the rage and chaos that was devolving into an unpredictable man.

“No, but you’re a piece of shit.”

“Takesone to know one,” he growled, jerking my head to the side. “Yousmell like you’ve been recently fucked.”Topunctuate his declaration, he took a huge sniff of the side of my neck, growling like a dog against my skin. “Whotouched you?”

Hisaudacity was laughable.Imaginethinking you owned someone and that they had to answer to you after you’d made it clear that you thought of them as less than human. “Wouldn’tyou like to know?”Itaunted, stepping across the lineIknew he was drawing in the sand.

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