Page 33 of Tell Me You Need Me

“I don’t know what I was expecting,” I say when I park. We both jump out and follow two people coming off the dock, guessing they’ll know which way to get in.

My phone vibrates in my back pocket. I pull it out and see a text from West asking me what I’m up to. I tell him I’m still hanging with Willa, which he knows already. I told him that I might even end up crashing in her room, but if Willa falls asleep before me, I’ll sneak over late tonight. I’ll definitely be there in the morning.

“Hold up,” the man at the door says to Willa and me, letting the two girls in front of us in. They are all dolled up in short skirts and heels. “Are you supposed to be here?” His eyes roam up and down over us.

Willa and I are dressed in jeans and sweaters. Hers is a fuzzy pink one.

“Yes,” Willa responds before I can, pushing her glasses up her nose. The door opens again, but this time someone steps out.

The tall man has dark hair and even darker eyes. He is dressed entirely in black, from his boots and jeans to his shirt and leather jacket. Even the tattoo that peeks up from his shirt onto his neck. I take a step back, but Willa keeps going, not noticing the man.

"My brother is in there. Rich."

"Your brother?" The man in the leather jacket poses the question. Willa turns her head toward him.

"Yes."

"Richy Rich is your brother." The man looks skeptical but also amused.

"My twin."

"All right, then." He opens the door for us. The man that stopped us doesn't say shit, making me think the leather jacket guy here is in charge. “In you go, princess.”

Willa hurries in, and I’m right behind her, but I don’t miss the man checking out her ass.

“Was he flirting with me?” Willa asks as we make our way down a long, dark hallway, but I can hear the sounds of people the farther we enter.

“I was” is said from behind me.

“Oh my God,” Willa whispers loudly, and I bite back a laugh, but leather jacket guy doesn't hold back his laughter. I don’t have to see her to know that her face is cherry red. As we enter the main part of the warehouse, I hook my arm into Willa's.

“Holy shit,” I say when I see all the people crowded around the ring in the center of the room. Two men are in the middle swinging punches at each other.

The floors are concrete, and the few chairs around are folded metal ones. The attire of some of the girls stands in stark contrast. You'd think they were heading to a fancy club in thecity. Some of the men are in slacks and buttoned-up shirts while others are just in jeans and T-shirts. It's an interesting mix, but I can tell that Willa and I don't fit in.

The cute fuzzy sweater Willa has on might be five times more expensive than any of the dresses here, but it’s got a kitten wearing a crown on it. A few people glance our way, but as quickly as they do, they turn back around. I glance over my shoulder to see leather jacket guy standing about ten feet back from us. Everyone gives him a wide berth, confirming my suspicions from earlier that he’s in charge around here.

I cringe when one of the men takes a hard hit to the face and hits the ground even harder. “Oh, gross.” Willa covers her face with her hands. Everyone cheers and screams.

“This is intense.”

“I can’t believe this is what my brother does.” Finally, Willa removes her hands from her face. As if she conjured him, people started chantingRichy Rich. “Is he coming up now?” Willa tries to look around, standing on her tiptoes.

“Want to get closer, princess?”

“You can do that?” Willa asks.

“You got a name?” I cut in, wanting to know who this man is that has taken a quick interest in my best friend.

“Everyone calls me King,” he answers but doesn’t glance my way. I recall seeing the name King on the fancy speedboat. I would never have guessed it belonged to this man. “You can call me Vasily, though, princess.” Willa’s face starts to turn pink again.

“You can get us closer, Vasily?”

“Yeah, I can.” He throws an arm around her shoulder, tucking her into his side. “Stay close.”

“Okay,” I see her say, but I can’t hear it over the chants, and I’m pretty sure it’s a whisper. Willa’s turned a bit shy, but she'snot backing down. I follow behind them. The crowd parts for King but quickly closes behind him.

I get lost in the throng of people. Not wanting to fight it and honestly not sure that I can, I turn to go back to where I was, pulling out my phone to text Willa and let her know where I’ll be so she’ll know where to meet me when Rich’s fight is over.

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