Page 39 of A Love Like Venom

My eyes flash to hers. Her honey brown too afraid to look me in the eyes. She's staring at my lips, the ones that used to promise her the world.

I'll never make that mistake again. If there is one thing that the Hall sisters taught me, especially little Alice, is that you should have your guard up. Alice knew everything about me, including my weaknesses and used them against me.

I promised myself after that day I would never let anyone have the power to do that to me again.

Nobody is going to fucking change that.

Regarding her with a mischievous glint in my eye I reply, "I think I've taken enough poison from you." Finally, my fingers touch the cold glass bottle of the beer. I then hold the lip of the beer against her lips. "But you're more than welcome to drink it for me."

I watch as she swallows, her lips unmoving

And I fucking hate how all I’m thinking about is what her lips would taste like.

What’s worse? When her hand clutches around my wrist to knock the beer away from her lips I feel the spike of desire in my blood.

Pain enters her eyes as they finally meet mine. They hold for a brief second before they cast downwards. Shoulders slumped and head held low in a sign of defeat she mumbles more to herself rather than anyone else, "I've had more than my fair share."

Raising my brow, I'm about to say more when Oak cuts in instead. "We won't be here long, and we are not trying to cause you any trouble," he says this to her, but his eyes cut to me when he says it. There's a hard warning in his steel blue eyes but I could give a fuck less about it. He then continues, "We just need to have a little chat with the owner of this club."

I love how he says "little chat" like we are not about to unleash chaos on this disgusting pathetic piece of shit MC.

Chaos has such a negative connotation. A small word that creates fear. And I guess to small minded people it will. They don't see the greatness that chaos can bring.

The problem with chaos is people always associate it with fear. They fear the unpredictable. They can't handle when things aren't in control.

And that's what it really boils down to, control. When that control is away people don't know what to do.

That's where I thrive.

I have a knack for thriving in situations where most people will collapse.

Some say it's psychopathic, but I call it survival.

Growing up in Hollows Point it forces you to become comfortable in situations that others would call extreme.

It allows you to see what good chaos can bring.

I unleashed chaos on my father for the abuse he made my mother suffer. When that knife landed deep in between his shoulder blades I never tasted anything sweeter. I disrupted the normal routine that caused confusion within my father. And because of that chaos, the sudden outburst of violence he finally left. My momma and I were safe from his hands.

Chaos has been constant in my life since then. Chaos can come with positive outcomes depending on your perception.

The chaos I've created throughout my life has been constructive, leading to positive results.

My father, the kids at school, Chris Blackwell and Caitlin Hall are just to name a few.

Now I'm about to unleash a whole new chaos. I'm going to give it the negative connotation that people assume. All to my little Alice.

"The owner isn't here." I can hear the relief in her voice. I imagine there would be given what that President is capable of. Anyone can tell by entering this club that the man has no respect for women. They parade around them as if they are human sex dolls. More than half naked and ready to be on their hands and knees for all the men here. It's like they brainwashed them to only have one function.

It's fucking disgusting.

"Okay, how about his right-hand man? Is he here tonight?" Oak presses. That's when I see the features on Alice change. They're subtle at first until she's too fucking blatantly obvious about it.

Her pale skin turns ashen. Full and luscious lips pull inward forming a firm line. What's familiar, a bit too familiar to our time growing up, is I can see she's caving in on herself. Drawing her arms across her chest squeezing tight to make herself seem invisible.

And the man who I was before, Reed Carter, awakens from the sight.

The last time she showed such a reaction I unleashed more than just chaos. I showed her the darkest part of me. I gave her my final truth. My deepest darkest secret. She didn't flinch. She didn't blink a fucking eye.

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