Page 34 of Forbidden Deviant Games

“She didn’t even look at you,” I mutter in irritation as I go back to replacing the tap nozzles.

“Yeah, no,” Veronica shakes her head. “And she’s not going to. I was hoping this wouldn’t happen.”

I pause on the final nozzle and glance at her. “What are you talking about?”

Veronica offers me a sympathetic glance. “Mel has liked Mr. Vikson for months,” she confesses. “And everyone knows that you two are…” She shrugs, but I understand what she means. Another groan echoes up my chest and I place my hands flat against the counter, leaning over.

Should I just quit?It might solve a few problems…

My head lifts and I gaze across the open space towards the very doorway to the back hall. My throat goes dry and my fingers begin to tremble.

Though the club looks very different right now than it had that night, I know that within a few hours, it’ll be an exact replica; and even if he doesn’t come back ... even if nothing else happens for years to come, I know what I’ll think of every time I look towards that hallway. My stomach drops out from beneath me and I turn away. Sweat pops up along my brow and my throat closes up as my eyes squeeze shut and the feel of unwanted phantom hands slide over my flesh, making me want to vomit.

“Hales?” Veronica’s voice interrupts my thoughts and flashbacks.

“I’m gonna…” I gesture to the stairwell leading upstairs. “I just need to…”

She shakes her head. “Go,” she says. “Hurry back, though. I have a feeling Mel’s probably going to be up our asses all night.”

I nod and escape from behind the counter and head the same way Viks had gone. I ascend the staircase and instead of turning towards the private lounges, I head in the opposite direction towards the small offices on the other side of the floor.

I slow to a stop when I hear voices on the other side of the door marked asManager’s Office.

“Yes, I’ll get it taken care of,” I hear Viks say. “Don’t worry. It’ll be taken care of this weekend. Yes, we’re going toInferno. I’ve already called Cain.”

I blow out a breath, turn and rest my back against the wall by the door resolving to just wait until he’s done with whoever he’s talking to. My gaze travels up to the black painted ceiling and small little lines between each boxy tile. I bite down on my lower lip. A few minutes later, I hear him hang up and I knock on the door, pushing inside before he’s got a chance to turn me away.

“Haley?” Viks frowns. “What’s wrong?”

“I need to talk to you,” I say.

I move across the office into the single chair situated in front of his desk. The door swings shut behind me and Viks steeples his fingers together, resting his elbows on the edge of his desk.

“I want to quit.”

His whole body seems to freeze and he tilts his head to the side. “Why?” he demands.

I roll my tongue into my cheek and glance at the door before looking back to him. “Reasons,” I hedge. “Do I really need to give them?”

Viks frowns at that and unsteeples his fingers, standing from his desk and moving around it. He steps in front of where I sit and turns, propping his ass on the edge of the massive desk that takes up most of the space in the small room.

Viks crosses his arms over his chest and looks down at me. “Yes.”

My eyes go to the muscles of his arms and remember them around me, all over me. It’s distracting. I stare at a piece of lint clinging to his t-shirt instead as I suck in a breath.

“It’s complicated,” I confess. “You and me … I don’t suppose you’re willing to end it?”

Silence.

I chance a glance up at his face and yup, big mistake. The fury there is volatile. He moves forward, like a reptile in human skin. One hand grasps the chair arm on my right and the other on my left, caging me in and making me feel far more vulnerable than I’m comfortable with. It always seems like I do that with him—let him put me in these situations. Why? If I dig deep, there’s probably some complicated explanation that has something to do with my personality and needs as a human being, but at the end of the day I can narrow it down to something as simple as trust. I fucking trust him. I trust that he won’t hurt me or use his bigger position to put me in a place that would harm me. What happened with Kennedy is different. I put myself in that place and he was furious then too.

“This,” he says coldly, “doesn’t end, Haley. Are you leaving because you want to leaveme?”

I let him stew in that thought for a minute before finally, the truth leaks out. “No,” I say on a sigh. “But people know about us now.” My eyes scan away.

“So?” he prompts. “Why does it matter?”

I snort. “Maybe to a guy, it doesn’t matter. Maybe to theboss, it doesn’t matter,” I reply. “But I’m not exactly in a position of advantage here.”

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