Page 55 of Inflame Me
I pull the fucker hard again as Dagger begins his assault on the asshole’s ribs and stomach. Nothing like having the full wrath of both Dagger and me come down on you. I don’t fucking care. Cruz and GT are taking care of this asshole’s friends, leaving him to us.
“Don’t ever fucking touch my daughter!” Dagger unleashes blow after blow, the man getting limp in my arms.
His hair begins to tear in my hands as his weight plummets to the ground. I rub the hair in between my fingers then throw it to the ground, giving him three hard kicks to the ribs.
“Enough,” Pops calls from the sidelines. Fuck, didn’t even hear him walk up.
I stop my foot mid-kick and set my booted foot to the black-topped ground. There’s nothing like beating a guy in the parking lot.
“Get the fuckers’ IDs and leave them.”
“Just let me end him,” Dagger says to Pops.
“You don’t think he knows he fucked up? Look at him. He’s got fucking dress pants and loafers on. He’s learned his lesson.” I hate it when he’s right, but the chances of this asshole coming back are slim to none.
Dagger kicks the guy in the face, his head snapping back hard. No sounds come from him; he’s out cold.
Fine. I grab his wallet, taking all the cash, which is a pretty good wad, and grab the ID. I’ll have Buzz track the fucker and make sure he doesn’t come close to Ravage or Tanner again.
Cruz and GT hand me the cash they pulled with the IDs.
“Why the fuck you giving that shit to him? She’s my kid.” Dagger’s eyes narrow. He’s itching for a fight. He didn’t get enough of his frustrations out on these assholes and still has it pent up. I’ve known Dagger for-fucking-ever and know exactly what he needs.
I shove the bills and plastic in my back jeans pocket and stand tall, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Because Tanner’s fucking mine,” I say before I even think about what I’m saying. It wasn’t what I intended to come out, but it’s out there.
“Yours?” Dagger scoffs. “For how fucking long? A day, two? Fuck you,” he barks back. To be straight, his words don’t bother me. If anything, it’s the truest he’s said, but under the dark veil of night, with Dagger’s blood pumping, I egg him on.
“Until I’m fucking done with her.” This is an asshole-ish thing to say when, the truth is, I’m not sure I’ll ever get enough of the strawberry blonde.
“You prick.” Dagger comes at me full force, and I let him get a couple of punches in before I fight. He and I go head to head, the crack of flesh against bone echoing through the dark. Sure, he hits hard, and I’ll have some serious bruises, but I hit him just as hard, leaving the same marks. This is good, old-fashioned fighting: no guns or implements, only our hands and fists. I fucking love it.
“Stay away from my daughter,” he roars, giving me an uppercut.
I repay him with the same. “No.”
“You fucking hurt her, and I’ll tear you apart,” he growls at me and I smile. Seeing Dagger go all dad is seriously different, but I know everything coming out of his mouth is out of his pent up frustration.
“Wouldn’t expect anything less.”
Our blows continue to ensue. I can see the moment when Dagger has released the anger, and I back off.
“Oh, my God!” Tanner’s voice has my eyes swinging to the door. Her face is wide in shock as tears well up in her beautiful eyes. “What are you doing?”
Princess trails behind her with her hands up in the air. “She’s stubborn as shit. Could have subdued her, but what’s the fucking point?” she says in her defense.
Tanner rushes up and stands between Dagger and me. “Don’t do this. Why are you doing this?”
Dagger has full-out calmed himself, the fire in his eyes dying down to an ember. “Tanner, relax,” he tells her.
Her eyes grow cold. “Relax? You want me to relax? My father and …” She looks at me, the wheels turning in her head as she tries to explain our relationship.
Fuck it. I do it for her. “Man.”
She shakes her head. “Whatever are beating the hell out of each other in a parking lot. What is going on?”
I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her flush with my body as Dagger steps forward, a small smirk playing on his bloody face. “It’s good, Tanner. Rhys was just helping me get some shit out.”
