Page 14 of Tainted Obsession 1
“Your fiancé is waiting for you.” He says the last through gritted teeth.
I blink. How does he know about George?
Oh.I’d told the creep who’d tried to drug me that I’m here with my fiancé. My savior must’ve overheard.
“I…” I swallow down the lump of guilt that suddenly clogs my throat.
George is just across the bar, hidden by the crowd on the dance floor. I’ve been staring at another man, touching him…
“Thank you,” I murmur, turning quickly and scurrying away from his alluring, powerful presence.
I hurry back to George, allowing the revelers to form a barrier between me and the gorgeous stranger. Just before I reach my fiancé, I school my features into a pleasant smile. I don’t dare rush up to him and confess what just happened.
He’ll be upset if he learns that I was harassed.
I go to his side and kiss his cheek: a silent, secret apology for my transgressions. He places a warm hand on my lower back in acknowledgement, but he doesn’t break his conversation with his boss.
I hide my disquiet well. I have no business thinking about another man, no matter how remarkable his eyes are. No matter the fact that he defended me.
No matter that when we touched, I felt a physical connection I’ve never known before.
I lean into George’s hand. I belong to him and no one else.
Chapter 8
Massimo
My forearm still burns from her touch, as though the delicate beauty branded me when she stayed my hand.
She hadn’t wanted me to make that fucker pay for trying to drug her. He’d intended to violate her, but she saved him from my retribution.
She’s gone now, returned to the safety of the crowd of DEA agents. No one will dare to assault her while she’s surrounded by law enforcement.
I take a moment to catch one more glimpse of her gleaming, white-blond hair, ensuring that she’s safe. She kisses that motherfucker’s cheek, and the bastard all but ignores her.
She didn’t run up to her fiancé to tell him about the danger she’d been in. She didn’t cry and throw herself into the false protection of his arms.
No, Evelyn shoulders the burden of what just happened, and she doesn’t utter a word of complaint. She hides her distress so that she won’t disturbhim.In her own soft way, she’s protective of the man she’s pledged to spend the rest of her life with. She might not be strong enough to defend him physically, but it’s obvious that she protects his black heart.
I gnash my teeth.
I’ll eliminate him from her life soon enough, but I won’t get an opening tonight. Not when she’s by his side, and he’s surrounded by feds.
There is an outlet for my rage, though: the man who tried to assault her. He can’t have gotten far, and I’m good at hunting down my enemies.
It doesn’t take long to find the predatory fucker. I prevented him from victimizing Evelyn, but he hasn’t given up for the night. He didn’t even bother to slink more than two blocks away—I find him in the third dive bar I enter.
I hang back, allowing the increasingly drunken revelers on the dance floor to separate us. The bastard is too busy eyeing up the single women in the bar to take notice of me.
After taking a few minutes to assess his prey, he knocks back his beer and drains the bottle. His hands shake slightly; he’s probably still unnerved from our encounter. The coward needs liquid courage before he’ll try to drug another innocent woman.
Apparently, he’s chugged enough beer to need a piss. I follow him down the short corridor to the dingy bathroom. Just before he shuts the door behind him, I throw my weight against it, knocking him off-balance. I kick the door closed, trapping him with me.
My knife is in my hand. I don’t give him time to scream for help.
My blade slices across his throat, and hot blood sprays my face. His dark eyes widen in shock, and he lifts a hand to the gaping wound, as though he can hold the blood inside his body. I grip his shirt in my fists, holding him upright so he can see death staring him in the face.
“I should’ve made you scream for mercy,” I growl down at him. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t make you suffer for the last moments of your miserable life.”
