Page 51 of Bully's Darkness
I slip out quietly, careful not to wake Bria. There’s no time to change. I’m still in joggers, hair twisted into a messy knot, and no makeup.Good.I don’t want him to get the wrong idea.
The bar’s dim and smells like stale beer and cheap aftershave. A few heads turn when I shove the heavy door open, but they lose interest fast. Except one.Dagger.
He strolls over with that arrogant smirk. “So, we meet again,” he says, amused.
I brush past him without a word and take the farthest seat in the corner. He follows, lounging in the chair like it belongs to him. “What was so urgent,mama?” he drawls.
The nickname is irritating. The way it slides from his mouth makes my cheeks flush, and that only pisses me off more. “How did you get Bria’s number?”
He shrugs. “I have my ways.”
“And our address?” He grins wider.Smug bastard.I exhale sharply. “I’ve left Bully.” I don’t meet his eyes, just fix mine on the wall over his shoulder. “Am I safe now?”
He leans back, arms crossing over his thick chest. “Depends on what you mean by safe.”
“From the Scorpions?” I snap impatiently.
Dagger tilts his head, eyes skimming over me with deliberate slowness. “You always start conversations with a demand,mama, or am I just special?”
I bristle. “This isn’t a game.”
He leans forward, forearms resting on the table, the weight of his gaze pressing down on me. “That’s where you’re wrong. It’sexactlya game. And every player has their role.” He smiles, slow, wolfish. “Even you.”
“I just want to be left alone. I want Bria safe.”
He doesn’t respond right away. Instead, his eyes drop to my mouth then slowly trail down my body, lingering like he’s letting himself imagine what I’d look like under him. He doesn’t hideit, and I hate the heat that creeps up my neck in response. “Tell me something, Liv . . .” His voice lowers, velvet dirty. “You come running to me in joggers, no makeup, hair a mess . . . was that your version of playing hard to get? Or are you just trying to convince me you’re not here to be fucked?”
“I’m not,” I say, but it comes out too fast, too defensive.
He grins like he already knows the truth. “Screwing you while I’m burning your ex’s world to the ground could get messy.” He leans in, voice barely a whisper now. “But messy doesn’t scare me.”
I swallow hard and shift in my seat. “This isn’t about sex.”
“Everything’s about sex.” His grin vanishes. “Or revenge. Sometimes both.”
I shake my head. “You’re not going to give me a straight answer, are you?”
He shrugs. “You and Bria? Safe for now. But you’re standing in a war zone, Liv. The Royal Bastards made this personal. Bully made it lethal.”
“Why did you send Bria that video?”
His expression darkens, like a storm is creeping in behind his eyes. “Why do you think?”
“To punish me?”
He leans back again, the confidence oozing from his every pore. “If I wanted to punish you, I have more creative ways.” His eyes look almost black as he fixes me with a heated stare. “Just say the word.”
I clear my throat, glancing around to see if anyone else can feel the hot tension pinging around the room. “By leaving Bully, I’ve removed myself from the game. No?”
Dagger doesn’t even blink. “It doesn’t work like that, mama.”
“Then tell me how it works,” I snap. “Because you’ve had plenty of chances to kill me and haven’t, so I’m guessing you don’t want me dead.”
A slow smirk curves across his mouth. “Everyone is where I’veallowedthem to be in my game. Including you. I want your man to suffer for what he did.”
My jaw tightens. “This is all a little too dramatic, don’t you think? Couples break up all the time. People cheat. Declaring war because Lila got freaky at work screamscrazy.”
I don’t see his hand coming, just feel it, lightning-fast and iron-tight around my throat. In one effortless motion, he drags me towards him across the table, until our faces are so close, I can feel the heat of his breath. “You’re alive,” he growls, voice low and venomous, “because I’veallowedit. And I can take that order back any second.”
