Page 72 of Dangerous Love

His eyes pierced mine. “Great. Yours?”

I cleared my throat. This wasn’t going as planned. I ignored the fluttering in my belly and answered, my tone as relaxed as I could make it, “All right. The end of my shift was busy, but at least I didn’t get insulted by any customers, so that’s an upgrade, right?”

“You bet,” he said, his hand rubbing the material on the arm of his couch. “So, what was it you wanted to talk about?”

Oh god…A part of me screamed to walk out and not tell him anything. Not that I was that type of girl, and definitely not the type to play two guys at once, but this feltwrong. As if the world had shifted and a new Michael had emerged. And I wasn’t sure how I felt about that one.

“Listen, I’m so grateful for everything you’ve done for me.” I picked at the loose cotton threads at the bottom of my uniform. “But I think it’s time for me to get back to my family.”

“You mean your ex?” His tone was sharper than a razor blade.

My temperature dropped when ice filled my veins. My gut screamed to get the hell out, my mind knowing full well we were in the middle of nowhere and I wouldn’t get very far if he really wanted to stop me. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, my thumb scrolling the speed dial options. Before I could reach Riley’s number, Michael snatched the device out of my hand and dropped it on his lap.

“What the hell?” I yelled, the aggressive move taking me by surprise. “Give me my phone back.”

“As soon as you stop being a rude little bitch, Sienna. Who plays on their phone while telling their boyfriend something important?”

My boyfriend?My throat plummeted to my stomach, crushing every organ in the process. Where was this coming from? I’d made it crystal clear from the beginning that we weren’t a thing, and that I needed time to process what I’d just gone through with Riley. Had I misled him in any way?

The change in his demeanour scared me. I forced my breathing to regulate. “Michael, we’re not together. I thought we both understood that.”

He crossed his ankles over the coffee table between us. “What I need to know are Riley’s plans.”

I tilted my head, my eyes narrowed as a protective instinct kicked in. “That’s none of your fucking business. Why do you even care?”

He glanced at me for a second before he laughed, some weird amused sound that punched me in the gut. Then he reached into his pocket, pulled out a packet of smokes, and lit one up. My mouth dropped. My brain did not recognize any of this. I’d lived with him for almost three weeks, and he’d never smoked. Not once. He dragged on the cigarette, blowing round halos above his head as he exhaled. “What’s he up to?” His tone was harsh. It screamed non-negotiable.

“Nothing. He doesn’t even know about you.” The lie slid easily off my tongue. All I cared about was getting out of there and forgetting my lapse of judgement in moving in with this psycho. “He and I are just friends.” I gave him a fake smile, big and bold, as beads of sweat pooled at the back of my neck. “And you and I can still see each other. I’m just moving back with my brother. He misses me and all, but I’ll still see you at work, and we can still—”

He rolled his eyes and dropped his feet to the ground. The cords around his neck tensed as he pulled his phone out of his back pocket. “I’m done here. You can tell the boss all this shit.”

What boss?“All right, I think I’m gonna go now.” I jumped to my feet and leaned over to grab my phone.

“The fuck you will, girl. You’ll go when I tell you to go.” When Michael hurled my only lifeline across the room, I whipped myself around and raced to the front door. Screw my phone. I’d get another one. Right now, all that mattered was getting out of whatever this was turning into, but before I’d reached the door, a force had yanked me back by the hair.

“Argh,” I screamed, my hands locked over his fingers. “You’re hurting me.”

“Then sit down and shut the fuck up.” He pushed me onto the couch and I landed on my back, fear growing at rapid speed. With one hand, he ripped his Coles uniform off and dropped it by his feet as he scanned the room for a clean shirt.

My eyes studied him. In the three weeks I’d lived here, I’d never seen him shirtless. He was cut. Every one of his muscles was sculpted like he’d been bottle-fed steroids, his bicep perfectly aligned with the tattoo on his shoulder. I took a closer look at the snake staring back at me. Angry. Scary. Its eyes as red as the pits of hell.

I’d been around the block enough to know this wasn’t just jealousy gone wrong. There was something more. “Michael?” I murmured while I tried to figure out my exit plan. “Who are you?” I ran through the list of all the worst-case scenarios imaginable. Only one stuck. And if I was right about it, we would all die this time. Me. Avery. Riley.

Oh god….

He ignored me. Instead, he pressed a number on his screen, and as soon as someone answered, he paced up and down the hallway, his eyes locked on my every move. “Hey, boss. Looks like I need to bring her in now.” He paused while he listened to the voice on the other end. “Pretty sure that ship has sailed. I bring her in, or I lose her. Your call.”

My throat dried up as I braced for another chance to escape.Get out now.

As soon as he turned his back on me, I raced to the door, my palm gripping the handle as hard as I could. I stepped one foot outside the house and fresh air filled my lungs, hope fuelling the muscles in my thighs. I would get out, and I would warn Riley and Avery.

But before I could unjumble the thoughts in my head, Michael’s palm connected with my cheekbone, the pain radiating through my jaw. And blackness took over.

* * *

“Wake up.” A small hand shook my shoulder, the soft voice coming in and out of my consciousness as I tried to force my eyes open. “You have to wake up.”

Pain stirred in my ribs. I flinched when I tried to sit up and a burn sliced through my lungs. “Argh.”

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