Page 44 of City of Salvation

Yeah. In bed. With a hot biker, one that’s not you…maybe.

Dex continued to talk, unaware of the internal debate I was having with myself about the pros and cons of us sleeping together. “And if you go up on stage, you'll end up in a damn fight. So, instead, ask me nicely to help you let loose,” he said, smirking when the entire room erupted in a symphony of encouragement, with the other girls eagerly urging me to go for it.

I blinked, looking around at them. Some of them were borderline salivating as they watched us.

“Aren’t all of you hoes supposed to be getting ready? ” I called out with faux irritation. Truthfully, I’d forgotten we were surrounded by people. That seemed to happen a lot withDex—we fell into our own little bubble, and everything else faded away.

“What’s it going to be, Nikki?” he asked.

The whole room went quiet, awaiting my response. Concha had even changed the music to something sappy and romantic. Which was completelynotwhat this was. Hell, Dex even admitted this was all so I didn’t end up with an assault charge. There was nothing at all panty-melting about the fact that he offered to pay for my time while he helped me release some steam…

“Fine,” I finally said, though I wasn't sure if my words were audible over the cheers from the other girls. I added, “But you're paying for my drinks,” poking his chest. I had no intention of letting him pay for my time, but I was more than happy to let him pick up the tab for my alcohol.

Dex hit me with a blinding smile that sent a shiver down my spine. I couldn't help but wonder why I liked seeing that smile so much.

“I’m sorry, I can’t hear you,” he taunted, holding his hand up to his ear. “My ears don’t work with attitude.”

I mumbledsmartassunder my breath before stepping even closer, our chests touching, relishing the way his throat bobbed. “Dex, baby,” I said in a sickly-sweet tone, walking my fingers up his leather cut. “Will you,please, entertain me tonight?” Despite the ungodly amount of sarcasm in my voice, Dex’s eyes heated when I said the word entertain, instantly triggering the memory of gripping his head while he kneeled between my legs.

“I’ll do whatever you want, spitfire.” His thumb brushed along my lower lip, pulling it from where I’d unknowingly been biting on it. “All you have to do is ask.”

Fuck.

CHAPTER 20

NIKKI

“WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP ACTING LIKE THAT’S WEIRD?”

I’d kickedDex out after agreeing to his little proposal for the night. If I was really going to relax, I didn’t want to do it in lingerie and Crystal’s “murderous wife” robe—Dex’s name for it, not mine. Groups of people milled about, their conversations acting like white noise to the music playing over the club speakers.

Ryan and I had carefully planned out Lotería’s entertainment. Different themes and events occurred on different nights, and they switched fairly often—our way of enticing people to return. If tonight had been one of our choreographed nights, Dex wouldn’t have been able to convince me to play hooky. But we’d pulled back on those ever since the incident with Mario. Ryan had said she didn’t want to overwhelm me.

The sardonic laugh I let out caused the woman closest to me to turn her head, and I gave her a reassuring smile so she’d know it wasn’t aimed at her. If only she could hear my inner monologue of kidnapping attempts and murderous ex-husbands. Actually, I didn’t know if Yuri wanted to kill me orjust reacquire what he’d lost. I hadn’t exactly reached out with a survey of his thoughts and opinions.

I pushed my way through the bodies, choosing the path that would take the longest to get to the bar. My nerves felt like pinpricks of electricity all over my body, and I couldn’t put my finger on what was causing the reaction.

Then again, maybe it waseverythingcausing that reaction.

Did I even know what it felt like to relax? Sure, I played the part of letting loose all the time. People saw me up on stage, shaking my ass for everyone to see—literally—but I was never truly relaxed. In the back of my mind, I was always aware that my past was haunting me.

Waiting for me to fuck up.

“There she is,” Dex called out from one of the end barstools. The playful glint in his eyes turned dark as he dragged his eyes over my body, taking in the short black dress I changed into. My heart kicked up in my chest when his tongue popped out, swiping along his bottom lip. I was accustomed to being looked at, but this…his perusal of my body made my body explode in tingles.

The closer I came, the bigger his smile grew. It was bigger than the margarita in front of him. The thing even had those crazy straws with all the loops and shit—oh, and four umbrellas. I justknewhe’d asked for that many, too, because it didn’t come with that many usually.

Robert sat beside him, making wild gestures with his hands to Cassandra, our head bartender. She had her hands on her hips with a look that said she thought Robert was full of shit. The whole sight had me battling mixed emotions. On one hand, it looked like a group of friends having a fun night out. It felt…normal.

But my life wasn’t normal, and I meant what I’d said when I told Ryan that not loving anyone was how I avoided being heartbroken. I’d broken that rule with her, and now I was dealing with the consequences.

Did I want to risk those feelings sneaking in again? But my feet had a mind of their own, not getting the memo that we shouldn’t go make friends, and they picked up the pace.

“Nikki,” Robert called out, his eyes wide as he turned to face me. “Please tell Cassy here that Iabsolutelyknow what I am doing behind the bar.”

“Did you make that monstrosity?” I asked, coming to a stop by Dex’s side. There wasn’t anywhere else to stand. Where they were seated was at the far side of the bar, the section on the end that only spanned about four feet.

Rob had taken the stool at the corner, while Dex took the one next to the wall, sitting at an angle so his back was to the solid surface. It was strategic, giving him a view of all the entrances and exits.

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