Page 21 of A Hurt So Good

“This would have gone so much smoother if you would have just said no.”

“I did say no.”

“Then you should have let me walk away,” she snaps at me. I smirk.

“And miss all the fun?” I taunt her. I remove my hand from her hair and wrap it around the back of her neck instead before shoving her roughly against the wall of the garage. The air leaves her lungs in a whoosh as her eyes meet mine.

“And here I was worried about the others going to rape me.” I laugh at her little comment as I lean down closely to her face.

“I don’t rape anyone. When I get pussy, they want it.” I reach down and let my fingers slide along the smooth skin of her thigh and up to her little cut-offs. She sucks in a breath, and I smile, liking the reaction. She doesn’t say anything, just watches me as I keep my hand moving until I feel her panties. Sliding my hand between the fabric of her shorts and her panties, I can feel how wet she is.

“Hmm,” I hum. “Why are you so wet?”

“I’m sweating, you idiot,” she sneers at me.

“That isn’t sweat. I know what wet panties feel like. I’ve felt them more than once,” I remind her.

“I’m sure you have, but obviously, you don’t know the difference between sweat and when a girl is wet.”

“I bet if I leaned down a little more, I could smell the difference.” I watch her lips part, and then I do it. I lean down as I pull my hand from her shorts, and when I’m almost close enough, she brings her knee up and hits me right in the mouth. I can taste the blood on my tongue as she tries to get away, but I’m faster than she is.

I grab her and jerk her back in front of me, an angry scowl on my face. Then I bring my free hand up, swipe the blood from my lip, and force my finger into her mouth. She tries to clamp her lips shut, but I don’t let her. I reach up and grip her jaw in a fierce, vise-like hold, not letting her move even a little.

“You might as well enjoy this,” I tell her as I shove my fingers down her throat. She gags a few times before I pull my fingers free. I release the grip on her jaw, and she instantly comes at me. I like the fire I see in her eyes as she darts toward me with her hands balled into fists.

“You’re going to pay for that,” she warns me. I laugh in her face.

“With what? Your gun,” I tease, chuckling at her. She swings, but I easily block it. I shove her back a step and turn to leave the garage. She trails behind me, cursing as she goes.

“Really, though. Why do you think you need a gun?” I ask over my shoulder.

“Does it matter?”

“You shouldn’t be out here searching for a gun. Any of these assholes could sell you something used in a murder, and if you happened to get caught with it, you’d go down,” I explain, trying to take the high road and be a better person. I snort a laugh at the thought.

“What do you care if I go to jail?” Now, I turn around and walk backward so I can see her.

“I don’t care. I’m just saying. This isn’t the best area,” I tell her, motioning around us right when the sounds of shots being fired rip through the night air. The girl freezes as I run for cover. She stands there in the middle of the fucking road, her blue eyes round. I hear more shots popping off, and they seem to be getting closer. I have two options here. Leave the bitch and get my ass covered or get her.

Against my better judgment, I run back out into the road and grab her hand in mine, dragging her along with me.

“You’re going to have to run,” I growl at her. Something seems to spark inside her, and her instincts kick in because she starts running with me. I keep a hold of her hand as we dodge behind and in between houses. I’m not sure who the hell is shooting, and it may not even be at us, but I’m not going to wait around to find out since I actually don’t have my gun on me.

We move behind houses through their yards until we make it to a friend of mine’s. Without knocking, and as usual, I let myself inside, dragging this girl behind me. I slam the door shut as my friend, PJ, comes around the corner.

“That you shooting?” he asks as he looks between me and her.

“No. Don’t know who it was, but I was a little too close to the reds to think about it,” I admit.

“Why the hell were you over there?” he snaps at me like a parent scolding a child. I glance at the girl and raise an eyebrow.

“She isn’t one of them, is she?” Now I laugh. As if I’d bring one of those bitches around here.

“Hell no,” I tell him before turning to her. “Wait here,” I tell her. She nods her head as I grab a gun from the top of PJ’s shelf and walk past her. I step outside and take in the area. A few people come out of their houses to see what’s going on, but for the most part, everything seems to have quietened down.

I walk slowly down the road, just checking things out as I go before turning and heading back. PJ stands on the porch with the girl next to him, both looking around, confused.

“I don’t see shit, and I don’t hear it anymore. Stay with her while I get my car,” I tell PJ. He nods, and I shove his gun down the back of my pants before jogging toward the house. It’s only a few blocks down, and when I get there, Harlon and War are standing outside smoking.

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