CHAPTER SEVEN
RAHYNE
“That mother fucker!” I slammed the box of liquor bottles on the counter.
Scarlett frowned. “What did you expect, Rahyne? You can’t play with someone like Grayson the way you did. He’s a man, not a toy, he’s not just meant for your pleasure.”
“Are you defending him?”
“Of course not! I just think you’ve got it all wrong, honey. I don’t think Gray is the way you say he is.”
It had been a week since I last saw Grayson and my heart still ached every time his name was mentioned. Scarlett maneuvered herself onto a stool, her belly impeding all of her movements.
“You need to talk to him. Wolf told me he’s in bad shape.”
“Good. Who the hell does he think he is? Thinking he can do whatever he wants to me, thinking he owns me.”
Scarlett smiled. “I don’t think he meant it in the way you think, honey. Look at Wolf, he thinks he owns me, but he does everything I ask of him. Grayson is not going to hurt you.”
“I don’t want to talk about it anymore, Scarlett.” I continued to restock the bar. We were opening in a few minutes and it was the first night I’d be alone. Meg was taking the night off and Luna had called out sick.
I heard Scarlett sigh. “Fine. But don’t come crying to me when you finally realize you love that man. You can lie to yourself all you want Rahyne Andrews, but I know your heart better than you do.”
I scrunched up my brow and stayed quiet, waiting until she left. I threw a rag on the counter and let out a deep breath. Tears threatened to flow once again, but I closed my eyes willing them away. Who the hell was I kidding? I missed Grayson with every fiber of my being. I missed his touch, his warmth, that deep silky voice that made me want to obey every command he gave me.
“Fuck!” I yelled out in aggravation.
“Everything alright?”
I screamed as Riggs appeared before me.
He looked as taken aback as I was. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you, sweetheart. I was just looking for Luna.”
I put a hand to my chest and took a deep breath. “Jesus, Riggs. What are you, a ninja?”
He chuckled. “Try Navy Seal.”
“Officially impressed.” I eyed him for a second and smiled. Even though he didn’t want to admit it, he was always watching over Luna. “IF I didn’t know any better, I’d think you had a thing for the young Luna.”
He frowned. “What? You’re crazy. I just need to know who’s working tonight.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, okay. Anyway, she called in sick.”
He scrunched his eyebrow in concern.
“She’ll be fine. She said it was just the flu.” I watched him. I didn’t know why, but I wanted to ease his worry.
He stared at the door for a second and then looked back at me. “You alright?”
“Yeah. Just getting ready to open.”
He stood there, eyeing me for a second. “If you need a shoulder, I’m known to be a pretty good listener.”
I smiled. “Maybe you should tell Grayson that.”
“Oh, believe me, I have.” He winked at me and rushed off out the front entrance. I shook my head in bewilderment and instead focused on the night ahead.
AT MIDNIGHT, the club was fully lit up. I never received so many tips like I did at Ravenous. Every so often I’d twirl my bottles around, flinging them up and giving them a full two-minute show. It was all cheers and laughter and those twenties and fifties continued to pour in. Every now and then I’d catch a glimpse of Cain or Riggs keeping an eye on me from the lounge. It was nice having that protection, but I missed Grayson’s dark heated gaze on me.
An hour later, the bar had somewhat cleared up as the girls were brought up onto the stages. The men were nice and buzzed and dollars started to flow onto the wooden stage floors. I smirked. These guys definitely knew how to make money.
As I poured another drink I caught a pair of dark brown eyes looking right at me. My breath held as I stared back at him. His hair was all mussed up and he looked like he hadn’t shaved for a couple of days, a full week maybe. He looked like he hadn’t slept either, but he still looked unbelievably delicious. His eyes travelled down my body and a familiar warmth followed it. I swallowed hard as my cheeks flushed and my body reacted. His presence did exactly what it was meant to do and pulled the moisture right from in-between my thighs.
I watch as he sauntered over to one of the tables facing the front of Jade’s stage. She was a pretty blonde with big blue eyes, one of the favorites in the club. My eyes were transfixed on him as he leaned back in the chair. The music pounded in my ears as he stared fixedly at me. Jade got down from the stage ready to do what was needed to please VP, Grayson Carter. She proceeded to ruffle up his hair and sit on his lap. He gave her a smile and then turned his eyes back to me.
I stood there, frozen, watching as the man that was supposed to be mine was being touched by another woman. I gripped the rag I was holding as the unfamiliar strings of jealousy swept through me. I fought to keep myself back from leaping across the counter and dragging Jade off him. My blood started to boil when she started to move on his lap finally gaining his attention. I stared angrily as she wiggled her ass at him and he laughed. When she straddled him, and placed his face against her breasts, I did what any woman would do when their man was being ravaged by another woman.
Slowly, I walked over to them. I tapped her on the shoulder and she turned. Her eyebrows shot up as she looked me up and down.nI didn’t say much, just signaled for her to scram. She rolled her eyes and pouted, which is when I leaned in. “You either get off my man or I break that pretty face of yours.”
Her eyes widened and she quickly scurried away. He looked at me, looking all sexy as his big frame slumped back in the chair.
“Now why’d you go and ruin the fun?”
I bent down over him, perching my hands on either side of the armrests. My face came inches from his and I could feel his heat penetrating my body. I held his gaze as he licked his lips and his eyes slid down to the cleavage I knew was pouring out of my top.
“Unless you’re here to replace her?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Me, jealous and sobbing for you. It’s not going to happen, Grayson.” My own words slapped me in the face, because that was exactly what I had been doing.
His hands slid up my bare arms and I shuddered at his touch, cursing my body for responding so easily to him. He sat up bringing his lips up to graze mine. “Liar,” he whispered, grabbing me by the waist and sitting me on his lap. His tongue darted out to lick my lips and I gave him an involuntary moan.
He nuzzled my neck, sending chills down my back. “Stop lying to me. I know what you need, Rahyne. I always know. Let me finish you off, baby. I’ve been wanting to for days.”
He sucked on my shoulder and my mind started to cloud. I knew I should have gotten up, gotten away from him, but my body wasn’t listening to my mind and I let him touch me and hold me. He had left me completely unsatisfied, and my body wasn’t going to forget him that easily.
“See, Rahyne. You know you want me as much as I do you. You ache for me, your pussy aches for me.” He suckled on my earlobe and I felt his hands roam under my top, sliding against my bare skin. “I fucking ache for you.”
His scent, his body, his voice was intoxicating and I moaned. “Let me have you Rahyne? I want you so damn much.” His lips touched mine in a brief kiss and as much as I wanted to give into him, I managed to push him back.
He watched me silently as I scrambled off his lap. His hands grazed my skin as I moved back leaving behind traces of his heat. I didn’t say a word as I turned around and walked back to the bar.
MY BODY VIBRATED the rest of the night. At three in the morning, Jackson, one of the new prospect’s, closed the doors yelling out his goodbyes. Grayson had disappeared so I gave up on him coming after me. I grabbed my jacket and purse, and made my way out the back door. I was walking to my car, lost in images of his hands and mouth, when I was ripped out of my daydreams and forced up against the side of the building.
I screamed as loud as I could when I realized what was happening. The man Grayson had fought a few nights before held me pressed up against the brick wall, his hand covering my mouth. He reeked of liquor and stale cigarettes and I almost gagged as the stench hit my nose. My instincts kicked in, I bit down on his hand and shoved my knee up, connecting with his groin.
He released me and I shoved him back hard. I started to run, but I didn’t get far as I felt my head get yanked back by my hair. Shooting pain travelled down my neck as he pulled me back against him. I screamed again and elbowed him on the side. He only grunted and lifted me up so my feet were dangling in the air. I kicked and screamed, my nails scraping against his skin.
“Shut the fuck up, puta!”
I screamed again and his hand came around and covered my mouth. His other hand slid up to my neck and slammed me against the wall. I struggled against him, but he just smirked.
“Oh baby, you are too hot for words. I bet that cunt tastes real good, don’t it?”
He sneered at me and I struggled against his grip. Fear was starting to seep in as I realized how alone I really was.
“Fuck you.” I mumbled into his hand.
“What? What was that?” He crooked his neck. “You want me to fuck you? Oh baby, I’m gonna fuck you so good.”
He shoved me down to the filthy ground, my knees hitting the concrete hard. I fought and kicked as he grabbed my arms and sat on my legs. He was a big man and I was slowly starting to realize I was going to lose this fight very quickly.
I screamed again and stilled when I felt the edge of a knife at my neck. “Enough! You shut the fuck up or I cut your throat.” His voice terrified me and I remained frozen. The knife grazed down my neck until it reached my tank top. I suddenly felt a tug and I was fully exposed to him.
He chuckled and bit his lip. “Fuck, you’re a tasty puta, aren’t you?”
His hands roughly cupped my breasts and I closed my eyes trying to remember my self-defense skills. I felt his hands on my jeans and my mind went blank. All I could think was that I needed to fight. I screamed again and he slapped me, but I continued to struggle. Before I could scream again I heard two shots being fired.
Suddenly the man got up off me and staggered away. I heard yelling as I stared up at the starred sky and flinched when I heard another gun shot. My hands shook as I tried sitting up. My head was spinning and suddenly I was lifted up into a pair of strong arms, soft brown eyes looked down on me.
“Oh baby. Baby? Rahyne answer me, are you alright?” I heard the urgency in his voice, but I couldn’t talk. I knew it was Grayson, his scent enveloped me and I drifted off into blackness as he held me.