I nervously glance back over my shoulder to find the Wolves a lot closer than I had expected. I discreetly shake my head, wishing I wasn’t knocked up so I could take a shot or six to ease my nerves. “I have no fucking idea,” I tell him.
Jaren sighs, leaning forward onto the bar to keep our conversation quiet. “Hurry up and figure it out,” he tells me, nodding toward the entrance of the Den to where Snake stands, scanning the room, and looking for a target, who I have no doubt is me.
Snake’s eyes come to mine, and he instantly curls his hand into a fist, cupping it with the other and cracking every knuckle in his hand. He looks as though he’s about ready to steal the crown right off my head by sending my brains flying out the side of my ear.
This isn’t good. I wonder how well Christian and Jaren fight? Actually … maybe I should figure out if these two would even be down for throwing themselves in front of a fist for me. I mean, it’s one thing to want to mentor me through it, but not a lot of people are willing to risk a broken nose for some chick that they’ve met only a handful of times.
I turn back to Jaren, not wanting Snake to see just how much his dominance is making my blood run cold. I take a sip of my water, desperately trying to calm my nerves, but when Jaren grunts, I realize that it’s showtime. “Ten seconds.”
Fuck.
“Five.”
Christian gets twitchy beside me, and as Jaren slips his hand under the bar and places a knife down in front of me, I have no choice but to make my move.
I feel Snake’s fingers curl around my arm, the same way they had done as he dragged me away from Colton’s Veneno and then beat the living shit out of me. I won’t be allowing that to happen again.
Like lightning, my hand flies out and my fingers curl around the wooden hilt of the knife. As Snake hoists me up from my seat, I spin around and slam the knife up against his neck, bringing us both to an immediate standstill.
Snake’s hand loosens on my arm, preparing to make some kind of move, but I see the fear in his eyes, and after everything I’ve been through at his hands, he knows damn well that I won’t hesitate, not this time. I have too much to prove.
“You don’t want to do that,” he warns me, playing the role of the tough guy.
I lean into him, pressing the knife deeper into his skin and meeting his angered stare as every Wolf in the room watches on with wide eyes. None of them know for sure just how far I’ll go to prove a point. “Oh, I really think I do.”
Snake clenches his jaw. “You don’t belong here.”
I can’t help but laugh, feeling as though the real me has just stepped right out of my body and is currently letting the crazy version of myself take the reigns. “Ha. You don’t think I’ve figured that out? Go ahead. Say something else. Let’s see how many times you can state the obvious before I get bored and slit this knife right through your throat.”
His eyes narrow, and I don’t doubt that he’s wishing he’d brought his gun along to this little chat we’re having. “You think you’re pretty fucking hot, don’t you? Standing up here, acting as though these guys are going to have your back.”
I press a little harder and watch as the blade finally pierces his skin, sending a red trickle of blood smearing over my knife and dripping down the thick column of his neck. “That’s where you’re wrong,” I tell him. “They’ll have my back just as surely as I know they won’t have yours. Look around you, dickhead, how many of them are rushing in to save you from the crazy bitch? Not a goddamn one.”
The small ray of fear that shines through his eyes gets a little bigger, and I laugh as I push my limits a little harder. “What did you think you were going to achieve out of this? You’ve already beaten me senseless and watched me rise from the ashes. I’m a fucking phoenix. There’s not a damn thing you can do to me.”
As I continue pushing, Snake has no choice but to lower himself to his knees. “This isn’t over,” he warns me. “I’m not about to fold and let some bitch Widow lover stand where I’m supposed to stand and lead my men straight to their deaths.”
“I’m sorry, you must have me confused. Aren’t you the guy who literally just led these men into a war against the Widows that you weren’t prepared for and then lost four of your own? Hmm. Funny. All this time I’ve been saying to stop the war and get at Nic in a different way, but none of you fuckers wanted to listen to me. You’re all just so happy to walk straight to your deaths and condemn your brothers right along with you. Wow, what am I even doing here? You’re right, you’d make such a great leader.”
Snake gets right down to his knees and I watch as the Wolves surrounding us begin to straighten out, maybe even listening to what I have to say. Though, I‘m not stupid enough to think that they’re suddenly going to tolerate me after one stupid little sarcastic speech. Snake clenches his jaw as he gets right down to his knees, and only then do I feel Christian take a discreet step back, deciding that I finally can take care of this on my own.
“You’re done,” I tell Snake, bending to get right into his face as I watch him pathetically kneel before me. “You know why?” I taunt, lowering my voice to a whisper. “Because I’m your fucking leader now, and there’s not a goddamn thing you can do about it. You answer to me.”
“I’ll never answer to you.”
“Look at yourself,” I say, a massive grin spreading across my face. “You’re already worshipping me, kneeling at my feet.” With that, I pull back from the man on his knees and slam my foot heavily into his chest, sending him sprawling back over the dirty floor. The other Wolves have to step back to avoid being run into, but I don’t miss the impressed stares on their faces. They know that if I can get Snake on his knees and send his ass flying, that I can do much worse to them.
I stare down at Snake as he fumbles around on the sticky floor. I raise my chin. “You’re welcome to leave. Walk out the fucking door and watch how quickly the Widows claim you. You’ve got nothing without the Wolves at your back.”
“And you think you do?” he spits, rubbing a hand over his chest.
A wide smile stretches across my face, and I meet his eyes, letting him see just how wrong he is. “Maybe I’m a different breed,” I tell him. “Even without the fucking Wolves, I still have the whole damn world.”
As Snake tries to get back to his feet, I turn back to the bar and shove my foot right up onto the stool I’d only just been sitting on a moment before Snake decided to yank me off it. Only with my back turned, someone moves into my peripheral vision, and without warning, I reach over and grab the gun from the waistband of Christian’s jeans. I whip around and let three bullets fly before I even take a second to figure out who’s coming for me.
The bullets slam into the concrete floor at the man’s feet, and he brings himself to a blinding stop, sending the Den into complete and utter silence. I take the second I need to raise my eyes from the three small holes in the concrete and scan over my latest threat to find Leon, the fucker with the scar, the same dickhead who thought he could put his hands on me.
Maybe keeping these bastards in line is going to be a little more fun than I had anticipated.
Leon meets my eyes, and with a clenched jaw and hatred shining in his own, he takes a step back, slowly raising his hands in surrender. “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” I say, deciding to keep Christian’s gun for a little while longer.
I stand and stare out of the Wolves for a second longer before deciding that I’m good to turn my back again, and this time as I shove my foot up on the stool, I make my move quickly.
I push up and then step right onto the bar before turning and facing every man in the room, baring myself and letting them see the real me. Every eye in the room stares up at me, waiting to see what I have to say for myself. It’s then that I notice Russo standing in the back of the room, covered by shadows and watching me through narrowed eyes, clearly not liking what he’s seeing.
I stare out at the men who all look as though they’re wanting to skin me like some kind
of animal and then wear me like a trophy, and I realize that I only have one shot at this. “I didn’t ask for this,” I start, keeping my voice strong, my chin raised, and my attitude fierce. “Just as you guys didn’t, but I’m not a fool. I’m not going to stand here and expect that I’m entitled to your loyalty. I know if I were standing in your position, I’d sure as hell not be giving it. But I can guarantee that I will earn it.”
A few scoffs come from around the room before a deep voice tears through the silence. “You’re just a fucking kid. How the hell do you think you’re going to earn our loyalty?”
Well, that’s a good fucking question.
I take a shaky breath and try to pinpoint the guy who had asked but come up with nothing so just keep addressing them as a group. “I’m going to be real with you, I don’t know why Russo put me here. That’s something you’re going to have to take up with him. However, I do know that I came here with one goal and one goal only. I want to take down Dominic Garcia.”
More scoffs sound around the room, and I quickly realize that’s their arrogance talking. “Good luck, princess,” someone says. “A kid like you couldn’t even get within ten feet of the guy.”
I raise a brow, actually able to find the guy who spoke. “Then it might come as a surprise to you to know that Dominic Garcia has been in love with me for over four years. I am his weakness, and I’m the only person on this fucking planet who is capable of getting close enough to destroy him. Up until a few weeks ago, I thought that I was going to need a whole fucking army to take him down, but it turns out that all I need is me. He killed my father and my boyfriend’s father, so no, I’m not just going to sit back and let you fuckers walk all over me. I have a fucking job to do. So you know what, follow me or don’t. It makes no difference to me. I came here with one purpose, and I intend to see it through with or without you.”
All eyes watch me and after a beat of silence. I give them their choice. “Take your pick,” I tell them. “Either stand with me, or turn your backs on your brothers and walk out the fucking door. But I can guarantee that if you walk, you won’t be going free. Turning your back on me is turning your back on the Wolves and aligning yourself with our enemies. It’s fucking ride or die, so what’s it going to be?”
The silence is deadly and my nerves are at an all-time high. I’ve never felt anything like it, but when Jaren launches himself over the bar and stands in front of me, I feel things beginning to shift.
He drops to one knee before me. “I’ll follow you.”
Christian follows, sending a wave of pride soaring through me. “I’ll follow you.”
One by one, men begin dropping to their knees, realizing they have no choice but to give me their loyalty or to turn their backs on their brothers. I’m not stupid enough to think that from here on out it’s going to be sunshine and rainbows. I haven’t got their loyalty, I have a chance at gaining it, and I’m going to have to make some drastic moves to prove that I deserve it. Otherwise this is going to be a shitshow.
Within a moment, every knee is on the ground except for one, and I stare him down, knowing that this guy is going to be a problem.
Snake and I stare at each other in a fight for dominance, and our stare only breaks when a sharp tone cuts through the Den. “KNEEL TO HER,” Russo demands, stepping out of the shadows. “She’s your leader now. You will give her your loyalty.”
“She hasn’t earned it,” Snake snaps back at him.
“Then walk.”
Russo’s words are said almost like a dare as Snake glances between the two of us, an understanding in his eyes. You live for your brothers, or you die by them. Snake looks back at me, reluctantly spitting the same words that every other man in the building has just vowed.
He drops to a knee, bowing his head. “I’ll follow you.”
And just like that, I’ve become the most powerful woman Blaxlands Grove has ever seen.
Chapter 25
It’s well after three in the morning when the Audi comes to a stop in the massive garage. In a perfect world, I would have been home hours ago and already asleep in bed where I belong. Though in a perfect world, I also wouldn’t be the leader of a street gang and planning a massive takedown. I guess we all can’t get what we want.
I make my way through the internal garage door into the Carrington mansion, and I begin creeping through the house, trying my hardest to keep quiet. This place is huge, and the marble floors weren’t exactly made for creeping. It’s like an echo sounds through the house with every step I take.
I start heading for the hallway that leads me out toward the pool house, but when I pass the staircase that takes me up toward Colton’s bedroom, I find myself taking a little detour. I’m sure he’s been worried about me. After the bullshit that’s been going down lately, I’d be worried about me too.
How the hell am I supposed to tell him that Russo made me the face of the whole operation instead of releasing me? This isn’t going to go well.
By the time 7 pm came, Colton started calling. After a quick reassurance that I was alright, he backed off and allowed me to do what I had to do, but that was assuming that when I came home, I’d be free. Fuck, he’s going to shred Russo to pieces for this.
I make my way up the stairs and creep along the marble floors until I’m standing in front of his door. Grabbing the handle, I give it a gentle turn and open the door into a dark room.
Light from the hallway streams through his room and shines upon Colton like a spotlight, showing me exactly what I came here to see. I find Colton sitting up in bed with his arm propped behind his head. His shirt is nowhere to be seen, but that’s the way I like him. I’m smacked in the face with his handsome beauty. He’s so fucking edible. I could lay in bed and lick my way up and down those abs all day and never get bored. But what’s really got me by my balls of steel is the way his bicep bulges as it rests behind his head.
He’s simply delicious.
“Jade,” he murmurs, adjusting himself in bed and making me drool over the way his abs crunch with his movement. “It’s late.”
I walk into his room, leaving the door slightly ajar so that I can keep drooling over his body. “You waited up for me,” I comment, moving toward him and noticing the way his bedsheet hardly covers all the goodness hidden beneath.
He grins, his eyes darkening with desire as he watches me move across his room, striding toward him as though I can’t breathe without him near. “And let you get home to celebrate all on your own? I hardly think so.”
I walk around the side of his bed, propping my knee beside his thigh as I climb over and straddle his waist. “I missed you,” I tell him, grabbing hold of the headboard on either side of his wide shoulders.
I grind down against him, feeling his hard cock rubbing against my clit. I groan deep in the back of my chest, needing him so much more than I even knew. His hand falls to my waist, and as I grind against him, his fingers dig into my skin, urging me on. “I missed you too,” he tells me, his voice deep and full of seduction.
I moan, leaning into him and letting my lips brush over him. “I can tell,” I murmur as he catches my lips in his and kisses me deeply. His warm, inviting lips move over mine, and I wonder why the hell I stayed so long at the Wolf Den when this was here waiting for me. I could have spent all night with Colton buried deep inside of me instead of fending off dickheads and making claims that I'll earn respect, trust, and loyalty.
Colton’s tongue sweeps through my mouth, and I can’t help the needy groan that escapes me. Why is this so good? It’s as though my body was made just for his. Ever since the day I met him, the chemistry between us has been off the charts. Our bodies respond to one another's with a fierce need and longing that I will never find with another man. It’s perfect. No wonder it was so easy to fall in love with him. It was inevitable.
The breeze from his open window blows against his door, slamming it against the little metal lock and leaving it open just a crack. The room is so dimly lit now that
I barely see him, and I have to focus on just his touch alone.
Colton’s fingers roam over my body, pulling my shirt over my head and then finally coming down on my skin. He teases me with his fingertips, gently brushing them over the sensitive parts of my body, the places he knows drives me wild with need. His touch tickles, and despite the growing need to pull away, I stay, allowing him to do it because his touch is so damn intoxicating.
Every place he touches me leaves a wake of goosebumps, which only makes my skin sensitive to his touch. He pulls back from me ever so slightly, but before I get a chance to protest, he drops his lips to my neck, making my fingers dig into the soft fabric of his headboard.
My hips continue rocking back and forth, grinding over him until neither of us can take it any longer. The bedsheet is torn out from between us, and within seconds, Colton rips my pants off my body. My flimsy thong disappears with it, and as I settle myself back over his waist, he lines himself up with my entrance, allowing me to slowly drop down on top of him.
He fills me so perfectly. So tight and hitting every fucking wall. Every time it just gets better. I sink down until there’s nowhere left for me to go, clenching my eyes as the undeniable pleasure rocks through me. Colton’s fingers tighten on my ass, gently rocking me forward and making us both groan with need.
I rock right back, and every nerve ending inside of my body catches fire, burning so intensely that I could pass out from the satisfaction. I slowly find a rhythm, leisurely riding up and down on his cock as though I have all fucking night to torture him with my body.
Colton tries to take over, thrusting up into me, desperate to break my torturously slow rhythm in fear of not being able to hold on. But I shake my head and dip my lips to his. “Slow,” I tell him, making a pained grunt rumble through his chest.
Ride or Die: A Dark High School Bully Romance (Rejects Paradise Book 4) Page 23