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I scoff and shake my head. “Is that really what you think of me? Do you think that there’s been anyone else since you walked into my life? Fuck, Hadley, do you think that there could be anyone else?”
“Erica was very clear when she told me about sharing your bed.”
“Fucking Erica,” I say, my voice barely more than a growl. “I slept with her once, months ago. She’s trying to stir shit up for her own entertainment. Is that why you’ve been avoiding me?”
“One of the reasons,” Hadley says. She runs her hand through her hair while looking at me like a deer caught in the headlights. “I know you mean well, but you can’t just walk in here and demand that I move in with you. It isn’t going to happen.”
“It is going to happen. You can either move in with me or I will move you in myself.”
Hadley’s eyes narrow before she spins on her heel and heads for the door. She grabs her keys and slides on her shoes.
“Where do you think you’re going?” I ask, my voice booming through the apartment.
“Go to hell, Jovan. You don’t get to control me like you control everyone else in your life.”
The door slams behind her, leaving me wondering whether or not I should go after her.
Instead, I put the soup in the fridge before heading into her room and packing a bag.
She’s going to be staying with me whether she likes it or not. I’m not going to have her risk her life or the baby’s.
If Felix finds out about the baby, there is no telling what he will do.
Hadley can hate me all she wants for protecting her.
“I didn’t think you were going to make it back in time for the meeting,” Rio says as he gets into my car a few minutes before midnight. “I thought I was going to have to pull off some championship level stalling.”
‘I’m here now.” I tighten my grip on the wheel as I press down hard on the gas, whipping the car around and heading toward the meeting location.
“And snappy. Do you want to talk about whatever is making you grip the wheel like you’re trying to kill it?”
“Nope. Have you heard from Hadley about whether or not she is going to be at this meeting?”
Rio shrugs. “I told her where we were meeting. Kennedy told me to pound sand and then I left.”
“Fucking women,” I say, gritting my teeth together as I pull into the parking lot of a small office building.
Shock runs through me when I see Hadley’s car sitting in front of the main doors. She leans against it with her arms crossed and her hair blowing in the slight breeze.
Some of the tension that’s been building in my body all afternoon melts away at the sight of her. Other than answering the one message I sent her to make sure she was alright. She hasn’t spoken to me.
“Alright, I want you to stay near me,” I say as I park the car and get out. “But if things start going sideways in there, then your first and only priority is getting Hadley to safety. While we know that Alessio won’t do anything, I can’t make any promises about the men he’s going to have with him, if we consider what he has going on. And there is also Felix to consider, so stay sharp.”
Rio arches an eyebrow, a smug smile on his face. “You say that like I was going to have another plan. I like her a lot more than I like you. Plus, Kennedy would kill me if her best friend died.”
“And you want to marry that woman?” I say under my breath as we get out of the car. “I don’t think that I’m ever going to understand you.”
“Don’t worry about it, boss. One day, you’re going to meet a woman who makes you want to be a better man. When that day comes, I’m going to tell that woman to run far and fast.”
Rio chuckles as I roll my eyes. He’s lucky that he’s my friend in situations like these. The man barely has a filter to begin with and he rarely uses it around me. Sometimes I wonder if I should be tougher on him. Hold him to the same standard of respect that everyone else is held to. But life wouldn’t be the same without Rio bothering me all the time. He’s the one person who manages to keep me grounded and feeling like a person.
I look at Hadley and take in the distant look in her eyes.
Maybe Rio isn’t the only person who keeps me grounded.
“Alright, we’re going to go in there and, Hadley, don’t worry about anything Alessio says. He’s a grumpy asshole and he’s going to try and get under my skin. He might try to get under yours. It seems like his favorite activity. He’s a good man, though.”
She gives a sharp nod as Rio stands beside her. Hadley shoots him a small smile before her focus is back on me. “If someone starts shooting, I’m leaving your ass in there.”
