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I WAS FEELING pretty fucking good.
That didn’t happen often. But as I lounged back in my chaise that overlooked the city from my living room, I threw back a shot of the good stuff, a bottle of Louis XIII, and almost smiled.
Almost.
The image of Joey, Carl, and Doug propped up outside Astor literally freezing their dicks off as they slowly started to wake up and realize what was happening was one I’d never forget. If it’d been my plan, things would’ve gone much worse, but I couldn’t deny that the pure terror on Joey’s face when I threatened him sent a wave of satisfaction through me. He’d never even look in Gavin’s direction again.
Would I catch hell from Gavin when he arrived at Astor tomorrow and put two and two together? Probably. Had it been worth every curse he’d throw my way? Abso-fucking-lutely.
Wanting to keep the warmth flowing through my body, I poured myself another shot, relaxing as an alt-rock song from the early nineties blasted through the apartment. The rest of the guys had gone out to Church, an exclusive club we belonged to, to celebrate and give themselves an alibi, but I didn’t give a shit about showing my face. Those three assholes had gotten whatwas coming to them, and there was no way in hell they’d give us up. Not with the amount of shit we had on them, including video footage from Astor’s security cameras—which Harry had hacked into—that clearly showed Gavin being pushed around on several occasions.
So they could go ahead and out themselves as abusers and bullies, or they could keep their mouths shut and deal with the consequences of what they’d done.
I threw back the shot before I could think too much about that and get riled up again. The liquor was doing its job of numbing everything, and I wanted to keep it that way.
Something that sounded like a door slamming pierced through the music, and out of the corner of my eye, someone moved.
“Where the fuck are you?” Gavin shouted, his entire body coiled like a rattlesnake as he sprinted toward my room, not even noticing me sitting by the window. He burst into my bedroom without knocking and flipped on the light. When he didn’t find what he was looking for, he stormed out, his hands balled tightly into fists.
Looked like someone got the good news early.
I got to my feet, smirking as I cocked my head to the side. “Looking for me?”
Gavin screeched to a halt. The flush on his cheeks deepened, and it must’ve been the cognac that made me notice how good he looked pissed off. Even if it was at me.
“You asshole,” he seethed, crossing the space between us. He looked like he wanted to hit me, but the chaise in between us stopped him short. Not that it did anything for his anger.
“Have you lost your mind? What the hell did you think you were doing?” He had to yell to be heard over the music, which seemed to piss him off even more. “And turn that shit down.”
I raised a brow. “You seem upset.”
“Yes, I’m—” He growled in frustration, grabbed my phone off the chaise, and turned off the music blaring from the speakers. The apartment plunged into silence, and he tossed my phone back on the cushions between us. I could see the wheels spinning in his head as he clenched his jaw, like he had so much to say he wasn’t sure where to start.
My smartass mouth could help with that.
“At a loss?” I said. “You could just say thank you.”
That did it.
“Thank you?” he said, his words coming out low and deadly. “You want me to thank you for what you did tonight? And don’t bother trying to deny it. I know it was you.”
“Who’s denying it? But you should know, it was more a group effort than a one-man show.”
“Are you seriously making jokes right now?”
“No, I’m just trying to work out why you’re so pissed.”
Gavin’s left eye twitched as he vibrated with fury, and I could’ve sworn he began to shimmer and blur. Or maybe that was the lighting. Or the alcohol. Or the combination.
“I’mpissed,as you so eloquently put it, because for the first time in months I was out on a date with someone who made me feel special. Who didn’t make me feel like he would lose his shit at the drop of a hat?—”
“Well, good for you.”
“Yeah, it was good for me,” he fumed, and stormed around the chaise, pointing a finger at me. “Until East sent me a text with a video of you getting all dark and murderous.”
My lip curled. I was proud of that description. “I’ll be sure to tell him you enjoyed it.”
“You’re insane.”
