“Jesus, what the—” Dakota yanked the guy off her and delivered a punishing right hook to his face. The second the guy dropped, Dakota pulled him up, shoved him against the wall, and wrapped his hand around the guy’s throat. “I’m gonna fucking kill you,” he growled.
“She told me she wanted to fuck,” the dude choked out, his nose bleeding.
Dakota tightened his grip and the guy’s eyes widened.
With her heart racing and adrenaline pounding through her, Providence whipped her handgun from the waist of her pants and pointed it at the guy. “Go to hell, you lying scumbag.”
“You two are crazy,” said the guy. “I’m at a kink club, lookin’ for a beer and a good time. You don’t need to go ape shit, ya know.”
She eyed the asshole for an extra beat. “When a rapist gets in my space, I go ape shit.”
“Whoa, whoa, bitch. Don’t even go there.”
When Dakota released him, the guy started coughing, then bent over with his hands on his knees.
“Tell me your name.” Dakota’s voice was filled with controlled rage. His stance screamed fight, his glare was razor sharp, and his hands were curled into tight fists.
The second the guy uttered his name, Dakota jumped on his phone. “I killed your membership. When a woman says no, you back the hell off. Understood?”
“Fuck you.”
Dakota stepped forward and the guy flinched.
“Get out.Now!” Providence barked.
The man took off and the door slammed shut behind him.
Providence shoved her weapon into the back of her waistband. “Asshole.”
“Are you okay?” Dakota asked.
“Yeah. Thanks for pulling him off me.”
“What happened?”
“I didn’t lock the front door.” She felt her throbbing cheek. “Scumbag didn’t understand the word ‘no’.”
“That son of a bitch hit you.”
“I got a sloppy right hook.”
Dakota stepped so close his minty breath warmed her face. He regarded her cheek, then clasped her hand. “Let’s put ice on that.”
She could have pulled her hand away, but she didn’t. His soothing touch helped slow her thundering heart. He went behind the bar and scooped ice cubes into a plastic bag. Rather than hand it to her from across the bar, he sat beside her, then offered her the bag.
“Thank you.” She pressed it to her cheek and winced.
Dakota stared into her eyes. “You look beautiful. I missed you today.”
His romantic words melted away the fear and anger. But the passion in his eyes would soon be replaced with contempt. Once he learned the truth, he would hate her.
But when he leaned over and kissed her, the only thing she cared about was that moment. Her soft moan filled the silence. Throughout the day, she had thought about him. And while she was pissed she’d been sidelined, she didn’t regret what they had done. The more she stared into his eyes, the more she wanted to do it all over again.
He kissed her again, this time letting his lips linger on hers. This time, she closed her eyes and kissed him back.
“Such a bad ass,” he murmured. “Such a sexy, self-sufficient bad ass.”
She stilled while the air grew chaotic around them. “That is the best compliment I have ever received.”
