Page 120 of Anthem of Love and Loathing

Bronx, Kodiak, and Golden all shrug as we exchange confused glances.

“What do you want to do? Follow little Katie, let down your fans, and piss off my daddy? Or be a professional and finish out the concert?” She squeezes my ass.

“One song.” To finish up the concert, keep Carmine happy, and not cause gossip that could put Kelsey in the spotlight.

“Great.” She smiles like a shark before she heads to the edge of the stage where her assistant is waiting with Sonatina’s lucky, gold-plated microphone. We start to play. Instead of coming back to me, she moves to the front of the stage, effectively turning L.A. Riot into her backup.

It’s fucking bullshit.

The minute its over I walk off on her. She hurries to keep up with me, but I outpace her easily. I call Kelsey. It rings out. I call her again. I need to find out where she got to and explain to her that I had no fucking clue Sonatina was going to show up here, but I am going to fix it. When that call rings out too, I text her.

My phone rings and I answer without bothering to look at the screen. “Kels—”

“Not Kels,” Micah says. “Busy night tonight so I thought I would call you. Your target is on the move. Has been for about an hour.”

“Where’s he heading?” If it’s Vegas...

“I should have those details any minute.” I can hear him tapping away on a keyboard. “The other thing is those funds you wanted to investigate... it’s a total dead end.”

“What?” There must be a paper trail. We need it to prove Kelsey isn’t behind it.

“I mean it goes to an offshore account. Through a shell company. The details I’ve been able to find are thin.”

“I need evidence.”

“I’ll keep looking,” he says.

“Okay, call me back when you have his destination. I need to get hold of Kelsey.” I hang up on him and try her again. Still no answer. Where the fuck is she?

“If you don’t stop walking away from me, I am going to make your life hell, Riot Maddox,” Sonatina calls out.

“You already have.” I whirl around on her. “You drugged me.”

“Don’t be a little bitch,” she says. “You wanted me too. The whole weekend you were flirting with me. I just helped you drop the charade you had going. Don’t pretend like you didn’t love fucking me.”

“What?” the world spins out and back in again.

Holy fuck. Holy shit.

My stomach revolts. Is that why I struggled to recall the details around how I ended up sleeping with her? Why the things I did remember made it hard to enjoy sex. “You... raped me.”

“Rape? Ha. Most men wouldn’t care how they got into my panties.” She shakes her head like she can’t believe that I’m not happy about it.

“I should have you charged with sexual assault.”

“But you won’t because if you do you can kiss all of this goodbye.” She waves her arm around to indicate the stadium and everything we’ve accomplished tonight. “Are you really going to risk it all for a chance to look weak? No one will believe you couldn’t fight me off. You’re such a big masculine man, and I’m just a dainty little thing.”

She’s a fucking bitch.

I wrap my hand around her throat and walk her into the closest wall. It takes all my self-control not to throttle her. “You destroyed my relationship with Kelsey.”

“Oh, no.” Her lips twitch up in the corners. “That was all you. You were itching to be on my side in every argument. You wouldn’t have acted like that if you hadn’t wanted me.”

I’d wanted to protect L.A. Riot. And I’d hurt Kelsey to do so.

“It never had anything to do with you, Sonatina. Get that through your thick skull. I didn’t want you. I never wanted you. I sure as hell didn’t want you to drug me so you could rape me.” No one will ever believe that she could. She’s right about that. Trying to have her charged for it would only make it public that I wasn’t able to protect myself from some spoiled little princess.

“You didn’t want me? That’s cute. You all but fell into my bed after she vanished. Or don’t you remember that?”