Page 45 of Pretty Lies

“Things changed the day I took the jacket, and you didn’t wanna follow the rules anymore.”

The jacket Della had on.

The one that ruled his teen years.

All his friends.

“Remember?” Cory asked, a smirk coming out to play. “Now we got bigger problems between us, man—bigger boys, bigger issues.”

All at once, Luis’s gaze skipped to Della. That anger of his melted away, and in its place was a charming smile and a possessive glint. He didn’t reach out to touch her—smart, considering Cory’s arm was back around her waist. He might have ripped the man’s hand off and beat him with it had he tried to touch her then.

Shit was bad between Della and Luis.

Cory remembered her mention of the ex the night they hooked up. Add in the attack. This whole fucking shitshow.

And yeah.

He didn’t need to be told to know.

Shit with them was bad.

She didn’t look happy he was there. She didn’t seem like she wanted him within ten feet of her. Cory wanted it clear to Luis that he was going to be a huge fucking wall to get through if he wanted that to change.

Whether Cory was fucking Della or not … well, that didn’t matter. Luis could think it was fact, though.

“We’re not done here,” Luis said to Della. She tensed in Cory’s arm. “Not even close,” he added sharper.

•••

Cory drove.

Della hadn’t even asked.

Which was fine because he would have hated to laugh and tell her fuck, no. His one goal after leaving the strip club was to put distance between themselves and the men he knew Luis would have following them. Whether or not he could lose them … it was hard to say.

The Mustang shifted beautifully under Cory’s hand when he finally hit the freeway and pressed the pedal down. Hell, he might drive an hour out of the way before turning back but if that’s what he had to do, so be it.

Della remained quiet.

Until she exploded.

“Why would you do that?”

Cory had been waiting on it; bracing for it. The woman didn’t hold back.

Damn. He chanced a glance her way, thinking stupidly, beautiful when she’s angry, too.

The smart part of him kept that quiet. The not-so-smart bit said out loud, “Do what—get your lying ass away from your ex that fucking everyone decided to not tell me was the cause of all this shit and the entire reason I’m watching you? An ex, who by the fucking way, was a pretty good friend of mine for years? Is that what I did?”

Della blinked.

Cory let out a hard breath and focused on the road. It took her a while before she spoke. He rather liked the silence.

Mostly.

“You made a bigger problem back there acting like you did,” she said. “He’s an obsessive asshole, but he can be handled. Except you just had to go right on ahead and—”

“That’s all you think he is?” Cory asked.