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Nogales chuckles. “Oh, I think you’ll want to hear what I have to say.” His tone holds a hint of malice that makes my blood run cold, colder still when his gaze lands on me again, appreciative, but unlike Joaquin’s appraisal, it feels gross. Demeaning.
Mark grabs my arm hard and smashes his mouth against mine. The kiss is abrupt, but all too soon, my body doesn’t care, and I lean into him, pressing my body against his to feel his hard, sharp angles against my softer parts. His hand slides down my back and grabs my ass, not in a gross way, though, as if he appreciated my curves.
I moan as our tongues touch and heat shoots throughout my body. My nipples harden, and I feel that familiar ache between my thighs. I want him. Now.
Just as I have the thought, Mark pulls back with a cocky grin as he steps back. “Thanks for the fuck, babe. I’ll call you.”
I stare at him, mouth wide open like a dying fish, unable to believe he just spoke those words to me. “Excuse me?”
“Go on now, girl.” He turns me around and gives me a shove—a gentle shove, but still—toward the front door, punctuating the move with a smack on my ass. “I’ll call when I call.”
I turn to him, as angry as I’ve ever been. I want to eviscerate him. I want to verbally take him down until he feels how he just made me feel, like a dirty whore.
My nostrils flare, and my hands bunch into fists, but the anger drains away, and I’m left feeling used. Dirty. Disgusting. He’s not worth it.
“Whatever,” I growl-whisper in his direction and turn on my heels, walking out of his stupid little store with my head held high.
Mark is an asshole, and I’m not exactly sure why that surprises me. Sure, he’d been kind in the face of my grief, but that’s just being a decent human being. It doesn’t make him a good man.
“Asshole,” I mutter into the silence of my car before I start the engine and leave Mark and his asshole behavior in my rearview mirror. I can’t seem to get away from him and his business fast enough, pressing the pedal harder than I need to so I can put as much distance as possible between myself and my humiliation.
I don’t stop until I’m in the parking lot of For Goodness Cakes. My death grip on the steering wheel eases, and I let out a shaky breath meant to calm my nerves. It doesn’t work, and when I reach for my tote, I groan as I realize that it’s up to me, only me, to find Grace’s boyfriend and, hopefully, her killer.
Chapter Twelve
Ace
“What the fuck do you want, Nogales?” I can tell by his smug fucking face that the asshole is here to gloat. “Well? Get to it. Some of us have money to make.”
His smile falters but only for a moment. “Heard you got a special delivery recently.”
Confirmation. It’s exactly what I want from Hector’s right-hand man because it makes moving forward easier. “Don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.”
“Bullshit,” he snaps back, suddenly angry that he can’t get a rise out of me. “Naked and mutilated not ringing any bells for ya?”
I smile. “Is that the only way you can get a chick to fuck you, by killing her first? Rough, man. Real fucking rough.”
“Fuck you, Ace.”
“No thanks, you’re not the type of pussy I prefer.”
Nogales’ nostrils flare with anger, and he takes a step forward.
“Don’t be stupid, Nogales. You already have one Reckless Souls bullet in you. The next one goes between your eyes.”
I don’t issue idle threats, and even this asshole knows it.
He stops and smirks. “That bitch in the water was a warning.”
I shrug. “Don’t even know that bitch. What does it matter to me? It’s been handled.”
“For now, but Hector wants the port, and he won’t stop until it’s his. One way or the other, it’s gonna be part of Iron Kings territory. You can step aside now and make this easy on your MC.”
“What the fuck in life is easy? The port is mine, and that’s how the fuck it’ll stay. End of story.”
“Then expect to find more dead bitches floating in those waters. You change your mind, you know how to find me.”
“So does my bullet. And it will.” We stare each other down for a long minute, but when the door opens and Joaquin strolls through, Nogales smirks.
“You’ll be hearing from us soon, Ace. One way or another.” He leaves, still walking with a limp from being shot a few months ago, and I smile.
“What was that all about, boss?” Joaquin stands beside me, staring at Nogales until the fucker limps onto his bike and drives off.
“The dumb fuck just admitted they were behind the girl in the water. Grace.”
