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I nod my head. What would be the point in lying?
Her jaw grits, anger flashing across her gaze. “I’m sorry for that.”
“Why?”
“I assumed, and I was wrong. I’m guessing you didn’t want to fuck Mr Bernard tonight,” she says, canting her head towards Zayn. I can’t tell whether she genuinely doesn’t know that Zayn is playing Jeb or does and is protecting that secret for some reason I’m unaware of. I’m not sure I care either way.
“No, I didn’t,” I bite out.
“And you dancing was a way to get out of that?”
“Yes.”
“You think that’s going to prevent him from taking what he wants regardless?” Grim asks, her voice low, angry. Her reaction surprises me. I really didn’t think she’d give a shit.
“The moment’s over. Besides, who wants to fuck with a gun aimed at their heads?” I say with false bravado as I nod towards Beast who still has his gun clutched in his hand. My gaze flicks to the men standing high above us, all of them pointing at the Breakers and the men opposing them. I bite down on my lip to stop it from trembling as I focus my attention back to the face-off unfolding in front of us. Dax has joined Xeno, York and Jeb. Zayn maintains a relaxed posture at the table, looking almost bored. He plays the role of Jeb well. Too well. My stomach flips over at the thought. I catch Zayn’s eye. I can’t read him, won’t allow myself to. I need to keep my head rather than try to digest everything that’s passed between us tonight.
“You’d be surprised,” Grim answers sharply, a flash of disgust passing over her features. That one look tells me more about who she is than anything else that has passed between us tonight. Grim is tough, there’s no denying that, but she has her own set of principles too. Maybe I judged her wrongly just as much as she judged me.
“Who are these people?” I ask, a shiver tracking down my spine as Malik barks an order at his bodyguards. They immediately step away and follow him to whatever hole he crawled out of. Good fucking riddance.
“People you don’t want to get mixed up with.” Grim leans in close, taking the opportunity to keep talking with me whilst Beast has a conversation with the Breakers and Jeb. Now that Malik and his bodyguards have walked away, the tension dissolves further. The rest of the gangs resume talking as more girls come pouring out from the corners of the warehouse. I tense. Grim notices.
“They’re not here for sex. Just to serve. None of my girls fuck these men, unless they want to, of course,” she says, as more drinks are poured, and drugs consumed.
“I’m not with the Skins because I want to be…”
“Yeah, no shit…” She sighs heavily, looking at me as though making a decision. “Fuck sake, I’m getting soft. Those damn delinquents have screwed me up for life.”
“Delinquents?” I frown. What’s she talking about?
“Don’t worry about it. Look, I can get you out of here right now,” Grim offers, but I shake my head. As much as I’d love to run, I can’t, for Lena’s sake. I need to see this night through. I need to face whatever Jeb has planned for me because even though I’ve managed to dodge a bullet, there’s a whole load more aimed at me and I have a feeling more than one is going to hit their mark sooner rather than later.
“That won’t help me in the long run,” I reply.
“That bad, huh?”
“Yeah. That bad.”
She nods. “I can make shit difficult for them…”
“What do you mean?”
“Jeb’s an opportunist, I’ve never liked him. He likes to use kids to do his dirty work just like another wanker I used to know.”
“No one likes him,” I say, with a hint of a smile.
“All the more reason for me to take him down. He stepped on a few toes recently and whilst I’d normally keep the fuck out of bullshit like this, I will step in if I have reason to. Lately I have reason to.”
“No offense, but you don’t know Jeb. He’s a fucking maniac.”
“I don’t need to know Jeb. I’ve dealt with men like him all my life,” she says looking at me intently. “I see you have too. Am I right?”
I nod. “Yes.”
“What’s your name?” she asks me, changing the direction of the conversation.
“Pen. I’m Pen.”
“Well, Pen. You ever need a friend. You come find me.”
My stomach swirls with apprehension. I’m not sure of her motives, not at all. She might appear to be someone I can trust, but I’ve not lived the life I have to throw myself at the feet of someone I’ve only just met. Fuck that. Instead, I proceed with caution.
“Friends can turn their back on you without a moment’s hesitation, so forgive me if I don’t jump at the offer.”
I expect some kind of caustic reply or a revoking of her offer, but all I’m given is a wide grin. “Yeah, I like you, and because of that I’ll make sure Jeb doesn’t fucking touch you tonight or any other time he brings you to my club.”
“Thank you,” I respond.
Not that it’ll make much difference. If the leader of the Skins wants to fuck with me, he can do that at any point. Gritting my jaw, I make my way back to the table ready to face the Breakers and Jeb.
