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“You would not treat her how she deserves to be treated.”

I almost snorted.Well, mom, neither do you.

“You don’t do commitment,” Alondra went on. “You use women and then toss them aside. You don’t even do it alone. You drag your friend Kaleb into the game.”

“Briar had no complaints.”

A long hiss. “You will not touch her again, Trace. I forbid it.”

“You can forbid whatever the fuck you want. Just don’t expect me to dance to your tune. You have no say in what I do or don’t do. You never will. I’m not a man you can control, Alondra. I warned you of that long ago.”

“Briar’s my daughter.”

“And, what, you think that you should therefore be able to dictate what she does or who she sees? That’s not how it works.”

No, it wasn’t. But he was wasting his breath trying to explain it to her. I’d tried it numerous times and quite simply failed. She’d never quite ‘got’ that I was more than an extension of her and didn’t need to obey or answer to her.

“I know what’s best for Briar,” Alondra claimed. “And if you know what’s best for you, you’ll heed me on this.”

“Is that a threat?” he asked, his voice dropping an octave and losing its bored, lazy air.

“It’s very much a threat,” confirmed Alondra. “I have more clout in this industry than you do. I can ruin someone in a hot second, and you’d do well to remember it.”

“So typical of a narcissist. When you can’t control someone, you seek to tear them down. It’s pathetic.”

“I won’tseekto do anything, Iwilldo it.”

“You can certainly try. But it won’t change anything. I still won’t be manipulated. I still won’t want you. And I’ll still want Briar.”

Alondra sucked in a harsh breath.

“I don’t know about you,” he began before she could speak, “but I’m ready to go back to the party.”

Oh, shit. I ducked into a nearby room and waited there as two sets of footfalls padded out into the hallway. Alondra was hissing insults at Trace, who gave no verbal response.

I puffed out a breath.My mother, ladies and gentlemen.

Chapter Four

Sitting on the chair beside mine, Izzy picked her glass up from one of the dome’s select few tables. “I still think you should hang around here instead of going upstairs to watch a show with Cat and Inaya,” she told me.

Taking a small sip of my fruity cocktail, I felt my brow crease. “What, and join you and Cole for a meal in the lounge? Nu-uh. Three’s a crowd.”

“It wasn’t when you were getting shagged by Trace and Kaleb last weekend,” said Izzy, a teasing glint in her eyes.

I shot her a playful look of annoyance. “That was a little different.”

On the chair opposite me, Inaya chuckled. “Just a little.”

“They’re here at the club tonight,” Cat casually threw in.

I was well aware of that. The first thing I’d seen on entering the dome was Trace talking to a woman at the other end of the long bar. I’d looked away quickly, not bothering to see if Kaleb was also nearby. I refused to be one of the women who watched and pined after them. “Yeah, so?”

“You said you’d happily go for a repeat,” Izzy reminded me.

“I also pointed out that there likely wouldn’t be one. And after the way Alondra acted at the charity ball, I think we cansafely say that there definitelywon’t be a repeat. Trace will keep his distance from me. I can’t even blame him.”

“From what you said,” Cat cut in, setting her empty glass on the table, “it didn’t sound as if he was intimidated by her.”

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