“Fair enough.” He shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot. “Do we have a deal?”
As Noah drew closer, I watched him with a combination of confusion and irritation. Was this motherfucker trying to blow my deal? Since he approached from behind Morgan, the guy never saw him coming.
That’s when it clicked. Noah had been the one following Morgan. Noah and his buddy, Damon Price, were basically thugs for hire. They’d do anything for a few bucks. If he thought hewas going to move in on my potential business partner while I was standing right fucking here, he was going to get his skull smashed in.
“I think so,” I said, trying to keep my gaze from straying to Noah. “I’ll talk to my crew and get back to you. Rebel has your number?”
The closer Noah drew the more annoyed I became. Catching his eye over Morgan’s shoulder, I gave a subtle shake of my head. Rather than back off, he pulled a syringe from his hoodie pocket instead. Holding it up for me to see while grinning like a goddamn lunatic, green eyes gleaming with a devilish light.
Screw this. I wasn’t about to stand by and watch him shoot this guy up with some fucking poison. This idiot was going to ruin everything for us with this deal.
Morgan’s anxious ass was so worked up. He noticed the way my gaze drifted past him and spun around to find Noah advancing. Immediately, Morgan pulled a gun from his pocket, levelling it on Noah who jerked to a stop.
“Back the fuck off.” Morgan’s voice wavered. “I don’t know who you are or what the hell you want, but if you don’t stay away from me, I’ll blow your fucking head off.” To me Morgan demanded, “Did you set this up? Did you bring him here?”
“Fuck no. I don’t associate with this asshole.” No truer words had ever been spoken.
Unfortunately, Morgan wasn’t buying it. “Bullshit. You can tell your crew the deal is off. Not that there ever was one. This is all just a fucking set up. Stay back. Both of you.”
Morgan swung the gun from Noah to me and back again as he inched toward his SUV. Flinging the door open, he leapt inside. He gunned the engine, causing the SUV to slide on the snow and ice as he sped from the parking lot.
As I watched a hell of a good deal drive away my temper went from a simmer to a raging boil. I directed my fury at Noah. “What the fuck was that? Did you come here just to botch my deal? You must have a death wish.”
“Me? You’re the one getting inmyway. I’ve been tailing that guy for days waiting for the right moment to grab him. If you would have kept your mouth shut and let me work, I wouldn’t be out a five thousand dollar payday right now.” Noah stuck the capped syringe back into his hoodie pocket, withdrawing a pack of cigarettes. Sticking one in his mouth, he lit up, puffing smoke in my direction.
“Fuck your five thousand,” I snarled. “You just cost me a hell of a lot more than that.”
Noah shrugged. “I guess we both lose then.”
His indifferent attitude pushed me swiftly to my breaking point. I had zero patience when this man was around. He had a way of working my last nerve with his mere presence.
Noah Cunningham and I had a history. We couldn’t be in one another’s presence for long without coming to blows. I’d never hated anyone the way I hated him. I was pretty sure it started when him and his buddies formed their little crime for hire group. Venom. They’d made it a point to mess with me and my friends. Getting in the way of our business dealings. Going out of their way to piss us off and make trouble for us.
It had all come to a violent head recently when they made the mistake of targeting Rebel’s wife and Stray’s fiancée. We reduced Venom’s numbers, and now there were only two left. Somehow, that didn’t stop Noah from grinning at me now, oozing self-satisfaction.
“You’re pretty proud of yourself, aren’t you?” Unable to stop myself, I gave him a shove that sent him stumbling back, almost slipping on the icy asphalt.
Noah flung his arms out in an effort to keep his balance while regaining his footing. His grin turned into a glare. “Proud of what? Having my target take off? Losing out on a payoff? You’re not the only one trying to earn out here, Dom.”
“Don’t give me that crap. You saw me with him. You could’ve waited for him to leave. Instead, you made a point of screwing my deal.” I gave him another shove, this time grabbing the cigarette from his fingertips as he went down on his ass. “You never learn, do you? Either you do have a death wish, or you’ll do anything to get my attention.”
Tucking the cigarette between my lips, I took a lengthy drag. Then I threw the rest of it onto Noah’s lap. He vigorously brushed the smoke aside, shoving to his feet. He didn’t hesitate, not for even a second.
His fist cracked against the side of my face, hard enough to rattle my teeth. I fell against my car, catching myself on the hood. Nothing could’ve held me back. I rushed him with a fist raised, faking him out with the right, then going in with the left. I nailed him in the nose, satisfied when blood gushed forth to drip onto the snow.
“Motherfucker.” Noah swiped a hand through the blood, scowling at the scarlet stain on his fingers. “Your ego is outrageous. I don’t give a fuck about getting your attention. You’re the one who has a sick obsession with me.”
I scoffed. “Jesus, you’re delusional.”
This jackass went out of his way to make me notice him by pulling stunts like this then insisted I was the one with the obsession. This shit had been going on so long, it was a miracle we hadn’t killed one another by now. I felt pretty certain it was only a matter of time.
When he took another step toward me, I pulled the revolver from my hoodie pocket, spinning the cylinder. “There’sonly one bullet in this gun. The rest of the chambers are empty. How good do you feel about your odds?”
Unfortunately, right that moment a minivan filled with a family drove by, the mother gawking out the window at us. She hit the gas, speeding away. We didn’t have much time before the cops showed up.
“Guess we’ll have to find out some other time.” Noah shrugged. “There’s no way that woman isn’t calling the cops right now.”
I was truly tempted to shoot out one of his tires so he would still be here when they arrived. Firing off shots at a family venue didn’t feel right. Despite Noah’s cocky expression, I managed to contain myself.
