“Don’t be shy,” he said, voice slurring. “I know your type. You want someone who canbuyyour attention.”
“That’s not—” My protest died on my tongue when he yanked me forward and pulled me downonto his lap.
I froze.
His hand slid brazenly up the inside of my thigh, knuckles grazing a place no one had any damn right to touch. My breath caught, my body stiff with shock. My heart pounded loud enough to drown out the room. Laughter echoed. One of his friends whistled.
I was a prop again. A thing.
Just like before.
“Let go of me,” I snarled, low and dangerous.
But he just smirked. “Relax. You’re pretty when you pretend you’re not into it.”
The sound of a door banging into the wall behind us made Elias’s grip tighten.
“Get your hands off him.” The words weren’t loud. But they were lethal.
Elias blinked up, squinting as Theo’s shadow fell over us both. He was all clean lines and sharp edges, but there was nothing cold about him now. His eyes were fire. Wild, contained only by sheer force of will.
“Excuse me?” Elias slurred.
“You heard me,” Theo said, voice low, deadly calm. “Let. Him. Go.”
Elias laughed, drunkenly, like this was some joke. “You getting jealous, Theo?”
Theo didn’t answer. He just stepped closer. There was something in his posture—tight, measured—that finally made Elias hesitate. His fingers loosened just enough for me to rip myself away.
I staggered back, heart hammering, skin crawling. Theo moved instantly, placing himself between us, like a shield. I saw his hands at his sides, clenched into fists so tight his knuckles had gone white.
“You’ve had too much to drink,” Theo spoke slowly and evenly. “And you’ve just sexually assaulted a member of my staff. You’ll leave. Now.”
Elias stood, swaying. “You think you can tellmewhat to do? You work for my father’sfriend, Theo. Remember your place.”
Theo smiled.
It was terrifying.
“I knowexactlywhere my place is,” he replied. “And it’s not kissing your ass while you pretend rape culture is just old-school flirting.”
Elias’s smirk vanished. “This isn’t over,” he hissed.
Theo didn’t blink. “Yes. It is.”
Security had appeared in the doorway, summoned silently. Theo didn’t need to signal. The tone of his voice said it all. They moved to flank Elias and his little entourage, who, for once, weren’t laughing.
I stood frozen, shaking.
“Sin.” Theo’s voice was quiet now. Soft. “Come with me.”
I followed him out of the room without a word, my legs numb, my chest tight. He led me down a narrow hallway, away from the noise and the light. We stopped at a back entrance, the kind usually reserved for staff smoke breaks or post-shift breakdowns.
He turned, and I finally looked at him—really looked at him. His jaw was tight, but his eyes were molten. No longer cold. No longer guarded.
“For fuck’s sake,” he breathed. “Hetouchedyou.”
“I’m fine,” I said automatically.
