I rush past Huxley. “Get the bill, Hux, thanks!” I say as I hurry to exit the restaurant before Rammi does anything to dig an even deeper hole for me.
Huxley gawks at me, at the woman in hot pursuit and then jumps up and stabs his finger at us. “Ah-ha! Iknewit!”
Chapter Seventeen
Noah
To kill or not to kill, that is the question.
Of course, I’m not feeling anywhere close to poetic or philosophical as I seethe. It’s been three hours since the encounter with Rammi, but my fury hasn’t died a bit. I spent a few minutes running my hands along the cool barrels of my cheetahs. The cold hard smoothness of the rifles generally calms me down, but not today. I debated which one would be better to use, imagining Joey in the crosshairs and slowly pulling the trigger.
It would be so satisfying, and the fucker deserves it. I had a perfect chance to get closer to Bobbi and convince her I could be the one she’s looking for. But then he had to send that crazy “I’m ready to have your baby immediately” floozy, and now I’m just fucked.
I should turn Joey’s knees into mush. That way he won’t be able to go around sending me hookers. Actually, I should destroy his elbows so he can’t use his phone.
I sit in the dark amid the unfamiliar furniture and breathe slowly, trying to control my rage. But the scent of Joey’s cologne is gasoline over an open flame.
If my dad’s assistant didn’t live in an apartment complex, I’d be tempted to set the place on fire.
I close my eyes to rein in all sorts of highly illegal impulses.Dear God, I know you love Nicholas the most because he’s the nicest of us all and rewarded him by pushing Joey from the stairs, but you know… I’ve also done a lot of good deeds like sniping terrorists and running sting ops on arms dealers. So maybe do me one solid? Not asking for much. Just a divine drone strike.A literal deus ex machina.
But maybe it’d be better if Joey got struck by lightning. Sadly, there’s no crackling in the air.
Guess I haven’t killed enough terrorists to satisfy the Lord.
The door rattles; the lock turns with a soft click and I open my eyes. There’s the click of a switch being flipped, but nothing happens.
“What the fuck?” comes Joey’s voice. “I just changed the bulbs!”
Finally. The object of my ire is finally home.
His loafers slap the hardwood floor as he mutters with impatient irritation. “Nobody can do anything right! What the hell is wrong with the world? They haveonefucking job!” The rapid complaints continue as he makes his way to the master bedroom, where I’ve been waiting for over an hour.
He flips the switch. Again, nothing. “Goddammit…” He glances out the window where the City of Angels glitters and sighs. I have excellent night vision, and can make out his scowl in the dark.
I stand silently. “Hello, you little fucker.”
Joey starts violently. “Who’s that?” His voice trembles with a tinge of fear.
I start to move toward him. “What’s the matter? You fuck too many people over to recognize who I am?”
“Noah…?” He turns toward me. “What are you doing here? How did you get in?”
“Locksmith.” Not telling him about my expertise with locks.
“What? That’s illegal!”
“Illegal, but not as low as you sending me that porn star.”
“Who?”
My little remaining patience vanishes. “Rammi, you moron!”
“Oh, her? What’s wrong with her? She’s fabulous. Headlights on high, all the time. Pretty face. Nice lips. No filler, by the way. Totally really, feel great, too. If you ever have them wrapped around your cock, you’ll know exactly what I mean. I went above and beyond just for you.”
The memory of that octopus tentacle-sucker mouth fleets through my head. Nausea rises at the thought of her anywhere near me. “Are you shitting me?”
“What? She’s hot.” Joey sounds genuinely confused.
