Victor.
The back of my neck tingled. He was on something. High as hell. That made him dangerous and unpredictable.
“Oh, how precious—our girl brought some backup, thinking it would make a difference.”
The older man’s voice was oily, the kind of smooth, practiced tone that only con men and criminals could perfect. His lips curled into a smirk as his eyes flicked toward me.
“You brought your baseball boy. Good. He must have the money we require.”
Michelle didn’t even flinch.
She turned to me, gaze calm, unreadable, but when our eyes met, I saw it.
The fire.
The moment of quiet fury, the strength she had sharpened from years of surviving.
Yeah. She wasn’t scared. She was fucking livid.
“Yeah, I knew exactly what to say to get you here.” Her lips curled into something almost too sweet, too cruel, as she stepped forward. “Always about the money.”
Her voice changed then, sharpened into something deadly.
“Here’s the thing—I’m not giving you a fucking dime.”
Victor shifted beside his father, but it wasn’t out of discomfort. It was out of anticipation. Like he had been waiting for this, like he was already itching for an excuse to make a scene.
Michelle wasn’t done
“You are going to leave me and everyone I care about alone.” Her voice didn’t shake. Not once. “Or I will ruin you.”
The older man’s fake amusement vanished. His expression curled into something cruel, something dark.
“Listen, bitch, you think I’m playing around?”
He flicked a knife from his pocket, flipping it open so fast it made my muscles tense. I was already stepping forward, ready to tear him apart, but he caught the movement and smirked.
“Think this piece of shit is worth getting hurt over?” He nodded toward me, tilting his head like he was studying me, like I was just some dumb kid who had wandered into the wrong fight.
“You’re an idiot.”
Michelle lifted her chin, stepping between us before I could throw the first punch.
She didn’t even look at the knife.
Her father could have held a gun to her head, and she still would have called his bluff.
“Michelle, can I break his face, or do you want to talk first?” My voice was soaked in irritation, my fingers twitching to rip the smirk off the bastard’s face.
Her father’s cockiness wavered, just slightly.
“Face breaking can happen later.” She shot me a look over her shoulder, and fuck, I had never been more attracted to her than I was in that moment.
Michelle turned back to him, voice mocking as hell.
“Listen, bitch.”
His eyes darkened.
