“Was there really any need to grab Kieran’s throat like that?” she snipped, glowering up at me.
“Shut your fuckin’ mouth,” I gritted out, turning and steering her toward the exit.
Aislynn craned her neck, calling her goodbyes as best she could with my arm trapping her, stumbling slightly as I yanked her toward the door.
It seemed my woman would have to learn the hard way. I could’ve crushed that asshole’s windpipe if I wanted to. Still, he wouldn’t touch her again anytime soon, so my work here was done—for now—but if she carried on giving me lip, I wouldn’t wait until I got her home before I punished her. She’d get it in the goddamned street.
“I don’t know what you’re smiling at,” she hissed. “I can’tbelieveyou just did that.”
The crowd parted for us as I stalked toward the exit, my hand going to the fallen strap of her purse and pulling it back over her shoulder. “Shut your mouth,Dubheasa.There’s only so much I’ll take from you, and you’re already dangerously close to the fuckin’ line.”
“How did you know where I was?” she demanded as we stepped out onto the street.
I glanced down at her. “My tech guy tapped into your phone.”
Her steps halted, and she brought us to a stop, spinning around to face me. “What?”
“My tech guy, Wiki. He’s got access to your cell. He can see your messages and gets an alert every time you get a call. Then he taps into it, records it, and sends it to my phone. I turned up at your place thinkin’ you’d be waitin’ for me, like I fuckin’ told you to. Called Wiki, and he tracked you down.”
Aislynn’s head reared back, and her mouth slackened with shock. “You’respyingon me?”
“I’m keepin’ tabs on you,” I corrected. “For your safety.”
“For my safety,” she echoed. Her eyes turned to slits, and she shoved me away, rolled up on her toes, and shrieked in my face, “How fuckingdare you?”
I growled, expecting her to back down, even apologize. Instead, her body locked and she grated out, “Asshole!”
The word hung in the air between us. My lungs began to burn, and my face twisted as I stared down at her.
Aislynn’s gaze lowered. She knew she’d fucked up, and she also knew I wasn’t a man who’d allow that shit. Just because she was mine didn’t mean she could lead me around by the balls, and it didn’t mean she’d get any lenience from me either.
I wasn’t the firefighter version of Captain America like that pretty boy back in the bar. I was the president of a one-percenter MC, and shit like that didn’t fly with me. I wouldn’t put up with it from my men, so there was no way I’d take it from my woman. If she did that in front of my boys, she’d be in a whole world of hurt right now, so it was clear I had to give my girl a short, sharp lesson in respect.
I jerked my chin toward my Harley, parked a few feet away. “Get on the bike.”
Her eyes widened, and she took a step back. “Maybe we should take some time to calm down?—”
“I said get on the fuckin’ bike, Aislynn,” I ordered through clenched teeth.
I watched her visibly gulp, then she turned and began to pick her way over the icy sidewalk toward my ride, throwing a furtive glance at me as she went.
I fell into step beside her and took her elbow roughly.
“I’m sorry,” Aislynn whispered.
My jaw tightened, but I kept my stare forward, not acknowledging her until we reached my bike. I threw a leg over and mounted up, holding a hand out for her to take.
She cocked her head, pursed her lips, and folded her arms across her chest in a silent challenge the little brat had no business making.
With a grunt, I lunged off my bike and grabbed her waist with both hands, ignoring her shocked squeal as I shoved her on the back of my Harley. Then, keeping hold of one hand, I slid on and started the engine. She let out a little shriek as I shot away from the curb, and her fingers twisted into the leather of my jacket to stop herself from flying off the back of my bike.
“Oh my God,” she shrieked. “What are you doing?”
I revved the throttle to drown out the sound of her bitching and concentrated on the road, ignoring the way her nails dug painfully into my skin and the frustrated yell she let out as I sped down the street toward her apartment.
“Stop the bike,” she yelled in my ear.
“Settle,” I shouted over the growl of the bike.
