The bikers throw their heads back, laughing in unison. Two of them grab Trinity under the arms and hoist her up behind them like they’re claiming a prize.
“Oh.” The leader drawls the word, and his ugly smirk grows. Metal gleams as he flips an object out of his pocket. “Are you challenging us for that slut?”
With a snarl, I lunge, feinting to the side to avoid the swipe of his blade. When he cranes his head to look at me, I punch him in the face. He stumbles before flopping onto the asphalt, out cold.
So he’s a one-punch-and-done kind of creep. Figures.
I shake out my fingers to relieve the ache in my knuckles from the force of the hit. Guess I’m out of practice when it comes to hand-to-hand.
Growls of dissent rise in waves through the rest of his leather-bound crew.
Just perfect. How many guys do I have to drop before I get some rest?
Any other day, I’d appreciate the practice, but I’m just so damntired. Which is too bad for these idiots, because I was already in a piss-poor mood before they knocked Trinity down.
Two men lunge at once.
The next one to reach me—a short man with a bull ring in his nose—yanks his fist back.
I capture that fist and twist, throwing him to the ground with a resounding thud.
Another man flails at my face, metal glinting in his hand. A blade whistles past my ear as I duck his sloppy attempt to stab the shit out of me.
Spinning, I hook his ankles. He hits the ground face down with a groan. Blood spurts from his nose.
A small herd tries to swam me next, and that’s when my patience runs out. In the blink of an eye, I whip out my gun and aim. “This was fun, boys, but I’ve got better places to be.”
The two men closest to me rear back with their hands in the air.
“Let’s get out of here.” The biker guarding Trinity thrusts her toward me before mounting his ride and roaring off into the night, the few who remain upright following suit.
For a motorcycle gang, they’re pretty quick to flee. No points for loyalty either. They left two of their own men groaning, bleeding, and half-unconscious on the pavement in the middle of nowhere.
I scan the area and find Trinity power walking toward the small parking lot off to the side of the gas station. Like she’s hoofing it back to the interstate and plans to prance her bratty ass home.
I reach her in a few long, jogging strides. She doesn’t even glance at me when I wrap my hand around her arm.
She jerks and tries to pull away, but the attempt is weak compared to earlier.
While she fights me to no avail, my eyes rove over her disheveled body. Her hair’s caked with the grime of the day. Dirt, dust, and filth stain her little tank top and pants. Small cuts litter her face and hands. Some of those might have occurred when I tripped her outside the bathroom.
Serves her damn right for feeling me up earlier.
Fire simmers beneath my sternum at the memory. Her fingers touching, taunting…
She’s a tease. A brat. Yet damn if I wasn’t ready to shove her against the wall and fuck her.
Then she hurled my damn phone into the nearby underbrush.
I can’t believe I fell for that shit.
Anyway, she’s not seriously hurt, which means I don’t practice any restraint when I shove her up against the passenger-side window and crush my body over hers. I cuff my aching, bloody fingers around her throat and glare into her wide green gaze.
“Listen, Trinity.” I give her neck a gentle squeeze for emphasis. “The next time a man touches you, his death will be onyourhands.”
Beneath my thumb, her pulse flutters an unsteady beat.
She sucks in a breath and narrows those glittering eyes at me. “You know what?” The strength in her voice startles me. “You’re worse than those dirtbags back there.”
