Killian turns, only to be met with a punch to the face. His head snaps to the side from the force of the blow, but his body doesn’t move, it’s like he’s build from solid stone.
His opponent goes to land another hit, but Killian blocks it, taking hold of his wrists as he draws his knee up into the guy’s abdomen. He does it over and over, his opponent growingweaker with every blow.
“I can’t watch this,” I shout to Sofia over the raucous crowd and before she can respond, I’m already heading back up the stairs to the bar, leaving the sound of people revelling in someone else’s pain and needless violence behind me.
“What can I get you?” the guy behind the bar asks. He’s Lawless too, early to mid-thirties, short thick brown hair and handsome face. But I know not to let a pretty face fool me, because like the guy currently knocking seven bells out of his opponent downstairs, he too looks like trouble. And I definitely don’t need any more of that.
“Just a soda, thanks.”
“And here was me thinking you were sweet enough already.” He must see the look on my face and cringes. “Too much?”
I shrug. “It’s not the worst line I’ve heard.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Your buddy with the beard and the tats downstairs currently beating that poor guy to pulp already tried and failed last week.”
“Kill? That surprises me. If ever there was a guy who could melt a pair of panties off a beautiful woman with just a smile, it’s him.”
“Well, either I’m not beautiful or I’m immune to his charm because my panties are still firmly in place.”
He chuckles. “I like you. And youdefinitelyare beautiful.” He shoots out his hand in front of me. “I’m Jett.”
I take his hand. “Kaia.”
“It’s a pleasure. Soda it is,” he smiles, reaching down to the fridge below the bar. “Haven’t seen you round here before, you just move here?”
“Just moved back.”
He pops the lid off the soda and slides it towards me. “That explains it. Couldn’t imagine missing a face as pretty as yours.”
The door to the basement opens as people begin filtering back into the bar, the quiet replaced with rowdy chanting.
“Well, that didn’t last five minutes, gotta be a new record, man,” Jett comments.
A body slides up beside me and I already know who it is without having to look, I can feel the testosterone radiating off him waves, but I do so anyway.
“Told you, piece of cake.” His eyes flick down to me. “We meet again,” Killian rests an elbow on the mahogany bar top, his sweat-soaked hair almost black in the bar’s low lighting, wispy strands falling over his eyes. He’s still shirtless, the skin of his ripped torso still glistening in perspiration and I fight the urge to let my gaze linger a little too long, reminding myself who this man is. “I’m starting to think there’s someone up there smiling down on me,” he grins.
“Good for you, over here they’re crapping all over me,” I reply dryly before taking a sip of my soda.
“Ouch, there’s me thinking I made an impression last week.”
“Oh, you made an impression alright.”
“I like this girl,” Jett says, sliding a beer across the bar top towards his friend. He then turns to me. “Be careful of this one, sugar. He’ll talk his way into your panties faster than you can blink.”
I huff a laugh. “Not a chance.”
Jett smiles. “When you get tired of this asshole, you give me a call, I’ll show you a good time, like agentlemanshould.”
“I wouldn’t waste your time with this one, brother,” Killian replies, his eyes flicking back to me. “She looks all warm and friendly but I wager she’s got one hell of a nasty bite.”
“Want to test it out?” I ask.
He grins. “I like a girl who’s a little kinky, and biting during sex makes me hard.”
“You’re disgusting.” I turn my face away from his, fighting the urge to vomit.
