Page 85 of Abundance of Obsession

Laughter escapes me. I don’t sense anyone behind me, so when a man’s hand slams down on the bar, I jump, frightened. My laughter is abruptly cut.

“It’ll be your funeral if you don’t do what you’re paid to do.”

That single sentence contains a threat. And the low tone of his voice sends chills down my spine.

I stare, numb. A hand without a tattoo. A black shirt. The presence of a man behind me. Damien’s hard, cold gaze. His murderous stare doesn’t leave Jax.

The same face he had in the picture Ryker showed me. It’s the face of a killer. A man who is dangerous through and through.

Memories come flooding back…

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any harm.” Jax raises his hands in a defensive gesture.

The change in the bartender is obvious. He, too, can read the room. He knows when a customer is bringing trouble to the club’s doorstep.

And yet he glances at me out of the corner of his eye.

“She’s off limits. You get me? Unless you want to find out what the name Estrada means.”

Jax’s eyes widen a little, and one eyelid twitches madly. His Adam’s apple bobs up and down while he swallows hard.

He knows that name. And it stirs in him…

Fear.

“My apologies, Mr. Estrada. I wasn’t aware Lily was here with you.”

My intuition tells me what’s going to happen before I even see the first move. Damien’s hand shoots forward, and I grab it and pull it to my waist. If I hadn’t done that…

He’d be holding the bartender by the throat right now.

“Forget you know her name,” the man behind me snaps at him.

Now, I can clearly see Damien’s other side. The one the guys were talking about.

An eerie chill runs through me. It also sobers me up.

“I don’t want that drink anymore. Let’s go dance.” Holding his hand, we walk away from the bar. I have no intention of letting some poor guy get hurt just because he was talking to me.

At first, I feel my partner’s resistance. Only after a while does it melt away. We blend into the crowd. Turning to him I wrap my arms around his shoulders.

The tension in his body eases.

The rhythm of the music creeps under his skin.

“I’m sorry, Lily,” he says, leaning. “I got carried away.”

I pull my head back, gazing. “He did nothing. He was just being polite. It’s his job.”

“He was flirting with you.”

“Again, it’s his job. It’s how he makes his tips.”

“Not with you. His life depends on you.”

I pretend to take it as a joke. In reality, I’m far from it. “Don’t talk nonsense. What’s gotten into you?”

Damien pulls me closer. “I’m being jealous and possessive of you. It’s something new for me, I admit. But it also says a lot about how important you are to me.”