Fury (New Adult Romance) - #1.5 Fierce Series (19 page)

Taking another deep breath, she starts flinging her arms in an
attempt to get ready to fight with me, I think. I’m not sure what she’s doing,
but at least she’s willing to try now. It’s taking forever, though.

“Don’t make me wait … I hate it when girls make me wait.” She’d
better not make me wait too long or else I might jump her.

She laughs. “Oh, really? What then? Are you going to kick a wall
again or something?”

What? She’s still bringing that up? What’s she trying to do? Make me
angry? She’s using my own tactic against me now …

“I’ll come after you myself if I have to. And things get rough with
me pretty fast,” I say with a rumbling laugh. My chest rapidly expands, and I
think my heart is about to burst out just thinking about what I’ll do to her if
she doesn’t come here fast. If she wants to play it dirty, I’ll give her dirty.

A flush tempers her skin, turning her cheeks and vibrant skin rosy.
It ignites my longing for her, which is hard to ignore.

She clears her throat. “Okay. Here I come.”

She blows out a big breath like she’s training for a kung-fu match,
and then she runs straight at me like she thinks ramming into me will make me
fall over. She bounces up against me, and it feels more like a bump. Her feet
move against mine, trying to topple me, but instead she’s the one falling down.

“Ouch!”

I burst out into laughter, because it’s funny to see her try so hard
and fail. It’s the way she goes about it that’s making it impossible for me not
to laugh. I mean, it’s funny how she thinks she can tackle me while shouting it
out loud.

“Why are you announcing you’re going to attack? That’s like playing
right into my hands,” I say, and I help her get up.

She tries to bring me down with her, but I’m much stronger than her.
I shake my head and finger. “You think it’s that easy to bring me down?”

“I’ll make it happen. Eventually.” Her eyes are filled with passion
and determination, which sets my body on fire. I like it when she’s feisty,
because it means she’s growing out of her shell and that she’s finally getting
used to me.

“I like your spunk.” I step back a little. “Try again.”

She brushes the dirt from her pants and frowns, biting her lip. I
wonder why she’s waiting so long to attack me again. Is she trying to surprise
me this time? I hope so, but she sure is taking her sweet time.

“C’mon. I can take you, Leafy,” I say, biting my lip in reaction to
her. She’s looking hot and bothered by my refusal to stop, and it’s only making
me want to bother her more.

She runs toward me again, this time without warning, but now she
tries to kick me between my legs. I grab her thigh and push it down, my fingers
digging into her soft flesh. Grabbing her lower arm, I stop her from hitting
me. But damn, she tried to kick me in the nuts. “You’re getting dirty.” I pull
her closer. She didn’t strike me as the type, but I kind of dig her
provocations. “I like it.”

She tries to jerk loose, but my fingers are tightly wrapped around
her arm, preventing her from leaving. I’m the one who pulls the strings, not
her. She might think she is, but that’s not the case. I’m always in control.
That’s the way I like it.

If she wants to stay safe and not be attacked like that again, she
needs to be ready to train hard. She needs to be a fighter; she needs to defend
herself. She has to learn how to beat me.

“Put a little effort into it,” I say. “Nobody’s going to be nice for
you. I’m not either.”

She hits me against my arm, trying to wriggle loose, but it’s not
working. I barely even feel it. Not much muscle in this chick.

“C’mon, hit me.” I’m getting more and more agitated because she’s
not really giving me her all. I know there’s more inside of her, she’s just not
showing it to me yet. “Hit me!”

“I’m trying!”

No, you’re not.

She’s not trying. She’s barely even putting any energy into this. I
can feel it. Maybe she needs some motivation first. I always get pumped up
whenever I get crazily mad. Maybe it’s the same for her. If I push her buttons
and get her angry, it’ll make this sparring much better. She probably won’t
like it, though.

“You’re a wuss. A boneless nerd. You can’t fend for yourself. Can’t
live in the real world. Not even one day,” I say, trying to lure out her anger.

“Shut up!” she yells. She balls her hands into fists and punches me
before I know it, right in the guts. This time I feel it. Oh, hell yes. Damn,
that was a nice hit.

She squirms free from my grip, and says, “What the fuck is wrong
with you?” Her eyes are getting watery. “You’re being an asshole, and you know
it.”

I groan and rub my belly. “Damn, that was a good jab.”

“Who cares? You’re a bully.”

What gave her that idea? I laugh and take a step forward. I’m not a
bully. Far from it. She just doesn’t realize how effective anger is when it
comes to fighting. She looks like she wants to leave any moment now, so I grab
her wrist. I’m not finished with her yet. “I’m helping you.”

She scowls, her eyes full of contempt. “Helping me? You’re insulting
me, belittling me, and making me feel like a pile of crap.”

“And those guys didn’t?” She’s making it sound like I’m doing it to
hurt her, but I’m trying to get her to see that she needs to grow a thick skin
and face her aggressors head-on.

Breathing raggedly, she tries to jerk free, but I’m not letting her
go when she’s raging like this. Not until she understands what I’m trying to
say. “Anger helps you fight. It fuels you.”

I smile. It surprises me she doesn’t know this. “Guess this is your
first time finding out about the power of rage.”

Her lip pulls up, and she snarls, “Whatever.”

She’s still angry at me? That wasn’t the point of this exercise. “C’mon.
You know I didn’t mean any of it. It’s just to get you worked up.”

Let me go,” she hisses.

Now she’s really making a fuss about it. I can’t help but find it a
little amusing to see her try to squirm free from my grasp. I feel like I
caught her in my net and she’s my prize for winning. “Make me,” I jest. I’m
only playing around. Although, I have to say, I don’t mind holding onto her
like this. I kinda like having my hands on her.

Suddenly she kicks my lower leg, and I lose my balance. Shit. I’m
not letting her win this easily with such a low move. So I grab her leg and
pull her with me.

However, I didn’t expect her to land right on top of me.

Blinking a couple of times, my breath hitches in my throat as I
stare right into her beautiful blue eyes that sparkle with rage and excitement.
She tenses up, and her chest stops moving, probably holding a breath. I’m still
breathing, but I’m concentrating on not getting a boner.

Fuck. Having her on top of me makes me want to smash my lips against
hers and take her to my room so I can fuck her all day long. She’s never been
this close, and she’s even prettier than I remember. With her plump pink lips
and round eyes, her perky ass, and those petite tits hiding behind a thin piece
of cloth, she’s making it so hard on me. Not to mention
getting
me hard.

I don’t know how long we’ve been lying here, but I don’t care. It’s
nice to feel her close to me. To have someone to mess around with and tease, to
laugh with and cry with. To make me feel like everything could be okay.

Only now do I notice the leaf planted on top of her head. How
ironic.

Without realizing it, my hand has already found its way to her hair,
and I take out the leaf and let it fly away. She looks so beautiful when she’s
all abashed and fazed. My lips instinctively part, because all I’m thinking
about is kissing her. She’s really
my
Leafy.

Fuck, I’m really falling for her.

Her eyebrows draw together, her expression changing from
bewilderment to embarrassment and then frustration. She clenches her jaw and
scrambles off me, her face turning cherry red. Sweet. Sexy. Fuck, it’s hot.

But this is so fucking wrong on so many levels. I’m trying to help
her, but not like that. If she was with me, she’d be in danger all the time.
Not to mention the fact that I have an awful history, no money, and no future.
I’m not right for her. This isn’t good.

My smile fades away, just like my hope. I get up and wipe the mud
from my pants.

“Jesus, what are you guys doing?”

I look up and see it’s her friend, the girl she often sits with in
class.

“Hi!” Leafy says, a little too loud. “Uh … we were just training.”

“Training? For what? The dirty Olympics? You guys look nasty. And
sweaty too.” She waves her hand close to her nose.

Well, isn’t she nice. I’ll take it as a compliment. Sweating means
we’ve gotten busy, so that’s good. Besides, she probably just can’t handle my
exotic manly odors. I like my aftershave strong and spicy. Just like my girls.

I cough. I’m really not in the mood to be scrutinized by someone I
don’t even know. “I’m teaching her self-defense, and she helps me with my
homework.”

“Oh, really?” the girl says, looking at me like I’m a pervert.

“Yes,” Leafy adds. Glad she’s backing me up, although I hate to come
in between her and her friend. I’m not in for busting friendships. “Uh … Look,
I’ll see you around, okay?” I say, and I grab my jacket and put it on again.

She says, “Yeah, see ya,” but I’ve already walked away. We’ll
continue this some other time, maybe when I’m less horny and can focus more on
us staying friends. It’d be for the best, I guess. But it’s hard to keep my
distance when I’m so attracted to her. Something tells me we’re heading toward
something unavoidable, and neither of us wants to call it quits.

Chapter
17

Too Close to Home

The next day, evening …

I’m standing by the fence, waiting for my client to appear. Wes told
me some girl named Jennifer would come pick up some cocaine, and I wrote it
down in my notebook to make sure I wouldn’t forget. It’s cold and dark outside,
and I’m shivering in my jacket. It almost feels like the bag of cocaine is
burning its way through my pants. I just want to get this over with as fast as
possible.

When I see a thin woman walking down the street with a kid holding
onto her long fingers, I lean away from the fence, trying not to stand out. I
don’t want to alarm anyone around here, so I pretend I’m checking my phone
while she comes closer.

“Hello,” she suddenly says.

I turn my head and notice she’s looking straight at me. She has
hollow cheekbones, pimples and bruises all over her face, and her eyes are red.
The kid beneath her, who’s shivering heavily, barely manages to hold onto her
bony figure. She just stands there, staring at me, while fiddling in her
pocket.

Oh God.

“Are you Jennifer?” I say.

To my horror she nods.

Oh, fuck no.

This is Jennifer? This is the girl I’m supposed to give the cocaine
to? A mother?

In shock I stare at her. Images of my mother flash through my mind,
and I immediately will them away again.

I sigh loudly, and run both my hands through my hair. Shit. This is
way too close to home. What am I supposed to do now? I wasn’t expecting a lady
with a fucking kid!

“You have the goods?” she asks, her voice raspy.

“I’m not selling,” I say, and I turn around.

She tugs my jacket, although I barely feel it. Her muscles seem
non-existent. She must be emaciated.

“Please.”

I avert my eyes, unable to look her in the eye. That single word she
just said can bring a man to his knees.

“I …” I stammer. How can I do this? How can I fucking go through
with this? That poor kid …

“I need it,” she says. She holds out a wad of cash, her fingers
trembling.

“No, I can’t do it,” I say. I rummage in my pockets, feeling the bag
of cocaine weigh down on me.

“Give me the drugs!” she shrieks. I back away, but she keeps coming
closer. “I
need
them!”

“Think about your kid! How could you drag him into this?” I say,
feeling guilty though I haven’t even done anything.

“But you are Hunter, right?” The look in her eyes is so desperate,
it’s hard to watch.

“Yes, I am, but—”

“Then give me the fucking drugs!” she hisses. “Wes told me you’d
give them to me. A deal is a deal.” She looks fucking psychotic; it’s making me
think she could murder someone over these drugs.

When I look down at the kid, all I see is fear and innocence, and it
pains me to do this, but I know I must. Wes threatened me, and this is his way
to make sure I’m not straying from the path. He knew about that kid, and he
knew about my past. FUCK!