Page 37 of Rhett Redeemed
His jaw drops. “That’s not what happened, and you know it.”
“I look similar to her, Rhett. What else do you think drew you to me? And don’t even think about lying to me right now—”
“Okay, yeah, you both have brown hair and eyes. So what? I obviously have a type. But you are nothing like Cara. The reasons why I like you have nothing to do with that,” he replies, cupping my cheek with his palm. “You are beautiful, you are funny. You are stubborn, and real, and have a dry sense of humor that I fucking love. You are a fighter. You are strong. You are sexy as fuck and the two of us have so much chemistry that I literally get hard at the thought of you.”
The music goes silent for a second while they change songs, so what he says next can be heard by everyone around us.
“None of that has anything to do with Cara!”
I can feel all eyes on us.
A man walks over and speaks to Rhett. “Sir, we are having an issue outside that needs your attention.”
“I’ll be there in a second,” Rhett tells the man.
“Why is he coming to you?” I ask him quietly. “Do you work here?”
“The MC owns Toxic. We always have,” he explains, standing up. He looks me in the eye and demands, “Don’t go anywhere, you hear me?”
Great, so the MC used to be my mom’s boss.
Just when I think this situation can’t get any worse.
He saunters off and of course I’m not going to listen to him. So I get up and am about to walk out when I realize that I’m not ready to go home yet and I shouldn’t just leave just because he told me not to. I’m going to stay until the party is over. I just relocate to the bar because I’m petty and moving a few steps is still moving. I’m not listening to anything Rhett has to say. He’s not my man, and I’m not his woman.
“Can I buy you a drink?” a man next to me at the bar asks.
I turn to look at him. He’s about my age and decent looking, but I still decline. I’m not in the position to be accepting drinks from strangers. “No thank you, I’m okay.”
“What’s your name?” he asks, facing me with his elbow resting on the bar.
I’m still thinking about Rhett and don’t really want to have small talk with this stranger, and I’m about to rejoin the girls at our table when Rhett comes back in and scowls when he spots me. He storms over and stands behind me, staring the man down.
“Get the fuck away from her if you want to live,” he says through clenched teeth.
The man backs away with his hands up in front of him, showing his submission. Rhett stares him down until he eventually walks out of Toxic, deciding to go somewhere safer.
I turn around and ask him in a dry tone, “Was that really necessary?” I stare up into his eyes, challenging him. I even go up on my toes to make myself look a little taller. “What if I wanted to talk to him?”
His jaw is tighter than I’ve ever personally seen it, and his blue eyes flash with anger and...regret? “Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”
I can’t help it, I glance down at his crotch at the word hard, but then quickly look away when I realize what I’m doing.
“Con—” he warns.
He reaches out and tries to touch me, but I back away.
“I can’t,” I say, and return to the booth. I’m not going to do this.
Even drunk, I’m not going to cross that line with him.
The first time I didn’t know, but now I do, and if I do this I’m making a choice to betray Cara.
And I can’t do that.
Chapter Fourteen
Rhett