Page 75 of The Denver Alpha
“Why don’t you tell him yourself, then?” I fire back, leveling him with an ice-cold glare. “Or do you make a habit of trying to intimidate women into doing your dirty work for you?”
His jaw ticks, any pretense of niceties dropping from his expression as it morphs to anger. Gavin reaches out toward me, but his fingers only graze my arm as I jump back.
“Listen here, you little bitch,” he sneers, lunging for me again. This time, I’m not quick enough to get away- the loose gravel under my feet causes me to stumble, and Gavin gets ahold of my bicep, digging his fingertips into my flesh and yanking me toward him. He gets right in my face, his breath stinking as he delivers his threat. “Tell Bauer that if he wants this little issue with his liquor license to go away, he needs to play ball. Too many business owners in this town look to him to follow his lead, so I need him to get on board and sign the contracts,or else.”
“Like I said,” I hiss through gritted teeth, stomping on his foot hard and twisting my arm free of his grasp. I shove backwards to put distance between us and bring up my hands, curling them into fists. “Tell him yourself. I’m not your damn messenger.”
Gavin barks out a laugh as he takes in my stance. “What’s this, you think you’re gonna fight me?” he asks mockingly. “I’ve got a hundred pounds on you, little girl. If I wanted to shove your ass into that car by force, I’d do it. Don’t make me.”
My lips curl into a grin as I bend my knees slightly, readying myself for his advance. “Try it. Idareyou.”
His condescending smile drops as he lunges for me with a grunt. He’s faster than I anticipated, I’ll give him that- but his strength is no match for mine. I let him get ahold of me, fooling him into thinking he has the upper hand. I squirm and flail and he wraps his arms around me tightly, hauling my back into his chest and dragging me toward his car.
“You’ve fucked up now, little girl,” Gavin growls as he yanks me along. “I was just gonna drop you off to deliver my message, but now I think I’ll have a little fun with you first. Show you what it’s like to be with a real man and show Bauer what happens when he refuses to work with me.”
Bile crawls up my throat at his threat and gravel rolls beneath my feet as I dig them in, fighting against Gavin with every step. I’m only putting in half effort, though. I could get away if I wanted to, but instead, I want to give him a false sense of power. Tire him out before I turn the tables to make it that much easier when I do.
I know it’s working when Gavin starts huffing and puffing, finally reaching the side of the sedan and slamming my body up against it. He grabs my shoulder roughly to spin me around, and when I meet his eyes, I see the look of triumph in them as he basks in his false victory.
He thinks he’s won.
I let the fight go out of me, my lip quivering. And as expected, he loosens his grip in response. His arrogance is his downfall, because that’s when I wrench my arms free, gripping onto him and throwing my body weight forward. It’s enough to knock him off balance so that I can spin us, reversing our positions and slamming him up against the side of the car instead. I mash my heel down on top of his foot and bring my other knee up to jab between his legs. Gavin cries out, his shoulders hunching forward, but I shove him back with my forearm against his throat, narrowing my eyes menacingly as I get right in his face.
“Now you listen tome, you fucking creep,” I grit out, holding firm against his attempts to fight me off.
“What… the… fuck?” he sputters as he continues to struggle to no avail, confusion flittering across his features when he realizes he can’t overpower me.
“You picked the wrong girl to mess with,” I say, Gavin’s eyes bulging as I shove my forearm tighter against his windpipe. “One that knows self-defense and is sick and tired of being pushed around by men who underestimate her.”
I mash my heel down over his foot again, eliciting a grunt from deep in his throat.
“You’re going to stop messing with Cole’s club and you’re gonna leave us alone. Or I’ll personally go to every person you’re trying to do business with in this city and tell them what a rapey piece of shit you are. You think you’re having trouble closing deals now? Just youwait.”
I press my arm even tighter against his throat, cutting off his air supply completely. “Do we understand one another?”
He claws at my forearm frantically, nodding his head.
“Good.” I keep my eyes locked on his, letting him struggle for another few seconds before releasing my hold and taking a step back.
Gavin doubles over, pressing his palms to his knees and wheezing as he drags oxygen back into his lungs. “B… bitch!”
I don’t stick around to wait for him to regain his strength and try to threaten me again. Instead, I calmly stride to the edge of the gravel, kick off my heels, and bend to pick them up. Then I jog down the embankment beside the road, allowing the darkness to envelop me as I head for the trees, grinning the whole way.
30
The last time I allowed my emotions to rule me, I got a girl pregnant. Margot Kinney was a beautiful distraction at a time when our pack was in turmoil, all coy smiles and shy glances across the bar. With her natural blonde hair and sweet girl nextdoor vibe, She was my type to a T, and once I approached her and introduced myself, it didn’t take long for us to wind up in the back office of the club together. I was looking for an escape that night and I found it between her thighs.
What I thought was a single night of passion turned into a life-altering event. Margot showed up at the club two months later to tell me she was pregnant. After a lot of back and forth with my advisors, I decided to do the unthinkable; to let a human in on our secret. It was the only way to secure a future for my son- a risk I had to take and a revelation that she didn’t take well. When Margot asked for time to process everything, I granted it to her, knowing she’d be back. She didn’t come from money or privilege. The life I offered her was one she could only dream of.
Weeks passed, and I knew she’d finally come around when she asked to meet. I made dinner reservations at one of the swankiest restaurants in town, booking a private dining room so we could discuss our future. The future of our child. But Margot didn’t show. I tried to call, tried to send text messages, but they all went unanswered. Uneasiness started to set in, and not because I’d been stood up; it was because deep down, I knew something wasn’t right. Trusting that instinct, I got in my car and drove across the city toward her apartment complex, feeling panicked and half-crazed, because I knew something was off.I knew it.
Before I even made it there, I got the call that the place was burning. My future had gone up in flames, and by the next morning, only ashes remained.
I can’t shake the way that tonight feels eerily similar. As soon as I heard Juliet was arrested, I knew in my gut that there was something off about the whole thing.
Why her? Why were there officers that just happened to be waiting at the exit I sent her to? Why wasn’t she brought into the station and booked?
The whole thing stinks of a setup. It’s thewhythat I can’t figure out.