I’m not getting involved more than I already am. This is your shit to fix, Ari. You left her like this, you deal with it.”
Already halfway across the living room, I grab my computer from my bag, toss it on a table and key into the cameras I have set up in Adeline’s house.
Tabbing back to the night before, I freeze in place when I see her destroying her room like a woman possessed. Tears drip from her chin, and she rips framed photographs from the wall to throw to the ground before picking up whatever happens to be handy to throw in another direction.
I tap a button to unmute the scene, and it’s my name she’s screaming, her pain evident as she curses and yells, fucking livid that I chose to leave her.
What she doesn’t know is I didn’t make the choice for me. I’ve been miserable keeping my distance from her. But all of this seems so out of character for how well she’s been doing. She finally got a job. She’s being responsible. She’s growing up.
What caused this? I try to zoom in on her face to see if she’s sleeping, but I can’t get a good view. Her head tilts down during most of it, and it’s impossible to see if her eyes are focused or not.
“You still there?”
“Yeah,” I answer. “I’ll be down in fifteen minutes. Keep an eye on her. If she does anything too fucked up, step in and stop her. Otherwise, hang back. I’ll call you when I get there.”
“See you in a few.”
Pursing my lips, I watch the tape for another minute or two. I mean, I’ve always known that Adeline is nuts, but this is so out of character for her. Something must have occurred, but it’s impossible to know what triggered this type of behavior.
Snatching my keys, I leave the penthouse and take the elevator down to the underground garage. Traffic isn’t bad, so I make it to the club in less time than I told Lincoln.
Calling him as I approach the front door, I wait for an answer before heading inside. Once I’m in those doors, the music will be too loud to hear him.
“You here?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll come out to the front. Just wait for me.”
He comes out the door a few seconds later, his expression grim.
“She’s had enough drinks to knock out a horse, and she’s up in one of the cages doing a strip tease. You might want to get your ass in there now before she’s fucking the next guy that goes in after her. I’ve already had to dissuade more than a dozen from approaching.”
My eyes meet his. “How’d you accomplish that?”
He grins. “By standing in the only path that leads to the cage and explaining to them how bones sound when they snap, especially delicate fingers that touch things that don’t belong to them.”
For fuck’s sake.
“All right. Take off. I’ve got her.”
He stabs his finger at my chest.
“Fix this shit, Ari. For good this time. I’m getting sick and tired of babysitting a psychopath. I told you from the beginning to leave her alone, and you chased after her anyway. You created this mess. You clean it the fuck up.”
Brushing his hand off, I ram my shoulder against his as I pass him, pay the door guy, growl at him when he tries to stamp my fucking hand, and then storm into the place ready to rip the heads off of every son of a bitch watching Adeline act like the little monster she is.
Weaving my way through the crowd, I stay to the wall as I turn into the side room, my gaze lifting to a cage in the far back where one certain little psychopath is dancing far too seductively for the fast tempo song.
I’m instantly hard just looking at her, but the need I feel competes with the rage pumping through my veins for the slutty little outfit she’s wearing. It would be enough to cover her if she wasn’t running her hands up her body to drag the tiny little skirt high enough to flash her ass cheek, or lifting her shirt up to flash a tit.
A group of guys stand just beneath the cage looking up, their shoulders bumping as they decide which asshole is going to climb up the steps to approach her.
Whichever makes the move is walking straight to his death because that particular cocktease is mine.
All mine.
Every inch of her that she’s happily showing anybody who