Dirty Sexy Alphas (Twenty Book Box Set) - Hannah Ford Page 0,184

the night Colt had saved me from myself.

“Get the fuck out,” someone was saying loudly, their tone commanding.

I stopped in my tracks.

Colt.

“Hey, hey, hey,” a girl’s voice shouted next, and I followed the sounds, rushing down the hallway toward the voices.

When I got to the private room, Colt was standing just inside the doorway.

Jessa was there too, down on her knees, her hair in a tangle around her shoulders. A middle-aged man was sitting on the couch, his pants down around his ankles, his paunchy stomach sticking out from underneath a too-tight t-shirt.

“Fuck, dude,” the man was saying to Colt. “Relax.”

The room smelled of alcohol and cologne, so strong and pungent I almost wretched.

“Colt,” Jessa said as she stood up, wobbling a little in the spiked heels she was wearing. “It’s fine, baby, relax.” She reached out and put her hands on Colt’s shoulders, like she was trying to calm him down.

But Colt didn’t calm down.

Instead, he pushed past her to the man on the couch, who’d buttoned his pants and was now standing up.

“Get out,” Colt growled.

The man grinned. “Fuck, no,” he said. “I paid for my shit, and now I expect it to be delivered.” He squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest, making it clear he was expecting to get what he paid for.

“Colt,” Jessa said, grabbing at his arm. “Colt, relax. Dennis is cool.”

“I don’t give a fuck,” Colt said, pulling his arm from her grasp. He walked over to Dennis, who immediately took a swing at Colt, grazing his cheek with his closed fist as Colt ducked his punch. I watched in terror as Colt grabbed Dennis and pushed him back up against the wall, twisting the man’s arm until he cried out in pain.

“If you ever come back here,” Colt growled. “I will end you. Do you understand?”

Dennis nodded, all traces of bravado gone now, his eyes filled with fear.

Colt let him go, and Denis scurried out the door. Colt’s eyes fell on me, and he took in a sharp breath of surprise as he met my gaze, his eyes a question. You okay?

I nodded.

He turned to Jessa, who was busy putting her clothes back on. “That really wasn’t necessary, Colt,” she said, annoyed. “I can handle myself.” She reached down and picked up a tiny little bag of white powder that was sitting on the leather couch where Dennis had just been sitting.

“You’re out,” Colt said, taking the baggie from her hand.

“What?”

“You’re fired.”

“You can’t fire me,” she said.

“I said no drugs.”

“Oh, come on, Colt,” she said, rolling her eyes. “No drugs? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

“I’m not kidding.” He set his jaw and shook his head. “I can get you into a rehab, Jessa, but you can’t work here anymore.”

She glared at him, then held her hand out. “Give me that.”

But he ignored her, instead walking into the tiny bathroom that was off the room. A second later, I heard the sound of the toilet flushing.

“You’re fucking insane!” Jessa raged and she was picking up her purse from the floor and then she was stumbling out the door, brushing by me in a haze of perfume. “You’re an idiot if you think he’s going to change,” she spat at me as she went, and I could smell beer on her breath. “You think he’s going to change for you, but he’s not. This is an act, and it won’t last.”

She was gone then, continuing down the hall, and I let out the breath I was holding, and suddenly, my knees felt weak. I leaned against the door frame and then Colt was there, his arms around me, holding me up as I collapsed against him.

“You okay, Princess?” he whispered in my ear.

“I’m scared.”

He pulled back and looked at me. “Why?”

“They’re after you, Colt, they…”

“Hey, I’m taking care of it,” he said. “Remember?” He kissed me soft and slow, his tongue dancing with mine, the warmth of his touch sliding through my body like a sweet hot chocolate on a winter’s day.

“Trust me,” he said again.

And I had no choice.

I was in this now.

I had no choice but to believe him.

The rest of the day passed without incident, the other girls having been put on notice after word got out about what had happened with Jessa. The bouncers had been put on notice, too, and although a few of them quit out of loyalty to Colt’s uncle, the night had been relatively uneventful.

When we got back to Colt’s house, he made