the way? He hasn’t cheated on you yet?” David asked, lifting a bushy eyebrow in question.
I glared slightly. “No, he has not. If you’ll excuse me-”
“Come on Emily,” David spoke up, grabbing a hold of my upper arm firmly. “Surely you don’t trust a man like Adrian Kingston enough to be in a relationship with him. Tell me, is he paying you extra money? Are you sleeping with him?” he asked, pulling me closer towards him.
My frowned deepened as I tried to wrestle my arm out of his strong grip. “Let go of me.”
“Is he threatening you with something?” David continued, ignoring my request.
“Mr. Walter, I don’t know what you’ve heard, but Adrian and I are a happy couple together; there is no blackmailing or extra background money in this relationship. Please let go of my arm,” I said through clenched teeth, glaring at his smug smirk.
“I’m glad to hear that. We should catch up, Emily. Just you and me. How about we go and get some dinner together?” David asked, pulling me into him even more than before.
“David, let go of me,” I ordered again, trying to wriggle out of his grasp.
“Come on, Emily, why are you so against being with me? I don’t bite… too hard.” David chuckled, almost making me gag in response.
I tried to wrench myself out of his grip again when I heard Adrian’s voice. “Shortcake? I don’t even think a number 2 takes that long. Are you - Get your fucking hands off my girlfriend, you prick!” Adrian’s voice boomed through the quiet lobby area of the reception, making the few straddlers that were scattered throughout the area look over to us in shock.
“Ah, Mr. Kingston,” David leered at him, slowly unclasping his hand from my arm. “How nice of you to join us. I was just congratulating Emily on your newly publicized relationship. I’m so happy for you, really. The notorious playboy has finally decided to settle down. And with his assistant, no less!”
Adrian pulled me into his torso protectively as soon as David Walter’s grip was off my arm completely, and I watched as Adrian’s towering figure looked down at David. “Why are you here,” he growled menacingly.
“I told you, I just wanted to offer my congratulations to the beautiful lady.” David smiled, before his gaze travelled back to my face. “I was just in the middle of asking her to dinner when you came out, so I didn’t really get to hear her answer. What do you say, Emily?”
“There’s no way in hell she’s going with you. You weren’t invited to this dinner for a reason, Walter. So get the fuck out.” Adrian made the harsh demand with an intimidating step forward. “And if I ever see you come near her again, you’re going to wish you listened to my warning the first time I told you she’s not interested in talking to you.”
“My, my. If looks could kill… You two are a match made in heaven. We have the beauty, which kills men with her physical beauty, and the beast; who snaps his fingers and suddenly everyone around him is at his beck and call. Don’t worry, Emily, we’ll be seeing more of each other in the near future. You know, when your lion over here doesn’t have his claws out and isn’t around you. Until then.” He smiled, before turning away slowly and whistling a casual tune.
Adrian watched him go with a fierce glare the entire time, before his gaze travelled down to me. “Are you okay?” he asked, inspecting every inch of my face for any sign of injury.
“I’m fine, don’t worry,” I assured him. “Just a little shaken up. That guy is weird.” I moved the arm David was gripping onto earlier and winced.
Adrian noticed the small gesture, and instantly began inspecting my arm. “Son of a bitch,” he swore, clenching his jaw as he observed the red finger marks that were beginning to turn purple on my arm. “That son of a bitch,” he said again, glaring at the main doors of the lobby, where David Walter had exited moments ago.
“It’s nothing, Adrian,” I assured him with a small smile. “Let’s just go back inside and enjoy the rest of the night. We can deal with this later.”
“No,” Adrian growled, taking a step in the direction David took. “I’m going after that fucking prick now.”
“No! Adrian!” I tried, before my mind thought of a distraction I knew would work. “Hold on,” I called out to him.