Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 39689 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 198(@200wpm)___ 159(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 39689 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 198(@200wpm)___ 159(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
But did I have any common sense to just back down? Nope.
I reached up and slapped him. His grip slackened on me enough for me to rip my arm from his grip and run out of the door.
Drake
“She’s a feisty one, Drake,” Scarlett commented from her seat next to Tyrone.
I shook my head. “Fucking let her stupid ass get killed for all the fuck I care,” I snapped. She had fucking hit me with a low blow with the Lacie bit. I had wanted to throttle her, throw her against a wall—something. I had barely restrained myself from hurting her.
Lacie was still a fresh wound, and I didn’t need an inconsiderate bitch like Hayley rubbing salt into the wound. I had failed to protect her, but I loved her too much to ever harm her. The thought of ever harming Lacie made my skin crawl.
Tyrone looked up at me, understanding in his eyes. “Drake, if you care about that girl, you should go get her,” he told me seriously.
God, how much shit had he gone through with Scarlett before he finally came around to accepting her for the woman she was? It had taken them months to accept each other. She was too fiery for him, and he was too controlling for her. But somehow, they found common ground.
I shook my head at him. Hayley could help herself since she wanted to be so damn pissy. “She’s an inconsiderate bitch,” I snapped.
Scarlett shook her head. “I don’t think so,” she told me honestly. I arched an eyebrow at her. “I think that girl—Hayley—is internally going through some shit, and she’s defensive about herself and her freedom.”
Tyrone placed a gentle kiss on her temple. I knew Scarlett had a rough past, and she was the woman she was today because of it.
I looked towards the door where Hayley had run out. Was she hiding something?
“Go after her,” Kalin—my brother—said after a few moments of silence. “I know she reminds you a lot of Lacie—you know, her being Lacie’s best friend and all—but if Tyrone can obviously hold his reputation together while trying to hold Scarlett down, then I think you can with Hayley.”
I sighed. “Hayley is a bit more complicated than Scarlett is,” I admitted.
Tyrone snorted. “Look, Scarlett came with a shit ton of baggage—no offense, babe,” he told her as he turned to look at her. She only rolled her eyes at him. He looked back at me. “I went through hell and back to protect this woman, and just when I thought I finally had her where I wanted her, she fucking took off again. She wore on my nerves every chance she got—hell, she still does, but it’s worth it. I learned my lesson to not push away everyone that makes me feel some shit. Don’t make a mistake with Hayley. You may just be her only hope.”
Before I could answer, my doorbell rang. Tyrone instantly stood up, grabbing the gun out of his hoodie. Rod and Shaun flanked him, Jordan and Jayden taking their nephew to one of my bedrooms in the back of the house.
I walked towards the door, my gun held close to my thigh as Kalin walked behind me. I took a cautious peek out of the curtains only to see a car driving away. With a sigh, I opened the door.
“Fuck,” I snarled. I quickly shoved my gun back into the waistband of my jeans as I knelt to pick Hayley up in my arms. She was unconscious, and there was a piece of paper sticking from her jacket pocket.
I stormed back into the house with her cradled against my chest, my jaw angrily clenched. I gently laid her unconscious, limp body on one of the couches and snatched the small piece of paper out of her pocket.
Enjoy curing this addiction. Here’s her first free bag.
I reached into her pocket and pulled out a dime-sized bag of coke. I clenched my fist, fury racing through my veins. “Fucking hell!” I roared. I angrily flipped my coffee table over, easily snapping the legs off as I did so.
“Woah, man,” Kalin said as he gripped my shoulder to keep me from destroying anything else. “Get a grip,” he ordered. “What’s wrong?”
I looked down at Hayley’s passed-out form as I seethed with rage. “I’ll know for sure when she wakes up, but I’m pretty sure Hayley may have just been forced to snort coke up her nose,” I snarled.
4
I flipped through the channels on the television as I waited as patiently as I could for Hayley to wake up. Kalin was reclining in the armchair on the other side of the room, waiting just like I was.
Finally, I heard her groan.
I set the remote down on the couch beside me as I turned to look at her. She slowly blinked her eyes open, sitting up instantly afterwards. “How in the hell did I end up back here?” she snapped at me.