The Damaged (The Insiders Trilogy #2) - Tijan by Tijan

Some of the red had left her face. More of it left again at that flicker. Without saying a word, she followed behind Hoda. The guards moved with them, following behind until the crowd swallowed them.

Then it was just Liam, who was standing close to Melissa, and Dax and Shyam.

Suddenly, no one cared that they were there.

Matt still eyed Melissa, but he yawned and turned to me. He flashed me a grin. “I’m hanging out with you more.”

I muttered, “Great.”

He motioned to the dance floor. “Gotta go do something. Be back when it’s done.”

Guy barked out a laugh, hitting Matt’s shoulder as he passed by, heading for the stairs.

Tony, Chester, and Guy all slid back into the booth.

Guy snagged Torie’s hand, pulling her with him.

Chester motioned for Tamara to join their side of the booth.

Dax and Shyam moved in closer, both eyeing Kash warily. Liam was watching, too.

Kash didn’t care. He moved back into me, pulling me to his chest. Ignoring everyone, he dropped his head to mine and said in my ear, “You want to hang with your friends a bit?”

I didn’t. I wanted him, and I pressed against him to let him know.

He chuckled. “Right.”

Taking my hand, he said to Torie, “I’m taking her.”

Torie nodded and turned back to Guy. That was the end of it.

Kash stepped aside. It was my turn now, and I moved toward Melissa, still holding Kash’s hand.

I asked her, “You okay?”

She nodded, her eyes lowered. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I really meant to hit a four and not a nine. I was just excited to be here, you know?”

“It’s fine. It worked out anyways.” I looked to Liam. “Can you get her home?”

His nod was short, and he was still eyeing the guys behind us in the booth. “I got her.”

Melissa gave him a small grin before saying to me, “I really am sorry.”

“It’s all fine.”

As dramatic as the night in Naveah had started, it was ending on an almost disappointing note. No big scene happened. Melissa, Liam, Dax, and Shyam left shortly after. Melissa went to say ’bye to the girls. As soon as they left, Kash didn’t waste time.

He slung an arm around my shoulders, and we left through that back door. He didn’t wait like Torie had. It opened immediately for him and we were through. He took me home and did as he had promised.

It was a good Friday night.





TWENTY-FIVE



Kash


I was leaving Phoenix Tech for lunch with Victoria when I heard my name being called.

I saw her on the sidewalk, and she was alone.

“Chrissy.”

Skimming, I also saw there were no guards with her. That wasn’t good.

“Where are your guards?”

She was giving me a stone face, then snorted at my question. “Where are yours?”

She was right. Some days I didn’t travel with them, and most days I preferred driving myself, but I had security measures in place. She did not.

“You should have guards with you.”

She jerked up a shoulder. “I wasn’t a target before. Don’t know why I would be now.”

“Who Peter spends time with in bed is always considered a target.”

She flinched. It was brief and barely there, but it was there. Her eyelids fluttered a second before she got herself under control.

Bailey’s mom was tough and hard-core and sometimes a pain in the ass. But she was Bailey’s mom. I knew only part of her story, why she was who she was, why she’d instilled in Bailey the idea that Hayes women don’t cry, but I knew there were still secrets to be unraveled. Just wasn’t my place.

Yet.

“Tell me your reason for finding me.”

Her head moved back slightly. “Right.” The lines around her mouth tightened. “You’re Mr. Badass now. Don’t got time for civilities with the mom of the girl you’re bedding.”

I almost blinked. “I would, if you gave an indication you gave a fuck about that. And Bailey’s a woman, not a girl. She’s not a girl I’m ‘bedding.’”

“Right. Business.” She put her hands in her pockets, faced her shoulders more square against me, and raised her chin. “My girl’s not been taking my calls.”

I hadn’t known that. “You want me to talk to her? See the reason?”

She studied me. “You’d tell me if you found out the reason?”

“Only if she was okay with that.”

Her mouth flattened. “Then why’d I stand out here an hour to wait for you?”

I shrugged. “Felt like wasting an hour of your life.”

She went still, her eyes glued to me, and then she burst out laughing. “Shit. You are the enforcer for the family, aren’t you? Peter’s talked about you, but I didn’t see it till just now. You’re the husband and Peter’s the wife. You’re taking care of business so he can dink around and do what he likes.”

I scowled. “If that’s your analogy for a marriage, I can see why you never married.” I didn’t let her feel the burn from that. I pushed forward. “Peter was given room to do what he does best. He’s an inventor in the cyber world. His family has the money it has because of him, and he continues to grow Phoenix Tech every year.”