Chapter 24

24

AMITY

T he welcome party started a couple of hours ago, and the guest of honor just arrived. I stand back as the crowd rushes forward, everyone wanting to meet the man who's about to become their president.

When G admitted to me after the barbecue that Havoc wasn't just transferring in but getting released from prison, I had my concerns, more so about bringing Nevaeh here than anything else. When he went on to tell me the rest, I couldn't help but feel bad for the guy. Imagine doing something so selfless for your family for them to turn around and shit all over you.

I sip my water, wanting to keep a clear head for when I meet him, while Nevaeh chats away with a drink in her hand.

"And so they said they'd pay for my flights out to London and my accommodation if I agreed to be a guest speaker on their panel. All I have to do is go on live TV in my bra and thong."

I nod along until her words sink in. "Wait, what?"

"I was wondering if you were listening to me." She throws a coaster at me, and it bounces off my chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm just distracted. What were you saying?"

"I saaaid… the people organizing the book signing I told you about have agreed to pay for my flights to London and my accommodation since it's last minute, as long as I agree to be a guest speaker. They've had a few people drop out, and when they asked in their Facebook group who they'd like to fill in, they picked me. How cool is that?" she says, taking a sip of her drink, her eyes sparkling.

"That's awesome, Pippin. You're going, right?"

"I promised I'd be your assistant." She swirls her drink, glancing down.

I give her a look. "It's London. You have to do this. You'll regret it if you don't."

"I know, but I'm so darn nervous. I wouldn't even have a passport if it wasn't for you forcing me to get one. I didn't think I'd ever actually use it."

"You'll be fine, but what about people knowing what you look like? You have a pen name for a reason, right?"

"It's not my readers I'm worried about. I don't mind them knowing what I look like or even having pictures taken with me." She takes another drink. "The pen name's to keep Dad and his damn congregation off my back. I'm not worried about them being at the convention and discovering my secret, ?cause then they'd have to admit to being at Smut Fest." She giggles at the thought, her words slightly slurred.

"Good point. These organizers are legit, right? I don't want you getting sold into a slavery ring or something. If I have to jump on a plane and save you, I'll be pissed."

"But you'd save me, right?" She bats her lashes at me.

I would save her in a heartbeat. She's my ride-or-die. I wouldn't give up on her any more than she'd give up on me.

"I'll always save you. You know that." I nudge her, making her grin.

"You know I'm soooooooo lucky having a superhero as a bestie." She gestures dramatically, almost spilling her drink.

I laugh, taking her drink from her hand and sniffing it. "How many of these have you had to drink?"

"Only a few. The very nice prospect keeps filling up my glass when it's empty. The service here really is impeccable. Five stars."

I turn and scowl at Hoops behind the bar. "No more alcohol for her. She doesn't normally drink."

Hoops smirks, his eyes moving to Nevaeh as he licks his lips. Tonight, she's wearing a short pleated black skirt with knee-high black socks and a pink cashmere twin set with a matching pink ribbon in her hair. I'm pretty sure Toot almost died when he saw her.

"You're not that stupid, Hoops," I warn him.

He glares at me, but his eyes flick to something behind me, and his expression changes.

"What's going on here?" G asks, draping his arm over my shoulder.

"Nothing. I'm just asking Hoops to cut off Nevaeh. She's had enough."

"I'll say." He chuckles, and I turn to see what he's laughing at. Nevaeh's fast asleep with her head on the bar. "She really is a lightweight."

"You have no idea." I sigh, wondering how I'm going to get her out of here.

As if reading my mind, G leans down so his mouth is next to my ear. "I'll carry her up to one of the spare rooms."

I bite my lip and turn to look at him. I don't want to offend anyone, but Nevaeh has to be my top priority. "Will she be safe?" I ask him quietly.

He presses his forehead against mine. "No one will bother her. I promise. Come on, I'll show you."

I hesitate for a moment before nodding. I grab Nevaeh's bag from the bar and watch as G scoops her into his arms. She rolls into him, murmuring something about buttered bagels, making me grin.

It's funny how seeing my best friend in G's arms doesn't make me jealous in the slightest. But when Monica's near him, I want to claw her eyes out. I guess it's because I trust Nevaeh completely. There's no way she'd ever betray me, and I'm grateful every day to have a friend like her.

We head out of the main area and up the stairs at the far side of the building. I look up at G to make sure he's okay, but the man hasn't even broken a sweat. I'm fit—I have to be—but if I'd tried to carry Nevaeh, I'd be a hot, sweaty mess.

It's quiet on this side of the building, which is weird considering there's a party going on downstairs.

"Get the last door on the left," G tells me.

I move in front of him and open the door, revealing a clean and tidy room that smells faintly like furniture polish and laundry detergent.

"Since this is just a club party, no one will have access to this room except Blade." He lays her down on the bed, then heads into the attached bathroom and comes back with a trash can, placing it beside the bed. "I'll grab her some painkillers and a bottle of water for when she wakes up. Do you wanna leave her a note? I can find you some paper and a pen if you need it."

"It's okay. She always carries a notepad and a bunch of pens in her bag. I'll take care of the note. You take care of the rest."

He nods and heads for the door.

"G."

He stops and looks over his shoulder at me.

"I really like you. I like how you look after me. I like how you look after my friend. You're making it really hard for me not to fall in love with you."

Suddenly, he turns and storms toward me, one hand sliding into my hair as the other grips my hip, pulling me to him. "Don't fight it, Amity. Resistance is futile."

I grin. "Did you just quote Star Trek to me?"

He bites his bottom lip. "It's fucking sexy as hell when you get my geeky references."

"I don't want to have sex in front of my drunk friend, but if you keep looking at me like that, I won't be able to resist climbing you like a tree."

"She's asleep. What would it matter?" he murmurs, his lips skimming my jaw.

"It matters."

He sighs and pulls back, full-on pouting, which makes me snort.

"I'll make it up to you."

"Oh yeah?"

I point at his chest. "Geek," then point at mine. "Movie buff."

He tilts his head, wondering where I'm going with this.

"You collect memorabilia, right?" He nods, though I already knew the answer. I've seen the things in his room. "Well, I collect costumes," I admit. "Trinity from The Matrix ." He swallows, and I know he's picturing the head-to-toe black Lycra and latex outfit. "Or maybe you'd prefer Wonder Woman?" I continue, walking my fingers up his chest, knowing he likes his comic books. Then I go in for the kill, lifting up onto tiptoes to bite his earlobe before whispering, "Maybe you could be the Han Solo to my Princess Leia?"

He growls, spinning me around and pinning me against the wall. His mouth is on mine before I can take my next breath, his body pressing into me so I can feel just how hard he is.

"Princess Leia it is," I gasp as he releases my mouth.

"I'm gonna hold you to that," he says, his lips trailing down my throat.

He pulls back, putting some distance between us as he readjusts his cock. "You write the note, I'll get the pills." He blows out a breath. "I swear to fuck, if I don't get away from you right now, I'll bend you over your friend and fuck you raw. I don't care if she does wake up."

Deciding I've pushed my luck enough, I nod, staying exactly where I am until he storms out the door, muttering about me trying to kill him.

I blow out an exaggerated breath and walk over to the door where I left Nevaeh's bag, ignoring how wet my panties are. I rummage around for her notepad and a pen, flipping through the pages until I find a blank one to scribble a note.

Hey Pippin, you had too much to drink, so G carried you up here, and we put you to bed. This is one of the spare rooms, so there's no need to worry. There are some pills, water, and your phone on the table.

I grab her phone from her bag and put it on the bedside table.

Text me when you're awake.

Love you,

Amity

I rip the page out and leave it with her phone, then shove the pad and the pen back in the bag. I move the bag back next to the door so she doesn't trip on it if she needs to stumble to the bathroom. The ribbon from her hair has fallen out, so I pick it up and put it with the note and phone. She mumbles something about dogs wearing socks, making me chuckle.

I look at her for a moment and consider whether or not to take off her clothes. The pleated skirt and twin set she's wearing might not be the most comfortable things to sleep in, but it's better than her waking up half-naked in a strange bed. Instead, I slip off her Mary Janes and put them next to her bag. Just as I set them down, G walks in carrying a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of water. He puts them next to her phone as I pull the blanket from the bottom of the bed up to her waist.

"Alright. I think that's everything. You want to head back downstairs? I want you to meet Havoc."

"Sure," I say, but he must sense my hesitation.

"What's wrong, Amity?"

"I'm not comfortable leaving her here with the door unlocked. Could we get the key from Blade?"

"Not necessary." He opens the door and points to the lock. "You can open it from the inside, but when the door closes, you can't open it from the outside without a key."

"Oh, like a hotel room. That's cool."

"Yeah, it's better than giving out keys whenever we have guests. A lot of the time, they lose them." He takes my hand and leads me back downstairs, where the party's in full swing.

It's crowded now. I think every brother and bunny turned up to welcome Havoc. As we walk toward the center of the room, a voice bellows my name over the music. We both turn as the people around us quiet down, eager to see what's happening.

Crane stomps over to me, a furious look on his face. When I see what he's holding, it takes everything in me not to laugh.

"What a pretty kitty you have there."

"This was you. I know it."

I give him my best innocent look. "I was just giving you what you wanted. Beer, food, and pussy."

He glares at me as the people around us start to laugh, realizing it's a prank. I reach out to take the kitten, but Crane tugs him against his chest. "Mine." He storms off, and I look at G with wide eyes.

"Okay, I'll admit I didn't see that happening."

G cracks up, and I spot Blade and a big guy I assume is Havoc heading our way. When he walked in earlier, I couldn't see what he looked like from where I was standing. Now, the closer he gets, I can see the serious expression on his face, despite the party, but the scowl doesn't take away from the man's good looks. He's not handsome in the classic way. He's far too rough around the edges for that. But with his dark eyes and air of menace, I have zero doubt he'll star in many women's fantasies once they get a look at him.

"Havoc, this is Amity, G's girl. Amity, Havoc."

I hold my hand out for the guy and crane my neck to look up at him. Most of the guys here are tall, with Conan being the biggest. But this guy could give him a run for his money. He has long, dark blond hair that's shaved short at the sides, making me think of a Viking. His tan skin, which I assume is genetic, given the lack of sun he probably got in prison. And though he's built like a linebacker, there's a certain grace to his movements, which I'd never say out loud at the risk of getting shanked.

"Nice to meet you, Havoc."

His huge hand swallows mine in a quick handshake before letting go.

"Didn't know you had a girl, G," Havoc drawls, his voice an orgasmic mix of Samuel L. Jackson and Morgan Freeman. Jesus, I need to keep him away from Nevaeh, or she'll want him to narrate all her audiobooks.

"We're still pretty new," I tell him as he takes me in. There's something about him that reminds me of Hannibal. Okay, not quite psychotic, but there is something cold and detached about him. Knowing his story, or parts of it, I can see why.

"Amity here arranged this thing for you between filming," Blade tells him.

"Filming? You a porn star?"

I look up at G and shake my head. "That's what I get for wearing my hooker heels."

"I like those heels. Means when I bend you over later, you'll be the perfect height to?—"

I cover his mouth with my hands before I start humping him. "Not a porn star, but I'm going to take that as a compliment. I think . Actually, I met a porn star once. Or an ex-porn star. Sweet guy. Huge—" Now it's G's turn to cover my mouth.

I mumble and lick his hand before he pulls it away. "I was gonna say RV. Sheesh, keep your mind out of the gutter."

"Why do you always have the best stories?" Toot joins us, wrapping his arm around my shoulders, making G growl.

"Because I'm awesome, and I know awesome people and do awesome things."

"You are awesome." Toot grins, raising a finger. "Now I need to hear about someone awesome you know and something awesome you did today. I'm living vicariously through you right now."

I tap my chin, aware that Havoc and Blade are still here. Blade has grown on me like a fungus. I see his lips twitch as he watches me, but I pretend not to notice. Havoc, on the other hand, has no idea what to make of me.

"I had dinner with Valen Ward a couple of months ago."

"Valen Ward? Isn't he that billionaire tech guy?" Blade frowns.

Toot snaps his fingers. "His wife was one of the Lullaby Killer's victims. She survived, though, right?"

"Rue. Yeah, she's the only surviving victim. You'd never know if you met her, though. She's super sweet and really nice."

"How the heck do you know them?" G asks.

"The studio just bought the rights to turn her story into a movie. I can't tell you about casting, but I can say that I was called in and asked if I was ok to do the stunts. They want to make it as realistic as possible, which means burying me alive."

"I'm scared to ask what the exciting thing you did today was," Toot says.

"Oh, that's easy. G. Repeatedly. And it was?—"

"Awesome," Toot chuckles, and the others join in. "Yeah, I get the picture."

"Wait. Movies? Stunts?" Havoc asks, lifting an eyebrow.

I grin and pull out my phone, scrolling through my photos until I find the video I got Nevaeh to record. I hand it to Havoc, and he hits play.

"Today, I reshot the rooftop chase."

The guys all crowd around to watch as I jump from roof to roof without missing a beat. Since G was on set when I was filming, he takes advantage of the distraction to reclaim his hold on me.

When the video ends, Havoc hands my phone back to me and looks at G. "Good luck with that. I'd be gray before I hit forty."

G just smiles, and I shrug. "I know I'm not for everyone. And that's okay because G likes me just the way that I am, and that's all that matters to me."