Chapter 17

I broke free for a brief second before jerking out of his grasp. I was already on my feet, heading straight for them. White-hot fury scorched my insides as I shoved a few people aside; the rest scattered.

"—Don't play hard to get," I caught the last part, accompanied by a scoff. Fucker. So full of himself!

The girl Freya had arrived with—probably a friend—took a step forward and glared at him. "Get the fuck away before I kick you in the teeth!"

"Did I ask you?" He sneered at her before turning back to Freya. He'd taken only a step toward her when I reached him and grabbed his shirt.

He twisted his head, trying to see who'd stopped him from groping a girl on the dance floor. The image of this asshole touching Freya made me furious. I landed a punch to his face. Blood trickled down his fingers as he covered his broken nose.

"Which part of 'no' don't you understand?" From the murmurs, I knew we were attracting attention.

"It's none of your business, dude," he snarled.

He had a death wish.

I took a menacing step toward him and wrapped my hand around his throat. The blood roared in my ears, drowning out everything else. I tightened my grip, wanting nothing more than to choke him to death.

"You're going to walk out of here right now." My voice was too calm, a contrast to the burning anger inside. Even though I warned him to leave, I didn't want to release my grip. It would have been a split-second decision; I didn't want him to see another day.

I let go with a shove. His face was red as he gasped for air. It took him only a few seconds to get to his feet and run out of the club. As I watched him go, something akin to regret hit me. I should have killed him.

My head snapped back to Freya. She seemed somewhat shocked by the altercation.

"Are you okay?" I had her attention. She looked up at me with those serene green eyes, and I felt some of my anger dissipate. Her eyes were expressive; she was clearly overwhelmed. Before she answered, her eyes shifted to something behind me, and when they returned to me, hostility burned in them.

"I am capable of protecting myself. You didn't have to play the white knight," Freya snapped.

I concealed all emotion, maintaining a neutral expression as I stared at her. Judging by the way her friend elbowed her, I wasn't the only one who found her reaction odd.

She held my gaze, refusing to back down, but the reason for the anger in her eyes remained unknown. The crowd, previously gathered to watch the spectacle, was dispersing. Finally, an awkward cough from Cillian broke our eye contact.

"Freya, right? I'm Erica," Erica chirped, oblivious to the tension or unconcerned by it. I saw Freya force a smile and nod. She didn't seem interested in meeting her, but that hardly dampened Erica's mood. She smiled broadly, as if promised a trip to an amusement park.

"I need to go home," Freya said to the brunette. The latter assessed her face before shrugging.

"I'll drive you home." My words were met with immediate rejection.

She didn't even turn around as she refused, "No, thank you."

There was no way I was letting her leave in a cab, especially when she looked so irresistible. I forced myself not to think about how she'd gotten there; I didn't want my blood pressure to spike.

"I didn't ask."

My voice probably sounded calm, but the lethal undertone was unmistakable. A note of finality. Freya didn't miss it. Her head whipped toward me instantly, her lips thinned in annoyance. She glared at me.

"Well, you should make a habit of it because I don't take orders from you."

I mentally groaned. Why did she have to be so stubborn! While I did enjoy her spirit, ensuring her safety was my priority.

Chapter 17 (Continued)

"I'm dropping you home."

She opened her mouth, likely to retort, when her friend interrupted.

"We'd love that. Thank you."

A right turn. I used the opportunity to steal a glance at Freya. A few long strands of blonde hair brushed her cheeks. She'd insisted the windows be rolled down. Fresh air, she'd said, but the air was freezing.

But she seemed unconcerned. She'd stared out the window the entire ride, except for the few seconds when we dropped Reyna, who had also been very quiet. I appreciated peaceful silence, but Reyna's quietness was for a different reason.

She'd been observing us—me, specifically—paying attention to every nonverbal exchange between me and Freya, which hadn't been many, but she noted it all. It could have been out of concern, and I was glad Freya had someone looking out for her, besides me.

For the fifth time during the ride, I looked at her. She stared out the window intensely, as if imagining herself in a sad music video.

"You'll catch a cold," I said, breaking the silence. I never thought I'd develop an aversion to peaceful silence, but there I was.

Her soft voice came a moment later. "Better than catching feelings, I guess."

"What?" I gritted out. Catching feelings? For whom? Anyone but me was unacceptable. Already her so-called boyfriend was in the picture, and I needed to get rid of him.

"Nothing."

I suppressed my urge to press her for answers. Another day. I pulled over a few feet from her house, as she'd requested last time. A familiar surge of irritation grated on my nerves.

"Did you talk to your boyfriend?" I asked, gripping the steering wheel tightly. Out of my peripheral vision, I saw Freya slowly turn toward me. She searched my face for my thoughts.

"Not yet." I turned to face her, and our gazes locked. Her lips faltered slightly before she rushed to explain. "I will. First thing tomorrow morning."

"I pick Gia up from school tomorrow. I'll let her know." She'd been delaying it far too long for my liking. If it were up to me, I would have buried him six feet under on day one. That would have saved her a lot of trouble, but she probably wouldn't have appreciated it.

"Okay." Her answer came after a long pause. She unbuckled her seatbelt. "Good night, Mr. Knight." She was trying to keep the relationship formal, to keep me at a distance. Well, I refused to accept that.

"Good night, Freya."