Page 71 of Wrecked By a Devil

“I think you might be right,” I hate to admit it, but I can see exactly where I might have messed it up. It wasn’t a nice experience for her to have that guy touch her, and then I acted like a dick when she tried to talk to me.

“Wow, is the world ending? Are the pigs flying?” Malachi grabs my glass of whiskey from the table without asking for permission. “My big bro admitting I’m right without arguing with me first. This is even more rare than a total solar eclipse.”

“Shut up,” I roll my eyes, getting back up on my feet. “And make sure not to leave the glass on the desk when you finish the drink.”

With that, I leave my office and head straight for the dressing room, hoping Riley hasn’t left yet. I knock on the door and wait before entering, to make sure I don’t walk in on the girls while they’re changing.

“Come on in,” one of the girls responds from the other side of the door. When I open the door and she sees me, her face goes blank. She rushes out without giving me a chance to say anything.

“What do you want?” Riley proceeds to take her makeup off without even looking at me. The other girls aren’t here so I pull one of the empty chairs and sit down next to her.

“We should talk, Riley,” I begin but she remains quiet. “I was wrong earlier for not letting you speak when you tried to.”

“Oh, so you were wrong just for not letting me speak?” She’s not looking at me, she looks furious.

“Yes,” I admit. “And before you say anything, I know you can take care of yourself, but this is not about that.”

“Then what is it about?” She crosses her arms, leaning back in the chair. “Because you embarrassed me in front of everyone and made it seem like I got some special treatment.”

“No one thinks that,” I shake my head.

“You sure? Because it felt like they do,” She’s getting more upset by the minute.

“Riley, I’ve kicked guys out of Eden for crossing the line many times before.”

“Oh, that’s even better!” She throws her hands in the air, shooting me a furious look. “I’m nothing special. I’m just another girl for you. It’s good to know what my place is.”

I reach out, taking her hand in mine. “Riley, you know you’re so much more than just a girl who works for me. What’s this about?”

She looks down at our joined hands before pulling hers away. “Then stop treating me like I’m some fragile porcelain doll that’s going to break the moment the wind blows a little stronger.”

“That’s not what I’m doing.”

“Isn’t it?” She shakes her head. “Because I’m the one who chose this job, Zeke. No one forced me into it.”

“I know,” I respond.

“I can take care of myself,” she continues. “And I can handle drunk assholes.”

“Tonight says otherwise,” I’m slowly starting to lose my patience.

“Tonight I didn’t want to make a scene,” Riley explains.

My jaw tightens at the memory of his hands on her. Even now, thinking about it makes something dark twist inside of me. If Malachi hadn’t dragged me away, that man would have left the Eden in a body bag.

I take a slow breath before speaking again. “And that’s why I wanted to ask you if you would consider retiring as a stripper.”

“What?” She raises an eyebrow, genuinely confused.

“If Malachi hadn’t pulled me off that guy tonight, I don’t know what I would have done,” I continue. “And if this happens again, I will not stop, Riley. I will kill the next guy that touches you.”

The look in her eyes softens and she leans forward, her free hand gently caressing mine. “No one ever cared about me like this…”

“I care.”

“It’s so fucking unbelievable that we’re here,” she chuckles. “Like this. It’s surreal.”

“So, what do you say?”