"What the fuck, Leilani!"
Yanking their hair before Noah can react I slam their heads together for the third time and quickly back away. Whilst they're both touching their heads and wincing in pain I rummage my bag and produce a taser gun I keep around just in case, and I'm glad I do. Noah glares at me and lunges in my direction but I raise the gun to his face before he reaches where I am.
"You stay right where you are, Dick, or I'll make you do the Macarena dance in an instant!" I hiss, fighting back the tears threatening to form in my eyes.
I'm a big girl. I'm strong. I've handled worse than this.
Noah immediately raises his hands in the air. He knows I can get crazy when I want to. He's watched me butchering predators before. Now, he's no different from them and he knows it.
"Calm down, Lei. We can settle this like adults."
Adults my ass.
"Turn around and go back to the desk," I order and he does so. Slowly.
With each step he takes towards the desk, I take a step back to leave. Briana is now slouched on the ground and holding her head whilst crying. Serves her right for trying to provoke me. Though I know I'm going to face the consequences for hitting her later today, for now, I'm happy I smacked her little shameless ass. She's a twenty-two-year-old fucking a thirty-year-old man who happens to be her sister's boyfriend for fucks sake. Never mind the age gap, why the fuck does she not look the slightest bit embarrassed that I caught her betraying me?
My back hits the door with a thud and I flinch, raising my hand and feeling behind me until I grab the handle all whilst my eyes are set on Noah. I can't risk looking away now. Not with the way he's glaring at me.
The moment my fingers lock on the handle, I swiftly open the door and step out. Then I slam it to Noah's chilling glare so hard that the walls rattle a little. Not returning my taser gun in my bag, I walk down the corridors of his company, ignoring the curious looks I get from Noah's subordinates until I reach the car park.
The moment I'm locked inside my car, however, every other emotion I've been suppressing since opening the office door and seeing a naked Noah moaning and kissing Briana's bare back whilst pumping into her folds comes out like a demon and I scream. I slam my fist into the car horn, honking it for a good few seconds like a mad woman as tears flow down my face like tiny rivers. Honestly, I'm turning into one at this point.
"Ugh! Get a grip, Leilani. Fuck Noah. Fuck love. Let's go for drinks," I yell, angrily wiping the tears off my face and rummaging through my bag before pulling out my phone and calling the only support system I have in this entire freaking messy world.
*****
"I should've known he's a dick. It's in his name for goodness' sake. Noah Dickens? Ha!"
Manon laughs at me dissing Noah.
"Girl you kill me," she chokes on her whiskey, covering her mouth as she coughs. I lightly pat her back, smiling at myself for making her laugh so hard.
We're in a bar and it's 9PM now—two hours since I saw my boyfriend, no, ex-boyfriend cheating on me with my little sister. Three years. Three fucking years gone down the drain on a manchild who couldn't keep his dick in check. It's always the same story. They either can't keep it in their pants or they start acting out and mumble stupid sentiments about how you've changed and are no longer what they wanted blah blah. Or they simply ghost you.
Men.
"Did you at least hit them?" Manon asks, sitting back up and tucking her blonde hair behind her ears before taking a sip of her whiskey. "One more glass for me please," she mumbles to the bartender on the other side of the counter where we're seated around and he immediately gets to work.
The bar is noisy which is normal for New Yorkers if you ask me. 9PM is when the partying starts here.
"I smacked their heads together and left," I reply taking a sip of my red wine and groaning as I feel it running down my throat.
"That's my girl!" Manon beams. "If only I weren't busy when you asked me to come with. I'd have sent his balls dangling somewhere within his skeleton with my stilettos," she raises her pointed red stilettos to my face with squinted eyes. "Then I'd have ripped off Briana's hair until she's bald."
I laugh and she joins me just when the bartender cuts our moment as he hands Manon her drink.
"Thanks," Manon whispers at him before taking a sip and turning back to me. This time the humor vanishes from her face and her eyes fill with emotion as she leans in and gently places her palm on my back. "Seriously though, are you okay, Lei?"
"Hmm," I nod.
I mean it. I thought I'd cry my eyes out once I met Manon like I did with my first ever boyfriend who dropped the famous 'you've changed' line before breaking up with me on our anniversary, but to my surprise, I'm fine. Really. Maybe it's because I broke it off first or I somewhat got my revenge by hitting them but I don't feel anything. Not yet at least.
Manon eyes me for a moment as if to make sure I'm telling the truth. Once she's satisfied with what she sees though, she finally backs away from me.
"Good. I was about to suggest we raid his house tonight and torture him," she adds with a straight face, adjusting her sitting position on the stool. I wouldn't be shocked if she went ahead with her plan. She's like me. Crazy.
I smile at her. "Nah, I'm good. 27 years taught me that being dramatic with men will give them some sort of validation for their actions. Let him burn with guilt."
If he has any that is.
Manon's phone sounds a notification and she immediately rummages in her pockets to take it out. Probably her boss from the newspaper company she works for. My girl is a journalist and published author. Successful woman she is, with a bestselling romance series that's still trending hot on TikTok.
I let her attend to her message and take a sip of my wine, spinning my stool to look around the bar. As expected, we managed to grab the attention of a few playboys sitting on the stools a few meters away from ours. One winks at me and I smile back. Bad move. He immediately makes his way in our direction.
"Fuck. Manon, let's—"
"Shit, Desmond's back in New York and he's in this bar! Look he sent me a picture of us!" Manon shrieks, grabbing my hand and frantically looking around.
My heart falls into a pit I didn't know was located somewhere in my chest as my eyes grow wide. Oh hell no. Not him! Why now of all the times?
"What? Where's he? Ugh never mind that, a guy is coming this way. We need to leave. Now!"
"Hey, beautiful. Mind if I buy you a drink?" the guy asks before I can even stand from my stool. Ugh. I'm in no mood for men right now.
"No, but we'll take your money instead," Manon replies whilst standing from her stool and I laugh. "Sorry, but we were just about to leave," she adds locking her arms into mine.
"Aww, don't let me ruin your fun—"
"Is anyone bothering you, babe," comes a gentle husky voice as large veiny hands grab my shoulders before I feel one of them slide to my waist.
That voice. It's him. Desmond Lawrence. Manon's cousin and my nemesis from high school upgraded to college.
I raise my head to look up just when he pulls me away from Manon's grasp and into his chest instead. Yep, it's him alright. Same annoying voice but deeper now. Same annoyingly handsome face but much more manly and seductive now. Same annoying ripped body that absofuckinglootely much more sexy and taller than I last remember.
I know in that instant as he wraps his arms around me protectively, glaring at the guy who tried approaching me and sending a ripple of warmth all over my body that I'm in trouble.
Huge trouble.