Uppercut Princess (The Heights Crew #1)(36)

He wanted me to see this.

For fuck’s sake, it isn’t as if I thought Johnny and I were actually going to be a thing. I don’t fucking want him. He’s the last person in the world I want. But knowing all that, pricks of anger still heat my skin. He just made me look like a fucking dumbass.

He’s a liar, a fake. What the fuck did I expect?

Apparently, I expected more. I don’t know why. The area behind my eyes heat, and I blink back the threat of tearing up. For a minute, a very short fucking minute, this almost seemed like a fairy tale. I never pegged me as the girl who would get all swoony over a guy who would drop money on me, but I guess I’m not as immune to that as I’d like to be.

I throw the curtain back to hide them both again and turn. I plow through both Lynette and Glo and wonder if they knew all along something like this would happen. I’m sure it’s happened a shitton of times before. Everyone probably knew what was going on but me.

Somehow, Magnum beats me to the front entrance. Thoroughly proving he could’ve stopped me from looking at the scene before. “I can’t let you leave, Kyla.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Are you shitting me?”

He shakes his head and disappointment riddles his features. Why does everyone act differently than I think they’re going to?

He shocks me into a beat of silence, but I can’t stay quiet. I need to get the fuck out of here before I do something really stupid: act like I care. “Please,” I say, gritting my teeth.

He shakes his head then looks over my head like he doesn’t want to look at me anymore.

I turn to Lynette. “Is there a back way out of this building?”

She looks at Magnum like she doesn’t know what to say, which tells me already that there is one. I move toward the back of the building again. I’m almost to the dressing room where I found Johnny and Ryn when Ryn comes out. Her eyes widen, and she tries to get out of my way, but I don’t let her. I grip her shoulders and shove her into the closest wall. “You should have more fucking respect for yourself.” She quivers beneath my touch, matching the anger shaking my whole body. I’m madder at myself than anything else. Getting caught up in this shit was never part of the plan. I lean in close. “You want someone’s dick inside you who’d treat you like that? Someone whose girl is just in the other room? Woman up.”

I push her into the wall one last time and turn, only to be face-to-face with Johnny. Glitter of excitement shines in his eyes, but it looks far more dangerous than it did earlier. He reaches for me, and I shy away. His jaw ticks. I doubt he ever gets rejected, but fucker can’t think I’ll just act like everything’s fine after cozying up to me in the car and then sinking his dick inside someone else not an hour later. That’s not how shit works. I don’t care if you are Johnny Rocket of the Heights Crew.

He sinks his fingers into my forearm and pulls me away from our audience. We step out a back door, and just like I did to Ryn, he pushes me against the concrete block exterior. Rank garbage wafts in the air around us. I almost choke on it.

Johnny gets in my face, his lips thin, practically quivering with anger. “Do not ever fucking reject me.”

I swallow. There’s that rage I would’ve bet was simmering underneath the surface at all times. My own indignation rises. I want to tell him to get fucked, but I’m caught because I can’t do that. I still need to have a way to get to Big Daddy K.

God, I fucking hate this.

Any other guy who would have done this to me could’ve expected to get his ass kicked. But this asshole? I can’t do anything to. I just have to sit back and take it.

I don’t have to play the part of hurt girlfriend for the next words to come out of my mouth. “You said I was your girl.”

“I also said I can’t have you yet,” he seethes. “Do you think I’m just going to sit back and wait?”

Actually, yes. Any girl would fucking think that.

“Yes,” I hiss, holding back about seventy-five percent of what I really want to say.

He laughs in my face, then takes his hands off me. Until he did that, I didn’t realize how much pressure he was putting on me. I’m going to have a bruise on my shoulder from him slamming me into the wall. Asshole.

“Did you think I was going to abstain from sex while waiting for you, Kyla?” He smirks. “That’s not going to happen. I’ll be discreet. Hell, I was being fucking discreet. No one else would’ve known if you’d just stayed away. Now, all those women know what happened,” he says, pointing back inside. “If you were going to be embarrassed, you shouldn’t have made a big deal about it.”

“They knew, Johnny,” I tell him. Does he think they’re all fucking idiots? “And you think Ryn would’ve kept her mouth shut after we left?”

“She would’ve if she knows what’s good for her.” He moves toward me again, and my back hits the wall in an effort to stay away from him. “No one disrespects my girl.”

I snap my mouth shut. Is he even listening to himself? He disrespected me.

He slides his arm around me, pulling me toward him. My hips graze his and his raging erection. “You’re the one who made it known what we were doing.” He tips my head back, running his hands through my hair and tugging at the ends to expose my neck. He drops a kiss there. “Otherwise, no one would’ve been the wiser. You could’ve still had your cred. The bitch still could’ve had her dignity. I would’ve gotten off, and we would all be happy. Now I have to go in and fix this. Shut these bitches up before they spread the word to everyone in town, making you look like just another side piece. That’s not what I want. I want all these slaves to look up to you. I want them to revere you. I want them to know that if they fuck with you, they’re fucking with the Crew. I can’t do that if you blow everything for me, do you understand?”