Uppercut Princess (The Heights Crew #1)(79)

I turn away from the Rocket. Not for the first time, I wonder why I get so confused around him. He’ll always come back to this guy. This one who thinks he’s better than everyone else because of who his dad is. Someone who’s used to getting their own way.

Johnny curses under his breath. He tries to move closer to me, but in a moment of serendipity, the elevator doors open, and I walk quickly out, avoiding him. I’m not sure what I’m going to do when we’re in his place alone together, but for right now, at least he knows that shit isn’t going to fly with me. He really shouldn’t have been a dick just after I got done training. I’m never in the mood to put up with shit after beating the shit out of things.

Magnum stops me in the hallway. He goes over to the table to pick up the wand, and I stand there, arms and legs wide so he can run it over me.

Johnny stands to the side, head shaking the whole time.

“She’s good,” Magnum says.

“I should hope so,” I tell him. “You’ve been training with me for the past few hours. I think you’d be able to tell if I had a weapon on me.”

Johnny turns, moving toward the door on the left. Magnum’s upper lip quirks up as I walk past him. Johnny opens the door into a suite that is much like his father’s, only smaller. Everyone in this city would be drooling over this place. It’s three times the size of mine with new furniture, sleek lines, and that feeling when something is just clean. It’s barely lived in.

As soon as the door closes behind me, Johnny whirls. “Don’t talk back to me in front of anyone,” he spits. He’s in my face, nose-to-nose. “Don’t fucking back talk me at all. Who the fuck do you think you are?”

I blink at him, swallowing. This is the moment where I don’t know if I should push Johnny or not. I sure as fuck don’t want to be his punching bag—verbally or otherwise—but what kind of options do I have? The thing is, Johnny can be better than this. He just doesn’t know any better.

I move in closer, the tips of our noses touching. “You claimed me because of the way I fight. It’s not just in the ring that I’m feisty,” I tell him, making it clear I will not fucking take shit from him either. “I get who you are, and I’ve accepted that. But that doesn’t mean you disrespect me in front of other people either. It was a simple goddamn question.”

“I told you I didn’t want to talk about it.”

“Well, I do. Your wants aren’t any more important than mine. Deal with it.”

I move past him. I search the room for a bathroom. Only a couple of doors lead off from the main living area, so I choose the one to the left, only it opens up into a bedroom, the sheets a pile at the foot of the bed. Luckily, there’s a door ajar inside Johnny’s room, a towel lying on the floor, so I know it must be a bathroom.

Johnny grabs for me. “You are infuriating.”

“Me? Try dealing with you.”

His pale blue eyes flash. It’s sexy as hell, not going to lie. But hot or not, I won’t put up with this. Not when I’m going to fight for his Crew. There’s no way he should be treating me the way he is. Even he should realize that.

He backs me up. I walk backward until my legs hit the side of the bed. “You think so, huh?”

I nod.

He pushes my shoulders, and I fall back. A nice, comfortable mattress waits for me, and I bounce a few times before he hovers over me. “No one’s ever said that to me before.”

I try to wiggle out of his cage, moving up the bed, but he keeps following me. Finally, I stop because I have nowhere to go unless I want to fall off the side. “Probably because they’re all scared of you.”

His nostrils flare.

I look around. The twisted sheets turn my stomach. “When’s the last time you fucked someone in this bed? Are these soiled sheets? Don’t ever bring me into a dirty fucking bed,” I growl.

He quirks his head, licking his lips. “I don’t fuck girls here. You think I bring skanks into this place? This place is for family only.”

The way he says family, I know he doesn’t just mean him and his dad. He means the gang itself. That’s all he has. All he knows.

“I didn’t make the bed this morning because I got up early to run with you. Then I watched you train for hours.” He presses his body into mine. “Then I get your smart mouth the moment I get alone time with you.”

I suck in a breath. Johnny’s as hard as a rock. My workout clothes are skintight, and his joggers leave nothing to the imagination as he presses into me. My body responds to him, licking flames through my core, my muscles tightening. At the same time, my head just doesn’t know what to think.

I grip his hips to stop him from pressing into me.

“I want you.” His words come out on an exhale.

I take a deep breath, my chest pressing into his. “I can’t, Johnny.”

He closes his eyes and swallows. “My dad won’t find out.”

“It’s not that,” I say. Johnny needs some hard truths. It’s better for me if I give them to him because I need to understand who he is. Is he the rough and tough gang guy? Or is he something more? Is there any hope for him at all? “I don’t know you,” I say, pushing his hips away from me.

His eyes open. His first instinct is to lash out, but I watch as he reins it back in.