Forbidden Love with the Marine(21)
“There’s nothing in the world that can make me forget my worries, Amanda. At least, nothing this club can offer,” Olivia said, smiling wryly. “But thanks. You were right though; they make the best cocktails, as usual. But I can’t stand one more minute of this. My head feels like it’s about to explode right now.”
Amanda’s dark eyes softened with sympathy. “You’re thinking about that hunky guy of yours, right?”
“All the time,” Olivia confessed with a sigh. “And just knowing I’m here trying to have fun when he could be out there hurt or even...even worse, makes me sick to my stomach.”
“I understand,” her friend said. They’d known each other all through college and had remained fast friends, always hanging out and being a helping hand when needed. She placed a comforting arm around Olivia’s shoulder.
“I don’t know how come I can be so sure of this, but something tells me your sweetheart’s fine. Who knows; he could show up right out of the blue and bring the stars out tonight.” Amanda’s smile widened, causing an answering smile to spread slowly across Olivia’s face.
That’s why she liked Amanda so much: her sunny, optimistic personality. In addition, the girl was usually always right. She hugged the other woman gratefully.
“You have fun, babe,” Olivia said, pulling back from Amanda’s returning warmth. “Just not too much, okay? I wouldn’t want Dean on my case for letting you get snatched away while my back was turned.” Dean was Amanda’s beloved fiancé who was out of town on business.
Amanda huffed, tossing her dark hair over one bronzed shoulder. “Aw, hell no; there’s no man fine enough in here that could steal me away from my D. Girl, stop that,” Amanda said with a wide teasing grin as she waved Olivia off.
Shaking her head and chuckling, Olivia finally headed out of the packed club. The outside was deserted except for the few cars pulling out of valet parking. Olivia glanced up at the night sky and thought of what Amanda had said. Bring out the stars tonight. How Olivia longed for one star to fall right then so she could wish her Ivan back, right here with her where she needed him to be.
Wrapping an arm around herself, Olivia started to walk down the lonely, lit-up street as she wondered if she could clear her head with a walk home. She didn’t live that far away and was truly in no rush to make it quickly home to her lonely apartment. At least she was out of that noisy wild atmosphere back at the club.
The breeze rustled through her loose hair and she drew in a calming breath. The painful buzzing in her head had dulled and now all she had was a slight headache that some fresh air would undoubtedly dispel in no time.
“I was wondering when I’d run into you again.”
Olivia froze for a moment, and then turned with dread to come face to face with the fearfully familiar man standing there. She recognized him instantly, even with the healing scars of deep fingernail scratches across one square-cut cheek. His narrow, handsome face creased in a smile that in no way reached his cold, gleaming eyes.
“Hello, sexy,” the man said, stepping forward slowly while he casually lit a cigarette. “You were in such a hurry the other night that we didn’t get the chance to exchange contacts. Which was really a pity because I have a favor to return to you.”
“What do you want?” Olivia spat, more angry than afraid. It was months since that night in his car when he’d tried to force himself on her after she’d turned down his advances. She felt satisfaction in seeing how deep her fingernails had gored his model-type features.
“I’m thinking,” the man said with a contemplative pause as he drew hard on his cigarette, before adding casually, “How deep I can cut into that pretty face of yours with my knife and see how you like it being disfigured.”
As he spoke, he flicked something out of the space just underneath the right cuff of his shirt. Olivia gasped at the sight of the gleaming blade now resting in his face-up palm.
“Been carrying this around since that night, hoping to meet your acquaintance once again. I’ve been hanging around this club and hoping you’d be dumb enough to come back here some day. So I can show you that Eduardo pays back his debts and baby, I owe you one good stab – with my cock in your * and this blade on your face.”
“Fuck you!” Olivia snarled, grinding down her panic and wondering if she could make a run for it. Or maybe screaming would be better. Either way, she didn’t really believe this fool would try to hurt her. Was he that crazy?
“Oh, yes you will f*ck me, sexy thing. All in good time,” Eduardo said lightly. And then before Olivia could react, he was grabbing both her wrists in one huge fist. She screamed, shocked into stumbling after him as he dragged her off the sidewalk and just beyond to the darkened side of an abandoned building close by.
Yelling furiously at him, she struggled and dug in her heels but the bastard was so freaking strong. He pushed her hard against the wall on the side of the building, and held her trapped with his big, tall body while his hand flashed up to rest the blade against her throat. Olivia’s voice died off.
“That’s right, bitch. Shut the f*ck up. Because I’ve got better things in mind that your pretty little mouth could be doing for me right now than screaming.”
“Please. Just let me go,” Olivia breathed out, staring into his furious eyes. He did look a little bit out of it. She could smell the alcohol on his breath and knew that alcohol and crazy didn’t go well together at all.