Page 73 of Bitter Queen (Advantage Play 4)

I laugh before tonguing my cheek as I flex my hands at my side.

“I think you’re mistaken.”

“And I think you don’t know what part of town you stumbled into,” the asshole counters.

My mouth twitches with a smirk. If only he knew who he was dealing with. “I think it’s time we get out of here,” I tell Q, offering my hand for her to take.

“She’s not going anywhere.”

“Trust me, buddy, you don’t want to push me anymore,” I warn him.

His chest puffs up like a little peacock looking for a fight. “What? Like this?” He shoves me into the bar top behind me, begging me to take this to the next level, and it’d be impolite not to oblige.

My phone is ringing in my jeans, but I ignore it and cock my arm back. Then it’s game on. His head swings to the side as my fist connects with his jaw before a squeal of surprise greets my ears, and he drops to the ground like a bag of potatoes.

“D!” Queena shrieks.

Well, that was anticlimactic.

Tangling our fingers together, I toss a few bills onto the bar then tug her to the exit. “Let’s get out of here.”

26

Q

The next few days go by at a snail’s pace of waiting. After Diece’s freak out, they decided to stop using me as bait, and Diece definitely didn’t complain about the decision, either.

Will is slowly getting more comfortable around everyone, and I’ve found myself venturing out of my room more often too, especially to sneak in some more training with Diece in the gym. Will’s like a community kid, though I guess that makes sense. After all, they say it takes a village to raise a child, and we’ve been doing exactly that.

It’s…nice. But it doesn’t erase the heavy gray cloud from hanging over us. Every muscle in my body begs me to get some rest, but I can’t sleep.

Because Diece isn’t here. And even though I hate how much I rely on him, I can’t sleep without him next to me. Whenever I try, the nightmares consume me, and I wake up in a cold sweat.

Nope. No, thank you. Instead, I trudged down to the theater room in Kingston’s house and turned on the Hallmark Channel. It’s the only other thing that can keep the memories at bay, and I’m tired of reliving them.

“Hey,” Ace greets me from the doorway. Reaching for the remote, I push pause and smile at my unexpected guest.

“Hey. Sorry. Did I have the sound up too loud or something?”

“Not at all.” She moseys into the small theater room and plops onto the couch next to me. “I couldn’t sleep.”

“Same,” I admit with a frown. “Are the guys always gone this much?”

“Not usually. They have a lot on their plate. At least you didn’t have to tag along this time, right?”

“I guess. Apparently, I’m not as good of bait as they might’ve hoped.”

With her elbow on the back of the couch and her legs tucked beneath her, Ace argues, “That’s not true. Diece’s just too much of a worrywart to let you out of his sight, and they’d prefer not to put anyone in a body bag if they don’t have to. Kingston said you’ve been a trooper, though.”

“He’s being too generous.”

“Kingston is never too generous,” she quips with a crooked smirk. “Well, unless you count in bed.”

My face scrunches in amusement. “Ew.”

“Says the girl who’s been getting it on every night,” she teases before having the decency to change the subject. “So, whatcha watching?”

“Hallmark Channel.”