Page 22 of The Stallion (Men Under Revue #2)

Bria

“I’m sorry, you’re a fucking what?” I felt my jaw drop to the floor faster than my panties had fallen earlier.

This was all just some sort of fucked up fever dream, right? Like I wasn’t just in the process of falling for an ultra-hot, murderous dancer, was I?

Dallas was joking.

He had to be.

There was no fucking way—

“And you fucking picked me ? Married me ?” I couldn’t help the increasing rise in my voice with every word I spoke. A tone that wasn’t quite angry but blatantly not fucking happy at the news I was just now hearing.

“You were perfect— are perfect—” Dallas rushed out, and I couldn’t tell if he was expecting me to feel flattered or entirely fucked right now. “Bria, every wife has to be tested—”

“Are you telling me that there are other women in this— this secret society —that commit murder willingly ? Are they insane ?” He had lost his fucking mind.

“Bria…” The plea of my name as it fell from his luscious lips was too fucking much…

“No. Stop. I need some air… I can’t even right now...” I threw the blanket off my body and forced myself out of bed, leaving the comfort of his warmth, even if it hurt to do so. My skin pebbled from the cool air’s chill as I rushed out of the room.

Days… I’ve known Dallas for only days , and already I was finding it hard to walk away from him. This tight tether that had snagged between us, now feeling more like a noose around my goddamn neck.

I hadn’t even fully recovered from my previous relationship, yet here I was, already attached to another like a fucking idiot.

It was sheer insanity— all of it .

How could he expect me to be okay with murder and a secret society that demanded it as a rite of passage?

Spilling blood , as if that would make it sound any better than what it actually was.

Tugging the strands at the sides of my head, I stopped my sad attempt at fleeing just as I had reached the center of the living room, realizing that no matter how hard I fought, I wasn’t going anywhere—alive, that is.

I stared out through the floor-to-ceiling windows at the undeveloped desert landscape behind the house, and for a single moment, I collected my racing thoughts .

Breathe—I needed to breathe, focus, and think.

Everything inside of me was screaming at me to run.

That was until I felt a light, calming breeze rush past me from behind.

And I knew—just from that feeling alone—that Dallas was standing only a few short feet away, a magnet pulling me toward him—undeniable, and agonizing as fuck to resist.

“What happens if I say no? If I refuse to take this test? What—What happens when I fail?…”

Did I really want the answers to those questions? Could I even handle them at this point…

“You won’t…”

I slowly turned to face him, my breathing and heartbeat returning to a normal rate as his soft eyes connected with mine, and I felt as if a weighted blanket had been draped around my body, grounding me in its gentle embrace.

“You’re so confident in yourself,” I uttered without thinking, my words having a mind of their own as I continued struggling to process everything that had been laid out before me.

“In you , sweet girl. I wouldn’t have chosen you if I didn’t believe that you could handle this—handle everything the MUR entailed.

” Dallas took a step toward me, and I don’t know why, but I let him.

I allowed him to move close enough that he could pull me in, wrapping his strong arms around my shoulders and waist—as he always did.

“As I said last night, I feel the pull—the unmistakable bond building between us—and I refuse to let it go. ”

With my cheek now pressed up against his firm chest, his soothing scent enveloping me, I could hear his heart beating rapidly—feeling his terror from the outside.

A brief moment of silence fell between us as Dallas held me tightly, and I curled my hand around the last string of sanity I felt I had left, begging for it not to snap entirely.

“I have to practice with my team in Phoenix… They need me for Regionals, and I need time to think—away from you.” I felt numb, or was I just confused?— fuck, I didn’t even know what kind of emotional pit I had fallen into all over again.

Space was all I could think about—time to process what had been said and what was now expected of me before I could come to any conclusion or final decision.

Because while I didn’t love Dallas, at least not yet, there was undoubtedly a connection, and I couldn’t ignore it—no matter how hard I tried. Not when it was something that I had never even had the chance to feel with Connor, not even once, and I wanted it more than anything.

Dallas was a high, unlike any other—the rush was even more intense than the hardest of cheer stunts. I didn’t want to give up this second chance—not unless I had absolutely no other choice but to.

“Okay… take all the time you need…” Dallas sighed, his lips pressing firmly into my scalp.

I could hear the reluctance in his tone—feel his refusal to let me go as his arms flexed and muscles tensed around my body.

I wasn’t saying no, but I also wasn’t in a rational state of mind to say yes—to agree to everything he was offering me.

A secret society—the Men Under Revue.

It explained a lot—the house, his car, the apparent fact that there was no fucking way a male revue dancer could earn enough to sustain everything he currently had.

Was this what I wanted for my life?

Could I grow to accept this new lifestyle?

Dallas left me alone while I packed my suitcase for the weekend and left.

He didn’t try to stop me, but I could feel his overly attentive eyes as he watched me from the far side of the kitchen—keeping his distance, and his word, that I could come and go as I pleased.

That I wasn’t his prisoner.

I was his wife.

As I started my Jeep and backed out of the driveway—the start of my long drive back to Phoenix—a tiny shred of my heart was sad to leave.

I felt as if I was already leaving a piece of myself behind—with him.

The quiet drive was spent mulling over all the information Dallas had shared with me that morning. Everything from who he was and what he did to the MUR and what was required of me now that I was legally his wife .

Three weeks… less than that now, I suppose…

What have I gotten myself into? And why, deep down, was I so willing to accept it?

There had to be something psychologically wrong with me if I was more than amenable to murder some random fucking stranger just to keep a man that I barely even knew, and yet, fucked me like we’d been doing it for years.

The worst part was that the fear of dying at his hand for refusing or failing wasn’t what terrified me the most—it was losing the ability to be with him.

I really was fucked in the head…

I needed to clear my mind and get into a better mental state to consider this logically.

Time away from him and with Asher would help and, hopefully, give me all the answers and clarity I needed before I inevitably returned to Vegas—back to Dallas.

When I finally pulled up to the old apartment that I had once shared with Asher, I couldn’t help but sigh longingly—the days that had passed felt more like months, with so much happening to me in such a short period of time.

Had it really only been a week?

I stared up at the three-story building, every brick discolored from the storms it had endured over time, before glancing down at my phone to see if Dallas had even attempted to contact me.

Nothing.

Not a single text .

Dallas was giving me my requested space, and all I wanted at that very moment was for him to give me a reason to turn around and come home.

Home .

Why was I already calling it that?

Why was I starting to feel like Phoenix was no longer where I belonged?

“There she is! The woman who disappears for a week and then shows up with a brand new fucking car —Holy shit, girl!” Asher ran down the front steps as I exited my car and rushed in to hug me with a tight embrace.

“I know you said the job was too good to pass up but, damn woman—look at you!” She gaped in awe at my new SUV before stealing my suitcase from my hand and dragging me toward the building with the other, not letting me get a single word in.

“Alright, let’s get your ass inside. I need all the juicy little details before you leave me all over again. ”

I love Asher, and sadly, a part of me knew that this weekend would be difficult for the both of us.