Page 46 of Under the Lights (The Big Boys of BRU #2)

Thirty Seven

Dom/Sierra

Dom

The bark of the tree I leaned against scratched my jacket as I shifted my weight from foot to foot. With my fists buried in my pockets and my hood up, I lurked in the shadows.

Truly the epitome of the classic cautionary tale.

It was late, and the campus around me was hushed by the chill of fall. The library’s warm glow spilled out onto the empty quad.

The faint smell of grass and cold stone surrounded me, and the only sound I heard was the quiet rustling of dead leaves.

She didn’t know I was here. She wouldn’t like it if she did. But I couldn’t help it. Not when she looked so exhausted.

So alone.

Obsession hummed in my chest and spread through my veins with every heartbeat. No matter how sharp her words had been, I didn’t want her walking alone this late.

My gaze snapped up as the library doors opened, letting more light spill out of the opening and casting long shadows across the grass. My girl stepped out of the library with her handbag in the crook of her elbow and her phone in hand.

The door shut behind her with a resounding thud, but her attention was on the device in her hand. I watched her shoulders tighten ever so slightly as the screen flashed in the distance.

Her face illuminated by her phone screen, Sierra grimaced, apparently more annoyed than afraid, and started down the now familiar route back to her apartment.

My stomach was in knots. I’d seen the tension she tried to hide, but she just refused to talk to me. To open up.

My Goddess was independent, driven by the urge to handle everything on her own. But sometimes you needed help. Some burdens were better shared, and I was done pretending I didn’t see it.

I pushed myself off the tree and started moving. Quiet. Just a few steps behind. Close enough to intervene if I needed to.

We’d just left the quad behind when the shadows moved. Three shapes emerged from the darkness between the trees lining the path.

I froze, my pulse spiking instantly as the adrenaline hit before logic could kick in.

Of fucking course, one of them was Douchebag David, swaggering in my girls’ path with a cold look in his eyes, in all his frat-boy glory. Two others flanked him.

They were both unfamiliar, but it wasn’t hard to make the connection. Their similar outfits and default haircuts were a dead giveaway of them being some of his little frat bros.

“Sierra,” David drawled, stepping into her path. “Didn’t think we’d have to do this. You’re making this way harder than it needs to be.”

Fury twisted my insides, sharp and hot, as I watched her grip her keys tightly between her knuckles.

Smart girl.

Still cloaked in the shadows, I shifted behind a nearby car, close enough to hear — but not close enough to stop it. Not yet.

Let her handle it.

She wanted to stand on her own.

She deserved to.

But the second David got too close for comfort, my whole body coiled like a wire pulled too tight.

Sierra’s back stiffened. “If this is about your little spreadsheet problem—”

David shushed her, then cocked his head, a smirk curving one side of his mouth. One brow lifted slowly, his eyes sweeping over her before he gave a little chuckle, and nodded — once, mockingly — like she was a toddler throwing a tantrum.

“It’s about you not minding your business.”

“About you not understanding what’s at stake.” One of his little minions continued, closing in on Sierra from the left.

“About how easy it is for scholarships to disappear. For people to believe the wrong story,” Thing Three concluded.

They closed in around her, circling like sharks. It took every ounce of my restraint not to intervene, and my hands were shaking with the effort.

David’s voice dropped. “All it takes is one accusation. One little rumor. And poof — your golden girl reputation? Gone. And we both know where you’d be without that little scholarship of yours.”

Sierra stood her ground. She was shaking, but from rage more than fear. Her voice was cold as ice. “Then start talking fast because if I go down, I’m taking all of you with me.”

David’s grin stretched wider, contorting his face into an unappealing grimace. He stepped in close, too close, and caught her ponytail in one fist, yanking her head back, causing her to suck in a sharp breath.

Sierra let out a sharp gasp and immediately twisted her body, stepping into him instead of away — classic self-defense. Her hand flew up to her ponytail, gripping his wrist.

“Get your hand off me,” she snapped. “Last warning.”

Her voice didn’t waver.

“Oh, sweetheart. You think we’re afraid of you?”

She was fierce, with sharp edges and a steel spine. Mine .

As he yanked her hair again, like he owned her… that’s when I moved. All I saw was red. Not because she couldn’t fight. But because no one touched what was mine.

Fuck no .

Something inside me snapped, shattering any semblance of control I’d held on to.

“No.” My voice cut through the darkness, low and deadly, as I stepped into the light. “But you should be afraid of me.”

Surprise flickered across David’s face, but he quickly masked it as I advanced. I never took my eyes off him or his hand on my Sierra. A goddamn storm was brewing inside of me, begging to burst out.

“Take your slimy little hand off her, and I will consider not breaking every fucking bone in your entitled body.”

One of the guys made the mistake of stepping forward. I didn’t fucking hesitate.

With a burst of speed, I advanced. It was quick. Brutal.

With one shove I was on David, one hand squeezing his wrist with all my strength. He released Sierra with a yelp of pain, and my other fist connected with his jaw.

His teeth clacked audibly together as I threw him to the ground as if he weighed nothing. None of them had even processed what had happened yet. David sat on his ass, stunned, as his friends scattered.

Fucking pussies.

I flexed my fingers, not because they hurt, but because I was itching to rearrange his face some more. It wasn’t enough, would never be enough, after he dared to put his fucking hands on what was mine.

Taking in the dark expression on my face, he scrambled backward like the coward he was.

“Run, motherfucker. Before I change my fucking mind.”

The sound of his feet pounding across the pavement echoed through the quiet night as he took off. I took a deep breath and exercised some serious self-control not to give chase.

Instead, I turned to Sierra, breathing hard and feeling my heart hammer against my ribcage.

Sierra didn’t cower or collapse. She brushed her ponytail back with trembling fingers and lifted her chin.

“Next time, bring a fourth. Might even stand a chance,” she called after him.

Gingerly, I closed the distance between us, cupping her jaw in my palm as gently as I could. Her entire body twitched, as though my touch had sent an electric impulse through her.

“Woah. Easy, Darlin’. You’re okay.” I brushed golden strands of hair out of her face.

Sierra nodded, but the silence lingered. Her chest heaved, and I could see her mind working in overdrive. I stepped even closer, pulling her to my chest.

She exhaled slowly against my chest, her fists still clenched in my hoodie. “I’m letting this happen,” she muttered. “Don’t make me regret it.”

“Next time,” I murmured, “call me.”

“You say that like I take instructions well,” she said, arching an eyebrow. “But I guess… I’ll keep my phone on.”

Chuckling, my hands rubbed lazily up and down her arms. “I’ll take it.”

She sighed. “You’re really fucking annoying, you know that?”

I raised an eyebrow but didn’t interrupt; I didn’t want to scare her off.

Sierra’s grip relaxed slightly as she leaned back to peer up at me. “You walk around like some human battering ram, and then you… do this.” Her hand fisted in my hoodie again. “You make me feel safe, and I hate it.”

Her breath hitched as she paused, and it was so hard to keep my mouth shut.

“But God, I needed that tonight.”

“I told you, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Thank you, Hotshot.” She rose on her tiptoes, one hand finding my jaw as she pressed her lips against mine in a soft kiss. “For real.”

***

Sierra

Dom’s truck squeaked as he climbed out, and then he rounded the truck to walk by my side. The air was even cooler now, tinged with fog that would soon coat every surface.

He remained silent, which was highly unusual, matching my pace step for step. As I pulled out my keys, he hovered awkwardly, as if unsure what to do next. Another highly unusual occurrence.

I glanced at him. His body was stiff, as though he were waiting to be dismissed.

“You’re going to end up back here anyway,” I said quietly, without turning around. “So you might as well come in now before you make it weird.”

The corner of his mouth twitched, and he followed me upstairs without making a big deal out of my concession. I plugged in the string lights in my room.

The tension lingered but slowly began to dissipate as we were surrounded by their warm, gentle glow.

Dom hesitated just inside the doorway, scanning the space. I’d never actually invited him into my room before, not like this.

This wasn’t a date. This wasn’t a declaration. This was a truce. A pause button. And maybe that was all I could give him.

Dom had already taken off his shoes at the door, acting like he belonged there. I should’ve told him to stop. Should’ve made a joke, drawn a line, something. But I wanted him here. That much I couldn’t deny anymore.

He was in my room before I could think too hard about it. Sprawled across the foot of the bed, head propped up on his arm like he’d done this a hundred times.

I pulled off my hoodie and tossed it onto my desk chair, watching him through the mirror as I brushed out my hair. He didn’t say anything.

Just watched me, uncharacteristically quiet, like the moment might shatter if he breathed too loudly.