Page 149 of Prey

“Will it be okay?” she asked when she pulled away from me. I wiped away some of her tears and waited for her to clarify. “With Dominic. Will he be mad at you?”

I nodded. “Yeah. But he’ll get over it.”

She looked nervous then. “Are you sure?”

“Hey, don’t worry about this, okay? Everything is going to be all right. I promise.”

She didn’t look like she believed me, but everything would be okay.

There was no other option.

* * *

Dominic noticedme as soon as I walked inside the bar.

The mess from the fucking bomb had been taken care of, and the bar looked almost as good as new.

We were only an hour from opening, so there weren’t many people around.

Micah stood in the corner, his eyes narrowing on me, but he didn’t do anything when Dominic walked up to me, pulled his fist back, and clocked me hard on the jaw.

I stumbled back but didn’t fall.

The bar, and everyone in it, got really quiet as they watched the scene unfold.

I didn’t do anything but cup my jaw. It was probably going to bruise there later. Thank fuck, my beard would probably hide it from Ryleigh.

“I should kick you out of the fucking club for that move.”

I nodded. “You should. I still would have done the exact same thing.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “So it was worth it?”

I thought back to the way Ryleigh had looked at me when she came home.

I had turned over the flash drive, but I had removed all mention of Judge Hudson on there.

He would be remembered as a hero who tried to tear down the Mansen Brotherhood and the drug ring they had unsuccessfully tried to start. Ryleigh would never have to live with her father’s shame publicly.

The Mansen brothers were dead, and any men they might have left were scattered, unable to pick up the pieces of the organization.

It was done, and this would be the only good deed I did for the bastard, for shielding Ryleigh from the bullets that resulted in his own life being taken.

I could think whatever I wanted about him, but he died protecting his daughter.

He truly loved her, and that wasn’t something I could have said about my own father.

I nodded. “He’s dead, Dom. And I love her. I would do anything for her. So yeah. It was fucking worth it.”

He didn’t say anything for a moment. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until Dominic threw his head back and laughed. “Stupid fucker. You’re gonna let that one girl lead you on by your dick.”

I grinned at him, shaking my head.

“Nah, it’s not my dick she’s leading me around by,” I said. Although she could. He shot me a curious look. “It’s my heart.”

He shook his head, his eyes shrouded in sympathy as if he thought there was something pitiful about falling in love with a girl.

I didn’t try to argue with him.

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