Page 8 of Scornful

The guy is tall, lanky, with the kind of face you forget as soon as you look away.

But there's something in his posture that sets off alarm bells in my head.

The way he looms over Astrid, the aggressive thrust of his chin.

"What the fuck is your problem?" I hear him snarl, his voice carrying across the quiet parking lot. "You think you can just ignore my calls?"

Ah, it’s Laken, her piece of shit ex.

Astrid takes a step back, her body language defensive. "Laken, I told you. We're done. You need to leave me alone."

Astrid's ex-boyfriend, the one she'd broken up with a while back.

"We're done when I say we're done," Laken spits, grabbing Astrid's arm. "You think you're too good for me now? Huh? Running back to daddy's club? You're nothing but a fat slut."

Something snaps inside me at his words.

Before I even realize I'm moving, I'm halfway across the parking lot.

"You want to rethink puttin’ your hands on her," I growl, my voice low and dangerous.

Laken's head whips around, his eyes widening as he takes me in.

I know what he sees—six feet of muscle and viciousness, covered in tattoos.

"This ain't your business," he says, but I can hear the fear in his voice. He tries to compensate by puffing out his chest, tightening his grip on Astrid. "This is between me and my girlfriend."

"Ex-girlfriend," Astrid corrects, her voice tight with anger. "Let go of me, Laken."

He ignores her, his eyes locked on mine in some pathetic attempt at a dominance display.

Kid has no idea what real dominance looks like.

I take another step closer, invading his space now. "I'm going to say this once," I tell him, my voice deceptively calm. "Take your hand off her, get in your car, and drive away. And if I ever see you near her again, they'll be findin’ pieces of you scattered across three counties."

Laken's face pales, but there's still a stubborn set to his jaw.

His fingers dig deeper into Astrid's arm, making her wince.

That's all it takes.

My fist connects with his jaw before he can even register I've moved.

The impact sends a satisfying shock up my arm as he stumbles backward, releasing Astrid.

She steps away quickly, her eyes wide as she watches what happens next.

Laken regains his balance, his hand coming up to touch his jaw in disbelief. Then, with a roar of outrage, he comes charging at me.

Amateur move.

I sidestep easily, grabbing his outstretched arm and using his own momentum to slam him face-first into the side of a parked car.

The sound of his nose breaking is audible even over his howl of pain.

"I tried to be nice." I keep him pinned against the car with one hand while the other grasps the back of his neck. "But you just had to be difficult, didn't you?"

I increase the pressure, making him whimper. "Here's what's going to happen, Laken. You're going to accept that Astrid doesn't want anything to do with your sorry ass. You're going to stay the fuck away from her, from this club, from anything and anyone connected to her. Because if you don't..." I lean in closer, my voice dropping to a whisper, "I'll show youexactlywhy my name means wolf spear. You understand me?"

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