Page 72 of Hard Hitter

Still repeating the words in her head, she wasn’t prepared when Liam wrapped his arms around her and pressed his warm body against hers. He dipped his head to kiss her but pulled back with a hiss when their lips met, “Ah, dammit.” Liam put a hand to the bridge of his nose where he now had a bandage.

“Got you pretty good, huh?” Raelyn asked, her hand rising to touch the side of his face. Dropping it quickly, she inwardly cursed herself for the show of affection.

“Fucker can throw a punch, I’ll give him that,” Liam said.

That was unexpected. He was usually the arrogant, boastful type. Maybe getting the shit kicked out of him was a humbling experience.

“Why did he feel the need to throw a punch?” Raelyn asked, sidestepping Liam’s large, half-naked form to give them some distance.

“Seriously?” Liam snorted, turning to face her. “You’re taking his side?”

“I’m trying to figure out what happened,” Raelyn replied, feeling her insides heat up again. “I’m trying to figure out why I had to endure guys asking if I wanteda tasteand making blow job gestures at me afterschool. I’m trying to figure out why I had guys cat-calling me on my way out to my car asking if I was ready to have my cherry popped.”

“Oh, give me a fucking break, Raelyn,” Liam threw his hands up in the air. “Act like you that’s not exactly why you were with me in the first place. You wanted some experience, I gave you that.”

Raelyn narrowed her eyes, incredulous. “Just because our relationship wasn’t exactly built to last doesn’t mean we can’t have some kind of respect for each other. Telling an entire locker room full of guys that I devour you like a gourmet meal seems like an obvious overstep.”

“Well you do,” Liam said, eyes glinting, “and I think we both know you enjoy it. Almost as much as that first orgasm I gave you. First one ever, right?”

Raelyn was physically shaking. This person in front of her was not the same guy she’d agreed to date. Sure, she’d known he was a bit of an ass, but this was pushing it- even for him. How had she ever trusted him? Even if it was just with her body. It was as if all the places he’d touched her were boiling now, trying to cleanse themselves from him, and she stepped away again when he reached for her.

“You just couldn’t keep your damn guard dog on a leash,” Liam snapped. “That motherfucker is no better than me either. Everyone knows how he gets around, but I talk about the one girl he can’t have and he fucking attacks.”

Fuming, Raelyn continued to glare back at him. She was still furious with how Quinn had reacted and that he’d been so quick to believe she would betray him, but hearing Liam talk about him in this pretentious tone lit a whole new kind of flame inside her.

“Some dogs weren’t meant to be domesticated,Rae,” he continued. “Should’ve just left him out on the street or put him down.”

“What did you say to him about...about being somecharity case?”Raelyn remembered suddenly the words that had seemed to have Quinn so incensed.

“Well isn’t he?” Liam spat out. “I saw that check your dad wrote for his football team fees on the counter. I couldn’t fucking believe it- talk about a fucking goldmine.”

His sudden change of tone from annoyance to amusement set Raelyn’s blood to boil. “That’s none of your damn business. You can’t imagine what he’s had to do for himself. At least he’s got some kind of excuse for going off! You’ve had everything handed to you and you’re still a fucking asshole.”

“And you haven’t?” Liam scoffed, then rolled his eyes and lowered his voice. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s a cute act you’ve going on like you’re just some normal chick and not practically royalty. Adorable, really. But even you have to know he’s not one of us. He will never belong to our world, and it’s just cruel to keep teasing him with it.”

Raelyn let out a heavy breath and kept her fists clenched so he couldn’t see her hands shaking. “You and I, Liam, arenotthe same. We are not on some level together above everyone else. Your parents’ accomplishments are not your own and you’re not entitled to whatever the fuck you want just because you were born to this life.”

She walked around him toward the door, now wishing she’d left it open. Liam stepped in front of it, blocking her way out.

“Move, Liam. We’re done here.”

“I don’t think so, Princess.” Liam folded his thick arms over his broad chest. “See, you got what you wanted out of this relationship, but I feel like I’m coming up short.”

Her pulse tripped, her stomach shrunk in on itself, and she began searching for ways out. How had she landed herself in this situation? What the hell had she been thinking coming up here? Had she expected him to be reasonable so they could part ways amicably? Whatever she’d thought of him, she truly hadn’t expected this.

“I think even a caveman like you can figure out I’m not having sex with you now,” she said, hoping her voice concealed her nerves.

Liam eyed her up and down a few times before landing on her face. His mouth twitched, “It’s cute you think you have a say in that.”

“Liam-”

He cut her off by abruptly grabbing both wrists in his hands and shoving her back against the door. Her hands were pinned over her head, and he maneuvered both wrists into one large hand, bringing theother down to unzip her coat. She kicked at him, aiming for his groin, but he simply pressed his weight against her, holding her flat against the door. When his hand aggressively shoved down the front of her jeans and into her panties, she screamed for him to get the fuck off of her. His mouth came over hers to muffle her cry for help. Teeth caught her bottom lip and she tasted blood in her mouth.

This must be that feeling Quinn had once described when she’d asked what went through his head before he got into a fist fight. White hot rage filled her, and her vision blurred red. Though she didn’t know how she got out from under Liam’s strong grip, and she didn’t know when she made the decision to take her shot, she certainly felt the pain in her hand and wrist after making contact with something hard.

Liam staggered back, covering his already-broken nose.

“Stay the fuck away from me,” Raelyn snarled, opening the door. She turned back once more and added, “And if you even think about pressing charges against him, I’ll make sure you are fucking buried in a mountain of sexual assault suits. Practically royalty, right?” She slipped out of his bedroom, took the stairs two at a time, and slammed the front door behind her without a second glance back.

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