Page 105 of Howl for Me
I don’t look at him. Not once. I refuse. Even when my entire body hums with the ache of wanting to. Finally, I can’t take it anymore.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” I mutter, slipping out of Hugo’s too-tight grip.
I don’t wait for him to say anything. I just need to breathe. I move fast, heels clicking across the marble, pushing past partygoers and warm bodies and the low thrum of bass that’s suddenly too loud. The hallway is dim and cold, and the powder room glows like a polished jewel at the end of it. I duck inside, lock the door, and lean over the sink.
The water runs too loud as I splash my face. My hands are shaking. That’s when the door opens behind me. Hugo slips in, quiet as smoke, and shuts the door behind him like it’s nothing.
“What are you doing?” I snap, spinning to face him.
He smiles. That same smug, practiced smirk he’s worn all night. “Come on,” he says, voice too soft. “Don’t act like you haven’t been flirting all night.”
I step back automatically, heart slamming. “You need to leave.”
“You’re just nervous.” He shrugs, taking another step toward me. “I get it.”
I reach behind me and hit the edge of the vanity. No more room to move. “I said, get out.”
But he doesn’t listen. He lunges, and then he’s on me. Fast and greedy; hands everywhere. I shove at his chest, but he’s stronger and heavier. I dig into my clutch, my fingers scrambling until I find the pepper spray.
I aim, and this time, I remember to point it the right way. I spray him full in the face. He screams, stumbling back, clawing at his eyes, coughing and cursing through the burn. Swinging wildly, his fist cracks against my mouth with a sickening thud. My head whips sideways. I taste blood before I feel the pain. My body slams into the vanity, ribs catching the corner hard. Stars explode behind my eyes.
Then the door crashes open.
And Johnny is there; his claws are out, eyes glowing the way they do when he’s on the edge of losing it. He grabs Hugo by the collar and throws him like a rag doll into the hallway wall. A framed painting shatters to the floor. Hugo’s groan barely has time to escape before Johnny is on him again, fists pounding, claws raking, snarling like something ancient.; something feral. The hallway erupts in shouting. Security rushes in, trying to pull Johnny off, but it takes all three of them. Hugo’s face is a wreck, shirt shredded, blood smeared down his cheek.
Johnny lets them drag him back but his eyes never leave me.
“Cass,” he calls over the chaos, voice raw. “Cassidy, baby, are you okay? Look at me, are you okay?”
I nod. My hands won’t stop shaking. I reach up and touch my mouth, come away with blood. The sharp tang of iron blooms across my tongue.
“I’m okay,” I whisper, but he’s already being hauled toward the door, still thrashing, still trying to get back to me. Lori’s wide-eyed face comes into view. She looks around taking in the scene like a war zone. She wraps an arm around me and glares at Hugo writhing on the ground.
“I knew I should’ve roundhouse kicked that pervy little freak.”
Chapter Twenty One
Johnny
I’m pacing just outside the house, hands balled into fists, blood still smeared across my knuckles. I can smell him on me. That piece of shit, Hugo. If they hadn't dragged me off him, I would’ve ripped his fucking throat out. And I don’t regret it, not even a little. I’m about to go back in, consequences be damned, when the door opens. She walks out, the look on her face cutting me to pieces. My mate. Her lip is swollen, split. I see it in the glow of the porch light and it makes my chest burn like someone poured gasoline on my ribs and lit a match.
“You sure you’re okay?” I ask, voice low, jaw tight.
She nods and walks toward me, soft, careful, like she’s not sure she should. I can see her hesitation, and I want nothing more than to pull her into me and whisper that I’ve got her now, that no one’s ever touching her like that again.
But then..
“We need to get you out of here right now.”
Naomi barrels out like a freight train and grabs me by the arm.
“Before Hector finds out. What the hell were you thinking?” Her nails bite into my skin like talons, dragging me back toward the driveway. I look past her, right at Cassidy. Her expression shifts. She deflates, just a little. But I see it. I want to scream, no, it's not what it looks like, don’t walk away, please don’t believe for a second that I don’t care.
Naomi turns to her, voice still fierce. “Are you okay? That fucking sicko had it coming.”
Cassidy gives a small smile. “I’m okay, really.”
God, she’s so damn brave. I want to tear the world apart just to keep her safe. Naomi’s already pulling me again. “We need to go. Hector’s going to lose his shit if he finds you here.”
