Page 13 of No Fear
“I…I… but….” Rachel struggled not to whimper when she had to watch the bearded Bomar boy nod and then turn to walk away. He hadn’t done much to make her feel safe but he’d promised Remy he would protect her. Surely that should have extended to keeping his brothers hands off her. But no, of course not, because nobody dared to oppose their leader. “P-please let me go.”
“Sorry, not yet. We need to talk.”
She stiffened when Lincoln ignored her request and held her firmly at his side. If he thought she’d run the moment he loosened his grip, he would have been right. He might be hot but his touch chilled her to the bone. There was something calculating in his every move, every word, and it sent her survival instincts into overdrive. She needed away from him but since she couldn’t run she simply stayed quiet and as still as could be.
It was the same tactic she used with Craig.
“Who are you?” Lincoln asked, his lips thinning seriously as his eyes raked over her, “I’ve never seen you here before. You don’t look like a groupie, despite your clothes, but you do look strangely familiar. Tell me why.”
She wasn’t surprised he ordered instead of asking. Just like she wasn’t surprised that he didn’t know her. She was a nobody particularly to a man as powerful as this one.
It did surprise her that he remembered having seen her somewhere, until she remembered that her evil half-brother was one of Lincoln’s minions. It was possible he wasn’t recalling her at all but rather that she looked familiar because he knew Craig. They didn’t have much in common but their looks were similar enough to show a shared parentage.
Silently she prayed that Lincoln didn’t place her as Craig’s sister. If he did, he would probably call her brother over and then she had no idea what she would do. Remy had claimed her. Craig couldn’t touch her, right? But she’d thought, stupidly, naively, that Lincoln couldn’t either. Yet here she stood, with his hands on her, that creeping feeling of discomfort rising up her throat, and no way out.
“I w-w-work for Skylar.” She admitted the only thing she could, hoping it would appease him.
“At the salon. Right.” His brows furrowed, “So what are you doin’ here? Ya know your boss ain’t gonna be pleased if she finds out you’re hanging with this lot.”
Her throat felt tight again so she simply shrugged. Lincoln raised an eyebrow and she knew that he didn’t believe her indifference. And why should he? She didn’t believe herself either. She hated the thought of Skylar being upset or disappointed in her. She was the closest thing to a friend that Rachel had ever had and she didn’t want to lose her.
“Don’t worry. I won’t be the one to tell her you were slummin’ it.” Lincoln winked, “But, since you are here, and since this is kind of my show tonight, why don’t you do me a favor and tell me what it is that brought you down here? Maybe I can help you… Skylar’s assistant.”
“It’s Ra-Ra-Ra…” She started to introduce herself but the sound of the crowd cut her off.
All around them, men erupted in shouts and cheers. Several whistled and clapped, others stomped their feet until the barn practically shuddered on its frame. There were a few people that booed but they were drowned out as well.
Her gaze swung to the cage again automatically and she winced at what she saw. There was a man crumpled to the ground in the center of the ring. He had his hands cupped to his face and blood was pouring down through the cracks between his fingers. Her stomach flipped at the sight even as a wave of relief went through her that it wasn’t Remy.
Her relief, however, was short lived.
“Rachel!”
She winced at the sound of her name being bellowed. Instantly, a dozen memories rose up to grip her with an age old fear. Whenever her name was yelled like that, it meant something bad was coming. Even as she knew that this wasn’t the same thing, she couldn’t help but freeze with fear when she saw Remy kick the door of the cage open.
He looked beyond angry. He was furious and all that rage was pointed directly at her. Oh God, she shivered, this had been a really bad idea. His gaze shifted a fraction of an inch and the breath she’d been holding came out as a relieved sigh. No, she wasn’t the one he was mad at. Not at all.
Lincoln had been wrong.
“Rachel!” Remy growled her name again as he pushed his way through the crowd.
God, he was... sexy. She’d never thought of a man that way before Remy. The few men she’d been attracted to before had been small, non-threatening, the complete opposite of Remy Bomar. She’d always avoided men like him but now, looking at him as he charged through the crowd, she was tempted to run towards him, not away.
His dark hair was cut short, almost buzzed to his scalp. The short strands were damp with sweat, just like the rest of him and insanely, she wondered if he still smelled like he usually did. Musky, manly, a hint of smoke and soap and something else, something that made the butterflies in her belly take flight whenever he came near her.
As he came closer now, she saw that his square jaw was tense, as if he was gritting his teeth. The stubble there was the same dark color as his hair, almost black, and it wasn’t just a five o’clock shadow. He always had that perma-stubble look that when paired with his sharp good looks and dark blue eyes made him the epitome of a bad boy.
Those navy eyes met hers again and a shiver raced down her spine. He was half-naked and coming closer and closer. His broad chest was slick with sweat and his muscles bunched. The black ink that wrapped around his hip and his bicep only added to the dangerous image. She’d never seen him like this, so rough, so raw, so… overwhelming.
“Rachel, get away from him.” He growled as he stopped in front of her, the circle of people around her moving to give him room, everyone but Lincoln who kept a firm grip on her when she tried to pull away.
“Remy…” Lincoln spoke up before she could find her voice.
“Fuck off Link.” He snapped.
“Remington.” Lincoln’s tone turned cold even as his eyes flashed fire, “Calm down. You’re scaring the girl.”
Remy tore his murderous gaze off his cousin to look at her and she winced as she saw his handsome face pale. She was shaking now. She could feel it though she couldn’t have pinpointed when it started. Her entire body was trembling. But Lincoln was wrong again. She wasn’t scared of Remy. She was scared of how much she wanted to leap into his arms and beg him to take her away from all of this.
