“An assassin of the heart.”
That did it. I burst out laughing even louder than before. I laughed harder than I had in months. He was playing, being intentionally ridiculous, but it worked. If it hadn’t been for the threat of Wolf’s jealousy, I’d have gotten on the back of his bike and ridden with him wherever the hell he wanted. I’d always been a sucker for a cocky bad boy with the guts to let me know what he wanted from me.
“I’ve never heard anyone use that line,” I laughed.
He was smirking now. He knew he’d won me over. “It’s not a line.”
“Isn’t it?”
His eyes crawled over me, lingering on all the hotspots. He had some nerve. I had to give him that much. He knew how to walk into a room, spot what he wanted, and go for it.
“Well, before you get carried away, you ought to know I’m Wolf’s girl.”
“Is that a warning?”
“I’d just hate to see anything bad happen to you.”
He took a seat at the bar next to me. It was a bold gesture given that every other seat in the place was empty.
“Why would anything bad happen?” he said.
“Well, you seem to be getting ideas.”
“What sort of ideas?”
I looked away. He was trying to goad me. “You know what I mean.”
He looked right at me with those intense eyes. His jaw looked like it was cut from marble. I wanted to rub my hand against the shadow of his stubble, just to feel its roughness.
“What if I told you I don’t care whose girl you are?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“What if you got on my bike right now, and rode back with me to Rio Secco?”
“Wolf would kill you,” I said.
“Wolf can go fuck himself.”
No one spoke that way about Wolf. Was this a test? Had Wolf sent this guy to see how I’d respond? I wouldn’t put it past him.
“Who are you?” I said.
“Listen, I’m not kidding. I can see you don’t like this shit hole. I don’t blame you. Your boyfriend’s scum. You’re too good for him. Los Lobos are heartless bastards. There’s something better, and it’s just a ride away.”
“As easy as that?” I said.
“Sure.”
“We’d go back to your place?”
“Yes we would.”
“What then?”
“Then we’d fuck like rabbits.”
“Charming,” I said, but I wasn’t as unaffected as I put on.
My lip quivered with emotion that seemed to rise up from nowhere. It was raw, a mixture of anger and sorrow. I wasn’t angry at him. I was angry at the situation I was in, and the fact that I couldn’t take him up on his offer, no matter how right he was about my life. I wanted to cry but I held it in.
“Don’t think, just do it,” he said. “We’ll be in California before Wolf even knows you’re missing.”
“Just do it?”
“I’ll show you what it’s like to be with a real man.”
For a second I lost it. I slapped him across the face. That surprised him. It had seemingly come from nowhere. Where did he get off? Did he honestly think I’d throw myself at him for saying something like that? Even if I could? He was insane. I put force into that slap, really hit him hard. I knew it hurt.
“What was that for?”
“Don’t ever speak to me like that. I’m not perfect, but the least I deserve is respect. You don’t even know me.”
“Don’t I?” he said, trying to lighten the mood again, but I wasn’t having it.
“Fuck you,” I said.
I was being unfair. I was blaming him for all that was wrong in my life. Through his shirt I could see the tattoos inked into his skin. They were intricate and so sexy on his perfect chest. I prayed he couldn’t tell how attracted to him I was.
“Look, I know Wolf. I know Los Lobos. I know how they treat their women.”
“You don’t know shit about me.”
“Everything doesn’t have to be the way Wolf says it is. Not everyone’s afraid of him and his cocksucker friends.”
“They’re killers.”
“They’re not the only killers.”
“Oh, that’s supposed to make me feel better? Leave one criminal to get in bed with another?”
“Now you’re talking,” he said.
He made me so angry. This was my life, and he was treating me like some random pickup in a bar. I suppose to him I was a random pickup in a bar.
“And what then?” I said. “After you’re done with me? After you’ve had your way with me and I’ve given you everything you want? What the fuck then?”
“Then we get married. Make babies. White picket fence.”
I slapped him again, harder than the first time. It was so hard my hand stung. I took pleasure from the fact his cheek reddened.
He shook his head. I’d angered him.
I was wearing a cheap necklace, a heart pendant on a silver chain, and he grabbed it in his fist and yanked it. The chain snapped and he put it in his pocket. What the fuck was that supposed to mean? That he’d stolen my heart? He hadn’t stolen shit.
“You’re cruel,” I said.
“Maybe I am, but I meant every word I said to you.”