busy with drop—“I can take Adriana home.” He flashes her with that stupid, charming smile of his.
“Yeah, like hell you will.” Grayson squares up to Dex, ignoring his better judgment telling him not to make a scene, not now, not here.
“Grayson, stop it.” Adriana’s voice is urgent, and her hand on his arm is probably the only thing that’s stops him from swinging a punch.
“You want to fight me, Grayson? Right here, right now.” Dex levels him with a cold, hard stare and then drops his voice so that only Grayson can hear him. “Her pussy must be real sweet to get you this bent out of shape. I guess I’ll find out sooner or later.” He shrugs like Adriana is a foregone conclusion, and Grayson takes another step towards him.
“Easy, G.” Suddenly Tommy is in-between them, pushing them back from each other. “It’s not the time or the place.”
“Grayson.” Adriana’s voice brings him back to his senses. He realizes that they’re the center of attention. There were strict rules about fighting outside of the ring, and Dex was just trying to goad him into throwing the first punch.
“Let’s get out of here.” Grayson grabs hold of Adriana’s wrist and pulls her behind him.
“Nice to meet you, Adriana. Call me!” Dex’s laugh rings in Grayson’s ears, and he has to fight the urge not to turn around and give the guy the pounding of his life. He’ll get the chance to do that in the ring.
“What the hell is the matter with you?” Adriana finally wrenches herself free from his grip outside the limo. She’s breathing hard, and her eyes are flashing like fire.
“What’s the matter with me? What the hell’s the matter with you?” He’s so jacked he feels like he wants to tear his hair out. “What are you doing talking to Dexter?”
She folds her arms and raises her chin, an expression of determination that Grayson is becoming more and more familiar with. “The last time I checked I could talk to whomever I wanted to, Grayson!”
“He’s not a good guy, Adrie. He’s not someone you want to get involved with.” Grayson rubs his temples, trying to get Dex’s mocking words out of his head. He should have punched his teeth out for talking about Adriana like that.
“What? And you are? Is that what you’re saying, Grayson? That you’re a good guy? That you’re someone I should get involved with? Because the last time I checked, good guys didn’t sneak out of bed without a word, good guys didn’t disappear into thin air with no kind of explanation.” Adriana’s face is flushed, and she’s swaying a little as she talks.
“You’re drunk.” Grayson reaches out to steady her.
“Don’t touch me.” She pulls away from him so violently she looks like she’s in danger of toppling over. “And yeah, I’ve had a couple of drinks. Something you might have known if you had spent any time with me tonight.” Her bottom lip trembles, and she bites on it, a gesture that breaks Grayson’s heart.
“So that’s why you were talking to Dexter? Because you didn’t think that I was paying you any attention?” Grayson looks searchingly at her, frustrated that he can’t seem to get anything right.
“I was talking to Dex because he was nice and charming and funny and he was interested in me. Is that so hard to believe, Grayson? It wasn’t about you! It was about me!” Adriana shakes her head like she can’t believe how self-absorbed he’s being. “Goodbye Grayson.” She turns around and takes a step before he grabs her hand and spins her around.
“Where are you going?” How was it possible for one woman to be so goddam confusing, he wonders to himself?
“To get a taxi. I want to go home.” She goes to leave again, but Grayson hasn’t let go of her hand.
“Get in the car, Adrie. I’ll take you home.” He opens the passenger door and looks at her expectantly, but her face is creased into a