Chapter 8

• NOLAN’S POV
• I sat in my dining chair, staring blankly at the unopened bottle of whiskey on the table. The light coming in from the city skyline stretched beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows lighting the room dimly. My phone rang, pulling me out of my deep thoughts. The name on the screen was for one of my men, this could either make my day or leave me livid. I swiped to answer, my voice clipped.
• “What?”
• “Boss, we’ve got a problem,” the man stammered. His tone already irritating me.
• “Spit it out,” I snapped, ready to get the conversation over with.
• “There was… a raid at the docks,” he said, hesitating with every word. “They were waiting for us. Three crates are gone—seized before we could get them out.”
• My jaw tightened. “A raid? How the hell did they know? Someone talk?”
• “I—I don’t know yet. But we’re working on it,” he stuttered.
• “Working on it?” I repeated with disgust “I don’t pay you stupid assholes to work on it!” I said my anger rising “I pay you bastards to ensure situations like this don’t happen in the first place!”
• “I’m sorry boss”
• “And how much are we out?” I asked even though I already knew the answer would piss me off.
• “About $500,000… maybe more,” he admitted dejectedly.
• The line went silent on my end for a second, I was trying to process the level of incompetence I was dealing with as I rubbed my head trying to calm the incoming headache.
• “You’d better find out who’s behind this. If I don’t have answers by morning, you’ll be answering to me!” I growled out as I ended the call and threw the phone onto the table with so much force.
• The anger boiling in me kept growing by the minute and I felt like I needed an outlet. I clenched my fist, and before I could think better of it, I slammed it into the glass table.
• The loud crack echoed in the room as the table splintered beneath my fist. Pain shot through my hand, and when I pulled it back I could see blood dripping onto the surface. I didn’t care. I barely felt it.
• My chest heaved heavily as I tried to calm myself. Rage was almost like a second skin for me. It was a familiar yet suffocating feeling always threatening to consume me entirely.
• And then, as if the universe wanted to test me further, the doorbell to my condo rang loudly across the house. I turned to look at the door, the sound of the bell irritating me further.
• “Who the hell is it now?” I muttered under my breath, wiping my bloody knuckles on a towel as I walked toward the door.
• I swung the door open, and it was obvious the universe really had it out for me. Clara was standing at the entrance with her arms crossed over her chest and glaring at me. Just great.
• “Nolan!” she yelled in her irritating and screeching voice. She brushed past me and entered the condo without waiting for an invitation.
• I shut the door behind her, already regretting not ignoring the doorbell. “What do you want, Clara?”
• “Oh, don’t play dumb with me Nolan,” she said as she turned to face me with a glare. “I heard you’re getting married.”
• I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Who told you that?”
• “Does it matter? Is it true?” she demanded, her voice rising.
• I pinched the bridge of my nose, the throbbing in my hand now accompanied by a headache. “Clara, I’m not in the mood for this right now. Leave.”
• She ignored me as she stepped closer and was now directly in front of me. “No, I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell is going on! Who the fuck is she Nolan?! You’ve been screwing someone else behind my back, you bastard?!”
• “Clara,” I warned her with my tone deadly calm.
• “You think you can just toss me aside like I’m nothing?” she continued.
• Her words grated my ears, each one like nails on a chalkboard. “Shut up,” I said, my voice coming out in a low tone.
• “No, I won’t shut up!” she yelled, her face inches from mine now. “You owe me an explanation!”
• I snapped. Before I could think, I grabbed her by the arm and slammed her against the table. The cracked surface shifted under the force as she gasped in shock.
• “Enough!” I hissed, my face close to hers. “You don’t get to tell me what I owe you! You don’t tell me anything! I don’t owe you any fucking thing!”
• Her lips parted, and for a moment, she looked like she might fight back. Instead, she smirked with defiance and desire flashing in her eyes.
• “So this is how it’s going to be, huh?” she whispered in a sultry tone, her voice dripping with challenge.
• This was a bait, and I was sure as hell going to take it.
• I didn’t respond. I didn’t need to. Instead, I crushed my mouth against hers, my anger melting into every rough movement. She responded in kind as her nails dug into my shoulders daring me to take it further.
• And I did. I needed an outlet for my frustration, and this was it.
• I pushed her further onto the table, the jagged edges of the cracked glass digging into her back. She didn’t complain, instead, she looked like she enjoyed the pain. It was toxic and twisted, exactly what I needed.
• In one swift motion, I lifted her short skirt, revealing her lace red underwear. Without hesitation, I tore it away and pulled down my joggers and briefs after.
• I spread her legs open wider as I slammed my entire length into her, and she let out a loud moan.
• “This is what you wanted, huh?” I growled, my voice low and rough, as I thrust myself deeper into her, with my pace increasing with every thrust.
• “Yes, baby,” she managed to say between her moans, her voice sounding breathless.
• Her expression was a blend of pain and pleasure. The cracked table pressed into her skin, leaving tiny cuts that made her bleed as I rocked her back and forth. My hands, still bloodied from earlier, gripped her neck firmly, her gasps fueling my relentless pace.
• Every rough touch and muffled groan from me was a release for the fury I couldn’t direct at the bastards who had cost me half a million dollars. I took it all out on her, and she let me. This was why Clara and I worked—we were both drawn to the chaos.
• As I neared my peak, I pulled out of her and came on her stomach as she lay sprawled across the table. The room fell quiet except for our heavy breathing.
• Stepping back, I grabbed a towel to clean the blood from my knuckles. The ache in my hand was faint now, overshadowed by the aftermath of what we’d just done.
• Clara propped herself up on her elbows, “Feel better?” she asked in a sarcastic tone.
• I didn’t give her a response. My phone buzzed on the other side of the table, breaking the silence. I walked over to grab it, swiping the screen to read the notification.
• From Father: The wedding date is set. Come home tomorrow.
• I stared at the message, my jaw tightening again. The once calmed anger in me resurfaced again.
• “What now?” Clara asked as she read my facial expression.
• I tossed the phone onto the couch as I made my way into my room. “Nothing that concerns you. Clean yourself up and get out of my house” I said before slamming the door to my room.
• There were too many battles to fight and too many enemies to crush. And now, I had a wedding to survive.