Chapter 70 The Devil You Know.

Chapter 70 The Devil You Know.
~SCARLETT.

You know that moment when you’re finally trying to do the right thing and then the devil in your head just laughs and shoves you straight off the cliff?

Yeah.

That’s me now, cold all the way through, staring at the message for the millionth time hoping the letters might shift into something less fucking audacious.

When it obviously didn’t, a cocktail of emotions came crashing hard into me. 

Anger came first, because from the nickname alone, and the possessive edge in the text, I knew damn well who had sent it.
Then came the ugly realization that if he could text me on a number he should never have… then Liam wasn’t far. He was here. Tracking me. Watching me this very second.
And I don’t even need to scan the room to confirm it. He’d never put himself anywhere obvious.
For how long had he been watching?
Minutes? 
Hours?
Long enough, apparently, because the first line of his text made it painfully clear he’d seen everything.
And then, like the absolute slut she was, my pussy clenched tight at the thought of what the last line implied, imagining just how much more brutal the punishment could be than the last time at Velvet Fang.
But that only made the panic spike even higher.
How fucking dare he?!
So when I lifted my head and met Lucas’s worried eyes… the devil in my ear won. 
I didn’t just throw caution to the wind, I launched it into orbit. My phone and purse hit the piano as I yanked Lucas by the shirt and crushed my mouth to his.
He stiffened at first, clearly caught off guard, but within a second, he melted into it, kissing me back with a softness that had nothing in common with Liam’s angry, bruising kiss the first night we met at La Casa Rosa’s bar.
And as our lips moved together, I realized…that night with Liam had been the first, and only, time he’d ever kissed me.
Pulling back slightly, I sank my teeth gently into Lucas’s bottom lip, and the soft groan that left him sent a satisfied smirk curling across my own.
I knew damn well I was only doing this to spite Liam.
Ten seconds, he said? Hope he’s enjoying the fucking show.
Lucas drew me closer, helping me settle on his lap as I straddled him. His hands rested on my waist, then crept up my sides, fingers tracing lightly while his lips left soft, teasing kisses along my throat.
Sighing–faked, of course–I threw my head back and raised a single finger behind him, flipping off the empty room.
Let Liam see that.
Lucas came back up to kiss me again, but before our lips even met, my phone rang, loud enough to obliterate everything.
Flinching, I slid off Lucas’s lap with a shaky apology and grabbed my phone, fully expecting the caller ID to say “Unknown”.
But when the screen lit up and “HARD‑ASS RICK” glared back at me, a bucket of ice water slammed over my entire body.
I glanced at the time, and my eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when I saw it was almost ten.
“Oh, shit.”
I’d been so wrapped up in chaos–internal, external, emotional, hormonal, take your pick–that I completely lost track of time.
“Shit, shit, shit…”
Ignoring the call, I muttered curse after curse and turned to Lucas, whose face was still bright red. “I have to go. Like, now. I’m supposed to be performing tonight… Rick is going to actually kill me.”
Lucas straightened as fast as a guy with a hard-on in tight jeans could manage. “Right, yeah, okay. Let’s go.”
We hurried out into the chilly night air, moonlight pouring over the tall grass. I finally answered Rick’s sixth call.
“Rick, listen–”
He did not. 
“Where the fuck are you, Red?!”
I closed my eyes. Yep. He was pissed. Like… really pissed.
“I know I’m running late, but I’m on my–”
“You’ve been pushing your luck,” he said, this time using a dangerously calm tone. “And I’ve let things slide because you make me good money. But my patience is wearing thin, Red.”
I winced. 
That’s the thing about Rick… calm wasn’t his default, but when he slipped into it… yeah, I’d rather take my chances with a speeding bus.
“I’m sorry, Rick, I really am,” I said quickly, just as Lucas unlocked the car. “I’ll be there in a jiffy, I promise.”
We slid into the seats, and Lucas started the engine.
“You better be,” Rick growled. “Or so help me—”
“Yes, yes. I’m aware,” I interrupted, not because I knew what he’d say next, but because I was done with his angry tirades for the moment.
He grunted irritably and hung up, leaving the car in a silence so thick I could hear my own heartbeat thumping in my ears.
“Jesus,” I scrubbed a hand over my face. “He’s gonna skin me alive the second I walk in.”
Lucas chuckled quietly but nothing as he eased the car back onto the narrow road, only this time he was driving much slower.
I frowned. “Lucas? What’s going on? Why are we moving like… this?”
“I… don’t know,” he tapped the gas. “The car feels sluggish.”
“Sluggish? How do–”
A vicious, sharp POP, then another right on its heels, slashed into the night before I could finish speaking.
The car jerked violently before Lucas slammed the brakes, forcing us off to the side of the lonely road.
We just stared at each other.
“What the hell?” he breathed.
Flipping the headlights on, he jumped out instantly, while my butt remained glued to the seat, my insides tightening with dread. 
My knuckles went white around my phone as I prayed fervently that it wasn’t what I feared. Then I pushed myself out of the car and hurried over to him.
Lucas was crouched by the right back tire, staring at it with pure disbelief. 
The moment his eyes met mine… I knew. My prayers once again had gone unanswered.
“Two tires,” he said quietly. “Front and back. Both blown.”
“Oh God… no. No, no, no. How am I supposed to get to the club now?”
“I swear I don’t know how this happened,” Lucas said quickly. “They were fine earlier, I checked.”
I didn’t even get a chance to respond before my phone buzzed in my hand.
One glance at the message from the same unknown number sent the dread inside me snapping further open.
Unknown: Done proving whatever fucking point you thought you had? Good. Mine’s just starting.
I didn’t even get a breath in before a sharp CRACK rang out, echoing exactly like something heavy smashing into Lucas’s windshield.
Both of our heads whipped toward it.
“What the–Stay here.”
Lucas didn’t wait for an answer; he was already circling the car slowly, leaving me shaking, my heartbeat stuttering wildly.
Not wanting to be left alone, I ignored his instruction and started to follow him. I hadn’t even taken two steps when a hand clamped over my mouth from behind.
I was yanked backward, hard, into the tall grass. My phone slipped from my grasp as a strong arm pinned both my wrists behind me, trapping them in one massive hand.
A hot, furious breath ghosted against my ear, and a low, rage‑shaking voice whispered, “Hello, Red.”