Lucas took hold of my arm again as he began dragging me towards the warehouse from where we had parked in the back. "How you hanging in there, sugar?" he asked, glancing down at me.

"I've come up with fifteen ways to kill you already," I quipped, forcing my voice to come out as sugary sweet as possible.

Brandon and the quiet one erupted into laughter as Lucas shoved through the door to the warehouse. "We're home!" he yelled, hurting my ears in the process.

"Make that sixteen," I mumbled, causing the other two to go into another laughing fit. I really didn't think what I was saying was all that funny.

"Vince!" Lucas called, towing me past the curious stares of the other men scattered around the open room.

"Back here," came a deep voice from what seemed to be an office space in the far corner of the building.

Lucas's grip on my arm turned to iron as his face hardened. "Do you have to act all macho in front of the boss man?" I questioned, wincing when he squeezed my arm even tighter.

"Try not to be as snippy with him as you've been with us," he said, pushing the door of the office open before dragging me inside with him. "He's not as nice."

"Nice?" I asked, crossing my arms indignantly over my chest once he released me. "Your friend just stole close to three hundred dollars off me."

"And who do we have here?" the same voice from earlier asked, causing me to pivot to face him.

Forest green eyes stared back at me. My eyes flickered over his face, taking in his strong jawline covered in stubble and dark, spiked hair faster than I thought possible. "None of your business," I spat before I could help myself. The minute the words were out of my mouth I winced. I really needed to gain a filter.

He arched one dark eyebrow at me as he stood from behind the desk. The fact that he towered over my measly 5'2 frame was evident even though at least five feet of space separated us. So when he did cross to stand directly in front of me, I had to crane my neck back to meet his gaze even with the help of my four inch heels. "Are you sure about that?" he murmured, and even though his voice was soft there was a dark undertone to it that sent a shiver skittering down my spine.

"Yes," I replied, never moving my gaze from his,

"This is Juliette," Lucas said, causing me to whip around to him. "She saw us attack Roberts."

"Did she now?" the one that could only be Vincent asked.

"Thanks a lot, Lucas," I growled, narrowing my eyes into angry slits.

He held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Don't come up with a seventeenth way to kill me," he teased with a wink.

"I'm working on an eighteenth." I stated.

"Juliette, huh?" Vincent questioned, requiring my attention as I faced him.

"That's right," I said, pulling at the collar of my jacket as heat started to seep into my skin. My eyes grazed over the black t-shirt that Vince was wearing. It couldn't cover the tattoo that snaked down his arm, nor the one that was poking out from the V-neck collar. Something in my gut told me that he was someone that I should be afraid of. Very afraid of. But when I raised my gaze back to his green eyes, I just felt irritated. I wanted to go home. "So can I go now?" I asked, gesturing towards the door.

His eyes zeroed in on the tattoo on the back of my hand before raising to meet my gaze. "I think you should have a seat first," he said, pointing to the one of the two armchairs on the opposite side of the desk from where he sat down. "You're dismissed, Luke," he added, nodding towards the blonde that I had temporarily forgotten was there.

I didn't turn my head, but when I heard the door shut I knew Lucas was gone. "If you're going to kill me, just get it over with," I told him, running a hand through my hair.

"Sit."

Glaring at him, I plopped down into the chair closest to me. "Happy now?" I fired off, once again pulling at the collar of my jacket. Did they have the heat on?

"Not particularly," he said, crossing his arms as he leaned back in his chair. "I have to figure out what to do with you."

"I'll tell you the same thing I told blondie," I started, hooking my thumb in the direction Lucas had vanished. "Just let me go home. I'm used to the crap that goes on around here. I'm not going to say anything."

"Blondie?" he questioned, arching his eyebrow again.

"Lucas, whatever."

"You can take your jacket off if you're hot."

"I'm fine."

His green eyes studied me as I crossed my legs and met his steady gaze. "Well then in that case, do you know who I am?"

"Vince."

The smallest of smiles graced his lips. "And more specifically?"

"Not a clue," I grumbled, shrugging my shoulders.

"I'm the leader of this gang," he informed me.

"Is that supposed to intimidate me or something?" I asked with raised eyebrows, finally relenting and shedding my jacket.

"It should," he said with a nod as he studied my arms. Under his scrutiny, I brushed my fingertips over my multitude of tattoos. "That's . . . surprising," he commented as his eyes widened the smallest fraction of an inch.

"I told you, I'm used to the area," I muttered, leaning back as I kicked my feet up to rest on the edge of his desk.

His eyes darkened as he glared at me. "You could at least attempt respect," he snapped, his calm demeanor crumbling.

Lowering my feet back to the ground, I held my hands up in a gesture of surrender. "Chill out, Vinnie," I soothed, though the minute the nickname fell from my lips I wanted to take it back.

"Don't call me that," he spat, narrowing his eyes at me. I met his stare head on, his reaction sparking something inside me.

A grin to rival that of the Cheshire cat curled my lips as I leaned forward. "And why not, Vinnie?"

He leaned forward as well, leaving only a mere foot of space between us over the small desk. "Because I could kill you like that," he stated, snapping his fingers to punctuate his sentence.

The low and dangerous undertone in his voice was back, causing that same shiver to slither down my spine. "I'm shaking," I taunted, wishing for all I was worth that I would just shut up.

Something akin to a growl rumbled in the back of his throat as he glared at me. He closed his eyes and seemed to be trying to control himself as he sighed through his nose. "Most girls would be on their knees by now," he told me a few moments later, leaning back once again. The sexual innuendo in his sentence didn't escape me.

"Begging for their lives or something else?" I questioned, disgust evident in my tone.

A wicked grin crossed his face for the briefest of seconds before it was gone. "Would you like to find out?"

"I'll pass."

His eyebrow arched again before he raised a hand and ran it through his already tousled hair. "Tell you what, you honestly don't seem like a threat. So for right now, I'll let you go."

"Why does it sound like there's a 'but' at the end of that sentence?" I muttered, slumping down into the chair.

"But," he continued. "If I find out you've said anything to the police about what you've seen, I'll kill you myself."

I winced at the mention of the police. He didn't need to worry about that. "Whatever you say, Vinnie," I replied, cursing myself once I saw the dark look on his face.

"In fact, I'll come with Lucas to take you home."

Resisting the urge to slap myself on the forehead, I stood and grabbed my leather jacket before moving towards the door. Vince beat me there, surprisingly holding it open for me. My eyes narrowed at him, but I brushed past him and out into the room with all the other men. Every head in the room snapped in our direction and I had to fight the urge to shrink back into a corner. Instead, I held my head high and trailed after Vince as he made his way towards Lucas.

"So what's the verdict, sugar?" the blonde asked once we reached him.

"I get to live," I said with a thumbs up.

"Nice ink," a semi-familiar voice said from behind me.

Jumping, I whirled around to find none other than Brandon standing there. Before I could even think about what I was doing, I pulled my fist back and let it snap forward. "Juliette!" Lucas exclaimed as several of the other men's jaw's dropped.

"What the hell?" Brandon yelled, blue eyes blazing as he glared at me.

"That, was for dumping my purse and robbing me. So, like I said, rent's due in a few days. Give me my money back or I'll make sure you never have children."

He grumbled something unintelligible before digging his hands into his pocket and bringing out a handful of cash. "Here," he grunted, thrusting the money my way.

Grinning, I took it and stuffed it back into my purse. "My knife and mace?" I questioned, faux innocence lacing my tone.

"Damn, that really hurt," he muttered, cradling his nose as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out the indicated items. I saw a line of blood trickle down his chin and my stomach rolled. Hold it together, Jules, I reminded myself. A fit of hysterics over a little blood was not necessary at that point.

After returning the last of my belongings to my bag as well, I met his eyes and bit my lip. "If it helps any, I wasn't thinking. Otherwise I might've asked nicer."

"So do you always randomly punch people?" Lucas asked, drawing my attention away from Brandon.

"Hey, I've been mugged and kidnapped all in the same night. I needed to punch something," I defended, shrugging my jacket on.

"Come on," Vincent stated, grabbing my arm before beginning to drag me towards the door.

"Sorry, Brandon!" I called over my shoulder.

He just waved as Vincent shoved me out into the night and slammed the door shut behind us. "Punching my men isn't scoring you any brownie points," he informed me, grabbing my arm again.

"Manhandling me isn't making me want to punch you any less," I retorted.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Lucas wince, but Vincent just smirked before leaning down to my ear. "You'd know if I was manhandling you," he murmured, the tone of his voice causing yet another shiver to run down my spine.

"Just take me home," I grumbled, fighting the unwelcome blush that wanted to tint my cheeks. I didn't blush and I damn sure wasn't going to start now.

"Happily," he stated, straightening up before towing me back to the black SUV. Once there he opened the door and all but threw me inside. As I unceremoniously crumpled onto the leather seat, Lucas got in the driver's side while Vince climbed in the passenger.

"How do you deal with him?" I muttered, my question aimed at Lucas.

However, it was Vincent that answered me. "Because unless he wants to risk his life, he kind of has to," he explained, meeting my eyes through the rearview mirror.

My lip curled as I turned to look out the window. "I don't believe I was talking to you, Vinnie," I said, the fake innocence once again present in my voice.

Lucas started to laugh, but quickly tried to disguise it as a cough. "Just because I'm being nice to you, doesn't mean I won't change my mind and kill you right now," Vince warned.

Fear seized my heart because I knew he was completely serious, but I waved him off all the same. "Calm down," I said.

A heavy sigh sounded from the front, and I was guessing it came from Vince. "So," Lucas started, causing me to refocus my attention on him. "What's a girl like you doing on this side of town anyway?"

"A girl like me?" I parroted, raising my eyebrows as I tried to dodge the question.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," he replied. "A pretty thing like you doesn't normally hang out down here."

"Circumstances don't really favor people by looks." My voice was sharper than I intended, but I didn't bother to apologize for it.

"So what's your story, sugar?" he pressed.

"Drop it," I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest. "After tonight you're never going to see me again so there's no reason to get all buddy-buddy."

Lucas's brow furrowed, but his attention focused back on the road. Neither of them spoke to me again, so I turned and stared out the window. My life story wasn't any of their business. And my words were true. There was no way I was going to the police, so the chances of any of us ever running into each other again was slim to none.

"How far do you live?" Vince asked, breaking the silence that had descended over the car.

Sighing, I focused on the outside world enough to see that we were passing the alley where I had first spotted Lucas, Brandon, and the quiet one whose name I had never learned. "You can let me out here," I said, already placing my hand on the door handle.

"I don't think so, princess."

"Excuse me?" I asked, my eyebrows raising as I whipped my head around to face him.

"I told you, if you go to the police I'm coming after you. So I need to know where you live."

"Leave it to me to get caught up in a bunch of gang shit," I muttered to myself. "Keep going and then turn onto Dixon. I'm the first building on the right."

"I seriously don't think I've heard anybody but Vince cuss as much as you, sugar," Lucas commented, maneuvering the car according to my instructions.

"If you had worked with my boss for the past three years you'd understand," I said, a wry grin forming on my face at the thought of Dante. If he found out about this I'd never hear the end of it.

"Who's your boss?" Vincent questioned as the car rolled to a stop in front of my building.

"Oh no," I started, rapidly shaking my head as I scooted over to the other side so that I would be getting out on the side closest to the door to my building. "You know where I live, I'm not letting you know where I work too."

Jumping out of the car, I didn't spare either man a glance as I hastened across the sidewalk to my building. However, I hadn't even made it ten steps before a hand on my wrist had me careening back into a hard chest. Glancing up with wide eyes, I took in the smug smile painted across Vincent's face. "I'll walk you in," he said, nodding towards my building.

My eyes narrowed in suspicion, but I sighed and allowed him to follow me in all the same. Digging my keys out of my purse took longer than I would have liked thanks to Brandon messing everything up, but Vincent held the door open for me as I crossed into the small lobby. Not that it was much of a lobby, just a small area before the hall leading to the first floor of the apartments. Cursing once I reached the last door on the right, I knelt down in front of it to better search through my bag. "If I ever see Brandon again I'm going to kill him," I grumbled.

Laughter erupted from about me and I tilted my face up to face Vince with a glare. "Why do you have it out for Brandon?" he asked.

"He stole my money – and I'm pretty sure he kept some of it – and completely screwed up how I had my bag organized." Once I was done with my mini-rant, I ran my hand through my hair. "I can't find my damn keys." The minute the words were out of my mouth, the hand that was still in my bag clamped around cool metal. "Never mind," I said, pulling the keys out before standing.

Another soft chuckle escaped him before he stepped closer to me. "Remember what I told you," he breathed in my ear, the heat from his body radiating into mine.

"No po-po. Got it," I teased, unlocking my door before swinging it open.

"You're a strange girl, princess," he told me, leaning against the wall as I stooped to pick up my purse.

"Don't call me that, Vinnie," I snapped, stepping into my apartment before turning back to him. He opened his mouth to reply, but the deep growl from behind me cut him off. "Chill out, Dex," I called, causing the threatening sound to cut off.

"Dex?" Vincent questioned, arching one dark eyebrow as he craned his neck to get a look inside my dark apartment.

"You think I live alone out here?" I asked, opening my door farther as I whistled through my teeth. The harsh sound split the air, but the rustling from the couch told me all I needed to know.

Vincent's eyes widened as Dexter stepped out beside me, his hulking form comforting me for the first time since I left the bar. "A Rottweiler?" he murmured, surprise coloring his tone.

Dexter pulled his lips back and bared his teeth at Vince until I rested my hand between his ears. "My protector," I said, kneeling down to wrap my arms around the best dog anyone could ever ask for.

Vincent grunted before shoving off the wall. "Just keep your mouth shut and you won't have to see me again," he reminded me before turning and walking towards the front door of the building.

My eyes trailed down to his backside and I admired it for a moment before I snapped myself out of it. Scary gangbanger, Jules, I told myself, retreating into my apartment and shutting the door before locking it. Bad idea, I chanted in my head as I tossed the keys onto the end table.

Dexter whined to get my attention, so I sighed and made my way into the small kitchen tossing my bag onto the couch along the way. Once there, I dug around in one of the cabinets until I found his food. "Quiet down," I muttered, pouring out a generous amount before dumping it into his bowl. Setting the bowl on the ground, he almost knocked me over in his rush to get to it. Shaking my head at him, I left him to his dinner as I crossed through the living room to my bedroom.

I didn't waste any time before shedding my work uniform. The white tank covered with a black vest was constricting, but when you work at a bar called Tuxedo, you deal with it. The next thing to go were my heels, followed by the high-waisted shorts, and finally the hose. Before long I was going to have to talk Dante into something a little more practical. The uniforms the girls had wear were smothering. It got so hot in the bar on busy nights that I could barely breathe, and I knew I wasn't the only one. My best friend Devyn wasn't very fond of them either. She constantly talked about how she was going to give Dante a piece of her mind, not that she ever did.