“What do you think?” His sarcastic reply had her unobtrusively searching for her purse, which wasn’t easy with the knife pointed at her.
“You could just let me leave,” Penni mumbled with forlorn hope when she saw the spark of desire in his eyes as he glanced down her body.
Penni’s breath caught in her throat. The beating of her heart sped up when she felt the danger race toward her as he moved closer to her.
“That could be hard to do since you’re out of gas.”
“I can walk.”
The man didn’t seem to appreciate the humor.
“That doesn’t work for me. You might decide to call the cops.”
Penni wrinkled her nose as the smell of alcohol on his breath wafted closer.
“I know you don’t know me, but I’m really good at minding my own business.”
“Shut your trap.”
Penni winced as a drop of blood slowly dribbled down her throat. She didn’t dare glance toward her purse. Carefully, she used the heel of her tennis shoe to drag her purse closer.
When the stranger cupped her breast in a forceful gesture, Penni didn’t scream, trying to keep him distracted.
“Are you just going to leave him there?” She nodded toward the dead body.
“Why not? It’s not like he’s going to complain.”
The man became even bolder when she didn’t struggle against his hold. Her top was slipped from under her jeans as he burrowed his hands underneath, wrenching several buttons loose on the front of her blouse. Penni was tempted to use one of the chairs on a table to brain the man intent on raping her.
Biding her time, she used her tennis shoe to reached for her purse. She bit the inside of her jaw, ignoring the sensation of his tongue entering her mouth. She damn near vomited. She wanted to rake her hands down his face. Instead, she pretended to like it as she searched her purse for what she wanted. The disgusting excuse of a man really believed she was responding to him. Thankfully, her fingers curled over what she wanted.
“Woman, we’re going to have a lot of fun.”
“Yes, we are,” Penni promised as he shoved his disgusting tongue down her throat.
Not able to control her gag reflex any longer, she pulled her tongue from harm’s way. The teeth that her dentist had charged a small fortune for bit down, nearly ripping the offending invader from her mouth, but he couldn’t seek sanctuary.
She ignored the bloodcurdling screams that filled the bar as she pressed against his chest, engaging the trigger on her Taser.
Penni didn’t let him go until he was writhing in agony and had pissed himself. Then she stumbled to her feet, grabbing for her purse as she ran toward the door. She almost lost her balance in the flight but managed to right herself as she reached the door.
The humid air filled her lungs as she took a flying leap off the step. Then …
“No!” Penni found herself pinned within a pair of strong arms that refused to relinquish her struggling body.
“I didn’t know we’re having a party, Hennessey.”
Penni found herself surrounded by at least twenty men. She was under no illusions that she had found a savior. The arms that were wrapped around her roughly were covered in tattoos. The one who had two tear drop tattoos at the corners of his eyes had her wishing fervently Shade would miraculously show up.
The dark-skinned man came to stop next to him. “If Ricky and DJ are screwing around when they’re supposed to be watching for Striker, I’m going kick their asses. Cruz, you’re responsible if they screw up this meeting,” Hennessey threatened, coming to a stop, his eyes widening in surprise.
Penni saw the expression mirrored on their faces when the door opened behind her.
“What the fuck happened to you?” The man holding her—named Cruz—was obviously angry.
“The bitch almost bit off my tongue.”
“What did he say?” Hennessey questioned the man Penni guessed was his second in command from his appearance.
Penni tightened her lips. Damned if she would help the bastard explain himself.
The man who had tried to rape her jerked her out of Cruz’s arms. She wasn’t given time to react before she felt her cheek absorb the shock of landing on the ground.
“Fucking bitch! I’m going to kill you.” Boots kicked out at her out, one after another, as she tried to catch her breath.
Penni used her nails to crawl away from the attack until a large pair of boots had her looking up.
Hennessey stared down at her furiously. She refused to flinch as he picked her up.
Penni waited for the attack to continue. She was smart enough to realize the man holding her wouldn’t be as easy to escape from.
As soon as the dark man had touched her, Ricky had stepped back. The man who had her now was the one calling the shots. Yes, this man was the president. His towering height had her standing up straight, glaring into his eyes. Penni made sure to notice every detail she could use as a weapon, like the diamonds in his ears glinting in the light from the door.