On the Ruins of His Regret I Soar novel Chapter 33

The three men looked at each other. The heavyset one grinned lecherously. “What’s a fifteen grand? We’ll buy it.”

They knew that paying for a ‘clean’ girl’s first time could easily cost a ten thousand, and that was just for one man. This was a bargain.

The skinny man grabbed three bottles from the bar.

“Let me open them,” Jessica said.

He eyed her suspiciously. “Why so cooperative all of a sudden?”

Jessica lowered her gaze demurely. She tightened her grip on the neck of a Martell bottle and beckoned with a finger, her voice a seductive purr. “Do you know the most exciting way to open a bottle of Martell?”

The man leaned in, inhaling her scent. “No, tell me.”

Jessica smiled.

Then she raised the bottle high and brought it crashing down on his head.

Glass shattered. Liquor and blood sprayed across her face. The man’s body crumpled to the floor.

The other two men froze, staring in horror as their friend lay unconscious, a bloody mess on the floor.

Jessica’s throat was tight. She scrambled to her feet and bolted.

She burst through the door, her legs giving out from under her. All her strength had been spent in that single, violent act. She ran, her limbs weak and shaky. As she rounded a corner, her knees buckled as if the bones had been removed.

She fell forward, bracing for the hard floor.

She paused. He was right. They were predators, animals who wanted to hurt her. She had been defending herself. She had done nothing wrong.

“You’re right,” she said, a wave of clarity washing over her. “I did nothing wrong. He’s the one who deserved it.”

A smile touched George’s lips, his eyes glinting in the dim light. “They’re the ones who deserved it.”

Jessica’s mind was still reeling, too exhausted to process the shift from “he” to “they.”

The next thing she knew, George was lifting her into his arms. He glanced to the side, and as if from nowhere, four men in suits appeared, clearing a path for them. He strode forward, carrying her as if she weighed nothing, his breathing even and calm.

He carried her back into the private room. The skinny man was still unconscious on the floor.