Mr. Lawson's Assistant

Chapter 51

Damon guided me through the dancing and laughing people, not lessening his grip on my arm, even when the people drew tighter around us. I kept searching for Soma or Kenya, but there were too many faces for me to tell any of them apart. Until we broke free from the crowd. That's when I saw Trey standing just in front of us talking to a slender, bleached-blonde woman with six-inch heels and a tight black dress. When Trey saw me, he stopped talking, and I felt my lungs constrict against the cold sheen that entered his eyes.
"Not a word." Damon murmured to me, bringing his arm up around my shoulders to pull me closer to himself.
"Damon Lawson," Trey moved away from the blonde, looking only at me, "I thought your brother had strict rules about inter-company relationships?" He laughed, running his eyes over my dress, "Though, if I were you I'd have my hands all over this one too." His eyes darkened.
I clenched my jaw, looking Trey in the eyes with all the hatred I could muster. I knew he was only trying to get my reaction, but it was increasingly hard for me to bite my tongue as he glared back at me.
"Don't start something you can't finish, Trey," Damon said quietly. The threat was obvious. Even sober, Trey would be no match for Damon. Ignoring the warning, Trey whistled and ran his eyes over me again, taking his time dragging his gaze over my features. The way he was looking at me made me feel like he was undressing me with his eyes.
"Your little assistant cleans up nice, Damon. It's a shame she's such a-" I blinked at his insult, and anger flooded through my veins. I felt Damon's body go taunt beside me, but I wasn't paying attention to him. Without thinking, I stepped out from under Damon's protective arm, ignoring his quiet warning. I uncrossed my arms and straightened my shoulders so that in my heels, I was almost eye-level with the redhead.
Calm, Oana, calm.
Trey narrowed his eyes on me and drew his lips into a thin line.
"It's cute, how you think that Damon is always going to protect you. If I ever find you alone..." Trey taunted, his eyes flickering towards Damon to see his reaction. There was none.
"If you ever find me alone, I'll shoot you before you can look at me twice." I gave him a cold smile, lifting my chin and tightening my jaw.
Trey snarled, "Get smart with me again," He threatened, taking a step forward. I felt Damon moving up behind me and knew I was losing my chance. Just as Damon reached out and put a hand on my arm, I snapped away from him. Using a technique my brother had taught me, I hurled the whole of my weight into a punch that landed against Trey's right jaw.
He was knocked back two steps from my hit, sputtering, but I didn't have time to react before he lunged forward and grabbed my hair. I grit my teeth to keep from screaming, and stomped on Trey's foot with my heel, but he didn't let go. Damon covered the distance between him and Trey in seconds and before I could blink he'd landed three crushing blows to Trey's throat, left jaw, and nose. Obviously, Trey released me, but instead of continuing the fight, Damon grabbed me around the waist and lifted me up, pulling me back.
"That's right, Damon! Get your little toy under control!" Trey screamed, jumping up from the ground. I resisted Damon's hold on me, only because Trey was screaming. I was angry, not stupid.
Damon wrapped his other arm around my waist, pulling me further away from Trey, "Oana, he's not worth it!" He said lowly, clenching his jaw when I yanked against his hold again.
"Let me go!" I grit my teeth, fighting to shove my hair out of my face.
Damon turned his back on Trey, hiding the man from my view. "No."
After a moment, I stilled and inhaled a deep breath, then said again, "Let me go." This time it was a statement, not a demand. Damon must have seen the look in my eyes. I had no intention of continuing this fight. Slowly, he unwrapped his arms from around me and took a cautious step back. He was watching me with intense green eyes, waiting to see what I would do. I straightened myself, flattening my hair against my head and turning to where Trey was still hurling insults at me. I did not step forward because I knew Damon would hold me back. Pausing a moment, I looked Trey in the eye and raised my chin.
"When you're done hurling useless insults to protect your fragile masculinity, you can come find me." I let my lips twitch and held his gaze. Then, when I saw he had nothing to retort with, I turned and walked past Damon. He followed me out into the parking lot, quietly directing me to his Range Rover. When I saw my reflection in the Rover's glass, I was shocked that my hair was only slightly a mess. Everything else was perfect, though my dress had ridden up to my mid-thigh.
Without a word, Damon opened the car door and let me into his car, before moving around to his side and climbing inside.
Neither of us said anything until we were out on the main road at a stoplight.
"Oana..." Damon started, but I shook my head, stopping him.
"I know."
Damon glanced over at me and nodded, turning back to face the road. "I'm sorry," He said gently, and I scoffed.
"It's not the first time I've been insulted before, Damon."
He shook his head slightly, "I'm still sorry."
I frowned, "It had nothing to do with you."
Damon tightened his hand around the steering wheel and clenched his jaw.
"No woman should ever be treated like he treated you. I don't care what she did." He growled. I glanced over, first, at Damon's white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel, then to his smoldering eyes.
Trey's words offended him more than me?
I faltered. This was the second time he'd fought for me, but this time, he was angry. I had never seen him this angry. Yeah, he'd been angry when the men broke into the house at Cape Trent, and yes, he'd been angry when I hadn't told him about Tony, but I'd never seen him this angry. Cautiously, I reached out and laid my hand on Damon's right shoulder. He tensed, but his eyes did not move from the road. For a moment, I considered pulling my hand back, but when I started to move, Damon's eyes flickered away from the road and over to me.
"I forgot to ask you if you were alright?" He said after a second or two of silence.
I pulled my hand back and clasped it in my lap, "I'm fine."
Damon let one of his hands fall from the steering wheel, driving with only one hand, while he ran his free hand through his hair. For a while, neither of us said anything again, then as we pulled into the parking lot of my apartment, I realized that I hadn't talked to Kenya or Soma about leaving.
"Damon," I reached down and unbuckled my seatbelt. Damon pulled the car into the nearest lot and stopped, turning to look at me, "I need to borrow your phone." I said, holding out my hand. Damon reached into his back pocket and handed me his iPhone, watching me as I turned it on and glanced at him for a password. He reached over and typed in a password, clicking on the dial pad when the phone unlocked. I dialed Kenya's phone number, checking the time as I picked the phone up to my ear. It was eleven fifty.
"Hey, Damon. Where are you? Soma's been looking everywhere for you and Oana." Kenya answered the phone, shouting over the music.
I sighed, "Hey, Kenya. It's Oana. I'm at home with Damon-"
"You're what!?"
"Not like that!" I rushed, feeling my cheeks flush. "I didn't want to interrupt you and Soma so I just had Damon bring me back home." It wasn't really a lie, more like a half-truth.
Kenya was quiet while my voice carried over the line to her phone, then she said, "Is everything okay?"
"Yes, it's fine. Just tell Soma what happened and feel free to stay out as late as you want." I sighed, switching the ear I held the phone to so I could tuck my hair behind my ear.
"Is David still home?" Kenya asked, her voice barely sounding above the music.
I glanced up at the apartment building, nodding, "Yes, he's inside."
"Okay, I'll pass the word on to Soma!"
I didn't bother saying goodbye, because I could already hear Kenya calling to Soma through the phone. Hanging up, I turned and handed Damon his phone.
"Settled?" He asked, dropping the phone into the center cup holder and shutting off the car's engine.
I nodded, reaching for the car door handle. "Thanks for the ride-"
"I'll walk you in." Damon didn't give me a chance to protest. He climbed out of the car and started around towards my door. I paused grabbing the door handle and watched Damon walk towards my door. Even in the dim parking lights, I found myself staring at Damon through new eyes. He was definitely taller and more fit than was average, but that wasn't what drew me to him. It was the steady, gentle way he walked, and the fierce yet gentle look in his eyes. I realized suddenly, that I was attracted to more than this man's looks; I was attracted to his heart. I was attracted to him.