CHAPTER 16: When Everything Collides

Adrian's POV

I walked down the thick carpet of the restaurant hallway, keeping my steps fast and hard. My phone had vibrated in my pocket five minutes ago with a message from one of my guys. A guy from a rival club was sitting at a table right in the restaurant.

His crew had been testing my patience and crossing into my territory for the last few weeks. I drove down here tonight for one reason only. I needed to pull him outside and deal with him before things got loud and messy inside a place we owned. I was sure he had intentionally come to my territory.

But then, Wayne texted me right after. He told me Ronan had took Nirvana there for dinner tonight. Panic hit my chest instantly. The place was not safe. It made me furious.

I found Ronan's reserved table, but she was not sitting with him. He was busy talking business with some man that he didn't even notice when I entered.

It was a waitress who told me the young woman he brought had walked off toward the back. I knew where she'd go instantly.

But it was dangerous. She was wandering around a building full of dangerous people, completely alone while her brother ignored her.

I found her in the private viewing room at the end of the hallway. I stepped inside the quiet room and stopped directly behind her. She was looking up at her canvas hanging on the wall.

I stood in silence and watched her read the small gold plate that had my initial and last name engraved on it. I heard her gasp before she turned around, bumping into me.

I gripped her arms and I stared into her wide brown eyes. I was furious, but my anger had absolutely nothing to do with her discovering the painting.

I was furious because she was entirely unprotected in a hostile environment. I needed to get her out of this room and out of this building immediately before the rival member realized who she was.

Nirvana opened her mouth to yell at me. I could see the betrayal and the furious questions forming on her lips. Before she could utter a single, I completely shut my emotions down and I pulled up the cold, indifferent professor facade.

"Where do you think you're going?” I asked, my voice completely flat and authoritative.

She ignored my question entirely. She took a step back and pointed a shaking finger at the framed canvas on the wall behind her.

"You bought my painting. You knew my mother stole this from me and sold it to an underground dealer. You listened to me cry about losing my entire portfolio on the phone, and you never said a single word about having it."

I stared at her face. I needed to push her away and create distance so she would leave with Ronan without causing a scene. Now was not time to argue.

"It is a financial investment," I told her. I kept my tone completely dismissive and void of any warmth. "I purchase pieces from underground dealers when the price is low. The art itself means absolutely nothing personal to me."

Nirvana stared at me in pure disbelief. Her hands dropped to her sides. "A financial investment? You bought it to make money?"

"Yes," I lied again. I looked at the painting and then looked back at her with deliberate indifference. "It is a crude piece. The brushstrokes are rushed and the subject matter is overly dramatic. It lacks technical refinement. But there is a specific market of buyers who pay good money for raw, unpolished work. I intend to flip it for a profit when the market peaks."

I watched the deep hurt register on her face. I had practically insulted the one thing that kept her sane. I knew how much her art meant to her survival and I hated myself for saying the words.

My chest tightened with intense guilt. But I needed her angry at me. I needed her to hate me enough to walk away right now.

"We are leaving," I said. I reached out and grabbed her hand. "This is not the time or the place for this conversation. You need to go back to your brother."

She jerked her hand away from me.

“No. Let go of me. I am not going anywhere with you until we talk about this. You do not get to insult my work and then order me around."

I stopped pulling and turned to face her fully. She stepped closer to me instead of pulling away. The physical distance between us vanished entirely. She looked up at me, demanding an honest answer. “Look into my eyes and tell me this is nothing”

The heat between us flared instantly, sending a heavy, aching pull straight to my stomach. My pulse throbbed in my veins, answering the ragged rise and fall of her chest just inches from mine. Beneath the raw hunger in her stare, my cold, careful restraint finally began to shatter.

The connection between us was undeniable and completely overwhelming. I wanted to tell her the absolute truth. I wanted to tell her that the painting was the most important thing I owned because her hands created it. I wanted to tell her I bought it to keep a piece of her with me when I thought I could never have her in my real life.

I opened my mouth. I was staring at her with furious, desperate eyes, completely ready to drop the lie and explain exactly how much she meant to me. But the door suddenly opened and Ronan walked straight through the doorway into the VIP room.

His eyes landed immediately on Nirvana's hand in mine. I watched as the concern on his face vanished and transformed into instant, explosive anger. He must have remembered the strict warning he gave me in his private study just last night.

He had explicitly told me to stay away from Nirvana. He had ordered me not to touch her. And here I was, standing alone with her in a secluded room with her hand in my grasp, staring at her as if I wanted to devour her.

Ronan crossed the room in three strides. He did not ask what was going on. He did not ask Nirvana if she was okay. He lunged directly at me with full force.

I managed to dodge his fist as his hand grabbed the collar of my shirt. He shoved me backward with a strong physical might and my back slammed hard against the wall next to the painting. The impact rattled my teeth and sent a sharp pain down my spine.

I reacted purely on instinct. I had spent years fighting for my life in the streets. The violent conditioning of the motorcycle club took over my brain in a split second. I was ready to destroy theMy own hand balled into a tight fist, fully prepared to swing a heavy punch directly into Ronan's jaw.

But then, I heard her gasp loudly.

The sharp hunted sound cut right through the rising violence in my head. I stopped my fist mid-air. I looked away from Ronan's furious face and looked to my left.

Nirvana was standing a few feet away with both her hands covering her mouth. I saw the raw fear shining clearly in her wide brown eyes. She was terrified. She was watching the two men she trusted most in the world prepared to beat each other bloody in a restaurant.

The sight of her fear killed the fight inside me immediately. I could not be the reason she looked so terrified.

I slowly lowered my right arm and unclenched my fist. I let my hands drop to my sides and relaxed the tense muscles in my shoulders.

I stared directly at Ronan to let him know I was standing down and refusing to fight. I would not fight my best friend in front of her.

Ronan breathed heavily through his nose. His grip on my shirt collar remained tight and unforgiving for several long seconds. He searched my face for any sign of resistance. He waited to see if I would try to strike him.

When he finally realized I was not going to strike back, he slowly uncurled his fingers. He took a step backward and placed himself firmly between me and Nirvana, acting as a physical shield to protect her from me.

I gritted my teeth together. She needed no protection from me.

"I told you to keep your distance," Ronan said. His voice was a harsh quiet growl meant only for my ears.

I ignored his threat. I did not care about his anger right now. The threat of the rival club member sitting out in the main dining room was the only priority that mattered to me. I adjusted the collar of my shirt and stepped away from the wall.

"Take her home, Ronan," I told him, my voice devoid of any emotion. "Take her out the back exit and take her home immediately. Do not stop for anything."

Ronan frowned. He recognized the specific, cold tone in my voice. He knew I only used that tone when there was a threat to our safety and our business. The anger in his eyes shifted back into cautious awareness. He nodded once to confirm he understood.

I did not look at Nirvana again. I could not afford the distraction of her eyes. I turned my back to them both and walked out of the private viewing room. I headed straight down the hallway toward the main dining floor to find the man who trespassed on my territory. He would be damned if he thought I would let him go freely.