Several other patrons got up and moved away. I was no stranger to fighting in the pub, so I was certain they knew what was coming. Lila remained close, her mouth in a tight line as she scowled at the man, hands balled into fists.
I smiled, unbothered by his height. “Maybe. But see, you touched my woman. So, I will have to break you.”
He smirked, folding his arms. “This whore is your woman?”
Fine, he would have to die. I prepared to deliver a kick to his balls with my boot harboring a retractable blade when Lila jumped up and punched the fae in the side of the face. Only it wasn’t just any punch. Her fist was covered in ice, and when she hit the man, it was like a sledgehammer. Blood and teeth shot from his mouth, and I couldn’t have been prouder. And more turned on. I could feel a spark of desire hit me, and I fought to stay focused and not push her onto a table and give everyone a show.
She took a step toward the man, eyes narrowed in anger. “Your mama’s a whore! Your daddy too,” she spat.
The fae stumbled to the side, looking dazed and very confused. But he recovered too quickly and turned to Lila, arm reared back, ready to punch her. Not happening.
Before he could land a hit, I high-kicked him to the balls, my blade piercing into him. Once it connected, he let out a howl so loud it could have shattered every glass in the building. He hunched forward, and I knocked him to the ground. He rocked from side to side, holding his bloody privates.
But that wasn’t enough for me. He had disrespected and assaulted this woman. My woman. Everyone needed to know that to touch what was mine would mean death. I kicked him over and over again, letting out a round of laughter at each scream from him. He presented himself as big and strong, but he was all show. He probably used that to intimidate people without even having to fight. From what I could see, he didn’t even know how to fight. He would never have another chance to learn.
I continued to kick and soon felt a cold hand on my bicep. I shook it off me and kept kicking. I then felt a slap on the back of my head. I spun around, with a snarl, to face Lila’s angry face.
She put her hands on her hips. “Don’t you snarl at me. You are killing him. I like you enough not to want you to get locked up.”
I let out several breaths, feeling excited and out of control. I would have killed him. I wanted to kill him. However, she was right. Even if I was a high-ranking officer, I would still be jailed for killing a man who was already on the ground. The people in the room respected me and Yosef. Luca and I had done a lot for the community, many in the pub. However, I was sane enough to know there was a limit. The best I could get out of them was that this was self-defense because he had assaulted Lila and was attempting to hit her again.
Lila walked closer to me and placed her hands on either side of my face, searching my eyes with worry. “We good?”
I gave her a curt nod, needing to get out of the pub.
“I think we should pay the tab and any damages and then get the hell out of here.”
She was smart. She was right. I looked over her shoulder to the owner of the pub. “Add everything to my bill.”
He saluted me before giving a shake of his head. Sadly, he was used to my antics. I looked back to Lila, who was staring down at the bloody man. “Does he need to go to a hospital or whatever you have here?”
I kept my eyes on her, very unconcerned about the coward on the floor. However, softer Lila had reemerged, and I would respect it. “Probably, if he wants to heal right.”
She looked back to me, her eyes strong and self-assured. “Then this is the part you aren’t going to like. We’re going to take him to the hospital and pay the bill.”
My pretty lady had gone mad. “Absolutely not.”
She got on her toes and moved her mouth to my ear. “You are an officer. You are held to a higher standard. Now, I don’t know what you did before me, but at least, while I’m here, you’re going to be the bigger man. You’ve made your point. No one who knows better will fuck with you again. You won’t look weak for getting him help after kicking his ass. You’ll look wise. It’ll confuse people, but it’ll also make them respect you more.”
Damn, she sounded like Yosef. I knew she was right. I hated it. However, at the very least, in front of her, I would be a better man.
My Lila was going to change me for good, just as Yosef had. All the more reason for her to never leave me. She was not going home.
CHAPTER13
LILA
The next morning, I woke up to find Xander gone from my bed. I’d vaguely heard him get up earlier. Off to his military duties. I sat up, morning peaking past the openings of the curtains into my room.
Xander had been a beast last night. The last time I’d seen a guy get his ass kicked so effectively was when I was in the military. No, scratch that, when we’d gone to rescue Billie when she got kidnapped. Still, Xander’s knifed boots caused some serious damage. And he had lost it. If I hadn’t jumped in, he would have killed that man, of that, I was sure. And he had smiled and laughed as he kicked the shit out of the guy. He was in a crazed trance. He really did get off on violence. I understood why he was so fucked up, but it didn’t make it right.
Not that the fae was a victim. Getting smacked hard on the ass was not something to casually shrug off. I also knew that Xander had grown attached to me, so it wasn’t surprising he reacted that way. And maybe I had grown attached as well since I didn’t want to see Xander get carted off to some type of fae prison for killing a man. Or maiming him. Which is why I suggested we take the asshole fae to the hospital and pay the bill. Xander grumbled about it the whole way, but he followed through.
I didn’t think it would stop any retaliation from the fae, but apparently, Xander had a reputation in town, and it fell into two lines. People either feared or loved him. At the hospital, even the staff interacted with him respectfully. They were actually shocked to see him paying the bill. I knew that action would go a long way when people spoke of him in the future.
I was honestly surprised he even listened to me. I had no power over him, and we didn’t have some supernatural connection. We just liked each other. And that like was apparently strong enough for him to take my advice. It kind of tugged at my heart. When it came to me, he seemed so invested. I wanted to be scared of him. Of his love of violence. His attachment to me. However, I couldn’t. For better or worse, the crazy fucker was wearing on me.
When I finally made my way downstairs for breakfast, I was surprised to see Yosef already there, chatting with Zelda. I wondered if he knew of yesterday’s events. I grabbed a pastry and accepted tea from Zelda.
