Delusion?
“I can’t keep avoiding him. I should just get this over with. If I don’t, he’ll keep coming back. Although I doubt he’ll stay away,regardless.” She mumbled the last part, but I heard her loud and clear.
“I’m coming with you.”
Her mouth fell open, and I had no doubt she was set to argue, but I shut it down with a shake of my head.
She moved around me and cautiously walked toward the gym, every step she took riddled with hesitation. I hated that she was so damn nervous to face this guy and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. It wasn’t like Sophie was mine. If she were, I could deal with this fucker myself, warn him away, do whatever was necessary to protect her. Physically and emotionally. But that just wasn’t the situation.
What I could do was make sure to stand close by in case her ex got out of pocket. I put a reasonable amount of space between us, trailing behind her, and when she stopped, so did I.
I didn’t know if her ex saw me or not, but if he did, he didn’t let on. As soon as Sophie was several feet from him, he moved toward her. Her reaction was to back away. He kept coming, and she kept retreating. Until her back hit the stone front of the building.
My legs moved of their own accord when I saw her trapped in front of him, sidling up next to her seconds later.
“Can I help you with something?” I asked, my demeanor switching from bystander to protector in a matter of a heartbeat.
“I’m here to see my wife,” he responded, looking me up and down, assessing me to see what type of threat I presented. And I was the worst kind. I could beat him to within an inch of his life if I so desired.
“Don’t you mean ex?”
His dark eyes widened, and he straightened to his full height, standing a couple inches shorter than me. His dark hair was cropped close to his head, a standard look for a cop, and while he couldn’t match me in physique, this guy wasn’t a stranger to thegym, his biceps pressing against the fabric of his police-issued uniform.
“Who the fuck are you?” he asked.
There was no hesitation before I answered, “I’m Sophie’s boss.”
Again, he looked me up and down.
“I know you,” he said.
“I doubt that,” I replied, taking another step closer to the woman he was intent on bullying. Granted, she hadn’t revealed much to me about their relationship, but her panic after running into his buddy, the worry that he’d tell her ex about their interaction was enough for me to realize this guy was bad news.
My eyes fell on Sophie, her gaze bouncing between the both of us.
“Yeah. You’re that fighter.” He snapped his fingers and pointed at me afterward. “Jackson Crew. I knew I knew you.”
“Recalling my name doesn’t mean you know me.”
The faintest smirk tipped the corner of his mouth, and I’d never wanted to punch anyone more than I did right then. To wipe that smug look off his face would be one of my greatest accomplishments.
He moved away from Sophie and toward me, sizing me up for a third time. “You beat people for a living.” His gaze veered back to his soon-to-be ex-wife. “Why would you take a job here? Working for him?” His last question came out on a growl, his jealousy teetering on the edge while mine was full-blown, riling me so much so that if I didn’t get a hold of my inner turmoil, I had no idea how much damage I’d do to this guy if he didn’t leave. And soon. Before she could answer, he moved into her, invading her personal space. “I’m not letting you go. I’m not signing the papers. You’re my wife, and I won’t let anyone else have you.”
“That’s enough.” I maneuvered my way between them. “Get out of here, and don’t come back.” The need to beat him raged deep and hard within me, and I barely managed to restrain myself. But attacking a police officer, one who was in uniform, wouldn’t end well for me. And while I wanted to throw away any good sense I still had, I didn’t raise my hand to him.
“What are you going to do? Call the cops?” I had no doubt he’d used that same line on Sophie, probably more than once. I needed to find out more about him. About them. About what he may have done to her. With his hand now resting on the handle of his holstered weapon, he flashed another arrogant smirk. I clenched my fists, and he noticed. “Do it,” he tempted. “See what happens.”
With quick maneuvering, I managed to move Sophie toward the entrance, my hand resting low on her back, pushing her toward the door.
“Come back again, and you’ll regret it,” I said, throwing him a deadly glare.
“You threatening a cop?”
“No.” I gently shoved Sophie farther away from us before stepping back into his space. His eyes raised to meet mine. “I’m threatening a guy who can’t get it through his head that his ex doesn’t want anything to do with him.”
“She’s still my wife.”
“Not for long.” I couldn’t predict what would happen between these two. For all I knew, she could end up going back to him. Maybe this was their pattern. Memories from another life tried to infiltrate, but I shoved them aside.
