She watched a drop of spit hit the counter.Well, that’s disgusting. Note to self: sanitize counter.
“It’s so fucking easy for you. You stupid fucking rich bitch.”
And that was her limit. “Get. The fuck. Out.”
“I need money.” His words seethed through his clenched teeth and he gripped the back of the stool. “If you had just set a date and married me, none of this would have happened.” He wasn’t even looking at her any more.
“Are you kidding me? You think having access to my money would have made everything better? It would have just made it worse.” She shook her head. “I’m done. Leave now or I’m calling the cops.”
“You’re so fucking selfish!” He shook the stool. “It’s not like you use the fucking money! You give it all away to your stupid fucking dogs and your stupid crippled soldiers!”
She sucked in a breath and gripped the knife harder.
“What the fuck is going on?” Jase stormed in behind Chad. Charlie and Polly followed close behind, growling low in their throats. The anger on Jase’s face was palpable. It was fascinating to watch him advance across the room.
Chad pointed at Jase. “It’s none of your fucking business.”
Bree’s eyes widened as Jase connected a right hook to Chad’s jaw and knocked him to the ground. “The fuck it’s not.”
He grabbed Chad by the scruff of his collared shirt with one hand as he used the other to bend one of Chad’s arms behind his back. Charlie barked and ran around them both as Jase shuffled him toward the front door.
“You have two minutes to get in your car and leave before I call the cops and have you arrested,” Jase yelled.
Tension flowed out of Bree when the door slammed. The grip she had on the knife loosened, and it rested on the cutting board as she released it.
Jase stalked back into the kitchen and around the bar. He didn’t stop and Bree backed up into the door of the pantry. Jase braced his hands on either side of her head and leaned close. He closed his eyes and took a breath.
Was he counting to ten?Anger etched on his face, visible in the careful way he controlled his movements. Chad had been in a rage. It hadn’t scared her, but she’d taken a defensive posture at the possible threat he posed.
He opened his eyes, his gaze intense. “Care to tell me what the fuck he was doing here?” His voice was measured, the tension in each carefully-voiced word palpable. His hazel eyes were shot through with gold.
“Screaming about how I ruined his life because I wouldn’t marry him,” she said.
“Why did you let him in?” The strain in his voice was still leaking through.
Bree wondered what would happen if he didn’t hold himself in check. Why wasn’t she afraid? He’d backed her into another wall — her defenses should be on high alert, especially with everything that had happened a few minutes ago, but she felt no fear that he would hurt her. “I didn’t let him in; he walked in.”
The small muscle under his right eye twitched. He stared, searching her face before closing his eyes and dropping his head. He straightened up and away from her and placed his hands on his hips as he took a step back.
“How did he walk right in?” His eyes remained closed, his head still down.
“It wasn’t locked. I’m assuming he turned the knob like anyone else would do.”
“Why the fuck was the door unlocked, Bree?”
She pushed away from the wall. Enough was enough. She was tired of men yelling at her and expecting her to take it. “Because I was expectingyouto walk in the door and I left it unlocked as a courtesy. Won’t fucking happen again. In fact, I’ll be sure to lock it behind you after you leave,” she shouted.
“I’ll knock on the damn door if I need you to let me in. You don’t leave the fucking thing open,” Jase shouted back. He ignored her not-so-subtle suggestion to leave.
She took a step toward him. “I was trying to be nice!”
“I don’t want you to be nice; I want you to be safe!”
“I think I proved I can take care of myself quite effectively when I punched you in the balls.”
“What is going on in here?” Denise asked as she came around the corner.
“Maybe you can talk some sense into her,” Jase said, throwing his hands up in the air. He walked over to the back door and let the dogs out.
