I gulp over the lump forming in my throat.
Joaquin smirks, straightening up and stalking toward his brother.
Oh my god. What have I done? I grip Everett’s arm when my legs threaten to go out from under me.
“Like I said, she’s with me.” J flexes his knuckles as his smug grin expands.
I want to shout I’m not, but I’ve lost the use of my vocal cords.
“Really?” Zayn throws a look my way, and I spot the hurt in his eyes before he conceals it. He turns his attention back to J, and a cruel smirk tilts the corner of his lips. “She wasn’t with you last night when you were fucking the brainless blonde twins.” Zayn turns to me with malice in his eyes. “Your boyfriend cheated on you. I even have pics to prove it,” he says, moving to pull his cell from his pocket.
“You fucking bastard!” Joaquin yells, throwing his fist in Zayn’s face.
I scream as Zayn falls to the floor on his back, and Joaquin pounces on him, lashing out again with his fists. Zayn kicks J off him, and then they go at it, swinging vicious punches as the crowd shouts encouragement.
“Do something!” I shout at Everett, shucking out of his hold. “Stop this before Zayn gets hurt.”
“Trust me, he can hold his own.” Everett’s gaze never strays from his best friend as he watches the two brothers beat the shit out of one another. Jude is also holding back, like it’s some special bro code, watching intensely and ready to intervene if needed.
Pain shuttles up my throat as I stand helplessly to one side. Blood flies through the air as they continue fighting, and the crowd is whooping and hollering like this is the paid entertainment. Zayn has Joaquin in a headlock and the look on his face is darkly lethal.
A guy forces his way through the crowd, calling out their names, as Joaquin digs his elbow into Zayn’s ribs and pushes him off. J releases an animalistic howl before charging at his brother, and they both crash into the drinks table, splitting it in two as they go down wrestling. Glasses and bottles shatter acrossthe floor, and shrieks and screams emit from partygoers as they jump back to avoid the splatter.
The newcomer—Harley, I’m guessing by the resemblance—is screaming at both of them, but they are lost to bloodlust, rolling around in broken glass, still tossing punches, and Jude and Everett finally make a move. Zayn and Joaquin are covered in cuts and bruises, and blood coats both their faces as they continue fighting, while their respective friends try to pull them apart.
“I’m leaving,” I blurt to Uma, having reached my breaking point. My head is a mess, and I need to put distance between me and both these guys. I’d prefer to do my freaking out in the privacy of our apartment. Turning around, I push my way through the crowd, racing toward the door with Uma at my heels, desperate to get out of here as fast as my feet will carry me.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Zayn
“Party’s over,” Kaiden shouts, entering the room like a raging bull as Joaquin and I glare at one another across the devastation wreaked on the floor. Everett has my hands held tightly behind my back, and Jude is doing the same to his buddy. The last time they released us, we both went at one another again, and I’m currently itching to put my brother in the ground.
Fuck him.
The image of J pawing at Emery resurfaces in my mind, and a snarl rips from my mouth as I buck against Everett’s hold, more than ready to pummel my brother until he isn’t breathing. How dare he put his hands on her, especially when it was clear she wasn’t into it. I can’t even think about the fact we’ve been talking about the same girl this whole time because I’m liable to go completely nuclear.
“Out, fucker,” another familiar man says, and I whip my head around and watch Jackson Lauder and Sawyer Hunt herding people toward the hallway.
Kaiden storms toward us wearing a thunderous look. “What the actual fuck is the matter with you?” he roars, his gaze bouncing between me and Joaquin.
“I think they would’ve killed one another if I hadn’t called you,” Harley says, repeatedly dragging his hands through his hair. Behind him, Hannah stares at Joaquin with a puckered brow.
“Lucky we were already on our way,” Hunt says, coming up alongside Kaiden as Lauder shoves the last of the partygoers out into the hall, telling them to fuck off.
“Explain!” Kaiden growls, looking at me as Joaquin spits blood onto the floor.
“He assaulted the girl I love in front of everyone,” I snap, clenching and unclenching my fists as the craving to smash J’s face into the wall rides me hard.
“You assaulted Emery?” Kaiden yells, fixing a narrowed glare on Joaquin.
“Wait, you know her?” I ask.
“I didn’t fucking assault her!” Joaquin snarls. “I’m seeing her, and the kiss was consensual.”
“The fuck it was,” I shout, thrashing against Everett’s hold. “You fucking molested her before she had a chance to say no! Everyone saw it!”
Joaquin lets a roar loose, bucking in Jude’s hold. “I don’t fucking molest or assault girls, and I sure as fuck didn’t assault Emery! You’re a sore loser,Rogan,” he sneers. “Not my fault you let her pass through your fingers. We’ve been screwing for weeks, and she fucking loves my fingers and my mouth and?—”
