Without hesitation, I race from the room and take the stairs two at a time, only to find myself face to face with Tony and three of his boys.
His eyes go wide as I raise my fists, and I realize…
I didn’t even put any goddamn clothes on.
7
CALEB
I almost laughwhen I catch two of Tony’s boys eying my downstairs. “Jealous?” I smirk, rocking my hips to emphasize my nudity.
“You fucking kidding me?” One of them explodes, leaping at me with the most predictable right hook ever. I dodge it easily and drop him with a punch to the guts. His buddy tries something similar and meets the same fate.
He mouths something at me from the floor, and I silence him with a kick. I feel like a god—an immovable force. This ismyhouse. Eliza ismywoman. And I will not stand for threats.
Tony eyes his fallen men, and for a moment, I see fear in his eyes. That fear turns to amusement, and he points a finger at me. “What are you? The nude bodyguard?”
He laughs at his own joke, and so does his one remaining man.
“I’m the guy who put that bruise on your face,” I reply, pointing to the shiner by his eye. “Or did you forget?”
He licks his teeth and nods. His eyes are narrow and hazy. He’s obviously on something. “Did you forget that I’m the one who had my hands all over your sister?” he cackles, using hishands to form a trumpet around his lips. “Eliza! Come down, your date is here!”
I clench and unclench my fists as I stare down this intruder. Thank God my cock has gone down. I was so hard thirty seconds ago that it was difficult to walk, let alone fight.
“I’m gonna give you one last chance,” I growl through gritted teeth. “Take your goons and get lost, or face the consequences.”
Tony raises his chin at me and smirks. How does this son of a bitch still think he has a chance against me?
“Consequences?” he asks, nodding to the guy behind him, who pulls a knife from his pocket and steps forward. “Like this?”
The ceiling light glints off the blade. I nod at the poor sap. “So you’re Tony’s last errand boy. You sure you wanna do this?”
Eliza is upstairs. There’s no way these goons are getting past me.
The man’s eyes flash, and he dashes in. He slices wildly at my neck. Rather than wait his turn, Tony rushes in from my side. They’re fast, but I’m faster.
I dodge the knife and kick my attacker hard in the ankle, breaking it. Wailing in pain, he falls to the ground just in time for Tony to leap over him and swing.
He actually does hit me, but it hurts him more than it does me. Laughing, I snatch him by the wrist as his face twists in pain and drive my skull into his nose.
The sound of breaking bone fills the air, and he tumbles backward, falling over his friend.
Bloody and ruined, they lie at my feet, defeated. And that’s when I hear the floorboards creak behind me. I turn and see Eliza standing at the top of the stairs, fully wrapped in a robe. She looks down at the mess, and at first, she seems horrified. But when she realizes what just happened, she manages to smile.
Like an angel, she floats down the stairs and over to my side. I wrap my arm around her and hold her close, kissing her gentlyon the neck. My life is hard, rugged. She’s everything soft and smooth. And as she stands beside me, both of us looking down at the fallen men, it feels like the last piece of the puzzle of my life clicks into place.
“You see, Tony? She doesn’t want you,” I state. “Do you, Eliza?”
She shakes her head. “Never have, never will.”
“You dumb chicks don’t know what you want,” he groans, trying to get to his feet. He fails and topples over onto his back.
“This is your last warning to stay away,” I growl at Tony and his men. I grab him by the ankle and drag him out the door and dump him in the driveway. “Youevercome back here or go near Eliza again, and I’ll make you seriously regret it.”
“Keep running your mouth, boy. See what happens…” he mutters, finally getting to his feet. I should drop him just for that, but Eliza is waiting, and she’s more important.
His men stagger down the stairs toward his car, the one whose ankle I broke hopping on his one good foot. I wait until they pull away to go back inside.
