“You think her daddy didn’t make the same threat?” Brent asks. “Fuck you and fuck him, too.”
I clear my throat. I have at least four inches on this asshole, and about thirty pounds of muscle, too. This is going to be fun. I pull Brent away from the wall and smack him back into it. He wheezes, his eyes rounding.
“The difference between me and Guy is that he has to follow the rules—I don’t. So, believe me when I say that if you do go near her, I will end your life. If you see her in the street, hell, if you see her on theother sideof the goddamn street, you run in the opposite direction. Do you understand?” Brent seems unsettled but not totally convinced. “I’ve known that woman eight days, Brent, and this is how I’m reacting to a smile. How do you think I’ll react a month from now? Six months? A year?” Now Brent looks like he’s getting the hint. “The more time I spend with Ella, the more pain you’ll be in if you go near her again. Now, I’ll ask you one final time, and then I’m going to hurt you. Do. You. Understand?”
Brent swallows and nods. I let him go.
“Good man. And you don’t want to eat here anymore. Fucking leave.”
I kept my cool, which is unlike me. A guy like Brent doesn’t heed warnings; I know that. He’ll nod now and later decide he’s tougher than he is, and maybe even deliberately bait Ella because he feels like he has the right to, but I don’t plan on being far from her, anyway. If Brent comes back, I’ll make him regret it, and I’ll enjoy doing so.
I round the corner to head back through the restaurant and swear under my breath. Guy is standing next to the men's room. He obviously heard everything, his eyes flicking between my face and the corner where Brent is still licking his wounds.
Great. You’ve fucked this up fast.
“Ella wants to order dessert,” Guy says. “Don’t keep her waiting.”
I nod and watch him disappear into the bathroom.
Okay, maybe I didn’t fuck it up after all.
When I return to the table, Ella grins at me as I take my seat beside her, my arm on the back of her chair. She talks excitedly about dessert, orders some for her and her dad and a coffee for me, and when Guy sits with us again, it’s noticeably less tense.
“Bathroom,” Ella says, kissing my cheek and standing. When she’s gone, Guy leans back in his chair, watching me.
“You make a habit of threatening people?” he asks.
This is a make-or-break moment. He needs to know I’m violent only when necessary, and never toward his daughter. Any sniff of suspicion and he’ll drive a wedge between Ella and me, which means no hard drive.
And no Ella.
“Only when they hurt people I care about,” I say, finishing my coffee. “And I care about Ella.”
“He didn’t do anything.” He isn’t defending Brent; he’s figuring out my limits.
I don’t like beating around the damn bush.
Sliding my empty coffee cup aside, I rest my forearms on the table. “Let’s just put our cards on the table, Guy.” He doesn’t move. Doesn’t blink. “We both know what men like Brent are like. I know an abuser when I see one. I grew up with plenty of them.” He softens somewhat but still doesn’t speak. “Anything, and I mean anything, that causes Ella discomfort is a step too far for me. Even if he hadn’t flashed that fucking smug smile at her, I’d have reacted the same way, because if he had a shred of decency or regret, the moment he saw her and you, he’d have left.”
Guy Gibson watches me with muted interest, like he’s picking me apart with just a look, and I let him. Nothing I’m saying is a lie. Seeing Ella like that crawled under my skin, and I wouldn’t have settled until I made it clear to Brent what would happen if he caused that kind of reaction again.
“Your daughter is special.”
“I know that.”
I lean back in my chair again. “Then you understand my reaction.”
“I understand it, but it doesn’t mean I trust it,” he says. “I live my life by two codes, Asher. One, trust is earned, not given. And two”—now he leans forward, blue eyes focused on mine—“always, always trust my gut. And something in my gut says you and your brother are trouble. Especially your brother.”
Annoyance prickles under my skin.
“My brother has been through a lot.”
“Haven’t we all?”
“He’s not a bad guy.”
Guy glances to his left, spotting Ella closing in on the table. “That remains to be seen. Protecting her is step fucking one, Asher, and it’s a long road to my approval.” He suddenly smiles brightly and stands as Ella reaches him. “I should go, baby.”
