I squeezed myself between both males and pushed them away from each other. “Stop it. Both ofyou.”
“August is right, Liam,” Matt said. “Justin’s a sickfuck.”
“We know what their edge is,” Liam exclaimed. “We’re going to beat them at their owngame.”
I slid my hands off their battering chests and whirled to face Liam. “Stop calling it a game. It’snot!”
His excitement dimmed.Finally!
“It was a manner of speaking,Ness.”
“Was it? Because if memory serves me, you called it a game the day we signedup.”
His voice lowered, and more light left his eyes. “I hadn’t been referring to the duelthen.”
August’s chest brushed up against my shoulderblades.
I stared long and hard at Liam. “None of it was ever a game to me, allright?”
“I’ll take her place,” August said. “I’ll be yourSecond.”
“No!” I spunaround.
“Don’t believe she can hold her own out there, Watt?” Liamasked.
August’s gaze sharpened on Liam. “This has nothing to do with what I think of Ness,” he said in a chillingly low voice, “and everything to do with what I think ofJustin.”
“Isigned up for this.I’llsee it through.” I turned back around. “If I have to,” I added. “I still think we should call them up on their cheating and chase them off ourland.”
“They own the inn and all the Pine territory,” Liam said, eyes locked on August’s, “so chasing them off our land won’t get them out ofBoulder.”
Pine territory!“Cole, did you get in touch withSarah?”
“No, but Liam received a message fromAvery.”
“Avery?” Iasked.
“The Rivers’ contact,” Colesaid.
“I remember who he is,” I said. “I meant, why did he send us amessage?”
“Because he heard Alex Morgan talk abouthaving put the two-timing Pine bitch in her place, and he believes Alex is talking about Sarah since he’s seen them together,” Liamsaid.
Dread curled through me. “In herplace?”
“I don’t know what that means,” Liam said. “He doesn’t either, but he’s trying to findout.”
Fear for Sarah superseded everything else in that moment. I pressed a fist against my mouth. “Oh myGod.”
Lucas careened toward the door. “I can track hersmell.”
“No,” Liam said. “We stay put. Avery’s there. He said he’s working on it, and I trust heis.”
My head jerked back. “He didn’t even want to get involved, yet you trust he’s helpingus?”
“People change their minds all the time.” When his eyes lifted to August, I wondered if Liam was talking about Avery or aboutme.
A thought struck me. However much I wanted to call this duel off, I couldn’t abandon Sarah to the Morgans. But Liam couldn’t turn the Creeks into Boulders without ingesting Cassandra’s heart. “Let’s say we go through with the duel, and youwin—”
