“Yeah?” she asked as if Rachel had just interrupted a quiet lunch and not some fight.
“Well?” Rachel snapped, gesturing to Connor and the stranger.
“In Connor’s defense, Mr. Teager attacked him first,” she said, popping a handful of popcorn into her mouth.
“Where did you get the popcorn?” Alec asked irritably from behind.
“I wanted to bring it to Cian’s party, but thought this would be a good time…”
“Let go of me!” Mr. Teager spat. “I have the right to punch you. You know it!”
“You have the right to shut the hell up,” Connor replied coolly.
“You talked her into it! She wanted to think about it, and this morning, she texted me to say that she’s decided I’m not worth any more heartbreak!”
“I didn’t do anything! Besides, your wife is right. You’re not worth it.”
The guy’s face turned bright red — and Rachel was afraid that it was not only from anger, but also because he was slowly running out of air.
“Why the hell are you just standing there?” Rachel snapped at Izzie and Alec.
“Connor seems to have everything under control,” Alec said, shrugging and helping himself to some popcorn.
“It looks like he’s about to make him faint and punch him too! Connor!” she cried out, taking a step forward. But Izzie grabbed her arm.
“Don’t get involved,” she said somberly. “He doesn’t like that, besides, he won’t listen to you anyway…”
But Rachel was already pulling away, ignoring her. “Connor, stop right now,” she said quietly, stepping quickly toward him and placing her hand on his raised fist. “Let him go.”
She felt his fingers tense under her touch, but he turned his head almost imperceptibly, his eyes widening as if he’d just realized he wasn’t alone with the guy.
“What the hell are you doing here, Rachel?”
“Stopping you from making a mistake.”
“He attackedme.”
“And you defended yourself. But right now you’re choking him.”
“So what?” He gritted his teeth. “He deserves it. He emotionally blackmailed his wife, exploited her for years, forced me to tell his children that…that…”
“I know,” she said softly, placing her other hand on the back of his neck so he wouldn’t take his eyes off her. “I know that. But he’s not worth it. You’re going to take this to court. It obviously looks like Mrs. Teager has finally made a decision. So, take all his money, but leave him his teeth.”
“Rachel, he…”
“You’re projecting, Connor. You don’t really know this man. You’re not just angry at him.”
“What did I tell you about psychoanalyzing me?” he growled.
“That I should only do it if you’re about to make a colossal mistake?” she said lightly. “Let. Him. Go. Now.”
“Fine.” Connor took a jerky step back and dropped both his hands.
The strange man sank a few inches down the wall before rubbing his throat and coughing. Connor hadn’t left a mark — but he had made an impression. Mr. Teager was looking at him with a mixture of horror, fear, and dislike that wouldn’t be welcome at any child’s birthday party.
“Well, I don’t believe it,” Izzie murmured, perplexed. “Did she just manage to extinguish Mr. Hothead’s short fuse?”
Rachel ignored her. Worriedly, she looked at Connor, whose body had lost all tension.
