What the hell. “Give the guy a break, Kate. He loves you,” I said. There. Now she could fire my ass if she wanted.
Slinging my leather handbag over my shoulder, I freed my mane from the band holding it back and walked outside and eyed the choked street. It was just past four. Max had already texted me that he was on his way. With this congested traffic, he’d be a while.
Absently, I rubbed my bandaged wrist. Max had threatened to stop me from driving permanently if I ever forgot my seatbelt again. It didn’t help that his mother had unclipped hers right before the accident—
“Ila?”
I turned. Aw, damn. Devyn. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes were bloodshot like he’d been drinking—or hadn’t slept in days. He looked a mess. I was grateful Max wasn’t here. I had to deal with this quickly, and hopefully, it would be the last I saw of him.
“Why are you here? I think you said quite enough the last time I saw you—”
“You blocked me. I had to. Please, Ila…” He dragged his fingers through his hair, making it more of a mess. “What I said at your home? It was wrong. I was so mad you’d moved on. The thing is, I know I wrecked everything between us. But I can’t give you up—I just can’t.”
“Devyn.” I blew out a tired breath. “Let it go. We are over. Give Simi a chance. Hell, she wanted you enough to risk the wrath of my family. I’m with Max now. I love him.”
“No!” Devyn’s lips thinned, he grabbed my injured hand and hauled me to him. I stumbled. An agonized cry escaped me. Pain shot through my damaged wrist, spreading up my arm. “Devyn, stop!”
He didn’t let go, pulling me along faster. He reeked of liquor.
I could do little with my injuries and head fuzzy from pain meds as he dragged me toward a Z4 parked at the curb.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Because you can’t see straight,” he snapped. “I’m taking you to our cabin in the Adirondacks. You just need time. Withouthimaround, you’ll see we belong together.”
“Let me go, dammit!” I yanked at his fingers, but his grip tightened even more. Tears blurred my eyes, the agony escalating.
A screech of tires echoed, followed by honking horns. The next minute, Devyn was ripped away from me, and I stumbled free.
Max grabbed Devyn by his shirt and slammed him against the Z4.
My relief swept in and out like the tide as Max hammered Devyn. A crowd had gathered. Any second, someone would snap a picture or video the beating. If this got into the papers…
I darted over. “Max, don’t!” I grabbed his arm. “He’s not worth it.
Max didn’t budge. He trapped Devyn with an arm pinned to his throat. “Don’t you ever put your fucking hands on her again, you pathetic asshole. You lost her, too bad. She’s mine. Come anywhere near her or her apartment again, and I’ll have a restraining order slapped on you so fast, it will make your fucking head spin!”
“What?” I let go of Max and wheeled around to Devyn. “What the hell, Devyn? Why were you watching my place?”
“Because I want you back,” he wheezed, cutting Max a furious look. He swiped the blood from his nose. “For you, she’s just a conquest. She’ll make you work for her. I ought to know. But I love her, I have for nine years. I’ll wait another nine if I have to, although it probably won’t take more than a year for you to grow bored and move on to your next hookup,” Devyn spat.
A tic working his jaw, Max pulled his cell from his pocket. Stabbed at the display then slapped the phone against his ear. A faint voice drifted through. “911…”
Devyn straightened from the car. His gaze whipped to me, and as if finally accepting the truth, he said, “I had you first. You’ll always be my whore—”
Max moved. I cut him off and punched Devyn hard in the face. His nose bled more.
Ow, ow, ow! I hissed and bit back a curse, my knuckles hurting like hell. Great. Now both hands were sore. The onlookers gathering around laughed. But it had felt damn good. Hell, it felt liberating.
“…an assault on…” As Max gave the address, he drew me close. I snuggled into his arms, my heart still racing, so glad he was there. He rubbed his chin on my hair. Finishing the call, Max took my hand and gently stroked the reddening knuckles then pressed his lips to them. “You okay?”
I nodded. I just wanted to leave, but Max wanted to make sure the cops had Devyn first. He got two burly guys from the crowd to keep watch over Devyn while we waited. And he held me.
***
The silence on the ride back to the apartment was thick and heavy. Max parked the SUV then just sat there. The cops had hauled Devyn away for drunk driving, assault, and attempted kidnapping. I really, really wished it hadn’t come to that. But at least it was over.
“You coming inside?” I asked him.
