“You’re not supposed to be within five hundred yards of him,” Talon says, stepping in front of me.
“Well, considering I can’t track his fucking phone anymore, how the hell am I supposed to know where he is?” Derek spits.
“I’ll tell you exactly where he is. He’s withme.Where he belongs,” Talon fires back.
I want to tell him to let it go, but I’m frozen in place. Coming out of survival mode has made me vulnerable, and being face-to-face with Derek again is short-circuiting my brain.
Thankfully, Talon’s ready to walk away.
“Come on, baby. Let’s go.”
Before we can take a step, though, Derek’s blocking ourpath. Looking at Talon with a sneer, he asks, “Does he bend over to pay rent for you, too?”
“Move,” Talon says through gritted teeth, and I know he’s barely able to keep the lid on his anger. If Derek were smarter, he’d sense it as well.
Talon is a lot bigger than Derek, but Derek has always thought he was invincible for some reason—guess it’s because people like me let him get away with it—and he keeps running his mouth, getting closer to me with every word.
“You’ll come running back to me soon, Buttercup. You really think he won’t get tired of having to pay for your ass all the time? Look at him and look at you. He’ll get tired of slumming it and kick you to the curb when the next best thing comes along. And when you have nowhere else to turn, you know I’m always willing to give that ass what it n?—”
Before I can even process the words, Talon’s fist connects with Derek’s face. The force of the punch is so hard that it knocks him off balance. Derek falls backwards, losing his footing on the icy stairs, and his head makes a sickening thud as he lands.
What’s worse is the trail of blood that begins seeping into the snow around his still form.
“Fuck!” Talon says, pulling his phone from his pocket. I assume his first call is to 9-1-1, but then I hear him say, “I need you to come get Zeke. We’re at the Starlight Square shopping center. I have something I need to take care of, and I don’t want him to be alone right now.” Before I can ask any questions, Talon makes the call to 9-1-1, and once he hangs up with them, he pulls a card from his wallet and dials another number.
“Officer Michaels, this is Talon Devereaux. Can you meet me at the hospital?” He pauses and then says, “Zeke is fine, but we had a run-in with his ex, who now most likely has a severeconcussion if not something worse and is bleeding.” Another pause, and then he says, “Because I punched him in the face.”
When Talon gets off the phone for the last time, I find my voice as he kneels in the snow, checking to make sure Derek is still breathing.
“Who did you call first?” I ask.
“Rebecca.”
Pulling out my phone, I send her a text while I talk to Talon.
“I’m not leaving you.”
“Zeke, you don’t need?—”
“No,Talon. You don’t get to make this choice for me. I’m not leaving your side. There are no other witnesses. It’s your word against his, and it’s dangerous to underestimate his ability to manipulate a situation.”
“I’m sorry,” Talon says. “For losing my temper and for putting you in this position.” In the distance, sirens wail.Ah, the joys of a small town.“I’m terrified of messing this up, or having it taken away, but I also know I can’t smother you and expect you to stay,” he confesses as he carefully cradles Derek’s head, using his jacket to staunch the flow of blood.
Honestly, it’s more than Derek deserves.
A few minutes later, my ex is loaded into the ambulance, and Talon and I follow in the Range Rover. We’re greeted by Officer Michaels as we enter the emergency room.
“I have to admit, I hoped I’d never see either of you again.”
Talon nods.
“With all due respect, I feel the same. I’m happy to give a statement, pay for his medical treatment, whatever needs to be done,” Talon says.
Part of me is angry that he would make such an offer until I remember the words he said to me earlier.
‘While I would help anyone in your situation, I wouldn’tmove into a hospital room for just anyone. I wouldn’t offer my own home to just anyone. And I certainly wouldn’t risk upsetting my parents and potentially creating problems for my company for just anyone. I’d only do those things for you.’
I can’t hold Talon’s compassionate nature against him, so instead, I squeeze his hand to let him know I’m here and I support him, even if it’s not quite how I’d have chosen to handle things.
