Page 39 of Suddenly Yours

“I’m sure that’s all,” Levi sneered. “Because I know exactly what Cade’s been waiting for this entire time. He was always sniffing around,”

“Enough!” I finally snapped. “My life isn’t any of your business anymore.”

His eyes whipped toward me, sharp and wild. “Everything about you is my business, Missy. You’re mine. Always.”

“No,” I cut in as my heart continued pounding quickly, too quickly. “Let me make this simple. You cheated, I broke things off. You have no say in my life.”

“You’re not thinking clearly. He’s using you. Come on, I’m going to take you somewhere private where we can be alone and talk.” Something ugly twisted in his expression. Before I could step back, he reached out and gripped my arm.

Hard.

Cade moved so fast it barely registered. One second Levi was holding my arm. The next, Cade’s hand was clamped around Levi’s wrist, peeling his fingers off me with terrifying control.

“Let. Her. Go,” Cade said in a low growl.

Not loud.

Not even angry.

Just… ice cold.

Like the dark water beneath the dock.

Levi jerked back, stumbling from the force, and Cade shifted immediately to my side, his hand hovering near my back without touching me, as if waiting for permission.

“Are you okay?” he asked without taking his eyes from Levi.

“I’m fine.” I wasn’t, but whatever sting I was feeling on my skin no longer mattered. I didn’t want the men to fight, though was no doubt in my mind who would win. At one point, they had been evenly matched, but within the past year, Levi had obviously gone soft while Cade’s physical work had built lots of muscle.

Levi glared at him with his chest heaving wildly. “Fuck off,” he sneered. “You’ve always wanted Melissa. Always.”

“Go back to the city, Levi,” Cade said in a low tone filled with steel. “There’s nothing here for you. No one wants you around.”

“Not until I get what I came for—” Levi started.

“You’ll never have what you came for. It’s no longer yours,” Cade interrupted again.

The silence that followed was suffocating. Levi’s jaw worked as rage pulsed across his face, but he must’ve seen something in Cade’s eye, something even he knew not to push, because after one last glare, he turned sharply.

“I can see this is going nowhere. I’ll give you time to come to your senses,” he said toward me, then he stalked down the pier without a glance back.

My knees wobbled, and Cade caught my elbow gently.

“Are you okay?” he asked again.

I nodded, then shook my head.

But I didn’t know how I felt, only that my heart hammered against my ribs like it was trying to break free.

“I’m fine,” I whispered. “Just… embarrassed. And mad. And embarrassed,” I said again, feeling the oxygen finally get to my brain. “Thank you,” I said in a small voice.

Cade’s voice stayed soft. “Don’t thank me.”

I looked out toward the water, trying to steady my breathing. Trying to convince myself that what had just happened hadn’t spoiled or tainted the wonderful trip we’d just had. But it had. It loomed over the entire weekend like an anvil on a thin wire.

Still, the pressure of Cade’s fingers on my arm grounded me. I was pretty sure he was the only thing keeping me upright.

His arm wrapped around me after he picked up our bags. “Come on, let’s get you home.”