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Something snaps inside my chest. Before I can think it through, I’m in his face, using every inch of height I have on him. I fist the collar of his shirt. “Call her that again and see what happens.”

Carl puts his hands on our chests and shoves with the strength of a man who’s been building for three decades. “Not in front of the crew,” he snaps.

Fuck, he’s right, but my fingers curl into a fist, ready to bury themselves in Matt’s face.

“Look at you! Look at what she’s done. This is what she does, Gage. She ruins things. She was always a nagging bitch⁠—”

“Don’t!” I shout.

“Fuck you! Why are you protecting her?”

“Because she’s a good person who doesn’t deserve your shit.” I shake my head, jaw working. With how much he’s been calling in, the guys and I worried we might have to get rid of him at some point. We covered for him. Shielding him from Robert. Honestly, I held out hope that he’d be smart enough not to ruin his whole life but I guess not. I’m done trying to save his ass. “You’re fired, Matt.”

The color drains from his face, that rage waning. “You can’t fire me.”

“You know as well as I do I have that authority. You have five minutes to collect your shit and go before I call the cops.” The words taste like ash, but they need saying.

For a second, I think he might take a swing at me. His fists ball up, shoulders tensing like he’s getting ready to throw down right here in the client’s driveway. Part of me almost wants him to try. I’ve been itching to kick his ass after everything he’s said to Lily.

Instead, he looks past me to Carl, desperation creeping into his voice. “Carl, come on. Tell him this is crazy.”

Carl shifts uncomfortably, work-worn hands twisting his baseball cap. “You know you can’t change plans without approval, son.”

Matt’s face flashes with pain. For a split second, he looks like the kid I grew up with—lost, hurt, looking for someone to tell him it’s all going to be okay. Then the mask slams back into place, uglier than before.

“Fuck all of you,” he snarls. “And fuck that worthless whore you’re all so desperate to fuck.”

He storms to his car, yanking the door open so hard I’m surprised it doesn’t come off the hinges. The engine roars to life. He reverses out of his spot next to the trailer like a teenager throwing a tantrum. The screech of metal scraping against metal chases his exit. Matt is already tearing down the road by the time Carl and I round the trailer.

“Shit,” Carl mutters as we examine the fresh gouges Matt’s bumper left in the side. “Yeah, he got it good.”

I pull out my phone, snapping pictures of the damage from multiple angles. The scratches aren’t deep, but they’ll need touch-up paint and probably some body work. I fire off a text to the group chat with Hudson and Cole, attaching the photos.

GAGE

I fired Matt.

That combined with the picture says everything. Hudson will probably want to drive over and check on things. Cole will make some jokes about anger management classes. Both of them will be thinking the same thing I am—how the hell did we get here?

“You okay?” Carl’s studying me. He’s seen plenty of workplace drama, but it hits differently when it’s personal.

I pocket my phone and look back at the trailer damage. “Yeah. Mostly disappointed.”

“He said some nasty things about Lily.”

The protective instinct that’s been growing stronger every day since she moved in flares hot in my chest. “Yeah, he did.”

“You’re not a terrible person for dating her, you know.”

I glance at Carl in surprise.

He adjusts his cap, weathered face serious. “I see you beating yourself up about it. That kid has been treating her wrong for years. We all saw it. Maybe when he cools off, y’all can sit down man to man and hash it out. But being upset is one thing. Calling his ex-girlfriend names like that?” Carl shakes his head. “Our mamas taught us better than that.”

I nod, swallowing the bitter truth that my mama never taught me shit except how to fend for myself and stay out of the way when the adults were fighting.

“Come on,” I tell him, heading back toward the house. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up and back on schedule.”

The crew has already made good progress tearing down Matt’s unauthorized framing. They work with the focused intensity of guys who want to prove they’re worth keeping around, even after getting caught in the middle of someone else’s drama. I grab my tool belt and join them, letting the familiar rhythm of hard work settle my nerves.