Jake nods, and Ilmari loosens his hold on him. Jake has eyes only for Troy. “You won’t get what you came for. You will never speak to Tess alone again. She’s done with your sorry ass. Be a man and move on. And if you speak to my wife like that again, I will kill you.”
Troy crosses his arms. “Unlike you, I’m actually married to my wife,” he counters. “All you’re doing is playing pretend. When she gets bored of your dick, she’ll move on. Women like her always do. He’s the one who will suffer,” he adds, pointing at Ilmari. “But then, from what I’ve read about you, people always seem to move on, don’t they? Anyone who’s ever cared for you has either died or left.”
“Suksi vittuun,” Ilmari curses.
“Kulta, don’t listen to him,” Rachel says, tears in her eyes as she puts a hand on Ilmari.
“Troy, stop,” I beg, stepping forward. “I’m the one you want. Take your spite out on me.”
He holds out his hand. “Let’s go somewhere quieter.”
I look down at his hand, trying to stop my trembling.
“Tess, don’t,” Rachel begs. “Stay.”
“I’m not leaving until you speak to me,” Troy counters, his threat clear: This doesn’t stop until you do.
“Tess—”
“The deck,” I say over Rachel’s protests. “That’s the only place I’ll go with you.”
He scoffs. “What, so they can all watch us through the glass like we’re animals in a zoo? I don’t think so.”
“They can see us, but not hear us,” I counter. “You can say whatever you need to say…you just can’t hurt me again. Not without them seeing.”
“Jesus.” He glances around at all our faces. “Is that what you’re telling them, Tess? Is that why everyone is acting so uptight? What, have you been down here saying I beat you all the time? Where’s the proof? Where are the medical records? Where are the police reports? I’ve never touched you. Not in thirteen years—”
“You’re lying,” I say, tears in my eyes. “We both know you’re lying—”
“You’re the fucking liar,” he snaps. “The cheater, the quitter. God, I can only imagine the lies you’ve spun to make me look like the villain. Meanwhile, you’re the one fucking anything that moves. We all know I’ve got enough evidence to end your little boy toy’s career. You’ve even had your turn with this one if the papers are to be believed,” he adds, gesturing at Jake.
“Those stories were all bullshit, and you know it,” I say.
“No, they aren’t.”
We both turn to look at Jake. “What?” I whisper.
His gaze softens as he looks at me. “Come on, Strawberry. There’s no reason to hide what we have. Even a broken clock is right once a day. That’s you,” he says at Troy. “You’re the stupid broken clock. But you’re right about Tess and me. We were together, and it was magnificent.”
Troy just scoffs. “You’re a lousy liar.”
“And you’re a lousy lay,” he counters. “But I’m not lying. Tess and I fucked like rabbits all over my beach house. Sorry, babe, you were at work, and I got horny,” he says at Rachel. “And we both know this one is no help in that department,” he adds, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder at Ilmari.
“Jake,” Ilmari says in warning.
“What?” Jake says at his partner. “Are you seriously upset with this cretin knowing our business? He’s a total piece of shit. No one will believe him either way, Mars.”
Troy’s gaze darts between them.
Ilmari just shakes his head. “He doesn’t deserve to know our private business.”
“Sure, he does. Clearly, he loves salacious gossip.” Jake turns back to Troy, gesturing at Mars. “He only fucks women. Yeah, that’s right, I said women. Don’t even ask me the number of times I’ve come home from a long day at practice to find these two riding his cock and face. I swear, it’s a sight to behold.”
Next to me, Rachel clings to my arm. “Oh god,” she whispers, her gaze darting between her men and Troy.
My eyes go wide, too, as the pieces of this curious new puzzle click into place. Could this actually work? My relationship with Ryan is the ace up Troy’s sleeve. He wants to hurt me by ruining Ryan. How is he supposed to do that if half the Rays on the team boisterously claim we’ve also had affairs? Jake and Mars are taking Troy’s sharpest arrow and burning it to ash.
“This is bullshit,” Troy huffs. “You’re all a bunch of fucking liars.”
“Are we all lying? Or are you lying?” Jake presses. “Because these stories just don’t add up.”
“Mars!”
My hand tightens around Rachel’s as Caleb approaches, his dark gaze locked on us. He hurries over, a slight hitch in his step. He looks to Mars as both men put their phones back in their pockets. Apparently, Mars sent on an SOS.
“What’s happening?” asks Caleb.
Mars nods at Troy. “This is Troy Owens.”
Caleb’s face becomes a mask of rage as he slowly turns, taking in Troy for the first time.
“Perfect,” Troy huffs. “The gang’s all here. You’re the washed up one, right? The gimp? You’re even more useless than the pretty idiot,” he adds, pointing at Jake with a vicious smirk.
Caleb’s face becomes unreadable as Rachel and I cease to breathe. He’s her mystery boy after all, the unpredictable one. Jake inches closer, his hand going to Caleb’s shoulder. “Babe, we’ve got it handled.”
Caleb just shrugs him away, his eyes locked on Troy. “Are you here to be the tough guy? You wanna say some shitty, hateful things, looking to spin us up so we throw the first punch?”
Troy just smirks.
“Yeah, I’ve known guys like you all my life.”
“What, rich guys?” Troy replies, squaring his shoulders at him. “Guys with power and purpose?”
“Don’t speak in my wife’s presence again,” Caleb counters, his expression obsidian. “She doesn’t need to suffer the sound of your obnoxious bleating for another second.”
Troy glares. “I don’t take orders from sorry, washed-up has-beens.”
Caleb just nods. “Clearly, you did your homework. You googled some footage of me taking a hit to my knee, yeah? So, like any bully, you think you’ve found my weakness. I can’t take the hits anymore. I have to get others to fight my battles for me. Is that what you think?”
“Let’s just say you don’t intimidate me the same as your Swedish friend here,” Troy replies.
“He’s Finnish, asshole,” Jake snaps. “Get it right.”
Now it’s Caleb putting a hand on Jake’s shoulder, even as his eyes don’t leave Troy’s face. “You’re right. Ilmari has the look of a Viking god who will snap you in half. And he will if you take even one step closer to our wife. But I am the fucking darkness,” he says, stepping closer to Troy. “I am where your nightmares go to multiply. And I am telling you now that if you even look in my wife’s direction again, I will knock every single jib from your mouth and make you choke on them.”
Troy crosses his arms. “Threatening a lawyer, Mr. Sanford? Bad move.”
“It’s Price,” Caleb corrects. “And I’m threatening a coward and a menace. An abuser of women—”
“Tess is a dirty fucking liar—”
“Tess is mine. She left you and found herself a real man. Real men. Forget about Langley. He’s not your threat. It’s me. She’s mine now. And unlike you, I don’t lose the things that are mine. I protect them. You will not look at Tess, you will not speak to her, you will not so much as breathe her fucking air. I will give you this warning only once: Get lost and stay lost. Forever.”
Jake steps in to stand shoulder to shoulder with Caleb. “My husband told you to go. Don’t make him say it again.”
At the same time, Ilmari steps to the right, placing himself in front of Rachel and me, blocking us from Troy’s view. Heart racing, my hand takes hold of Ilmari’s arm. Next to me, Rachel does the same. I can’t help myself, and I peek around him to look at Troy.
“Tess is ours now,” Ilmari intones. “It’s time to let go.”
After a painfully long moment, Troy huffs a laugh and takes a step back. “You all present a united front. Very impressive.” He lifts his hands in surrender and takes another step back. “Tess, I’m going,” he says at me, peering around Ilmari to flash me a wink. “I never wanted to see you anyway. That’s not why I came tonight.”