“I’m not a monk.” He gives me a knowing look. “You telling me all those months Kai had you in the friend zone you didn’t get it somewhere else?”
I shake my head. His grin drops.
“Not even a little bit o’ *?”
“Not even a little bit.” I shrug. “She was it for me. I didn’t want anybody else. Haven’t since the day we met. It wasn’t like love at first sight or anything. I grew in love with her, but all the other girls just kind of disappeared.”
“And when Kai told you no and friend zoned you so hard, did you give up?” Marlon demands.
“Nope. Failure wasn’t an option.”
“Well, then you understand why I haven’t given up on Bristol yet.”
“Frankly, I don’t want you to get hurt.” I sigh. “And as much as I love my sister, she could roll over you like a speed bump and never even feel you under her tires.”
“I’ll take my chances. I think she’d be worth it.” His grin makes a brief appearance before fading. “Your girl’s worth it, right?”
“There’s not a chance I wouldn’t take for her.”
I slow down a few blocks from the address Bristol gave me when I see Gep’s truck pulled off to the side. Once we’re out of my truck and standing in front of him, I see the sober look on his face.
“What we got?” I demand. “He’s in the house?”
“Yeah, he’s there.” Gep puts a firm hand on my shoulder. “I don’t know exactly what we’re walking into here, Rhys. It could be volatile. It’s not too late to contact the cops.”
“No cops.” I slam my frown into place. “The circle of people who know about this is already larger than it should be. I can’t risk exposing Kai like that. Some cop or clerk looking to make something on the side gets wind of this and sells to the highest bidder. No fucking way, Gep. We get to the bottom of this quickly and quietly.”
He looks like he’ll make another argument, and I’m braced to stand my ground.
“Gep, let’s try it his way.” Marlon leans against my truck, arms folded across his chest. “I’ve kept him from killing this guy since high school. I think I can do it one more time.”
Gep’s got about five seconds to concede before I go in there on my own. My fingers itch to wrap around that fucker’s neck. I know Gep’s job is to keep me safe, but my safety is the last thing I care about right now.
“Okay, let’s do it.” Gep taps on the tinted back right passenger window, and a guy I’ve never seen before dressed in UPS browns steps out. Gep gestures to him. “Our element of surprise.”
We make our way silently up the steep driveway of the small house nestled into the side of the mountain. Gep and I step to one side of the door. Marlon steps to the other, and our fake UPS guy rings the bell. The door is barely cracked open, and as soon as I see Drex’s face, I shove UPS out of the way and lunge for that asshole, pushing him back into the house. He slithers out of my grip and zips toward an open door leading to the patio. I’m on his heels and tackle him to the flagstones, sitting on his chest to keep him pinned. The fool has the nerve to laugh up into my face.
“If you’re here for tips on how to fuck your girl right, I’m not telling you shit. Figure it out for yourself.”
My body processes what he said before my mind does, immediately punching him in the face. His eyes glaze a little, but the smile pops right back like a demented clown.
“She was so tight and wet that night,” he rasps. “Next time I’ll let her suck my dick.”
There is no stopping it. The momentum of my rage drags me into his face again and again and again. The sound of his flesh flattening under my fury brings me an unreasonable pleasure that drowns out the pain of my knuckles splitting, the flesh peeling back from my bones. That metronome that always marks my anger explodes, the tick tocking detritus littering my brain. I don’t even notice when he manages to roll to the side, and my fist pounds full force into the flagstones beneath us. I barely feel the impact, adrenaline surging. I snatch him back, latching onto his throat. Bloodlust swells in my veins, hauling every savage instinct to the surface. I tremble with the desire to choke off his air supply for good.
“Rhys, man.” Marlon pulls at me, and out of pure reflex I draw back to punch him, too, but catch myself. His eyes travel from my bunched fist to my face. “You gonna hit me now? Just be prepared for me to knock the living shit outtta you.”
Hot, heavy breath forces past my lips. When I try to flex the fingers of my right hand, I can’t. Since before I can even remember, protecting my fingers, my hands has been paramount. Our lives, my livelihood, everything always centered in my hands. And now it’s a limp mass of bloodied flesh. Needles of pain stab my fingers. Panic feels like it may catapult my heart from my chest.
“Rhys, your hand.” Marlon’s worried eyes settle on my hand. “We need to get you to a doctor, like now.”
I peer through the patio door into the living room where Gep has dragged Drex’s sorry ass. Gep towers over him, and the look he gives him is deadly enough to pin him to the couch. I draw a calming breath and approach them.