He was right. I needed to take care of Liv. But he was so fucking wrong about the rest. The cops wouldn’t do shit. The boxing administration would do even less. Slate could throw all the weight in the world behind this kind of attack, but it wouldn’t change the fact that it had still happened.
And I hadn’t been there to protect her.
Two weeks into our relationship and I was already treading dangerously close to failing yet another woman.
And, this time, it was Liv.
Not a consequence in the world could sway me from making Davenport pay.
And I knew that that was exactly why Liv was freaking out. She knew me all too well.
It was my turn to lie.
“Okay,” I told Till. “Call the cops and fucking let me up so I can get to her.”
I had expected Quarry to lose his shit, and it was precisely why I’d made sure his brothers were there when I’d dropped the bomb. They could at least physically prevent him from going off the deep end until I had a chance to calm him down and talk some sense into him.
However, I never could have expected the scene that played out.
His face turned red, pure madness brewing in his thunderous eyes. I was still clinging to the front of shirt when he spun on a heel. His powerful stomps carried him to the door, Till barely managing to get in front of him before Quarry threw a punch. And it was thrown with such a force I knew that it had been intended for Davenport and not his brother. Quarry had one hell of a temper, but this was something else altogether. Intense anger rolled off him as Till fought to pry the keys from his hand.
I was able to hold it together until Till dodged a punch and Quarry’s hand went through the sheet rock. That’s when I lost my shit too.
Davenport was once again going to get his way. One way or another, whether Quarry found him and beat him within an inch of his life or Quarry broke his hand in another fit of rage, the fight was going to get canceled.
I gave up on Till handling the situation and attempted to step between the brawling brothers.
Unfortunately, Flint caught me around the waist.
But, on the other hand, it was fortunate Flint caught me around the waist because I almost caught an elbow to the face.
When Till and Quarry had made it out the door, Flint promptly blocked me. I was having a nervous breakdown from not being able to see what was going on.
I was seriously contemplating the ramifications of stealing Flint’s cane and beating him with it when Quarry suddenly appeared behind him. Flint gingerly stepped out of the way for his seemingly no-longer-irate brother to pass through.
Raking my eyes over his body, I checked for any type of injury, but his stormy eyes held the only lingering proof of his outburst.
I opened my mouth to ask if he was okay, but his thick arm hooked across my stomach, folding me over and lifting me off my feet.
“What are you doing?” I cried, dangling like a rag doll at his side.
He didn’t answer. Nor did his feet slow until we reached his old bedroom.
After kicking the door shut, he deposited me on the bed. Then my arms were yanked up and my dress was stripped over my head. His shirt followed. Then he landed on the bed next to me. Rolling to his back, he tucked me into his side, and only then did he breathe a huge sigh of relief. His heart was still slamming around in his chest, and his body was stiff, but his words were soft.
“What happened…exactly?”
“Uhhhh, is there a reason we have to be almost naked to have this conversation? If you decide to haul ass out of the room again, it’s going to be embarrassing when I have to chase you down in my underwear.”
“I won’t leave again,” he replied emotionlessly, but his lips found the top of my head.
“Okay, but if you’re planning to have sex with me, you’re going to have to be quiet because I’m pretty sure Ash and Eliza are listening at the door.”
This time, his voice was terse. “My head is two seconds away from exploding. If I fucked you now, I might kill us both. So, please, just tell me what the fuck happened.” His lips once again found my head, easing the sting in his tone.
So I told him.
Every single bit.
Except for the hotel room number.
Thank God for Don Blake! Because, if the way his body went rock solid when I got to the keycard part was any indication, I would have in fact been hiding a body later that night.
After I finished, Quarry remained silent for several minutes. I tried to soothe him by tracing the black tattoos that covered one of his pecs, and his breathing gradually slowed and then evened out. I thought for a moment that he’d fallen asleep. But, when I glanced up, his eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling in deep contemplation.
“What are you thinking?” I asked quietly.
“Honestly?”
“Yeah.”
“Right now, it’s how I’m going to keep your dad from killing Davenport before I get the chance.”