Page 121 of The Way We Touch

Thomas has joined the group, but Zane puts his hand on his arm. “Stay here, friend.”

The older man’s dark brow furrows. “You might need help.”

Zane nods at the girls. “We need you to watch over Dylan and Kimmie if things go sideways. You don’t need to be in this.”

Thomas’s lips tighten as if he’ll argue, but he glances at the five of us and chuckles. “Let me know when you need the shovel.”

Davis has both hands up. “I didn’t agree to take it outside.”

Zane’s eyes flash fire, and he steps closer. “Then you shouldn’t have opened your lying mouth about my sister.”

He grabs Davis’s shoulder, turning him and shoving him through the door. We’re all out the door, our boots scuffing against the gravel parking lot.

“I’ve been waiting for this.” Craig hustles up, getting in the rich prick’s face. “I’ve been ready to kick your ass since you put your hands on her.”

The match is struck, and my fury explodes. “What did you just say?”

“Give me a break. I grabbed her fucking arm.” Davis rolls his eyes, blowing air through his lips. “She wouldn’t listen, so I had to?—”

My fist slams into his mouth before he even finishes speaking. He takes a staggering step back, then drops to one knee. Craig rushes forward and hits his shoulders hard with both hands, sending Davis all the way onto his back with an Oof.

“What?” Craig yells in his face. “I only pushed you down. Give me a break!”

Craig pulls back his foot, ready to kick him in the stomach, but I reach down and grab Davis under the arms instead. I stand him on his feet so I can punch his lights out again.

My fist is raised, but he holds up both hands, ducking and whining. “Don’t hit me again!”

Blood covers his mouth and chin, and my fingers itch to pulverize this sniveling coward. Tension tweaks all my muscles, and only one thing is strong enough to hold me back—Dylan and Christmas and not spending the weekend in jail.

Instead I shake him hard, throwing him on the ground again. “Don’t show your fucking face here ever, or it’ll be the last time. Hear me?”

“Yes,” he whines, curling into a ball.

Jack steps up beside me, and he reaches down to grab Davis by the collar, jerking him off the ground with his fist raised. “You hurt my sister, and you lied about her to TMI?”

“No, man!” Davis holds up both hands over his head, whining. “It was a misunderstanding. Just let me go home. I won’t come back.”

“You’re fucking right you won’t.” He shoves him back hard onto the gravel, then he kicks him in the stomach.

Reaching out, I grab his shoulder. A small crowd is forming, phones are coming out, and I’m the only one who won’t suffer for what’s happening here. As head coach at the high school, Jack could lose his job.

“Go on back inside. I’ll finish up here.”

He’s breathing hard, looking down at that fucking prick on the ground, but I manage to get him to turn. I grab Craig’s arm and pull him over.

“You two go back inside. Take care of the girls.”

“Take care of him.” Zane nods to where Garrett and Peter are circling each other behind us with their fists raised.

“Shit like that doesn’t go unanswered by me.” Garrett lands a punch to the side of Peter’s face, but the big guy only takes a half step back.

“Then you’d better have more than that in you.” Peter swings, but I’m there to block it with my forearm.

“I’ve got more.” Not wasting a beat, I step forward quickly, pulling with my stomach and using all my weight to drive an uppercut straight into the bottom of his jaw.

His teeth rattle and he snorts a grunt. I actually see his eyes roll before he staggers to the side. Garrett is right there with a finishing jab to the chest, and the asshole falls like a tree, a knockout punch.

We stand over him, breathing hard when red and blue lights flash through the trees. A police car is headed this way, and in an instant, the crowd starts to disperse.

---