Page 68 of Taming Achilles

“It would kill him,” Cal said. “He would lose his mind and … lose that Scottish temper.”

I nodded, trying not to smile. I quite liked that Scottish passion. But Cal didn’t need to know that.

He ran his fingers through his hair, and scratched at his scalp.

“I know the easiest way to lure him out,” he said, suddenly talking about Rhodes again. “And I think we could have a plan for that. Especially if he’s fixated on you, like I think he is.”

The plan we concocted was simple. It involved the gossip sites, and using my stalker’s existing hatred for Geordie. Now, to see if we could lure out a rat.

We were hashing out the final plans, ready to brief our respective teams when we heard a sudden knock, and the door to the hallway indented inwards, as though a person was smashed into it with great force.

“I think Geordie’s charming your friends,” said Callum, looking over at me with a wink in his eye before we both got up and moved into the hallway.

Chapter 33

Geordie

Fucking Brett Bradley. Lea hated him. So did Callum. I had been indifferent until this exact moment.

“What kind of man looks at a woman in trouble and coerces her into his bed?” He accused with narrowed eyes.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I stated flatly.

“Don’t I?” Brett counteraccused, his large friend, the infamous MMA trainer, Ajax LeBlanc, came to his side. The two of them crossed their arms like tweedle dee and tweedle dum, two sides of the same black and white coin, thirsting for my blood.

This is the point when I should probably back down. The two of them weren’t opponents to scoff at. Ajax LeBlanc wasn’t just a trainer, but a fighter in his own right. A former NAVY SEAL, from what I was able to garner from my snooping. One-on-one, I stood a chance. Two-on-one? I was gonnae get skelped.

“You think you get to treat women like that?” Ajax’s low voice was a growl like a wolf, readying for a kill.

As twisted and dark as I might be on the inside, I wasn’t a man to get into random brawls despite my temper. I tried to be a lark. A fun time. Not a person to be offended by. So it was strange to be the subject of their ire. Their righteous indignation for the dignity of a woman. My woman.

It made my skin prickle that they would dare to defend her honour. That task belonged to me, and me alone.

“I get to treat Pippa how I want,” I said under my breath. “What’s between us is none of your concern.”

“It concerns us.” Brett’s fists clenched, and I knew he’d strike at any moment. “When men like you think they can treat a girl like that…”

“She’s not a girl!” I bellowed. “She’s a woman, and she doesn’t need your protection!” He was stepping over the line with me, and I was ready to take him down. Even if they broke their skulls, there was a single truth that needed to be clear to them, to me, and to the woman in question - she was mine. “You think you can get between her thighs?” I accused.

Men had always sniffed at Pippa. I didn’t blame them for it. She was gorgeous. The world knew that. But let them sniff, and look to their heart's content. As long as they didn’t dare touch her.

“I claimed that twenty fucking years ago, so you’re decades too late, mate…”

The punch was hard. A darkened fist popped between my eyes as another pair of hands grabbed me by the collar and I was launched into the door behind me.

The wood gave way, splintering beneath my shoulder blades as I collapsed to the floor.

I looked at Hugo and Alastair who were standing back, looking at me with blank faces.

“Do we stop this?” Hugo asked, barely a question in his voice.

“Depends on what the real story is,” Alastair said, his proper English voice grating on my nerves. Fucking English.

I scrambled to my feet as the door behind me opened. Out came Pippa, her hand coming to my aching chest as she stood between me and her little friends. With her back turned to me, she yelled, “What the bloody hell is going on here?”

Ajax and Brett looked at each other, then at me. I stared right back, keeping my mouth clamped shut.

“Mummy’s not happy,” Alastair said, covering his mouth with his hand, as he and Hugo snickered together. Bloody morons, the pair of them.

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