Eli’s gaze goes to me, and he raises his eyebrows. “You having fun yet, Margo?”
I shake my head. Blood flies when Caleb gets another hit in on Ian’s face. He suddenly has him pinned to the floor, his elbows coming up before his fist hammers down. I wince at the sound of his knuckles meeting flesh.
And Eli seems perfectly fine with letting it happen.
“Caleb,” I step away from the wall.
We have an audience once again, but they’re smart enough to stay the hell back. He doesn’t hear me.
“Caleb!”
I put my hand on his arm, and suddenlyI’mthe one pinned. He jumps off Ian and leans into me faster than I can comprehend. His hot breath hits my cheek, and I realize I’ve turned my head away. He smells like blood.
“You’re playing with fire, baby. I could’ve hit you.” He bites my earlobe.
Heat floods through me.
“I don’t know if I’m scared of you or impressed that you defended me,” I mumble. “You won’t hurt me.”
His teeth are still in my skin. We have anaudience.
“Be both.” He picks me up, his hands on my ass lifting me higher.
I wrap my legs around his waist.
“I want to drag you into a room and fuck you senseless. I wanted that before we even came to this freaking party.”
The way he’s holding me, his erection brushes my core. We’re in the perfect position—minus the crowd around us. My body is hot, and butterflies erupt through me.
He trails kisses along my jaw, and I tilt my head to give him better access.
“Tonight, you’re fuckingmine.”
Chapter 26
Caleb
Someone drags Ian off to nurse his wounds.
Theo, Eli, and Liam threaten to kidnap Margo unless I go with them to clean the blood off my face. That gets me to relent, but barely. I keep an eye on her while Liam holds a bag of frozen peas to my knuckles, and Eli hands me a wet paper towel.
The music kicks back on, louder than it was before. It vibrates in my rib cage.
Ian got in a few punches, but I’ve suffered worse at the hands of my best friends. Or family.
That’s a weird marker for me, perhaps, but I shrug it off. The paper towel comes away red. That damn cut on my lip keeps getting close to fully healing, then I do something to fuck it up. Meeting Eli’s gaze, I silently dare him to say something.
He doesn’t.
Theo finds me a cup and pours a healthy dose of vodka into it, topping it off with soda.
I take a sip and wince at the burn. Fire spreads through me, different than the sort I feel because of Margo. I take another swallow. It might rid me of the skin-crawling sensation that’s come over me recently.
My family home. Margo. Plus the murderous rage that descends whenever someone looks at her.
“Ian’s face could’ve passed for raw meat,” Liam comments.
I shrug. “He deserved it.”