Page 184 of Filthy Rich Santas

Ryder crosses his arms over his chest and gives Wade a cold smile.

“Just… go,” I whisper.

“I’m not going anywhere.” Wade’s eyes narrow, zeroing in on my left hand. “Where the hell is your engagement ring? I gave you a three-carat diamond!”

“Oh, that little thing?” Tristan says before I can answer, his dry tone laced with steel. “Guess it must have fallen off while she was busy screaming our names.”

Wade’s eyes bug out as he looks between the four of us in disbelief. Then, as the room falls silent again—everyone clearly reading into that exactly what Tristan meant—Wade’s face turns a shade of purple I’ve never seen before.

“You’re not taking me back because you’re fucking three men at the same time?” he snarls, all pretense gone. “Are you fucking serious right now?”

“She told you to get the fuck out,” Beckett says in a low, deadly voice, his muscles bunching under my hand. “Last warning.”

Wade ignores him, his eyes raking over my body as his lip curls in disdain. “I see you’ve put on even more weight since I dumped you. Hell, everyone can see it in that dress. Is that because you’re eating for four now, Lana, or do you just need the extra cushion now that you’ve decided you’d rather have a gang bang than be in a respectable relationship?”

Beckett growls, shaking my hand off his arm, then slams his fist into Wade’s jaw.

43

LANA

I gasp,pressing my hand to my mouth as Beckett’s punch sends Wade reeling sideways. The room erupts into chaos—a blur of motion and screaming as my parents’ guests scramble backward, clearing the space around us.

I can hear my mother shouting something at me, but it doesn’t even register over the sound of my pounding heart.

Tristan and Ryder rush forward, grabbing Beckett and holding him back before he can go after Wade again. The expression on their faces make it crystal clear they’re only doing it to protect him from doing something that could land him in jail.

“Are you planning on being smart or are you planning on being hurt,” Ryder snaps at Wade when he finally finds his feet and turns back toward Beckett instead of toward the door.

Wade answers with an inarticulate sound of rage and lunges at Beckett, fists flying.

Beckett breaks free from his friends’ hold just long enough to land another punch that sends blood spraying from Wade’s nose. When Wade tries to retaliate, Ryder intercepts him, catching Wade’s flailing arm and twisting until Wade yelps and goes down on one knee.

“Get out,” he snaps.

But Wade doesn’t listen. He fights his way back up to his feet, and Beckett lunges at him again, turning it into an all-out brawl.

“Oh my god,” I gasp

I rush forward as the fight careens toward the entrance hall. I can tell Tristan and Ryder are doing their best to push Wade toward the door while simultaneously keeping Beckett from murdering him, but the white-hot rage on Beckett’s face makes me doubt they’ll be able to manage that.

Glass shatters—a stray elbow taking out a side table—as Beckett struggles against Tristan and Ryder, his eyes fixed on Wade with laser-like intensity.

“Be smart,” I hear Tristan mutter as he hauls him back, but then Wade surges forward, his face twisted with fury, and Beckett breaks loose again.

My stomach drops as Wade lets loose a vicious right hook aimed at Beckett’s jaw, but Tristan and Ryder drag Beckett out of range before it connects.

Wade loses his balance, careening into the front door. For a moment, he just stands there, breathing heavily, his eyes wild. Then he lurches forward with a snarl, like he just doesn’t know when to quit, and the three men move in perfect sync, picking him up and literally throwing him out of the house.

I race for the door as they follow Wade out, watching as they physically drag him down my parents’ driveway. I’m vaguely aware that I’m not the only one crowding into the doorway watching, but I don’t care. My heart is hammering in my chest, every ounce of my attention focused on Tristan, Ryder, and Beckett.

“Stay the fuck away from her,” Beckett snarls once they finally release Wade at the end of the driveway, giving him a shove that sends him stumbling.

Wade staggers, and for a moment, I think he might be dumb enough to actually keep fighting.

He eyes Tristan and Ryder, sizing them up as they eye him back, never taking their focus off him. It almost looks like he’s thinking of taking them on too, but then his eyes flick toward Beckett and he pales.

I bite my lip, my heart in my throat. But luckily the reality of the situation seems to hit Wade all at once, and after muttering what sounds like a few choice curse words, he goes from a raging bull to a sniveling weasel, turning and limping off down the street.

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