Page 33 of Unraveled

Red flashed across my vision. White hot rage shooting across my body. My feet were moving before my brain thought to do it, and I grabbed her wrist, twisting as I yanked it back to pull her off of my man’s lap.

She cried out, her body turning to try to follow the angle, and I shoved her back against the bar before connecting my fist with her face.

Startled murmurs and gasps erupted around us as satisfaction swam through me, and I pulled back to hit her again just as a powerful set of arms wrapped around my middle, hauling me back.

“You bitch!” Ruby cried, covering her eye.

“Let me go!” I squirmed to get free. To jump her ass again.

“Yeah, that’ll be a no,” I heard Tucker say above me, and he turned, still holding me up in the air as he headed for the doors.

“She needs to go.” The security guard crossed his arms over his chest.

“On it.” Tucker just kept walking, not stopping until we were at the backside of the parking lot. “This is yours.” He set me down in front of Jet, and I shoved myself back before he could put his arms around me.

“I told you!” I pointed a finger in his face. “I told you she wanted you.”

“It wasn’t what you thought.” Jet reached out for me, but I yanked my arm away.

“What was it like, then? She forgot what it was like to walk like ahumanand just randomly collapsed right in your lap? B fucking S, babe!”

“She was reaching for a napkin and lost balance,” Jet’s voice tried to sooth. To reason with me, and I scoffed.

Like hell she lost balance.Why couldn’t he see it?

“So, why didn’t you push her off?”

“Because I was as startled as she was, and then you were suddenly there.” Jet stared, looking at me like he couldn’t believe this was a discussion.

I shook my head, my jaw jutting. Was I overreacting?It sure as hell didn’t feel like it when I saw another girl in his lap.

“In Jet’s defense, he didn’t really have a chance to get her off his lap. You were over there in about a second,” Nic said, and I shot him a glare. But it was half-hearted, my mind starting to second guess itself, like maybe I was going crazy over nothing. I had so much packed away that I wasn’t dealing with. My stress mounting with no one around me able to see it.

“Annie, it did happen really fast. I didn’t see Jet do anything wrong,” Izzy said next.

I wanted to believe her. I did. I just knew that hehad.

In one aspect.

Maybe.

“Why was she even next to you?” My brow furrowed, my voice pleading with Jet to now just help me understand. Praying I was overreacting. That I’d misunderstood. I just didn’t see how. My radar was flashing neon around this girl now, and it felt like I was the only one seeing it.

“She was getting a drink at the bar, and she came over to say hi. I said hi back. We talked for about thirty seconds while she waited for her drink. What do you want me to do, sweetheart? I’ve pushed her away as much as I can, but Iworkwith her. I don’t want things so tense that I don’t even like going into the shop anymore. Can you not see that?”

He reached out, taking my hand, and this time I let him step closer. His thumb brushed over my cheek, those blue eyes gazing down with so much love and concern. I officially felt like a bitch. Not for hitting her but for going off on him.Shewas the enemy, not Jet. I trusted Jet with every beat my heart took.

He rested his forehead against mine. “Are we good?”

I nodded. “Yes. I’m sorry. I just lost it in there. I’ve already warned her away from you. Twice now. So, seeing her in your lap just pushed it.”

I caught a view of Jet’s smirk. “You’ve warned her off, huh?”

“Oh, Lord,” Tucker said from behind me. “They’re about to start flirting. They’re making up. We’re good.”

I laughed, wrapping an arm around Jet’s neck as I pressed my body against his. “Yeah. We’re good.”

“Almost.” Jet brushed my cheek with a kiss and then lifted my hand to study it under the floodlight at the back of the building. My palm rested in his, and he slowly traced his fingers around the length of each of mine, carefully brushing his thumb over my knuckles along the way.

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