Page 48 of Christmas with Three Cowboys

“I didn’t want to, believe me,” Jake says. “But I had to tell you… Melissa, it doesn’t look good. I can’t exactly walk back on everything I said either. I’m just here to warn you as a favor.”

“To warn me?”

“The Esparza cartel. I found you here, and so will they. So you need to figure out a way to get them that money before they do. I can hold them back for as long as I can, throw them off your trail, but that’s it.”

The blows just keep coming.

“You want me to get two million dollars so the Esparza cartel, whose drugsyoulost by putting me inyourvan, so they won’t killmefor your fuck up? Am I getting this right?”

“That’s correct. It is what it is, Melissa. There’s no other way around it.”

“And what if I get a better lawyer and appeal my sentence? A good defense would probably poke holes in every lie you declared on the stand.”

Jake’s expression darkens. His once-bright brown eyes take on a feral glow, and he moves toward me. For the first time, I see the real Jake, the monster hiding behind good manners and soft-spoken words. The bastard who put me away, who destroyed my life. And I’m afraid. I am genuinely afraid, paralyzed, barely able to breathe.

“If you so much as think about screwing me, Melissa, I’ll release the hounds of hell. I’ll let the cartel come for you. They won’t even bother squeezing that money out of you. They’ll just torture you until you beg them to kill you. And then, the cops will find your body in pieces scattered all over Nebraska,” he says, hisvoice cold, his glare deadly.

“You fucking prick,” I snarl. “Where am I supposed to find two million dollars?”

“You’re a resourceful girl.”

“I’ll go public—” I say but he slams a fist into the wall right next to my head, and I yelp, the blood rushing up to my head with lightning speed.

“I’ll tear you to fucking shreds!” Jake snaps.

A split-second later, he’s yanked away and thrown out the door like a sack of potatoes. I hear his grunt as he lands on the porch, the thuds accompanying the rolling motion down the steps.

In his stead, I see Ethan.

“Ethan,” I whisper, though I still can’t move.

“Are you okay?” he asks, panting with raw anger.

I nod slowly, though we both know I’m lying.

“Who’s that?” he asks, pointing at Jake, who’s done tumbling in the snow and is now struggling to get back on his feet.

“Jake,” I manage.

Ethan pauses, his gaze darting between Jake and me. The look on his face is impossible to decipher, but I feel the deadly intention in each of his moves. He’s like a tiger on the prowl, the blue of his eyes are pitch black as he walks back out. With automatic movements, I follow him to the edge of the porch just in time to see Jake get up.

“What the fuck, man?” Jake shouts.

“You punched my wall and threatened a lady,” Ethan replies bluntly. “A lady I’m very fond of. So, at this point, you have two options.”

“Whoa, buddy. Melissa and I go way back—”

“I know who you are, you piece of shit. Your options remain the same. You stay here, and I kill you slowly or you get the fuck out of here and never show your face around these parts again. I’m giving you five seconds.”

Jake laughs nervously, but Ethan’s hand is already reaching behind him where he keeps a gun holstered on his lower back.

“Hey, I’m not trying to start anything here. Let’s chill,” Jake says. But his gaze follows Ethan’s hand as well, and he knows what’s coming if he doesn’t choose. “Buddy, come on.”

“Five,” Ethan says.

“Now, hold on—”

“Four.”

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