Page 71 of Samuel

“I appreciate that Hank, but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. It’s actually personal.”

Hank took a long pull on his beer. “Okay.”

“Evie got a phone call from her old boss the other day. Ioverheard just a little bit of it, but from the way he was fucking verbally assaulting her…”

Hank sat up, his arms crossing over his chest. “You think the guy is a danger to her?”

“I wouldn’t put it past him. She said that was the first time he called her, but she’s been getting nasty texts from random numbers for a while. I made sure she knew to block them, but I just don’t like the feeling that’s churning in my gut.”

“Send me the guy's name and I’ll look into him.”

“Thanks.”

“It’s my job to protect the citizens of Clarence County. And nothing is more important than helping family.”

Sam shook Hank’s hand. His eyes bounced back towards the hallway where Evie disappeared a few minutes before. She should already be making her way back to the table. Instead, his vision went white when he saw the fear in her eyes as some asshole pressed her up against the wall.

Sam was on his feet, charging across the room before Hank’s shouts after him could even register. He reached out and grabbed the fucker who was touching Evie’s arm.

With a hand around the asshole’s neck, Sam yanked backwards before slamming the man’s head down on the bar.

“Don’t ever put your fucking hands on my woman.” His voice had a deadly growl to it, and his clenched fists shoved down against the prick’s back as he tried to push away from the bar.

Sam moved, shielding Evie with this body. He felt her arms wrap around his waist. As much as he loved that she wanted to be near him, he needed her to be a safe distance away in case he had to punch the fucker.

“You okay, Evie?”

She shook her head back and forth against his back. Shit, he needed backup quickly because all he kept thinking aboutwas wrapping his arms possessively around her and allowing himself to feel the weight of her against his heart.

“That’s him, Sam.”

“Him?”

“My former boss.”

Her former boss.The prick that had been calling her incessantly, messaging her, threatening her. The fucking asshole he’djustasked Hank to look into. He showed up. In their small town. He tracked her down and actually showed up.

Holy fuck. Sam was going to kill him. There was this primal urge bursting out, screaming at him to eliminate the threat to his woman. Protect her and the baby with everything he had.

“What’s going on here?” Hank’s voice finally snapped Sam out of his murderous spiral.

“Took you long enough.” Sam couldn’t help it. He was pissed the jerk had shown up and from how terrified Evie had looked when he ran over, the asshole had threatened her.

“Let me go.” Evie’s old boss thrashed against Sam’s hold.

“This is the fucker I was just asking you to look into. Seems he got sick of just making threats over the phone to Evie.”

“Fuck. Evie, are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

“I’m fine. Shaken up. He threatened to hurt me. I just… it was upsetting to hear.”

“Do we need to get you checked out?” Sam asked, growling the moment his eyes landed on the finger-shaped bruises that were already starting to form on Evie’s arm. “What about the baby?”

“That baby is a fucking bastard, and it’s mother is an abomination! Who would allow a woman to make a baby on her own? Without a father!”

His whole body went still, shock radiating from his fingertips tohis toes.

“I suggest you never say something like that about the mother of my baby or my daughter again, or I will make sure you never see another Wisconsin sunrise.”

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