Page 14 of Hold Me Closer
Crap.
"Yeah, bitch," the one looming over me says. "Call your little security guard over. See if he can protect you from what I'm going to do to you and your little friend when I get you alone."
I lift my gaze, hoping like hell that Jareth or Lemmy is paying enough attention to realize I need help. Instead, the breath gets sucked out of my lungs when I look up…directly into Teo's piercing blue eyes.
They lock on mine, rage and something else—something vast and as hot as the sun—burning in the depths, and I'm sucked into a maelstrom I haven't felt in six years. It cracks me wide open and splits me apart, leaving me trembling.
"Mateo," I whisper, his name shaking on my lips.
He's here. He's really standing in front of me. Why?
He doesn't say a word to me. Not one. He simply grabs the jackass who told Zoya to call security by the collar and flings him like a ragdoll. I cry out as the man goes flying, only to crash into a table a few feet away.
His friend doesn't fare any better.
Teo yanks that one up by his throat, tossing him aside with a growl. He lands on his ass beside his buddy.
"You," he snarls at the jerk in the wrinkled suit. "Apologize. Now."
The man stares at him blankly.
"You threatened her," Teo says, hauling himself up to his full height. And God, he's grown since I last saw him. Back then, he was big and handsome but boyish. Now, he's a giant, every inch of him carved from granite. There's nothing boyish or immature about him. He's intimidating as hell.
The five o'clock shadow on his sharp jawline gives him a wicked, dangerous edge I like a little too much. The tattoos running up his corded forearms are striking. The way his suit jacket clings to every single muscle in his shoulders is just unfair. God, he didn't just grow up. He grew so damn beautiful I want to cry.
"Apologize. Now," he grits out, his hands clenched.
"Fuck you and the bitch."
"Wrong choice."
Teo snaps his arm back, smashing his fist into the man's face once. It happens so fast that I don't even see it coming. The drunk guy definitely doesn't. Bone crunches, his nose breaking on impact.
Another soft cry escapes my lips as he crumples like a paper doll at Teo's feet, hitting the floor with a heavy thud.
"I called the police," the bartender says, hurrying over to us. He eyes Teo warily. "They're on the way."
Teo ignores him, his eyes locked on my face. "You okay, butterfly?" he asks me, his voice soft.
I jerk my chin in a nod, too stunned to speak.
"Zoya?" he asks, checking on my sister.
"I'm fine."
He stares at me for a long moment, shaking out his hand, but he doesn't say anything else. He just watches my face, staring like he's trying to imprint the vision in his memory.
"Thank yo–"
"Hire security. You need it," he interrupts before turning abruptly and walking away.
I gape after him, shocked silent.
What the hell just happened?
Chapter Three
Teo
