Page 25 of Rival Heart
Snorting, I shoot him a disbelieving look. “That’s something you might do. He loves me and I love him. He’s gonna come looking for your ass and he’s gonna make you regret touching me. And then you’re gonna go to jail and some guy named Bruce is gonna make you his bitch and I’m gonna be real damn happy about that, Jefferson. Because you deserve it if you think you can just hit a woman and kidnap her and that’s gonna lead to your happily ever after with my money! You’re an idiot,” I mutter under my breath.
“Shut up!” He hollers, running his hands through his hair until it’s standing on end. “Just shut up. I’ve got this all worked out. You’re not going to talk me out of this. I need this. It will work.” His voice trails off as he’s talking until he’s whispering to himself.
“Yeah, baby. Shut up for a minute.” Jace steps out from behind a hay bale that’s beside the back door to the barn I’m in. He spots me and his teal-blue eyes twinkle but his jaw is rock-hard and there’s a still, tight look to his body that should make Jefferson very wary.
But he’s apparently too damn dumb.
“What the hell are you doing here? How did you find me?” He whines and I roll my eyes. The differences between Jefferson and Jace are blindingly evident right now. Like day and night. Boy and man.
He runs towards Jace and throws the worst punch I’ve ever seen in my life. I wince as Jace’s fist meets his jaw and Jefferson rolls back on his fancy boot heels.
The two men slam into each other and Jace wraps his arms around the other man, his muscles bulging until it looks like his T-shirt might rip right off him.
I think I’d pay money for that shot!
I duck and groan as they slam into each other again, fists flying. Jefferson looks a mess, blood dripping from his mouth and nose, his fancy button-down torn right down the middle.
In contrast, Jace looks fresh as a damn daisy, barely rumpled. He’s like Superman standing there taking every punch with a grunt but never losing strength.
Until he jerks his hand back and slams it straight into Jefferson’s glass jaw and the guy drops like a sack of potatoes to the dirty floor. Jace barely glances at him, his sharp eyes locked on me as he steps over the inert body at his feet.
My heart skips a beat at the joy and love on his face. His big hands wrap around me in the chair and he lifts both of us off the ground. “Holy shit, sweetheart. Do not ever scare me like that again. I think I lost ten years off my life.”
I rest my head on his chest, feeling his heart beating steady and strong under my cheek. “Ummm, baby? You think you could get me out of this thing. I really want to touch you and this…” I stop and he grins, stepping back.
“Yeah. It’s killing the mood. If I ever tie you down, it’s not gonna be on a chair!”
Flushing to the roots of my hair, I huff but as soon as he unties me, I wrap my arms and legs around him, tears stinging my eyes. I came so close…
“I can’t believe I almost lost you.” His head jerks around and his ocean eyes lock on Jefferson lying on the floor. “I should kill him just for touching you.” I wince when he jostles me, and his eyes sharpen. “Did he hurt you?”
“He hit me in the head I think.”
“Oh fuck.” He drops me to my toes, and his fingers prod gently at my head until I hiss out a breath.
“Damn, that hurts.”
“You’ve got a lump. I’m gonna…”
The Sheriff’s cold voice comes from the doorway. “You’ll leave it to me. And take your wife to the hospital. I’ll clean up this mess.” His firm lips twist and he growls at one of his men.
The barn quickly fills up with his people taking pictures and then an ambulance pulls up and Jefferson is hauled out on a stretcher. He nods towards it. “You should have them take Rebel too.” He groans when he sees the lavender car pulling up behind the ambulance. “You better get out while the getting’s good.”
My nose scrunches and both men laugh. I’d sooner ride with a rattler.
“I’ll take her to the doc. He can take care of her. She doesn’t need to go anywhere near that piece of shit.” Jace’s eyes roll when the familiar lavender heads pop up and the two elderly ladies start twittering. Before we can get away Louise pops up and the smirk on her face makes Jace growl under his breath.
“I’m glad to see that you took our advice. We knew you two just needed a little push.”
“Oof!” He picks me up and holds me tight, his eyes closing. “I thought I lost you, baby. I swear I’ve never been so scared in my life. I love you, Reb. If anything ever happens to you…”
“It won’t. And if it does, I’ve got you right here to protect me.” My hand reaches up to cradle his lean cheek, his scruff rasping on my skin. My whole body lights up, flushing.
“I love you too, Jace.”
“I suppose I should let your dad know that you’re alright. He was worried about you.”
“I find that hard to believe,” I mutter under my breath.
