Page 14 of Battling the Enemy
That mild irritation had morphed into annoyance though when I had seen Ramsey dragging Delaney into the eatery pavilion. For Ramsey to put his hands on a girl, there had to be a good reason, and Ramsey would never touch what was mine without cause. I should have known something was up when he texted that he’d meet us for lunch. Ramsey and Delaney sat, but I could feel the tension.
Once we were all seated to eat, that annoyance had turned into aggravation when Winston Reynolds had stormed into the pavilion and headed straight towards our table. I knew immediately that Winston approaching us had something to do with Delaney. My suspicions were confirmed when he stopped are our table, and Delaney stood up as he said, “We need to talk, Marlow.”
I stood up, and that caused the entire table to stand with me. Even the girls stood up. I faced him head on. “Do we, now?” His eyes darted towards Delaney standing behind me and I almost hit him without even knowing what he was about. His eyes on Delaney were just a little too much for me.
“Winston, now’s not the ti-”
I cut Delaney off. “Well, say what you have to say, Reynolds,” I ordered. I knew it was going to be bad because I could feel the anxiousness radiating off Delaney, and I could even feel the tension vibrating off Ramsey from the other side of the table. He knew whatever it was that Winston Reynolds was about to tell me. My only guess for Ramsey’s not telling me first was that he was giving Delaney a chance to tell me.
“I just thought you should know that…” That little hesitation showed his hand. His bravado was false, but whatever he needed to say was important enough to fake it. “…well, Delaney’s mine, Deke.”
‘Delaney’s mine.’
Those two words; two words that shouldn’t be uttered by any guy but me.
Winston Reynolds approached me to tell me the Delaney belonged to him, and I knew he wouldn’t be braving that unless it was the absolute truth.
You know those scenes in science class when something ices over? When the water is cracking, yet forming a bond all at the same time? That’s how the blood in my veins felt right now. The cold was deep and relentless.
I want to say I might have handle this better had Delaney not jumped out from behind me and gone to stand next to Winston, but the truth was, I wouldn’t have handled this well, no matter what. No matter what Delaney said, Winston’s claims, what the school thought…in my head? Well, in my head, Delaney was mine the second our kiss ended, and she slapped me. And here another guy was trying to tell me she wasn’t. Rage was replacing the cold rushing through my veins, and nothing good was going to come out of it.
“Deke-”
My arm snaked out, and grabbing Delaney by the nape of her neck, I forced her next to me. Ignoring Winston, and our entire audience of lunchtime students, I snarled down at her, “Align yourself with another guy like that ever again and I will fucking kill him before I make your life a living hell.” I shook her body for emphasis. “Understand?” Delaney’s eyes were wide and wild, but I turned my gaze back to Winston. He looked at Delaney like he wanted to save her and that just aggravated me even more.
Winston made things worse when he said, “We’re engaged to be married, Deke. I…I just thought you should know that before, uh, you think of taking things further with Delaney.” Murmurs ran through the pavilion like a wave.
Because I still had my hand gripping Delaney’s neck, I felt her turned her body towards Winston. Now she was standing next to me facing him instead of the other way around. “What is wrong with you?!” she yelled. “I was going to tell him. You didn’t have to do this, Winston. You didn’t have to do this here and now!”
Delaney was engaged to marry Winston Reynolds.
“So you say,” Winston countered.
“I was,” she argued. “Ramsey gave me until the end of the day because I wanted to do this privately, with a chance to explain everything.”
Reynolds quickly showed that he had a pair, and I was mildly impressed. “What’s to explain, Delaney? You’re mine. You have always been mine. Deke needs to know you’re temporary if you’re anything to him.”
Those words again.
The corners of my vision became hazing and the next thing I knew I had my fists wrapped up in Winston’s shirt, slamming him down on the table, food flying everywhere. His hands wrapped around my wrists, but that was the extent of his fight. I knew fright, and Winston Reynolds was frightened.
“Deke!” Delaney screamed. “Oh, my God! Stop it!”
I ignored Delaney because I knew Ramsey or Liam wouldn’t let her get hurt. I lifted him and slammed Winston down on the table one more time for good measure. This motherfucker needed to grasp just how serious my next words were. Loud enough for the entire school to hear, I made one thing absolutely, irrevocably clear to this guy, to my friends, to the whole fucking school. “Delaney isnotyours,” I corrected. “You might have thought she was at one time, but not any longer. Delaney’smine.She’s mine, and if you ever go near her again, Iwillfucking kill you, Reynolds.”
He didn’t immediately cower like a little bitch. “You don’t understand. She-”
“Stay away from her!” I roared, not caring who heard. “Stay the fuck away from her. Delaney is fucking mine.She’s mine, and…” I was at a loss. My anger was so palpable, I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t speak the words that would suggest Winston might have gotten to Delaney first. That rage-infused thought had me losing my shit.
I hauled Winston upright and I couldn’t have stopped my right fist from forming even if I had wanted to. Delaney had asked me how did I know she was a virgin, and now faced with the knowledge that Winston Reynolds might know her in a way I believed only I would have, had me fucked-up.
My fists started raining down on Winston, and it took both Liam and Ramsey pull me off him.
Winston dropped in a bloody heap and I prayed-prayedDelaney wouldn’t go to him. I’d kill him if she did. Then probably her.
“Deke…” Delaney whispered.
I ignored everyone around us. I ignored the phones that were out. I ignored the teachers rushing our way. I ignored my friends. I ignored everyone and everything but her. I turned towards her and I’m not sure what she saw on my face, but her eyes widened a fraction before she turned and ran.
