Page 48 of Unfriend Me
She blinked and I realized she didn’t look too concerned about my face. Well, now my feelings were bruised right along with my jaw. Wasn’t the first time I’d taken a punch and probably wouldn’t be the last, but as my girlfriend, she could at least express the slightest bit of concern for my well-being.
“I’m not sure,” she answered after a long pause. “Can I speak to you back at the hotel? In private?”
“Ah, fuck,” I muttered.
I’d taken a punch to the face to keep her safe and somehow I felt like I was headed to the principal’s office.
Before I could reply, Chief Waldo came into the shop and caused everyone to stop talking again. He made a beeline for me, his bushy eyebrows drawn together. Great. I’d caused a commotion and now even Mr. Waldo probably thought the Jackson boys were all the same.
“Heard you had some trouble,” he said without preamble.
“Good morning, Dad. Lovely to see you too,” Amelia said dryly.
He turned his gaze to her, sweeping her from head to toe, probably checking for injuries. “A man gets punched before coffee on a Saturday morning, I figure we can skip the pleasantries.”
“I’m fine, Mr. Waldo. Just asked Daire to leave and he didn’t like that so much.”
“Call me Jim, son.” He took a quick glance at his watch. “Glad to hear you’re okay. If you want to press charges, come by the station.”
“I don’t know. I mean, Poppy did more damage swinging her mail bag around.” I shrugged good-naturedly.
The chief harrumphed. “Be that as it may, I’ve got my eye on him.”
“Thank you, Dad.” Amelia leaned over to kiss his cheek.
He patted her back and headed out.
Amelia stood there staring at me and then tilted her head to the door. Oh yeah, guess we were going to talk in private. This morning just kept getting better and better.
Lukas interrupted my death march behind Amelia’s ramrod-straight back.
“Here. Thought you could use the usual.” Lukas slapped me on the shoulder and went back behind the counter, leaving me with a box of donuts and a coffee to go.
Man, I loved that guy.
The hotel was close enough to walk, which we did in silence. I was too busy getting caffeine and sugar in my veins from the gift from Lukas, and Amelia was too busy stewing in her own head. Maybe drawing her out slowly with questions and concern for her emotional well-being would have been the best course of action, but I needed my brain firing on all cylinders before I could deal with a mad Amelia. To be fair, I did offer the box of donuts to her, but she shook her head and clenched her jaw even harder.
She didn’t stop when we got to the hotel, just marched right up the stairs to her room, not saying a word until the door closed behind me. I dropped the box of donuts on the little table by her recliner and braced myself for the storm.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” I asked quietly.
She inhaled nice and slow, filling her lungs as my stomach dropped. Then she unleashed at full volume. “What the hell do you think you were doing confronting him like that? He’s only here in town as a way to pay me back, which means it’s for me to handle. Not you. Stay out of the way from now on and you won’t get hurt. He’s not someone to fuck around with, T. You don’t just threaten a guy like that and expect him to walk away. You’re just asking for trouble.”
I couldn’t believe my ears. Was she pissed that I defended her? Mad that I’d stood up to the bully from out of town? My stomach quit its drop and got in on the fight.
Taking a step toward her, I fired back. “There is no way in hell I’m gonna sit quiet while that asshole terrorizes you or anyone else in the town I grew up in. You’re right. Heisa bully. And you only stop a bully by standing up to him and coming together as a group to set him straight. You may think this is only about him getting back at you, but you mess with one Hellion, you mess with them all. That’s just how this town works, Amelia.”
She shook her head, dark hair flying all around. “No. Nope. I’m not going to let anyone else get harmed. This is about me and Daire.”
I took a huge step forward, her face only a few inches from my chest. “No. There is no you and Daire. There’s you and me and this town we love against Daire.”
Her cheeks went pink and I could have sworn I saw flames dancing in her brown eyes. “I don’t need your help, Titus!”
I nodded once, my heart taking a beating with her simple statement. “You always say that. You’ve got the tough-girl act down so well you can’t even put it aside and ask for help when you really need it. This is more than about you, Amelia. This is about the whole town now.”
Amelia lifted her arms and put her hands on my chest, giving me a huge shove. It didn’t do much, but I took a step back anyway, astounded she’d tried to push me.
“I don’t need your help!” she shouted again.
