Page 53 of Snowed In with Four Firemen
She’s forcing herself to stay composed, but it’s costing her. Every second she stands there with him is a second too long.
Whit leans in, and something inside me snaps. My hands grip the edge of the table, knuckles white. I want to protect her. Every instinct is screaming at me to go over there, to pull her away from him, to put myself between them. But I can’t. She’s gotta do this for herself.
“We should do something,” Jace says, voicing my thoughts.
“Yeah, the guy is bad news,” I add.
Axel shakes his head. “No. She’s got to do it on her own.”
He looks at all of us, and something silent passes between us. This moment is important. I don’t get why exactly, but it is, and it’s all related to Emily.
“She’ll be okay, man,” Tanner says. “You know Emily’s tough. She can handle herself.”
I don’t understand why I feel so restless. She’s practically a stranger to me, after all. Maybe it’s because every time he looks at her like she still belongs to him, it sets off this primal urge to knock his smug face in. Or maybe…maybe it’s because I care more than I should.
She’s got this. She’s got this.
But I can’t help it; my gaze slides back to her.
She’s saying something now, her eyes flashing with anger, and for the first time since they started talking, Whit looks shaken. Good. Maybe he’s finally getting the message.
But damn, I wish I could end this for her. Just get her out of there.
The waitress returns with our drinks, setting them down in front of us. She gives me another flirtatious smile, but I barely register it.
“Here you go,” she says in a sing-song voice.
I mutter a quiet thanks and return my attention to Emily. Jace leans closer, lowering his voice so only the guys can hear. “If he touches her again, I swear I’m going over there.”
“You and me both,” Tanner says. We turn to him. There’s something different. Did something happen?
When Whit grabs Emily’s arm, something inside me finally snaps. I’m up off the stool before I even realize what I’m doing, closing the distance between us in a few strides. I don’t care about keeping my cool anymore—no one lays a hand on her.
I reach the bar, leaning in close to Whit, my voice low and deadly calm. “Leave her alone.”
Whit’s eyes flash with anger, but it’s that smug, condescending type. The kind that makes me want to throw him against a wall. He glances at me, then back at the others—Jace, Axel, and Tanner—all watching, tense and ready. “Who the hell are these guys?” Whit spits.
“Someone not to mess with,” I say, my voice low and menacing.
“What’s this, huh? Your bodyguards can’t leave you alone for five minutes?” His eyes flick over me and the guys, then back to Emily. “What, are you with all of them now? You fucking them? You finally got the attention you wanted?”
I see the color rise in Emily’s face. Her cheeks flush deep red, her whole body stiffening with humiliation. My hands ball intofists, but before I can even react, Emily tears her arm away from Whit and bolts out of the bar.
“Emily, wait—” I call after her, but she’s already gone.
I whirl back to Whit, who’s still smirking like he owns the place. My whole body’s humming with the urge to deck him, to make him pay.
“You’re gonna regret that,” I tell him.
“Sure, man, whatever you say,” he drawls.
I stand there for a second, torn between wanting to go after Emily and wanting to put Whit in his place. Jace and the others are already making their way to us. They can handle him.
Finally, I turn on my heel and head out of the bar, my heart pounding. Right now, finding Emily is the only thing that matters.
I catch up to Emily just as she reaches the elevator. She’s upset—I can see it in the way her hands shake slightly as she pushes her hair out of her face.
“Are you okay?”
