Page 82 of Hero Unbound

Gareth’s smile got even wider. “She didn’t tell you. Can’t say that shocks me.”

Theo had no idea what the other man was talking about and honestly didn’t give a shit. He took the slightest step closer. “I know what you did to Eva.”

To his credit, Gareth didn’t lose his cool. “What did I do? Did she tell you I beat her? Yelled at her all the time? Locked her in a closet?”

Theo’s hands clenched into fists of their own accord. “No. Gaslighting is more your specialty, isn’t it?”

Gareth narrowed his eyes. “Gaslighting?Or was I trying my damnedest to help someone with mental health issues? If you’ve spent any time with Eva at all, you can’t deny that she sometimes confuses fiction and reality.”

Or had been told that so many times by a manipulative bastard that she believed it was the truth.

“Look, man.” Gareth’s face had morphed back into a friendly smile. “There’s always tension when two people break up. Eva wants to talk trash about me, I guess I can’t stop that. I wish her nothing but health and happiness. I guess that’s why I made that appointment for today. I wanted to see how she was doing.”

He seemedlegitimatelysincere, but Theo didn’t care. “Stay off the Linear Tactical property, and stay away from Eva. She wants nothing to do with you. She told me what you did, and I’m not letting you near her again.”

“Did she tell you she was myfiancée? That we were engaged? Or did she leave that part out in her mental instability?”

Theo saw red. Before he could stop himself, he’d grabbed Gareth by the shirt and slammed him back against the wall, his arm across Gareth’s collarbone. “Eva isn’t unstable, and she’s not engaged to you.”

The people coming in and out of Fancy Pants were starting to look and murmur, but Theo didn’t care. This lying bastard was trying to make Theo believe something completely untrue, and he wasn’t going to let it happen.

“I don’t know why she wouldn’t have told you.”

“Because it’s not fucking true. That’s why she didn’t tell me.Becauseyou lie and confuse her.”

Theo’s armwassliding closer to Gareth’s throat. It wouldn’t take more than a few seconds of pressure before the man was unconscious. A little more pressure and he’d never be conscious again.

“I’m getting my phone from my pocket, okay, cowboy?” A second later, Gareth’s phone was in Theo’s line of vision, flipped so Theo could see the images on it. “See, this is her social media. These are pictures from when we got engaged.”

Theo didn’t let go of Gareth as he glanced at it. Sure enough, there were multiple photos of the two of them, hugging, kissing, and one of Eva showing off a ring with a huge smile on her face.

“Like I said, myfiancée. Or, ex-fiancée, I guess.”

“Let him go, Theo. Right now.” Callum’s voice was coming from the other end of the sidewalk. Someone must have called him.

Still, Theo didn’t move.

“Now, Lindstrom.” Callum’s tone brooked no refusal.

Theo stepped back, releasing his hold on Gareth’s shirt. Callum grabbed Theo’s shoulder and pulled him even farther away. “Sit.” The older man pointed at the bench where Theo had set down his coffee. “You and I need to have a chat.”

Theo did as Callum instructed, more because he was still reeling from the pictures he’d just seen than anything else. He couldn’t deny that those had looked like engagement pictures.

Callum was talking to Gareth. “I’m Sheriff Webb.”

“Gareth Metter.”

“Would you like to press charges, Mr. Metter? I can personally attest that whatever just happened is highly uncharacteristic for Theo, but you are certainly within your rights to press charges.”

Gareth straightened his clothes as he stepped away from the wall. “Dr. Metter. But no, that won’t be necessary. This was just a misunderstanding. I’m just going to go, if that’s okay.”

Callum looked over at Theo and back to Gareth. “I’ll walk you to your car so I can get some information from you.”

As Callum and Gareth left, the people who’d congregated dispersed now that the show was over. Theo immediately grabbed his phone and called Lincoln.

His friend answered on the first ring. “Hey, heard you had a party with some drunk hikers.”

Theo didn’t even want to know how Lincoln knew that. Lincoln knew everything—or knew how to get the information. It was why he was a billionaire at thirty years old and a talent Theo wanted to tap into now.

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