“Don’t let him get to you, Tal. He’s not worth it. Remember what we were just talking about. You have things to live for.”

“Things to live for? What the fuck?” Colin guffawed. “Come on. Do it.”

“Would you shut up, Colin?” Jade said. “Look, Talon, nothing is going on. I had to have dinner with him because he…”

“Because why, Jade?” Jonah asked. “Why did you have dinner with him? You know how Talon feels about this.”

“It’s because of Talon that I did it.”

“Yeah.” Colin quirked his lips. “It’s because of you. She’s over you. We’re getting back together.”

Jonah moved between us this time. “How old are you anyway?” he said to Colin. “Did you ever make it out of middle school? You sound like a stupid teenager.”

“I ought to kick your ass, next,” Jade’s ex said.

“You won’t get very far. I’m as strong as my brother and a hell of a lot meaner,” Jonah said.

“You threatening me?” Colin advanced.

Jade grabbed his arm. “You threatened him first, Colin. Just shut up, for God’s sake.” She turned to me. “Could we go somewhere and talk? I swear to you there’s a good explanation for this.”

“Sure. We can talk after I kick his ass.”

“You’re not going to kick his ass, Talon,” Ryan said.

Jade looked at me, her blue eyes sad and…frightened? “Talon, please. Just breathe in and out. He’s not worth it. Listen to me. He’s. Not. Worth. It.”

At her words, her sweet hypnotic voice, my rage began to scatter. Oh, I was angry, for sure. Why was she with him, anyway? But I would ask her about it. And she would tell me. And I could be angry with her, but I didn’t have to risk screwing up my future and hers by pounding the halfwit.

“Fine,” I said. “Come with me across the street to the bar, and you can tell me what’s going on.”

“I don’t think so,” Colin interjected. “She’s with me tonight.”

Jonah stepped forward again. “Look, man, I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but you’re not getting what you want this way.”

“Says who?”

“Says me.” Jonah raised his arm.

“Not you too, Joe.” Ryan caught Joe’s arm in a clench. “Look, man,” my younger brother said to Colin. “Do yourself a favor and get the fuck out of here. Now.”

“I don’t think so. You assholes don’t own this town.”

Ryan let out a chuckle. “As a matter fact, we do own quite a bit of stuff in this town. Now granted, you’re standing on public sidewalk. So I’m not going to make you move.”

“Like you could.”

Ryan chuckled again, shaking his head. “I could. And the three of us together? We’d knock you into the next century. But that’s not really the point, is it? I’m not going to do that. No matter how much you taunt Talon. No matter how much I would love to pummel your sorry ass.”

“So now you’re so civilized.”

“No, dickhead. My brothers and I are not civilized. Far from it. We are hard-working men. We don’t sit on our asses in three-piece suits all day. We work the land. Trust me, we’re way tougher than you are.”

“Please. You probably use slave labor to work your land.”

“Oh, for God’s sake.” Ryan rubbed his forehead. He was finally starting to lose his cool. “You really are asking to have your ass kicked.”

“Colin,” Jade said. “Just leave. Please.”

“Fine. I’ll see you in court on Monday.”

Jade turned her head. “Excuse me? We had a deal.”

“I don’t think so.”

“You said if I went to dinner with you—”

“What?” I said, my head spinning. “You had some deal to go to dinner with him?”

“Talon, I was trying to do what was best. For you.”

“Having you anywhere near him is not what’s best for me, blue eyes.”

“Blue eyes.” Colin rolled his eyes. “God.”

I turned to Colin, trying perilously to keep from shoving my fist in his face. “Look, you don’t come near her again. I don’t care what kind of deal you had with her. I don’t care if you show up at court on Monday. What are you going to try to do? Pay off the judge?”

“I don’t have to tell you what my plans are.”

“Fine. Don’t. Show up. I don’t care. But you leave her alone,” I said through clenched teeth. “Don’t you come near her again.”

For a split second, I saw a real fear in his eyes. Good.

“He’s right, Colin,” Jade said. “I don’t want anything to do with you. Just leave me alone.”

“You heard the lady,” Ryan said. “Come on, Jade. We’ll take you home.”

“That’s not necessary. You guys know I only live down the block.”

“I’ll take you home.” I grabbed her arm.

“You don’t have to. It’s not even all the way dark yet.”

“I’m not letting you out of my sight while this jerk is in town. I’m assuming he’s staying until court on Monday, so don’t expect to leave my side until then.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jade

Talon dragged me a couple blocks down to my apartment above the beauty shop. He took my keys from my hand, unlocked the outside door, and then lugged me up the stairs in the back.

Still holding my keys, he unlocked my door and entered. He looked around. “Pretty sparse.”

“This is Sarah’s furniture. I haven’t had a chance to buy anything yet.” I shook my head. “Why am I making excuses for you? This is it. This is what I can afford right now. You don’t have to be here, you know.”

“Yeah, I do. As long as that jerk is in town, I need to protect you.”

“Protect me? I’m not the one who needs protection while he’s in town. Apparently it’s him, the way you and your brothers were all stalking him—” I stopped. I didn’t need to go there. Actually, Jonah and Ryan had kept Talon from beating Colin a second time. For that I was grateful.