30. Thea
30
THEA
“Shep, wait,” I hissed. But he didn’t. And the way he stalked around the side of my house said that whoever was on the other side would not be happy to see him.
I sucked in a breath as I followed after him, not letting it out until I heard Rhodes’ voice. I quickly wiped my face, making sure it was free of tears.
“Why are you scowling at me? You’re like Mr. Anti-Color over there.”
“Mr. Anti-Color?” Shep parroted, annoyance clear in his tone.
I rounded the house just in time to see Rhodes gesture at her boyfriend. “You know. Averse to anything but black and shades of gray. Communicates mostly in grunts and scowls.”
“Reckless,” Anson growled, moving into her space. But there was amusement in the nickname, too.
Rhodes sent him an exasperated look. “Is any of that a lie?”
He pulled her into his arms and nipped her bottom lip. “Behave or there will be consequences. ”
Rhodes’ eyes hooded. “What if I want those consequences?”
Shep made a gagging noise. “Please, God, make it stop. And what are you two doing here? Have you not heard of a phone?”
Rhodes stuck her tongue out at him. “We’re coming to kidnap you. Dinner and a band at The Sagebrush. No arguments. We need a little fun around here.” Rhodes’ gaze shot to me, and I saw a pleading look there. “Don’t say no. Kye and Fallon are coming, too.”
A flicker of unease slid through me. Reading it, Shep crossed to me and slid an arm around my shoulders. “We have plans here.”
I pressed a hand to his stomach, feeling the taut muscles there. “It’s okay. We can go.”
Shep’s gaze swept down to me. “We don’t have to.”
“I want to.”
He studied me for a long moment, trying to discern if that was the truth. But it was. It was time. Time to start living . Because I hadn’t fought this hard for freedom, only to squander it and let Brendan continue to hold me prisoner.
I turned back to Rhodes and found her eyes locked on my hand on Shep’s abs. “I just need fifteen to get ready. Do you want to come in? You could feed the kittens for me while I get cleaned up.”
Rhodes’ gaze jerked to my face, and she grinned like I’d just told her she’d won the lottery. “Love this. Everything about it.”
“Is that why you’re smiling like some feral pageant queen right now?” Anson asked, looking genuinely terrified.
“Shut up,” Rhodes snapped, smacking his stomach. “My brother’s happy. My friend’s happy. I’m happy.”
Anson sent Shep a concerned look. “Think you could tone it down? I’m worried her brain might explode from all the happy.”
Rhodes whirled on him, pinching his side. As they bickered playfully, Shep turned to me. “Are you sure about this? They can hang on the back deck, or we can meet them at the bar.”
I shook my head. “I’m done hiding. Not that I won’t be careful, but I’m not making my life small to do it.”
Shep’s amber eyes burned as he dipped his head, his lips hovering just above mine. “Then let’s go live that life.”
Music blared from the speakers on stage as the band dropped into a cover of Free Fallin’ . The dance floor was crowded, and the bar was packed. Usually, this sort of gathering would send me over the edge. But I felt perfectly safe as Shep slid an arm around my shoulders. And I felt like me .
I used to love going to concerts with Nikki at The Echo, the Silverlake Lounge, or The Greek. I wasn’t a true music connoisseur like she was, but I enjoyed all kinds and the energy of a good crowd. It was just one of the many things I’d lost—one I was taking back.
Just like my eye color. I’d panicked for a moment when I remembered that I had my colored contacts out and then decided I was keeping it that way. I hated wearing the things. They made my eyes scratchy and were annoying to keep up with.
When I came out dressed in my nicest sundress paired with a worn-in pair of pale pink cowboy boots and hair curled in loose waves, Rhodes had grinned at me. “Love seeing your eyes.”
Shep had just stared, his gaze heating as it roamed over me. I swore I could feel it as if he were tracing me with his fingertips. And he’d looked just as good to me, with his hair still damp from a shower and dressed in a fresh white tee, dark jeans, and boots.
And now, I felt the soft cotton of that tee as he bent to my ear. “You want a drink?”
Having a cocktail might be stretching my limits a little too far for one night. “Club soda and lime?”
Shep nodded. “Coming right up.”
“I snagged a table,” Fallon called as she motioned us over.
It was the first time I’d met Rhodes’ foster sister and best friend, but I felt like I already knew her from all the times Rho had talked about her as we worked. She was on the quieter side at first, but as dinner went on, I saw the empathetic kindness Rhodes had described .
“Score,” Rhodes said, grabbing my hand and tugging me toward the larger cocktail table surrounded by stools.
I slid onto one next to Fallon. “Did you get a drink?”
She smiled at me. “Kye’s grabbing me one. It’s like he doesn’t trust me not to get kidnapped by a biker from here to the bar.”
My lips twitched. I had noticed that the burly-looking man with more tattoos than I could count was especially protective of Fallon. Their relationship was different somehow. Like he was attuned to her every move.
“Did you get one?” Fallon asked. “I can text Kye to grab you one.”
“Shep’s getting me something.”
The smile on Fallon’s face turned soft. “You make him happy.”
It was such a simple statement, but it had warmth spreading through me. Unfortunately, fresh on its heels came nerves. “It’s new,” I mumbled.
She reached over and gave my hand a quick squeeze. “Doesn’t take a lifetime to see a change in someone. Sometimes, it just takes one honest moment to reach them.”
A burn lit along my throat. “He’s changing me. Making me braver. Helping me reach for things I was scared to reach for before.”
Fallon’s eyes shone in the light of the bar. “I love that.”
A tattooed hand slid a very pink drink in front of Fallon. “I can’t believe you made me order a peach crush.”
Fallon choked on a laugh. “He insists on ordering my drinks? I’m going to make them as girlie as humanly possible.”
“You’re the worst,” Kye grumbled.
“You mean the best ,” she shot back.
I felt Shep before I saw him. Some part of me recognized his heat. It had its own unique signature. His strong, tanned arm wrapped around me and deposited my club soda, then he bent, whispering in my ear, “You good?”
I nodded. “This band is pretty great.”
Shep chuckled. “Doubting our ability to have good music in the sticks? ”
I grinned up at him. “ Doubt might be too strong a word.”
The first strains of You Shook Me All Night Long came through the speakers, and Rhodes was instantly off her stool. “Come on, we have to dance!”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Big AC/DC fan?”
“It’s a classic,” she argued.
“She’s lying. She just loves to dance,” Anson grumbled.
Rhodes rolled her eyes at her boyfriend. “I already know he won’t dance with me.” She turned to me and grabbed my hand with her uninjured one. “Pleeeease?”
“Rhodes,” Shep warned.
But I was already off my stool and taking Fallon’s hand. “Let’s do this.”
Rhodes let out a little squeal as she tugged us toward the dance floor. And for the first time in years , I let go. I didn’t think about Brendan, the pictures, or the millions of doubts racing through my head on a typical day. I felt…free.
We danced to rock songs and country tunes; even a pop song slipped in here and there. Before long, I was hauling my hair into a pile on the top of my head because it was sticking to my neck.
A guy slid in behind Fallon, wrapping an arm around her waist. She startled, quickly extricating herself from the guy’s hold and waving him off. He sent her a slightly intoxicated but apologetic smile and began backing away.
But it wasn’t quite fast enough. Because Kye shoved through the crowd, glowering at the guy who had paled to the shade of a vampire. Fallon tugged on Kye’s black tee with some sort of design printed on the back. It wasn’t long before the two of them were in an all-out argument, and the drunk dude was escaping into the crowd.
Rhodes rolled her eyes. “They’ll yell at each other for a while. Want to get a drink?”
“Fallon’s okay?”
“Oh, yeah,” Rho said quickly. “She just gets annoyed when Kye gets overprotective. ”
I couldn’t help but glance over my shoulder at the two of them. Kye towered over the petite woman. But as shy as Fallon seemed in certain circumstances, she showed no fear with the mountain man, jabbing a finger into his chest. Interesting.
“What do you want?” Rhodes yelled.
“Just water.”
As she leaned over the bar to order, a hand curled around my arm, giving me a tug. I nearly fell back on my ass but righted myself, only to come face-to-face with one of the last people I wanted to see.
Russ Wheeler.
His eyes were glassy as they tracked down my body, stilling at my cleavage. “Thea. You clean up real nice.”
I had the urge to cross my arms. I tried to pull free of Russ’s grasp, but he only gripped me harder, his hold so tight I let out a squeak of pain.
Russ’s eyes lit at the sound, and he licked his lips. “Putting on quite a show out there. But why don’t we take this party somewhere private-like?”
My stomach roiled, and I yanked hard on my arm again. “Let me go.”
“Don’t play those games with me. You’re begging for it. Come on, baby. I’ll make you feel good.”
The nausea intensified. “I said, let go,” I snapped, shoving at Russ’s chest with my free hand.
“Stop being such a cocktease. You were shaking your ass out there like a little slut. Wanted every man in this place to watch you. Now you’re playing all innocent?” he snarled.
Russ made to grab for my waist but halted as I felt a wall of fury at my back.
“Get. Your. Hands. Off. Her,” Shep snarled.
Russ sneered at him. “She yours? You really need to take a stronger hand with her. Whoring herself out all over that dance floor.”
One second, Russ was standing there. The next, Shep’s fist connected with his nose in a sickening crunch I heard even over the music.
Russ crumpled to the floor in a wailing heap. “What the fuck?” he cried, but his voice sounded funny. Like he suddenly had a cold.
“Don’t ever speak to her again. You even think of looking in her direction, and I’ll do a hell of a lot worse than break your nose.”
Russ was on his feet again. “You think you can threaten me, Box Baby? You’re nothing but a bastard?—”
Shep lunged.