Chapter 27
“ I don’t want to go back to fucking school,” I tell Carson. My phone to my ear, I prowl down the mostly empty aisles and deserted booths. Most of the vendors and their patrons are at the concert where Brutal Strength is onstage. Outside the amphitheater, I can’t hear Marcus Anthony’s vocals, only the thumping of his brother’s bass.
“You have to.” He lets out an irritated-sounding sigh. “It’s part of the plan. Save money. Graduate. Then get a record deal.”
“I don’t have to do jack.”
“You’re part of this band.” Carson sometimes thinks he’s in charge of all of us because he’s the lead singer.
“What band?” I grumble, reaching into my shirt pocket for my cigarettes. I need to get the taste of Crystal out of my mouth. She wasn’t who I really wanted to kiss.
“You and me. Stevie and Levi?—”
“We’re brothers.” I lay down a label for us that we all agree on. “I get it. But I gotta go,” I cut him off when I see the son of a bitch who was with Peace earlier. The guy and a couple of his buddies have her backed up against a wall by the women’s restroom. Don’t know why she’s wearing different clothes now than she had on earlier, but I shove my cigarettes into my pocket and stride over. I’m itching for a confrontation.
“Go away, Mark,” she sobs and tries to slide away from the guy and his two big beefy friends.
Hell fucking no. My blood boils over when he yanks on her arm, bringing her into him so hard she gasps.
“Hey, asshole.” I march up to him and tap him hard on the back. He whirls around. His expression is a dark cloud. However, dark clouds don’t concern me. I’ve lived under one my whole life. “Pick on someone your own size.”
Mark is huge compared to Peace. He has at least twenty-five pounds on me and is taller by a few inches, but I don’t care. I’m thunder and lightning, and he just became enemy number one the moment he didn’t respect her.
“Bo,” Peace cries. Tears leaking from her pretty brown and gold dusted eyes, she looks equal parts scared and relieved to see me. “Don’t?—”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do,” cutting her off, I grab her asshole boyfriend.
“Who the fuck are you?” Mark asks, and that pisses me off. Did Peace not tell him anything about us?
Angry, I let the beast inside me loose. Having been bullied by assholes like Mark, I know how this works.
My opening punch connects with Mark’s stomach. He expels air and doubles over. His buddies rush me, but I take advantage of the moment before they arrive to topple Mark with a well-placed shove. I even manage to kick him once while he’s down on the pavement.
“Stop. Please stop,” Peace begs as one of Mark’s linebacker-sized buddies grabs me and the other punches me. I grunt and double over, the burger I ate earlier threatening to come up. “Please, stop hurting him,” Peace cries. “I’ll do anything you want.”
“Anything?” Asshole Mark manages to get to his feet. “Come kiss me then.” With his gaze on her tits, he crooks his fingers.
“No,” I tell Peace and try to break free to get to her, but both of Mark’s buddies grab my arms.
“Okay,” Peace agrees, but she gives me a furtive, frightened glance on the way. I don’t get what’s going on. She’s Mark’s girlfriend. Isn’t she?
“You were wearing a dress earlier.” Trying to figure this out, that thought comes to the front of my mind.
“No, I wasn’t.” Peace shakes her head. “But Harmony is.”
Fuck . I realize my mistake as Peace stops in front of Mark, who must be her sister’s boyfriend.
“Mouth,” the douche demands as if she’s his slave and not so far above him that he isn’t even worthy to kiss her feet.
“You don’t have to do this,” I tell Peace.
“Yes, I do.” She begins to tremble, but my brave girl fights through it and makes a demand of her own. Not for herself. For me. “I’ll give you what you want after you release Bo.”
“Let him go.” Mark the douche spits the command to his buddies and brings Peace closer, putting his unworthy hands on her perfectly rounded ass.
“Wrong move.” I get loose and come at him. I might be smaller than him and his brainless friends, but I’m faster. Plus, there’s no earthly way I’m letting his mouth defile hers.
I throw myself at Mark. My momentum takes him down. His thick skull bounces once off the pavement. I drop to my knees, straddling him, prepared to put the major hurt on him, but somehow, he gets his arms around me. Grappling for dominance, we roll across the rough concrete. I’m worried about where Peace is, and that distracts me. I grunt, absorbing a wild punch before I manage to get on top. Once there, I don’t just punch Mark one time, I pummel him. My knuckles burn as I hit him repeatedly. His flesh is a solid mass, but I ignore the pain. I’m so mad at him for scaring and hurting Peace that I don’t realize when he stops fighting back. Not at first. Not until his douche friends pull me off him. Another wrong move. I land a few blows, snapping one guy’s head back and causing the other to double over before they withdraw from me.
“Bo.” Peace launches herself at me. Wrapping her arms around my waist, she glances up at me. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” The red-hot fury inside me cools in response to her concern and touch. I manage to shrug one shoulder even though my body protests.
“Let’s get out of here,” one of Mark’s friends says. Throwing a nervous glance my way, he and the other buddy help Mark stand. “That guy is fucking nuts.”
“All right. Okay,” Mark agrees, aiming his gaze at me. “But this isn’t over.”
I roll my eyes at his empty threat, watching his friends help him limp away. Once they’re out of sight, I focus on Peace. I frame her face that has gotten even more beautiful since I last saw her. “Are you okay?” That’s the most important question.
“Yes, I’m fine.” She leans deeper into the frame I provide. Emotion surges inside of me. She saw me lose my shit, but she still seems to trust me.
“You’re not fine,” I disagree, searching her eyes. Her glasses magnify her fear. “You’re crying. What happened? What did they do?”
“They just scared me.”
I misrepresent the truth enough to recognize a lie.
“Nuh-uh. Don’t lie to me.” I gently stroke the creamy skin over her cheeks with my thumbs. “Look at me, PJ. Look me right in the eyes and tell me the truth. What’s going on with those guys?”
“They were just being mean.” She tries to drop her chin.
“Why?” I hook a finger under it and lift it.
“Because they can.” Her plush lower lip trembles.
Because I’m a guy and an asshole, my attention is drawn to her mouth, and I imagine kissing her. Man, I want to. I’ve thought about it lots. But she’s still too young and has never given me any indication that she’s into me like that.
“Let’s get out of here.” I throw my arm around her shoulders just as the crowd in the nearby amphitheater lets out a loud roar. “Guess the show is over.” I let out a groan. It hurts to have my arm around her, but no way am I forfeiting the opportunity to hold her.
“Guess it is.” She threads her arms around my waist. Her rose scent washes over me. My pulse quickens from her touch while my spirit that had sagged since her last phone call lifts. “Let’s go over to the Hope House booth. There’s a couple of chairs and a cooler with drinks.”
“Will your dad be there?” I ask.
“Not likely, just your aunt Miriam maybe,” she replies. “Tempest and Brutal Strength have interviews after the concert.”
“Good.” I lean into her a little more as we start walking.
“You like your aunt, right?” She seems nervous and babbles as I play with a length of her silky hair. “She said she might leave the show early to help me pack the unsold merch. I think she’s cool. And Mark won’t bother me. He doesn’t at school or at home if a grownup is around…” She abruptly trails off.
I stop and turn her to face me. “Has that asshole hassled you before?” I ask.
She looks away, and my blood heats again.
“It’s me. My reading makes me a target. And these stupid glasses.”
“Your glasses are nice.” The dark frames draw attention to her incredible eyes. I tilt my head up. “When did you get them?”
“Right after winter break.” She glances away.
“You look beautiful wearing them,” I say softly, and my compliment gains me her eyes back.
“No.” She shakes her head, her gaze getting shiny. “I look like a big, nerdy owl. Or at least that’s what Mark always says.”
“Mark is a fucking tool.”
Her lips twitch. “He’s Harmony’s boyfriend.”
“She has terrible taste.”
“I agree.” Her mouth lifts at the edges. Seeing her smile, my spirit doesn’t just lift, it fucking flies.
An idea occurs to me about her situation that has my vision tinting red again. “Has Mark tried to kiss you before today?”
“No.” She shakes her head. “Mostly he and his friends just call me names.”
What. The. Fuck. Anger surging, my grip on her tightens.
“Ow.” She winces.
“Sorry.” I loosen my grip and caress her, making soft circles on her skin with my thumbs.
“It’s okay.” Her lips part, and her gaze darkens, seemingly in response to my touch. I fight the nearly overwhelming urge to kiss her.
I force my gaze upward, away from the temptation of her mouth. “Not okay for anyone to mistreat you,” I declare.
She shrugs.
I frown. “So Mark the douche goes to your school?”
“Yes,” she confirms.
“And he’s hurt you before?” I ask, searching her gaze again.
After a brief hesitation, she nods, color rising to flood her cheeks.
“I’ll have a word. Trust me when I’m done with him, he won’t bother you again.” This is a vow, another promise to Peace Jinkins that I fully intend to keep.