Chapter Eleven
Sawyer had known everything would go to hell the minute Wyatt told him he hadn’t taken his reasonable advice. See, this was precisely why he didn’t go to the trouble of giving advice. No one ever took it. When he’d learned Wyatt had broken up with Sabrina, he’d known her pretty ass would show up and likely tonight.
She couldn’t have picked a worst time.
Sawyer started to move toward her and the asshole who’d put his hands on her. It had been the sight of Sabrina in danger that threatened to take a nasty scenario and push it into ultra-violent territory. Sawyer wanted to kill the fucker, and he didn’t have Wyatt’s trauma responses. If he didn’t deal with the situation, Wyatt might actually kill the man.
Which would be fine except then Nate would have to do paperwork, and he hated paperwork.
Sabrina stood there, staring at the man who’d probably spent more time in jail than she’d spent alive, and there wasn’t a proper amount of fear on her face. She needed to keep her mouth closed and let him handle this situation. Talking to this guy on any level would do nothing but make things worse.
It was going to be okay. Sabrina was likely terrified, and fear would make her very submissive. She’d never been in a situation like this before. He would pick her up, lock her away with Lark, and deal with the situation. All she needed to do was not make things worse.
“Sir, I am not here to find a date, nor am I here to be manhandled,” she stated in the sweetly bossy tone she used.
He was going to spank her. He finally understood the appeal. Oh, he’d gotten the whole “get his hands on her pretty ass” thing, but the spanking he was thinking of went far deeper. When he spanked her, she would feel his fucking will. She was putting herself directly in harm’s way, and he was going to make it clear to her how unacceptable it was.
He glanced over and Wyatt had shoved the laptop away, his eyes going dark and a flush rushing across his skin. He had seconds to defuse the situation. He’d actually seen Berserker Wyatt, and it wasn’t pretty.
“Hey, she’s mine, and you better take your hands off her.” A man like the one in front of Sawyer only understood things in brutal terms. “Mine, you motherfucker. Do you understand what a claim means in our world?”
“I understand you’re not in our world,” the asshole shot back and pulled her in closer. “That makes anything you have fair game.”
“I don’t think she’s Sawyer’s,” Doug said, looking from Sawyer to Wyatt. “And isn’t that interesting.”
Wyatt unleashed a yell and went for it.
Sawyer barely got to her in time. He pulled her away right before Wyatt tackled the way bigger than him guy and started to go to town.
This was going to get wild. He had to pray these guys didn’t pull weapons.
“You are in so much trouble,” he growled as he held her tight.
“Wyatt,” Sabrina called out even as she struggled in Sawyer’s arms.
“Stop it,” he ordered. He was going to have to drag her all the way to the back room.
In the background Sawyer heard one of the other biker gentlemen speaking. “Wyatt, shit, man, you need to calm down. You don’t want to do this.”
“Well, he fucking does now,” Sawyer said with a long huff. “I warned you.”
“How were we supposed to know he had a whore?” Doug asked. “And one he’s serious about.”
Wyatt rounded on Doug and punched the fucker right in the face.
“Wyatt, please stop,” Sabrina yelled. “It doesn’t matter what he says. It’s only words. I don’t care.”
She was clawing at Sawyer’s forearm, trying to get him to release her, but he held tight. “He does, and you can’t talk to him now. There’s no talking him down. Let me get you somewhere safe.”
“We can’t leave him.” Sabrina sounded tortured.
“You’re going to do exactly what I tell you to do,” Sawyer whispered, wincing when Doug got in a hearty gut punch. At least the first guy seemed to be unconscious. “Do you understand me? He never, ever wanted you to see this part of him, and he’s going to be devastated. But he’ll be more devastated if you get hurt.”
“He’s outnumbered,” Sabrina insisted. “You have to help him.”
“No, I have to get you out of here.” Sawyer started to drag her away from the bar and toward a hallway leading to the back of the building.
“Please,” Sabrina begged. “Please help him.” She put her arms up against Sawyer’s and tried to twist out of his hold. She’d definitely had some self-defense training.
But not enough since she gained absolutely no ground.
“Sabrina, I swear I’ll spank you if you try that shit on me one more time.” Sawyer dragged her closer to the office, closer to safety.
“I’m not afraid of you,” she shot back and then brought her kitten heel right down on the bridge of his foot, sending pain flaring through him.
It was enough to cause him to shout out and let go of her.
She took off, running to get to Wyatt as Sawyer winced and moved after her. She picked up a bottle of tequila sitting on the counter and wielded it like a baseball bat. She swung out, striking one of the men attacking Wyatt across his broad back.
“You leave him alone,” Sabrina shouted, and she was reaching into the crossbody bag on her hip.
She was going to kill him. His heart thudded in his chest as the biker turned from Wyatt and brought his fist up to punch Sabrina. It could kill her. He could see it plainly in his head. His massive fist could crack her skull. Sawyer threw himself bodily in front of her, taking the punch across his chest as he knocked her out of the way.
Wyatt yelled and jumped on the asshole’s back.
The whole world felt like chaos as Sawyer hit his knees on the hardwood floors and winced at the pain shooting through his body.
This was why he didn’t have friends.
Friends got a man into trouble.
He had to get Sabrina out of here, damn it. This whole situation had gone deadly. He wasn’t completely certain Wyatt hadn’t killed the first man. He was still on the ground.
Sawyer got to his feet as Doug finally pulled a gun, pointing it Wyatt’s way.
“Don’t make me do this, Wyatt,” Doug growled. “I don’t want to kill you. I don’t have what I need out of you yet, but I’ll fucking do it. I’ll take your head back to your brother and he’ll have to be satisfied with that.”
The world seemed to slow because Sawyer was absolutely certain he was about to watch Wyatt die, and then likely Sabrina.
Then it would be his turn.
He’d always thought he wouldn’t care. Life was something he’d endured for so many years, but in this moment, he wanted…more.
More life. More friendship—even if it was annoying—more her.
So much more her.
He had to get to Sabrina. Wyatt would want him to give Sabrina the best chance she could have. If he could get her out of the bar, she could run for the valley. Nell and Henry’s place wasn’t too far away, and Henry would protect her. Henry would get Nate.
He never thought he would want to see Nathan Wright darken his door, but here they were. He would give almost anything to see Nate and Cam rushing in to save the day.
Sawyer forced himself to move because Wyatt wasn’t capable of backing down at this point, and it was going to cost him everything.
Doug shouted again and then aimed right for Wyatt’s head.
Sabrina stepped in behind Doug, and she had something in her hand. Doug’s full attention was on the threat he knew about.
He never saw Sabrina coming. He didn’t know Sabrina apparently carried around a freaking stun gun.
She touched the stun gun to the back of Doug’s neck, and the man’s body seized and he fell to the floor. It gave Sawyer the chance to tackle Brutus, who’d decided Sabrina was a threat and had started coming at her. He wasn’t sure where the fourth guy had gone. Sawyer used his forward momentum to slam the bigger man against the bar, hitting his head hard against the wood. Brutus got in one good punch before Sawyer took his head in hand and slammed it again as hard as he could since the dude was absolutely thick skulled.
“Smart move, babe,” Sabrina said. “Do you want me to stun him, too? Just to be certain? And what do you want me to do with this?”
Sawyer felt his eyes widen as he turned and Sabrina had her stun gun in one hand and Doug’s semiautomatic pistol in the other. Though she wasn’t holding it right. She grasped the handle between her thumb and forefinger as though the thing was rancid and she was looking for a place to toss it.
This was how he died. Not in a fight. Sabrina was going to give him a heart attack. And yet, he’d liked how she’d called him babe.
Would she still call him babe after he’d smacked her ass until she couldn’t sit properly? He might find an exotic plug and torture her rectum until she wouldn’t even think of pulling this shit again.
She glanced back at Wyatt, who was now covered in blood and looked like he might turn into a werewolf at any moment. She didn’t even blink. “Hey, sweetie, the other one ran away and he’s hiding in the men’s room. Do you want to handle him? I can do it, if you’re too tired. I have pepper spray. And bear spray. I know I’m supposed to use it on bears, but I think it’ll work on him, too.”
She was freaking calm.
Wyatt’s jaw actually dropped. “What did she say?” He shook his head as though trying to clear it. His face fell as he looked around the room. “What happened?”
She’d managed to shock Wyatt out of his episode. It was a relief because Sawyer worried he was going to have to fight to get him back. Sawyer moved around to the bodies on the floor, disarming them all so no one woke up and started shooting. In the distance he heard the sound of sirens. Lark had gotten scared, and he didn’t blame her. She’d done exactly what she should have. She’d probably been watching on the CCTV cams and decided to risk Sawyer’s anger to save their lives.
She would find his anger was going to be directed somewhere else. Somewhere like Sabrina’s backside.
He didn’t want to think about the ramifications of what came next. Not with Sabrina. It was fucking inevitable. She’d walked in when everyone had told her to stay away. At least for tonight she would be his again.
No, he was worried about what happened when Wyatt’s brother learned his plan had failed and in the most spectacular and unexpected way. There would be retribution.
“What do you think happened?” Sawyer used his boot to poke at the first asshole who groaned and proved he was still alive.
“I think Wyatt had a moment when he disassociated from his everyday personality and turned to violence because he has unprocessed childhood trauma.” Sabrina actually smiled. Like this was just a fucking normal day. “You did good, honey. I don’t think you killed anyone. But you should handle the guy in the bathroom. He was rude, and he did not fight fair. He was sneaking up behind you until I hit him with a saltshaker to the head. I used to teach softball to my students back in North Carolina. I was an excellent pitcher.”
Sawyer put a hand to his brow because his left eyebrow had developed a sudden twitch.
Sabrina was going to drive him utterly mad.
“Did I hurt you?” Wyatt stood feet away from her, his hands clenched in fists as though he didn’t trust himself not to touch her.
Sawyer was starting to think Wyatt wouldn’t have a choice. Sabrina seemed to have decided what she wanted, and she was proving herself to be a woman who didn’t change her mind.
“Of course not,” Sabrina said, her tone going soft. “You would never hurt me.” She frowned suddenly. “Well, not physically. We’re going to talk about how much words hurt later on tonight, but I do believe the sheriff is here so you should ensure the last criminal doesn’t get away. Sheriff Wright will take them to jail, and then we’re going to have a long talk.”
“You should leave,” Wyatt said, his eyes not quite meeting hers.
“I’m not leaving.” She set all her guns on the table closest to her. She got into Wyatt’s space, forcing him to look her in the eyes. “If you’re going to break my heart, you do it in person, and you better make me believe, Wyatt, because I’m not being left behind because you’re afraid of what your brother might do to me. You need to hear me. If you are doing this to protect me, don’t. I might decide your brother is between me and what I want, and I’ll find a way to go after him.”
“Sabrina.” Wyatt’s eyes had gone wide. “You can’t.”
“Watch me.” She went on her toes and brushed a kiss over his cheek. “Now go and make sure that asshole isn’t getting away.”
Wyatt turned and walked back toward the bathroom.
“Boss? Is everything okay?” Lark and Gil stood in the hall leading to the office. “I got scared and called the sheriff. I’m…”
“Don’t say you’re sorry.” Sabrina was absolutely the bossiest thing he’d ever seen. She walked right up to Lark and put a hand on her shoulder. “You did the right thing. I know Sawyer is reluctant to deal with the authorities because he thinks it makes him look hot being a bad boy, but there is certainly a time and a place to call the sheriff, and this is definitely one of those times.”
“I do not.” What the hell was she talking about?
She turned slightly to look back at him, her lips curling up. “Well, then you must be afraid of the sheriff.”
“I fucking am not.” Why were they discussing this? They had half dead bodies all around them and a world of hurt coming and she was poking him.
So fucking mean.
Wyatt got a kiss. He hadn’t gotten a kiss.
“Then it’s the other,” Sabrina said with a shrug as she moved closer to him. “The point being you’re not going to be mad at the young lady who made the reasonable choice to call in the sheriff.”
Who was here. Sheriff Wright strode in, his gun up and ready, followed by Elisa Leal, who matched his energy.
“Hey, sis, we’re all good,” Sabrina said like she was inviting her friends over for tea and not to clean up a bunch of bodies.
Wright’s gaze moved around the bar. “You do this damage, Sawyer?”
“He certainly did not,” Sabrina said primly. “Wyatt had a reasonable reaction to a gentleman insinuating I take cash for my favors, and then I took out those two with my personal stun gun, and Wyatt is dealing with the last one in the men’s room, I believe.”
The sheriff got on his radio. “Gemma, could you call EMS? We’re going to need Ty to look over some of these guys. Have Doc come out, too. One of these dude’s has what looks like an ostrich egg on his noggin, and apparently there was some electrical play going on.”
Sabrina’s sister looked her up and down, proving the Leal women handled a crisis with cool precision. “That’s not even your sluttiest outfit. You can look way more whorelike. The stun gun worked well, huh? This one is still twitching. I told you it was a good investment.”
“I didn’t get to use the bear spray, though.” Sabrina sounded deeply disappointed.
He was going to have to go through her bag since it seemed to be full of weapons.
But the best weapon she had was her sassy mouth because he was pretty sure at this point she could handle his shit. Probably better than any woman he’d ever met.
It was a temptation he might not be able to avoid.
Although she was going to get a full dose of him tonight, and it might be enough to send her running.
“Hey, how much trouble are we looking at?” Nate kept his voice down as Elisa started securing the prisoners.
He’d expected Nate to take him in, too, but the sheriff seemed to not need much of an explanation. There was also something about the way the man used the word “we” that eased some of Sawyer’s anxiety. “They didn’t get what they wanted, and Wyatt’s insulted them. His brother will react.”
“You okay?” Nate asked. “It had to be pretty rough for someone to call me out.”
“It was touch and go. Wyatt lost his shit when one of them put hands on Sabrina,” Sawyer admitted. It was odd, but he didn’t feel the desperate need to clam up around the sheriff. It was kind of nice to have him here.
“Is this why he stood her up tonight?” Nate asked, keeping his voice low. “He worried?”
“Beyond worried, but I don’t think Sabrina is going to take no for an answer,” he replied as the door opened and Wyatt drug the last of his brother’s men out by his collar.
Wyatt stopped when he caught sight of the sheriff. “Sorry. Sabrina told me I had to finish the job. I suppose she’ll be satisfied if I give this jerk up to you. He was hiding in one of the stalls, and I’m pretty sure he peed himself. So much for the horrible Horde.”
“You have no idea what’s coming for you,” the asshole snarled. “Wayne is going to show you who’s the boss. He’ll take you all down.”
Elisa stopped, staring at the man Wyatt shoved toward the sheriff. “That sounded like a threat.”
“It did indeed,” the sheriff agreed. “I couldn’t tell, Deputy Leal, if he was talking about us or someone else.”
“Oh, it totally felt like us,” Elisa replied. “He was definitely letting the sheriff’s department know his group is going to target us. Probably was talking about the whole town.”
As Elisa started to put cuffs on the guy, he frowned the sheriff’s way. “This bar ain’t on incorporated land. We checked. No one protects these assholes. They’re on their own. This arrest ain’t legal.”
Wayne needed to train his men better. “Did you think this is the Wild West? Of course I can call the sheriff and have you arrested for assault.”
“Then why ain’t he arresting Wyatt? No one laid a hand on anyone until Wyatt went wild,” the man replied as one of his friends began to groan.
Wyatt’s hands were suddenly in his pockets, his eyes on the floor.
“Oh, I assure you I had hands laid on me, and Wyatt was merely attempting to protect me,” Sabrina announced, joining him and threading her arm through Wyatt’s. “I can assure you Wyatt had no intentions of violence until they threatened to do terrible things to me.”
The sheriff finished hauling up Doug, who was still twitching. “And what was Sawyer doing?”
“Oh, he was attempting to get me to safety while Wyatt dealt with the threat,” Sabrina replied. “He didn’t understand how competent I am at defending myself.” Her head turned until she had him in her sights. Her lips curled into the meanest fucking smile. “He knows now.”
His cock tightened at the thought of how he was going to handle her. “I do. I know now exactly how strong you are, Sabrina. I also know you don’t follow directions well, which we’re going to talk about.”
Elisa’s eyes went wide, but she never took a hand off her prisoner. “Uh, should I hang around? I could get Cam to come in for a while.”
“Why would you?” Sabrina didn’t seem to notice how stiff Wyatt was. She cuddled closer to him. “I assure you I can handle anything Sawyer wants to do…discuss with me.”
“Sure,” the sheriff said with a knowing smile. “Leal, I think your sister knows what she’s gotten herself into, and I suspect she’s going to need some alone time to deal with the situation. Sawyer, I advise you to shut down for the night and come by the station tomorrow so I can take some statements.”
“I’m not pressing charges,” Wyatt said and moved away from Sabrina suddenly.
“I am,” Sabrina announced.
“Damn it,” Wyatt said, turning to her.
The sheriff was right. They needed to deal with this alone. “We’ll come by in the morning, and we’re shutting down for the night. Thank you, Sheriff.”
He sent Sabrina a stare he hoped got his point across. She needed to keep quiet until they were alone.
She simply gave him a serene smile before turning to the sheriff. “Yes, thank you so much, and Elisa, I’m fine. I think Wyatt and I have things to talk about.”
“I’m not worried about Wyatt,” her sister explained. “But Sawyer’s got a certain look in his eyes.”
Sabrina strode over to the bar and picked up a bottle of tequila. “His eyes are going to be the only thing he uses on me unless we come to another arrangement. What do you say, Sawyer? Are you going to lecture me? Give me a whole bunch of words like you’re my daddy?”
“It won’t be words, baby,” he nearly snarled but only because she was pushing his every fucking button.
“Ooookay.” Elisa nodded. “’Night then. See you tomorrow.”
The door opened again and one of the deputies from Creede strode in. He was a tall man with youthful good looks. He was the all-American hero type.
He’d dated Sabrina.
“Hey, I just got the call,” he said. “Knox is out in the car. Gemma said you needed backup.” His gaze caught on the gorgeous girl at the bar who’d poured herself a shot of tequila. “Sabrina? Oh, god. What happened? Are you okay, sweetheart?”
Wyatt growled.
He did not need this shit again tonight. There was only one way to handle the situation, and it was oddly easy. He’d tried to find a way out. He’d done his level best, but she had no sense of self-protection, and she was going to have to handle it from here on out. “Our girlfriend is fine, Deputy. These men threatened her but her men took care of it.”
The deputy’s expression fell, but Sabrina looked like a cat who’d lapped up all the cream. “Yes, they did.”
The sheriff and his deputies took out the trash, and Sawyer prepared to lay down the law.
* * * *
Wyatt wasn’t sure when he’d lost all control. Oh, he knew he’d lost physical control the minute the asshole had laid hands on Sabrina. He’d gone to the place he had in childhood when he couldn’t handle the world and he had to fight for his life. It was a place his father and brother had pushed him to time and time again. He would start normally and then he would look down and there would be blood on his hands and bodies on the floor.
Sabrina had watched him lose his shit.
And then complained he let one get away.
Yeah, that was the moment he should have known he’d lost all control. Every bit of it.
“What the hell were you thinking?” Sawyer rounded the bar after locking up for the night. They were finally alone. Sabrina had already poured herself another shot, and she lined up two more glasses.
Wyatt was sitting at one of the tables, utterly unwilling to get close to her again.
She had no idea what she’d started, no idea what trouble they were all in.
“I was thinking the man I care about was in trouble,” she replied.
“I broke up with you.” He wasn’t sure where his plan had gone wrong. His fists ached but not half as much as his heart at the thought of what his brother’s men could do to her now that they knew he cared about her. “I was plain about it. I don’t want to see you again.”
Sabrina poured the shots. “Sure. You don’t care and I’m not wild enough and you always freak out and become a rolling ball of violence at the thought of another man laying hands on any woman of your acquaintance.”
She had him there.
Sawyer pointed a finger his way. “I told you it wouldn’t work, but that’s another lecture for another day.” His attention centered on Sabrina again, his jaw tight. “I want to understand what the hell you thought you would do walking in this bar the way you did. Do you understand the words situational awareness? Can you put them together for me?”
He’d never actually seen Sawyer so upset. Not even when his brother had gotten arrested. Sawyer was always cool under pressure, but he’d lost it tonight, too.
He’d also announced to the world Sabrina was theirs.
For the first time, Sabrina flushed slightly and looked the tiniest bit uncomfortable. “Well, how was I supposed to know they weren’t the regular clientele? This place is something of a biker bar, from what I understand. How am I supposed to tell the difference between everyday, fun-loving bikers who enjoy cheap beer and the criminal ones?”
Sawyer’s eyes rolled, and both he and Wyatt tapped their chests on the left side. “Patch.”
Yep, they were on the same page.
Except he felt something building between Sawyer and Sabrina, something he wanted to be a part of but he couldn’t now because he had to leave. It was the only way he could protect them all.
Unless it was already far too late.
“Patch? You mean the little scout thing they had on their vests?” Sabrina asked. “I thought it was like a Boy Scout patch.”
Sawyer’s brows rose. “You thought they were Boy Scouts?”
She bit her bottom lip and looked so fucking sexy it hurt. “Well, not when they opened their mouths. Sawyer, I’m sorry I caused a problem, but I’m not sorry I came here tonight. Wyatt was wrong to do what he did. He doesn’t want to break up with me. And the truth of the matter is you don’t want to keep your hands off me either. You’re both scared of things that would be better to deal with now and get out of the way so we can figure out if we can be happy together. I know it’s a hard word for you. So how about we use the word you do understand. Content. I think you could be content with me and Wyatt if we can get past this whole thing with his brother and you can deal with your abandonment issues.”
“How are you going to deal with the flat of my hand on your naked ass?” Sawyer growled.
Sabrina’s breath hitched. “I’ll probably cry and curse your name until you fuck me, Sawyer.”
Wyatt stood up. “Do either of you understand what happened tonight?”
Sabrina’s expression softened. “I understand you had to face something you hoped you never would again. Wyatt, don’t pull away from me. You were wrong to try to push me away. I’m not fragile. I’m not going to break down because you have to beat the crap out of some guys who deserved it. Though I am going to ask you to be prepared for a couple of the kids in my class to kick you in the shins. I tried to explain to Paige it wasn’t necessary, but she can be stubborn. And Charlie and Zander tend to do what she says. Maybe you should wear shin guards for a couple of weeks.”
What the hell?
Sawyer threw back his head and laughed.
But Wyatt got into her space, putting his hands on her shoulders and barely stopping himself from shaking some sense into her. “This is not a joke.”
Her hands came up, and the minute she touched his face he wanted to hug her. Warmth seemed to spill from her into him, a calm sense telling him they could handle anything. “I know. I’m so sorry he came back into your life. But he was always going to, and you’re not alone now. You have Sawyer and you have me and you have this town.”
The town he was coming to love? He knew he’d made this very argument to Sawyer, but now that the actual threat was here, all he could think about was how nice they all were to him. How they had kids and futures, and his brother could take it all from them. Maybe they would win, but if Wayne wanted a war, he could do a shit ton of damage before they took him down.
He could hurt the kids Sabrina taught. The ones she loved and centered her world around.
He could definitely hurt Sabrina.
“Don’t,” Sabrina said, her chin coming up and showing the stubborn expression on her face. “Don’t you sit there and pretend like I matter when you’re willing to leave me. If you care about me, you should be willing to let me stand beside you. I’m not some meaningless sex toy. I’m not some doll you hug for comfort. I’m a whole real human being who could be part of your life if you allow me to be.”
“He could kill you.”
“I could get hit by a car tomorrow,” she argued, tears welling in her pretty eyes. “I could have a heart attack. I could get cancer like my sister did. The truth of the matter is I’m going to die someday, and there’s nothing you can do about it. But you can choose to live whatever life I have with me. Be brave, Wyatt. Don’t let them take your whole life from you.”
Every word drove into his soul. Was he doing what she’d accused him of? Was he treating her like a toy and not the brave, resourceful woman she was? But how could he put her in danger? How would he ever live with himself?
“Wyatt, it’s done,” Sawyer said, moving in closer, his arms over his chest. “She’s on their radar, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it except spank her ass red and take out all of your tension on her pretty pussy. And her mouth. And maybe her asshole, if she’s ready.”
Sawyer wasn’t helping. “You’re supposed to be the voice of reason. You’re literally the person who told me this was a bad idea.”
“It is, and we’re going to have to deal with it, but my grandfather always told me when fate walks in, there’s not a hell of a lot you can do.” Sawyer stared at her, his hand coming out to stroke her hair. She leaned into his touch. “The night I saw her for the first time, you showed up on my doorstep. I don’t think I ever had a choice. I think you two might be my fate. And that sucks for you. I thought I could help you avoid it, but you’re both stubborn assholes, and you might be stuck with me now.”
“Not if I leave tonight,” Wyatt vowed.
“With what?” Sabrina asked, her eyes wide and guileless as she looked up at him.
Sawyer snorted. “I knew you were up to something. What did you do, brat?”
Wyatt wasn’t sure what she could have done. Until he remembered how she’d brushed up against him as the sheriff and his deputies had hauled off his brother’s enforcers. He stepped back and felt for his wallet. His back pocket was completely empty. And he didn’t have the keys to his bike. Shock flashed through him. His sweet schoolteacher had rolled him? “Where is my wallet, Sabrina?”
“You can have it and your keys back when you’re willing to be reasonable and not make emotional decisions that could harm all the people you care about.” She went back to her tequila as though she hadn’t taken almost everything he owned. “Until then consider yourself in time-out.”
The idea of spanking her held a lot of appeal. “I can hotwire the bike, Sabrina.”
“Maybe, but what are you going to do about the tires?” Sabrina asked. “I asked Lark to let the air out of them. While y’all were cleaning up, Lark and I decided you shouldn’t make big decisions right now. Apparently Lark has been going to a textile arts class with Callie and she’s heard the whole story about how Callie trashed Zane’s bike so he couldn’t sacrifice himself in a burst of male drama.”
Sawyer took a shot of tequila and lifted it Sabrina’s way. “Every word out of your mouth is going to be accounted for tonight.”
“Am I wrong? You guys have one gear. The minute things go wrong you’re tossing yourself on the fire. Be creative. There are other ways to solve problems,” she argued. “Sometimes you have to take away options so students can learn how to do things differently.”
“I am not one of your students.” Wyatt wasn’t sure if he was angry or… No one had ever fought for him with the singular exception of his only real friend, the man who’d called it all fate. Certainly no woman had stood in between him and danger. Not his mother. Not any of the women he’d called aunts.
“You’re lucky because I would have notes,” Sabrina said.
“She is asking for it, brother. Now I realize she’s been begging for it since the day she set eyes on us.” Sawyer tipped back the shot, downing it in one go. He slapped the glass on the bar. “She’s got us in a corner. If you run, all you’re doing is leaving me alone to take care of her. Your brother’s going to do what he’s going to do, and leaving us alone helps no one at this point except you.”
“I’m not doing this to help me. Maybe if I go to him, offer myself up.” Wyatt was looking for any way out of the trap. It was a trap he wanted to be caught in so badly, but he didn’t see how it ended well.
Sawyer’s hand went to the back of Sabrina’s neck. “And when he wants to torture you? You think he’ll simply smack you around? The man literally burned the skin off your chest and you still walked away. I don’t think your own physical pain is going to do it for him. So he’ll come after Sabrina, who will be down a protector.”
Sabrina sighed as Sawyer tightened his hold. “I’ll still have you and my sister and Mel and Cass, and don’t discount Paige Harper. The kid is mean. Oh, and Henry. Nell will give him a lecture about humane assassinations, but they’re serious about Poppy’s education.”
Why wouldn’t she listen? “This is not a fucking joke.”
“No. It’s not, but you sacrificing yourself solves nothing,” Sabrina said. “And we can’t fix it tonight, but we can do something else. We can let this awful night lead us to something good. Wyatt, I think I’m falling in love with you and with Sawyer, even though I know he gets a little sick when he hears the word. So we’ll say I’m used to his face and it would be annoying to have to find another lover.”
Sawyer grinned. “You speak my language, baby. Back at you.”
Were they right? Was there anything he could do about this tonight? It appeared she’d cut off all avenues. It wasn’t like there was a handy bus station he could walk to.
He could call his brother and turn himself in and the only effect would be to put Sabrina in greater danger.
He needed to talk to someone, but he was pretty sure Alexei’s office was closed for the night.
So what else was there left to do?
She was falling in love with him? He was already madly in love with her. In love for the first time in his life. He knew what he wanted. His friend. Their lover. Eventually their wife. He wanted to live with Sawyer and Sabrina right here in Bliss, where he could help Mel fight aliens and join Nell in whatever protest she happened to be involved in. He wanted to go squatching, even though he wasn’t sure what that was, but Max Harper made it sound fun.
He wanted to be normal. A guy who loved his family.
“But we’re going to have a long discussion about how you behaved this evening.” Sawyer stood, looming over her. “Because you could have gotten killed tonight. You could have made everything worse. I’m not playing or joking, Sabrina. You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack tonight, and you’re going to pay for it.”
“I’m not afraid of you,” she replied.
From what Wyatt could tell, she wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone.
“You’re not going to be able to sit tomorrow,” Sawyer vowed.
Sabrina walked over to the bar. She leaned over, offering up her backside, her palms on the railing. “I think you’ll find I can work while I’m standing.”
Sawyer groaned. “If you’re not joining us, you should go up to the house because this is going to get wild, brother.”
He watched as Sawyer approached her.
Was he going to walk? Could he make the long walk up to the cabin, leaving them behind, leaving behind everything he wanted?
For one night, he could have it. It wouldn’t work. He would find a way to save them both, but maybe Sawyer was right and they could have this one night. She’d made it so he couldn’t go anywhere, couldn’t try to solve the problem tonight, so why not indulge himself?
Before he found a way to kill his brother and end the threat.
It might be a better plan than sacrificing himself. If he killed them all, she would be safe.
Wyatt unbuckled his belt.
He wasn’t going anywhere. Not for the rest of the night.
Tomorrow he would figure out how far he would need to go to save them all.