Chapter 6 #3
A smile twisted into a grimace on Chase’s face. “What do most men fight over?”
“Money, cars and women?” Alana lifted her hands, palms facing upward. “You name it.”
Chase chuckled. “Point taken. This time it was a woman.”
“A woman?” Alana frowned, her fingers curling, her nails ready to dig into any woman who had come close to Chase. “What woman?”
He turned to face her and lifted one of her hands. “You.”
The soft tone of his voice and the way he laced his fingers with hers made her weak-kneed and ready to fall into his arms. “Me?” she said, though the sound came out as more of a squeak than a word.
“You,” Chase repeated. “I hit the head, the bathroom, after so much beer and tequila. By the time I came back, Delgado had cornered you at the bar and was hitting on you.”
“But I wouldn’t have given him the time of day if I’d just married you.”
“Apparently, you were trying to give him the brush-off, but he wasn’t taking no for an answer.
About the time I saw what was happening, he grabbed your arm.
” He turned her palm up and pressed his lips to the lifeline at the center.
“I distinctly recall the rush of blood through my veins and the heat about to explode out of my head.”
“You were jealous?” Alana’s heart seized in her chest, and she held her breath, afraid to breathe until he answered.
“Raging jealousy. I recall it wasn’t a pretty feeling. I marched up to Delgado, clamped a hand to his shoulder and spun him around.”
Alana gasped. “I’m surprised he didn’t stick a knife into you at that moment.”
“I didn’t give him time to think. I slammed him up against the bar and told him you were my wife and to leave you the hell alone.”
Her heart thrilled at Chase’s words and chilled at the same time. “Delgado could’ve killed you.”
“Oh, he took a swing and missed. Then he grabbed a bottle from the bar and hit me here.” Chase pointed to the bruise on his cheek. “I knocked the bottle out of his hand. It flew across the room and hit one of his cartel groupies.”
“Sweet Jesus.” Alana pressed a hand to her lips. “You really weren’t thinking.”
“Nope. I was in pure, primal reactionary mode.” Chase stared down into her eyes, his gaze intense, his jaw set in stone. “Someone was hurting my wife. I wouldn’t stand for it. Not on my watch.”
“So, is it true? You beat the shit out of Delgado?”
Chase grimaced. “I didn’t intend to, but he kept swinging. I blocked and swung back.”
“You really are insane,” Alana said. “The bartender said Delgado’s people tried to help him, which means you fought more than one of them.”
“They tried,” he shoved a hand through his hair. “But I was in full kick-ass mode.”
“Wow. I suppose I should be grateful.” Alana shook her head. “But you really set yourself up for retribution. You barely knew me. Why didn’t you just let me defend myself?”
“You were trying, but Delgado was dragging you toward the exit.”
“Well then, thank you,” Alana said. Vague memories tugged at her mind but refused to solidify. “Do you think the bartender will let Delgado know we were asking questions?”
“If he does, I’m not worried about it. We need to know what we’re up against. Delgado already knows.
Apparently, he didn’t have as much to drink as we did last night.
” He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.
“I’m sorry I got you into this mess, but I’m going to get you out of it. I promise.”
“You didn’t get me into this mess. Delgado did that.” Alana’s insides heated at the touch of Chase’s lips on her knuckles. “Sounds to me like Delgado was going to take off with me, whether I liked it or not.” She lifted her hand to the bruise on his face. “You saved me.”
“And put you into more danger by doing so.” He cupped her cheek in his palm and stared down at her.
His blue eyes were so blue that Alana felt as if she could fall into them and never want to come back out.
Yes, she could see how she’d fallen so quickly for this man.
He was every woman’s dream come true—he was handsome, he could dance, he was kind to old women, and he’d taken on a drug cartel to save his woman. Her breath caught in her throat.
His woman.
How ironic was it that she was trying to get out of the marriage most women would love to be in? Hell, she couldn’t hold him to the vows, knowing they’d been spoken while shit-faced drunk. He’d said it himself that he wouldn’t have married her had he been sober.
After all she’d learned about Chase, the thought of annulling their marriage didn’t hold the same appeal as it had a few hours earlier.
To be fair, she had to. No man should marry when he was drunk.
She’d been stone-cold sober when she’d considered marrying Vance, and that decision had been stupider than marrying a complete stranger after several rounds of tequila shots.
No matter. The marriage would be annulled before they left Cabo San Lucas. If they left in one piece. First, they had to get past the midnight deadline with Delgado, a badass affiliated with one of the most violent cartels in Mexico.