47. Chapter 47
47
I tried to be a better person. I tried to keep control of my anger, to go about things like nothing had happened. But all it did was keep me up all night. And after five hours of mulling over just how much danger this guy put Libby in, I’d decided enough was enough.
I beat against the door again. It’s early on a Monday morning, long before any offices open. There’s no way he’s not home. I know what the fuck he did. And I’ll be damned if he thinks he gets to go one more day unscathed.
“Answer the fucking door, Jett,” I demand between clenched teeth. My whole body aches from the tension I’ve had the last twelve hours. I don’t like keeping things from Libby, but she’s been doing so good, seemingly anxiety free. And none of this deserves her attention. Not when the police already have her dad in custody. Apparently, her mom isn’t the only person he preyed upon, and they’ve been looking for him for a while. As for this Jett, this ends today.
The door opens, revealing a very groggy, very confused little man. “What the fuck—” I shove him inside and pin him against the wall, which seems to have him waking up rather quickly. “Wha—” I push my forearm against his throat harder, cutting off his words. Tears well up in his eyes and adams apple tries to bob under my arm. Don’t kill him . I back off enough to let him breathe again.
“What did I tell you was going to happen if you messed with her again?”
“It w-wasn’t m-me,” he stammers.
“You think I don’t know that? You don’t have the fucking guts to do anything other than hit on women.” The words alone are bitter on my tongue. “But you played a part in that salon getting broken into. I don’t care if you’re the one who called Joe, or the one who told him which station was hers. You had a hand in it.”
“She had it coming,” he spits. “You think you can fool everyone that you two are actually married? Playing house doesn’t mean shit when it comes to that money. Money that I’m owed. Money I earned.”
Luckily, I had the forethought to text Tyson to meet me here. Unfortunately for Jett, he isn’t here yet, and I left my dignity on the doorstep.
Cocking my arm back, I land a shot right into his nose. Jett drops to the ground, but I’m not done. He needs way more than a broken nose. I climb on top of him and throw another jab. Then another. Unleashing on him until someone is hauling me off of him, but I shrug them off. I’m not sure if it’s my questionable headspace or the blood that is everywhere, but I only see red.
I grab Jett by the hair and hold him up so he can look at me with his one good eye. “You earned nothing . You’re owed nothing . And if you think for a fucking second that you get anything from Libby, I’ll be right back here to remind you what happens when you mess with my wife.” As I throw his head back down, I’m finally pulled from him.
“Come on, Colt. He ain’t worth it, man.” Tyson’s voice brings me back to reality. He shoves me out the front door and keeps a hand on my shoulder until we are at my truck. “You good?”
My adrenaline starts to dump as I catch my breath. “Yeah. I’m good.”
“You want to tell me what the fuck all of that was about?”
“He led her dad right fucking to her,” I say with an outstretched arm. “I guarantee they’re all in on it. Him, her dad, her mom… they all have it out for her because she’s better than every single one of them and they hate it.”
“You’re right,” Tyson agrees. “But do you realize what you just did? That asshole is going to press charges on you, and then what? What about your wife? What’s she going to think about you beating that guy within an inch of his life?”
“He won't say anything.” I reach into my truck for a rag to wrap around my bleeding knuckles. “He knows I won’t hesitate turning him over to the cops for his role in the salon. And if I know one thing about that piece of trash, it’s that he cares more about himself and his image than anything else.”
As for Libby, I should have told her last night as soon as we got home. But I didn’t want her to shut down and have to deal with another panic attack. I did what I thought was best at the moment. But with the way Tyson is looking at me, I’m wondering if I’ve made a huge mistake. Shit .
“Come on, man, I’ll follow you back to your place. Where’s Little Bird?”
“She’s at my mom’s house.”
Tyson shakes his head. “What the hell is going on around here?” he says to himself as he walks to his Audi.
It took two hours and a cold shower to regulate myself enough to go see Libby. I may have gone about things the wrong way before, but now is the time to set it right. To do what I should have done in the first place.
When I pull up to my mom’s house, I’m surprised to see Blake’s car. To my knowledge, they’ve never met. But I suppose Libby has been spending most days here, and my mom isn’t known for being unwelcoming. I guess it was only a matter of time that they’d meet. I can only imagine the amount of laughter that’s going on inside that house.
I realize how wrong I am, though, when I step inside the door and Blake meets me toe to toe. “What the hell is wrong with you, Gibson?” she demands. “Do you realize what you’ve done?”
The hairs stand up on my neck. “Where is she?” I try to move around her, but she stops me.
“That’s not your concern anymore. You lost that privilege when you decided to lie to her!”
“Come on, dear,” my mom says to Blake as she comes in from the kitchen. “No need to get so worked up over someone else’s marital issues. Let’s give them some privacy.”
“They’re not even married!” Blake’s declaration knocks the air out of my lungs. Did Libby tell her that? Does that mean Libby is done? Is it too late?
“Semantics.” She loops her arm into Blake’s. “Time for you to help a dying woman take a stroll around the block.”
Blake’s face scrunches together. “You don’t play fair,” she says and shoulders past me to hold the door open, but Leann stops next to me.
“Do good, Colton. Libby is mine too.” And she walks out the door with one pissed off Blake Miller.
I make my way into the kitchen and catch site of Libby sitting in the backyard, watching the trees. Similar to how I found my mom not too long ago. Carefully, I open the door and take a spot in the chair next to her, but she doesn’t look at me.
“Libs…” I beg.
“You lied to me, Colt.” Her eyes never leave the trees, so she doesn’t see the knife going into my heart as she says it.
“I did.” Now is not the time for explanations or reasoning. The most important thing my father taught me is that the triumph you feel from saying your peace will never outweigh the regret you’ll feel from the words you didn’t listen to. All I want is to be here. With the woman of my dreams, and listen to her forever.
“I had to hear it from my mom, of all people.” She finally turns towards me and the dagger goes deeper. I’ve never seen so much pain in her beautiful eyes. “It should have been you.”
“I know.”
“Instead, you lied to me and tried to fix everything on your own, without even wanting my input on something that has everything to do with me.” The silence between us is deafening, but I don’t know what to say without sounding like a robot. She’s absolutely right. I fucked up. I let my anger get the best of me and completely lost control.
“Tell me what you need, Libs.”
“I need to trust you.”