54 #3
“Cooper.” Scotty shoots him a sharp look of reprimand before focusing back on our Bonded. “How can we protect you—”
“I do not need protection. I am Ezla Zefron, and no one can hurt m—”
“Ezla!”
She flinches in time with my own jolt. Just a bit. But we all notice.
The thickness of the air intensifies.
Ezla never flinches.
And I’ve never heard my brother raise his voice like that.
But I can see the stress in every line of his face, his body. See the way he goes to run a faintly trembling hand through his perfectly neat hair, before dropping it when he remembers where we’re going.
My fists clench at my sides.
“I’m sorry,” Scotty says, softening his tone.
“I’m sorry, Love. I know perfectly well you can take care of yourself.
I know how strong and independent you are—it’s one of my favourite things about you.
” His throat works as he swallows roughly.
“But you— Your father . . . You are afraid of your father. And you can’t protect yourself from him. ”
Her nostrils flare, fingers digging into her palms.
Then a barrage of emotions crash through the bond:
Fury.
Resentment.
Shame.
Disgust.
Humiliation.
The clamour is overwhelming, and I grimace, throat feeling swollen.
“Havoc,” Tate rumbles, reaching for her beside him.
As abruptly as it came, it all cuts off.
“Do not touch me.” Breathing harshly, Ez’s teeth grit, and she dips her chin, shielding her face.
She never does that. That’s not our Bonded.
“Love, Love, Love . . .” Scotty coos, rushing over from beside me and dropping to his knees before her, undeterred when she slaps his hands away aggressively when he tries to hold her.
Trying again, he manages to cup her face in his hands, while hers latch onto his forearms in a vice-like grip, and I exchange an alarmed glance with Alby when I see the moisture in Ezla’s eyes.
“Look what you have done to me,” she grinds out, that watery stare turning malicious.
That’s what she always does: turn her pain into anger.
Scotty’s jaw clenches, but again, he’s not persuaded to give up. “We haven’t done anything to you but show you that you deserve more than what you’ve been living with all your life.”
I’m not really good at making people feel better with anything other than my happy-go-lucky nature and random jokes, so I don’t know what to do here when the situation definitely doesn’t call for my brand of help.
I want to give her a hug, and it kills me to know she wouldn’t accept, that I have nothing to offer.
I’m a shit Bonded.
“You are not,” Ez snaps at me, and I jump—then lighten up a bit at the familiar look in her eyes that says she’d love to throttle me.
I beam at her with my most charming grin, and I could swear her eyes lose some of their hardness for me.
She’s so in love with me.
“I am not.”
“You’re in denial, but we’ll work on that, Ezzy—don’t you worry,” I tell her sagely.
A huff, her slim fingers twitching as if she’s debating going through with the previously mentioned urge to wrap her hands around my neck and squeeze the life right out of me, then she quickly moves on, using my distraction as a way to dismiss the prior conversation completely.
Scotty, Cooper, and Tate don’t seem to like that at all, but she’s clearly not able to talk about what she’s been through at the moment, and while I’m all for giving a little push .
. . or some more forceful ones because her barriers are too formidable .
. . we can’t just barge right through said barriers.
I’m afraid we’ll lose her before we’ve even really got her if we do that.
“When we exit the limousine, we must paint a pretty picture. I will have two of you on either side, and one at my back. Tate—”
“Of course I’ll protect your back, Havoc, Baby.”
She shoots a deadly glare at him for the interruption before she carries on, “Cooper and Tiger, since you are the same height, I think it would be nice to have you on either side—”
“Just because of our height?” I tease, waggling my eyebrows. “You sure it’s not all these musc—”
“Shut. Up. Before I cut your tongues out.”
My mouth slams closed, and I raise my hands innocently by my head, palms out.
My Wifey is so scary.
Isn’t she amazing?!
“As I was saying, Cooper and Tiger will take either side of me. Alby, you can go on Tiger’s right—Scotty, Cooper’s left.”
There are nods all around.
“You will escort me out, then follow my lead.”
“Yes, Havoc, baby,” Tate purrs.
More affirmatives sound out before Ez dips her chin in return.
A moment of quiet passes, then says Scotty lowly, “Are you ready for this, Love? You’re stunning—never doubt that. But with your father there—”
“I am ready. The world will see my face.”
Unease curls up my insides.
I want her to have this, to spit in that disgusting man’s face, to not have to hide all the time like some filthy little secret. But we all know this is extremely dangerous, and we’re not even aware of the extent of just how much. Things are worse than we know, and fear quickens my heart rate.
Me and my brothers share worried looks.
Ezla doesn’t speak the rest of the way there.