Not just someone.
Smith.
His blue eyes hold mine for just a second, one heartbeat, as he rises from his seat. Reid is clueless, trying his hardest to get his tongue back in my mouth. I squirm away as he bears down on me, his hand grabbing mine to shove in his lap. I feel his length, his excitement, and beer-laced bile rises in my throat.
Panic consumes me as I struggle against him. His hand pushes down on mine, making me feel him and his eyes, dark and disturbed, have a second of clarity, and for one second he’s all over me, and the next he’s lifted in the air, flying across the room.
Another hulking man stands over the table.
“Get out of here, Sierra.”
I nod, scrambling out of the seat. Smith turns back to Reid, but I don’t stay to watch. I run past the crowd of bar-goers, who are now interested in the two men in the middle of the room. I bolt out the door, gulping in air.
Katie looks up, eyes wide.
“I’ve got to go.”
She hangs up and runs over. “What happened? Oh my god, what happened?”
A crash comes from inside, along with the howl of the customers. The door shakes when something hard lands against it.
“I was just sitting there,” I say, “And this guy I barely know cornered me in,” it all comes out in a rush. Katie listens intently, worry etched on her forehead. “Can we get out of here?”
“Yes, of course.”
Another crash comes from inside and we get to Katie’s car. I leave mine, not worried about it for now, and I get in the passenger seat. Soon we’re on the way down the road to my house, my heartrate finally slowing.
“Who was that guy?”
“Reid Langford.”
Her eyebrows raise. “From high school?”
“Yes. He came over today to give me an estimate for some work—well, showed up really—uninvited. He was a little pushy then, too, but Holden walked in—”
“Wait, Holden went to your house?”
“To bring me a pie pan.”
She glances over at me as she pulls up to the house. “Okay, first of all, Reid is a super douche and seems like a predator. There were rumors about him at school, but I didn’t realize how awful he is.” She pushes her hair out of her eyes. “And Holden? Is that who was fighting him in there?”
I swallow. “Um, no. Not Holden. That was Smith.”
Her eyes widen. “Holy shit, Smith was in there?”
“I didn’t see him either, but he looked over right when Reid shoved his tongue down my throat. He must have realized I was in trouble.”
“Wow.” My hands shake in my lap. She reaches out and holds one. “I’m sorry that happened to you. We really should call the police.”
That’s the last thing I want to do. The Falco family has had enough run-ins with the cops over the years. “I just want to go to bed.”
She sighs. “Okay, babe, if that’s what you want, but we can go tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay.”
We head into the house, and I’m struck by the starkness of the inside. I’ve stripped away so much of what made it a home, that now it’s just a house that no longer feels like mine. Slowly, I’ve been removing personal items, photos, clothing, decorations, all in preparation for the work to be done. But now it feels different. Empty.
Or maybe that’s just the numbness I’m feeling after what happened in the bar.