Gavin was slumped against the wall, holding his nose. Blood seeped out from between his fingers.
“If you so much as breathe in his direction again, I’ll rip off your dick and shove it so far down your throat you’ll be licking my elbow.” Ash’s voice was deadly quiet.
“He wanted it.” Gavin’s voice was nasally.
Had Ash broken his nose?
Good.
“He fucking told you no.” Ash’s fist flew through the air and connected with Gavin’s temple.
He stumbled back and fell on his ass outside the bathroom.
“Get the fuck out of here before I call the cops,” Ash snarled.
Gavin scrambled to his feet, his gait unsteady, and hobbled away.
Ash closed the door, then locked it.
“Ash?” My brain had trouble catching up to what had just happened.
He looked angry. His face was red, his eyes flashing, and his posture rigid.
“Jules?”
Panic filled me, mixing with my confusion and tightening my chest, and stars exploded in my vision.
Why couldn’t I breathe?
“Fuck. Jules.”
Big arms wrapped around me and pulled me against a warm and solid chest.
“I can’t,” I managed between ragged gasps. “Breathe.”
“It’s okay.” Ash held me tighter. “Breathe with me, Jules. You’re safe.”
One of his hands slid down my back and tugged at my jeans.
They were still done up, so he couldn’t pull them over my ass without using more force.
“Breathe, Jules. You’re safe now.” He turned us and propped me against the counter. “Just breathe.”
I tried to do as he said, my liquor-addled brain not quite comprehending what was happening.
My chest was tight, but my lungs burned, as if a boulder was sitting on my chest.
I could breathe in, but I couldn’t breathe out.
Ash undid the button on my jeans.
“I can’t,” I gasped, pushing weakly at his hands. “Not now.”
“I’m not trying to fuck you. I’m just pulling your pants up.”
The world was starting to go fuzzy around the edges. I was drunk and couldn’t focus on anything as my oxygen-starved brain screamed at me that I was about to die.
Ash pulled up my pants, covering my ass, then buttoned them back up with skilled fingers.