With adrenaline pumping, I take a few steps forward, then bring my fist back and connect with Weston’s jaw. He falls to the ground, and I go to him, fist dawn, but Liam holds me back before I can connect with his face again, which is probably for the best since I’m two seconds from destroying him. Anger and frustration, my old friends, encourage me as Weston glares at me with rage in his eyes. Just like at New Year’s, he flips a switch as if he’s emulating human behavior, and the motherfucker smiles.
“You’re such a goddamn pussy.” He spits out blood.
“This isn’t over,” I grit. “You touch her, hurt a single hair on her head, and you’ll be seeing us both again.” It’s not a threat, it’s a promise, and I’m not sure he realizes I’m not joking.
Weston lets out a laugh. “You have no idea who you’re fuckin’ messing with. And if you tell her anything about this, trust me when I say she’ll be the one to pay.”
I see red, but Liam grabs me and pulls me away before I can do anything else.
“If anything happens to her, you’ll be fucking sorry,” I scream back at him. Liam is stronger than I am, and though I’m heated, I know leaving is probably the best. The last thing I need is an assault charge.
“So that went over well,” Liam tells me as we get in his truck. “Fantastic.”
All I can think about is what he said. “Do you think he’ll really hurt her?” I shake my hand, knowing it’s going to hurt even more in a couple of hours.
Cranking the truck, Liam lets out a breath. “He better not, but I’m not sure what he’s capable of. Did you see the look in his eyes?”
“What look?” I ask as we head home.
“Exactly. It was like nothing was there. No emotion. Like he doesn’t have a soul or something.”
I nod. “Yeah. He seems off. Sophie isn’t safe. I’m convinced. We need to warn her, Liam.”
We ride in silence, both lost in our thoughts.
“You hungry?” he eventually asks.
I look at the time on my phone and see it’s barely past five. I shrug. “Sure.”
Before going home, we stop at a twenty-four-hour diner. We order coffee and the daily breakfast special. I’m half-tempted to call Sophie right now and tell her she needs to leave Weston, but it’s as if Liam can read my thoughts because he shakes his head.
“Sophie isn’t going to listen to us. You know that, right?” He sips his coffee, peering at me over the rim of the cup.
“Maybe she’ll listen to me.” I’d like to think she’d be reasonable, but after her reaction at Hunter and Lennon’s proposal, I’m not sure. Things have been awkward between us since then. More awkward than normal.
Roaring laughter rips through the quiet diner. “Doubtful. You’re the last person on the planet Sophie is going to listen to.”
I arch an eyebrow at him. “You’re not a tad dramatic.”
Liam shrugs. “No, just realistic. She’s pissed at you. She’s been pissed at you.”
“For what? I didn’t do shit. I’ve always had her best interests in mind.”
I want to smack the shit-eating grin off his face. “Does she know that, though?”
A frustrated groan released. “She should.”
“Let me see. You’ve had a thing for her for years and refuse to do anything about it, which, granted, I know and understand why. But then she finally starts dating someone, and you’ve got nothing but negative things to say about it. Again, I understand why because—”
“He’s a creep,” I interject.
“Right. But your timing is shit. So it makes you look like the jealous guy who never stepped up, and that’s exactly how she views all of this. I don’t think you could say anything to fix that either.”
When our breakfast arrives, Liam eats as if he hasn’t seen food for a month. Considering he worked all day yesterday and got home late, there’s no telling when he ate last, especially when he’s on special assignments. “Do you think we could get her to the house? Maybe she’d listen to you if she won’t give me the time of day?”
Liam shrugs. “Possibly. She’s avoided me like I have an STD she’ll contract if she gets close, though.”
That causes me to laugh even though it’s not really that funny.
“You might have one, considering,” I taunt.
“Fuck off,” he mutters around a mouthful. “I can text her and see if she’ll come over. If not, you’re going to have to go to her. I think she has a right to know, but you need to be the one to tell her. If I know Sophie as well as I think I do, she’s going to have a fuckton of questions and want an explanation.”
I know he’s right, but a part of me doesn’t even know where to start. If she already thinks I’m the jealous guy who couldn’t make a move, then I may be doomed from the start, but I have to try. The last thing I want is for something to happen to her while knowing all of this and not tell her. I’m already living with impossible guilt from my past; I don’t need to add more to it.