“You don’t scare me.” But Bryson takes a step back, proving he’s a liar. “Go ahead. Take a swing at either one of us. You’ll be doing me a favor.” He fans his hands like he’s making a rainbow in the air. “I can see the headlines already. Business deal erupts when vacation rental owner uses a sledgehammer on guests. Or better yet…” He smirks like he’s got Dean by the balls. “Heiress Grace Finch is terrorized at Bear Creek Cabins. It’ll make national news, and I guarantee you no one will step foot here ever again. This property will finally take its last dying breath, and I’ll get it for pennies on the dollar.”
He's right.
“Bryson, leave.” Because if Nick doesn’t use that sledgehammer on him, I will.
“Keep staying pretty, Miss Finch. Your beauty is the only thing you have going for you because youcertainly were not blessed with either of your brothers’ brains. None of you stand a chance against me and Iwillget this fucking property.”
My hands ball into fists. I’m so fucking mad I can’t think straight. But if I act on my anger and punch this shithead in the mouth, it’ll only hurt Dean in the long run, so I keep my cool.
“Just give up.” Bryson chuckles even with soda dripping off his face. “Nothing either of you can do will make this go in your favor. And if it’s a bidding war you want,” he says to me, “tell Jackson it’ll be a pleasure to watch him lose.”
My mouth dries up. Dean’s staring at me like I’m the devil herself. Fury makes me get close enough to Bryson that I can smell his aftershave. “Stay. The fuck. Away from here. And especially away fromme.”
“We both know you’ll come begging one day, sweetheart. I’m looking forward to seeing you on your knees. Your mother will be so proud.”
I slap him so hard, my palm stings.
Bryson glowers at me, fury lighting his eyes as a bright, red handprint blooms on his cheek. “That was a mistake, Miss Finch.”
I jerk forward to attack him again.
Dean wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me away. Then he grabs the sledgehammer from Nick. “She told you to leave. If you don’t in the next three seconds, you’ll be crawling out of here with crushed legs.”
Bryson huffs a cold laugh, no doubt assuming Dean’s bluffing.
I don’t think he is.
“One…” Dean steps closer. “Two…” He swings the sledgehammer, missing Bryson’s thigh by a hair onlybecause the asshole had enough sense to jump back.
“My lawyers will be in touch.” He quickly walks away, leaving us in a tension-filled space that I can’t breathe in. The asshole gets his car and winks at me.
Furious, I snatch the sledgehammer from Dean. It’s so heavy, I nearly drop it. Spinning in a circle, I lob the damn thing at Bryson’s car, missing it by a foot because he’s already in reverse.
“Ugh!” I run forward and pick it up again, only to miss by ten feet with my next throw. “Fuck you!” I scream at him.
My heart’s pounding erratically and I feel sick.
Nick speaks up. “Want me to make sure he stays gone?”
“Yeah.” Dean watches the car head back down the hill. He looks so mad. “Lock the gate, too.”
“On it.”
When Dean turns to face me again, his body language is all off. He’s not the same man I’ve been getting to know. He’s…
“Did he hurt you?”
“No.” I shake off the sudden urge to cry. “This jacket is so fluffy, I barely felt his tiny, man-baby hand.”
“I want to see for myself.”
“I’mfine.”
“Grace.” His chastising tone makes me want to push back. But the hurt in his eyes stops me.
“Let’s go inside. It’s too cold out here for me to take my coat off.” Lies. I’m burning hot from anger and adrenaline, but I’ll take the excuse to have him inside where I feel more protected and safer. Bryson’s rattled me.
Dean silently follows me into my cabin and shuts the door.
