By the time my plane lands, I have worked myself into a rage. A motherfucking rage. I am a hair’s breadth away from attacking the next poor soul who dares to look in my general vicinity.
Why am I in this mood, you ask? Cade. The asshole who is like a STD I can’t get rid of.I’ll comfort her, he said.All night long…That one comment did it. All the promises I made to Anniston about attempting to be friends with Cade have gone completely out the window. This is fucking war!
I killed it out on the field. A shutout. I only saw his face. I imagined him smirking at me as he slid Ans between his legs, rubbing out the kinks in her neck from the long walk from the farmer’s market. I saw Lou, the old fucker, with a knife to her throat, grabbing her—I can’t even think about it without contemplating murder.
No, I was a hostage in that ballpark, helpless to get my best friend of fifteen fucking years. So, I did the only thing I could: I slung that ball with every ounce of rage I could muster. At one point, Brody, my catcher, told me to tone it down, his hand was starting to bruise underneath the glove. I didn’t. I threw strike after strike, imagining it was Lou’s face I was hitting every time the ball slapped into the catcher’s glove. After the game, I packed my shit without a word and called the car service. Bellamy screamed something at me about a suspension. Good. I fucking need a vacation from this bullshit.
The fact that some asshole had his hands around my girl’s neck and neither Cade or I were there to protect her…yeah, I’m done. Fuck baseball. Fuck Bellamy. And fuck Jameson’s sorry ass, too! I’m getting my girl the fuck away from those vets who have been nothing more than a constant pain in my ass since their arrival.
Exhausted, I flop down into the cab ungracefully, knocking my elbow in the process. “Dammit!” The cab driver looks back warily but quickly turns back around when he sees my scowl.Relax, Theo. She’s fine. Everything is fine.
But it almost wasn’t. She could’ve been killed. Taken, for fuck’s sake!
Legs bouncing in harmony with my hands, my ADHD in overdrive, I try taking a couple of deep breaths to calm down. It’s not helping. I need to get out of this car and stretch. To run. To beat Grandpa to a bloody-ass pulp. I’ll even throw in a punch to Cade. Isn’t he supposed to be some badass marine? Where the fuck were those skills last night? Huh?
“We’re here, sir.”
Thank fuck. I didn’t even notice. That’s how fucked up my head is right now.
I grab my bag, thanking the driver. I’m not a complete ass.
Marching up the creaking front porch steps, I’m met with the great wall of asshole. Cade. He’s leaning against the doorframe with a confident grin on his face. A grin I plan on knocking off in, three… two…
“Theo,” he drawls.
“Get out of my way. I am a second from beating the shit out of you.” I try and push through the door, done with this asshole. He doesn’t budge. Dammit. What the fuck has Ans been feeding him? He’s like fucking concrete.
Taking a step back, I lock eyes with the dumbass. “Move.”
He smiles. Again.
Deep breaths, Theo. In and out. Slow and steady.
Just as I prepare myself to plow over this beast, Hayes saunters up. “My man!”
Ha. Fuck you, Cade.
Cade moves over, not wanting Hayes to see our little squabble. I flick Cade off, not giving a damn if Hayes knows we are fighting or not, and step through the doorway. “Hey man.” I greet Hayes with a man hug. “Good to see you.”
“Man! That game was sick!” he crows animatedly.
I smile, soaking in his compliment. Too bad I was barely conscious of it. Moving through the house, Hayes is at my heels prattling on about my stats that I could care less about. There is no sign of Anniston. Stopping Hayes mid-sentence, I ask, “Hey man, where’s Ans? I want to check on her.”
Hayes shakes his head. “Oh, umm… I haven’t seen her yet. I just got home.” His face takes on a guilty look.
Yeah, where the fuck were you?
“She’s in the shower,” Cade informs me from behind.
How the fuck does he know she’s in the shower? My rage amplifies as the thought of Cade consoling Anniston last night clouds my judgment.
She’s mine.
All fucking mine.
Payback is a bitch, Cade.
I clap Hayes on the shoulder, feeling slightly guilty for wishing Anniston wouldn’t have taken them in. Hayes isn’t so bad. He’s friendly, loves baseball and most importantly, keeps his fucking eyes and hands to himself. “I gotta go see Ans for a minute.”
