Chapter 33

Wyatt

I close the window quickly behind me, knowing that Jake is liable to fly off the handle if he finds out what just happened between his sister and I.

I know that it’s a violation of bro code or whatever, but fuck if it wasn’t worth it.

I can still taste her on my tongue, and the thought has my cock hardening all over again. I doubt that I’ll ever be able to get enough of that woman.

Though I’m damn sure excited to try.

I can’t seem to wipe the huge grin off my face as I rifle through the brush surrounding the lake house.

I drag my arm through it, still replaying what just happened with Ruby, picturing her perfect body, seeing her the way her eyes shone when I finally shoved myself into her.

Fuck.

I collect myself, trying to shake the jitters away as I try to prepare myself to face Jake.

How I’m gonna keep the excitement from my face is fucking beyond me. I can’t even seem to get my cock under control.

I’m still trying to puzzle it out when I hear her scream.

The sound sends my heart racing in my chest—a shrill, fearful cry that reaches me from down the hall.

I don’t even think. I’m not trained to think—I just fly into action.

I sprint to the front door, grabbing the handle and yanking fiercely. There’s a sound like splintering wood, followed by a loud crash as I fly through the doorway. In a far-off kind of way, I realize I’ve ripped the fucking door off its hinges, but I can’t even begin to care.

I tear down the hallway, coming to a sliding halt as I reach the living room.

Some guy is towering over Ruby, his body tense as he stares down at her. She looks terrified, pale.

I’m on him before he even has time to notice me.

I reach out quickly, grabbing his suit in either hand to pull the bastard away from her. My blood is boiling, a growl escaping my lips as I spin him around to face me.

His eyes go wide as they land on me, and I take just a second to indulge in his fear before my fist slams into his nose.

I hear the familiar sound of snapping cartilage, see blood begin to gush from his now broken face.

He lets out a sound, something like a whimper, raising his hands in an attempt to shield himself.

Too fucking late.

I lay into him again, my fist connecting to his already broken nose, eliciting another cry from him.

He goes down with a loud thud, his hands coming up to cover his gushing nose.

“Wyatt!” Ruby screams.

I hear her as if from a distance, her voice reaching me like I’m underwater.

I’m familiar with the sensation, having experienced it countless times before. In the SEALs, in the heat of battle, outside sounds always seemed to dissipate.

When your adrenaline gets pumping, when your mind is focused solely on one target, everything else just means fuck all.

“Wyatt!” I hear again, but I’m already moving.

My lips pull back into a feral snarl as I launch myself on top of Ruby’s would be assailant, hearing his breath whoosh from his lungs as my knee catches him in the gut.

My already bloodied fist comes in for another strike, followed quickly by another. Over and over, I pummel him, feeling the rush of intense energy that I used to be so familiar with.

“Stop, Wyatt! Oh god, you’re gonna kill him!”

I feel hands wrap around my bicep, fingernails digging in to my skin as I pull back for another punch.

“NO! PLEASE!”

I turn angrily, my lips still pulled back into a snarl. Why on earth is she trying to stop me?

“Wyatt, stop!” she cries again, and I notice the tears beginning to pool in her eyes.

“What?” I shake my head, trying to clear the rage-filled fog that has settled there. “Why?”

Her eyes are wide, fearful, as she looks at me, her gaze traveling repeatedly between my bloodied hand and the broken face of the now unconscious man before me.

“Why did you do that?” she demands, looking at me like I’m the one to be feared.

“What? What do you mean?”

Confusion washes through me in waves. I glance down at the man beneath me, my brow furrowing in thought.

“He’s my boss!” she cries, drawing my gaze back to her.

Oh, fuck.

“Ruby, you screamed…and then I saw that guy and how scared you looked. Oh fuck, I-I’m so sorry.”

“You could have killed him,” she says, taking a deliberate step backward. “I thought you were going to kill him!”

I open my mouth to deny it but can’t seem to find the words.

She’s right. I thought he was trying to hurt Ruby. If she hadn’t stopped me, I probably would have beaten the fucker to death.

“Why did you scream?”

“I—I just got spooked. He just showed up and pushed past me. I was just surprised, is all…”

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. What the fuck have I gone and done now?

I look back to the man I’ve just beaten to a bloody pulp, groaning as my eyes rake over his damaged face.

This is bad. This is really fucking bad.

And the way Ruby is looking at me, like I’m some kind of monster…well, that’s even worse.

I stand slowly, turning again to face Ruby.

“I don’t know what to say…I’m sorry, Ruby.”

She just continues to stare at me, shock written across her features.

I’ve clearly crossed the line here, changed her image of me in ways that I can’t fix. After all my hoping, I’ve somehow managed to destroy this relationship before it could even begin.

The fact reverberates intensely through my mind, waves of guilt following in its wake.

I turn my gaze towards the floor, unable to meet her eyes a second longer. The disappointment and fear written in them are damn near crippling.

I wipe my hands against my shorts as I turn, trying and failing to free them of blood.

I guess that’s fucking poetic or something.

I’ve got blood on my hands.

Like I didn’t already know that.

Without another word, I head back down the hall, retreating to the solace of my bedroom. As I suspected, the door has been ripped clean of the hinges, small shards of wood now littering the floor.

I lift the solid wood monstrosity one-handedly, still trying to wipe the blood from my free hand.

I do my best to fit it back into the doorway. It needs actual repair, but this will do for now.

When I’ve again gotten some level of privacy, I head slowly over to the bed, sitting with a groan.

I lean forward, resting my head in my hands and rubbing idly at my own temples, desperately trying to stave off the headache already forming there.

Through the doorway, I hear Ruby muttering, the sounds of her pacing reaching my well-trained ears.

I can’t seem to get the image of her shocked face to leave me; her fearful eyes seem locked onto me even now.

I can’t believe I fucked this up. Can’t believe I’ve scared her.

I groan, feeling my heart ache at the thought.

Well, at least she knows. Better for her to find out sooner than later what kind of man I am.

It’s better this way.

Now, she can move on and find somebody decent to be with instead of a fucking monster.