Pay Up

by Kaily Hart

Carly gasped. She’d rarely heard Rio swear hardcore, but it wasn’t just the language. She’d never heard that tone of savagery from him before or seen the aggression evident in every line of his tensed body.

  The guy smiled the slimy smile again and held up his hands. “Hey, no harm, man. It was just an accident.”

  “Once is an accident. Three times is a death wish.”

  She glanced at him quickly. She shouldn’t have been surprised he’d noticed the first “accident” as well. Carly moved in front of Rio and put a hand on his chest as he took a step closer to the clueless jerk. He was hot to the touch, his shirt a little damp, his breathing harsh. He played tag football like he did everything—flat-out and with everything in him. He was as hard as stone and probably just as immoveable. And she knew. She just knew. He wasn’t backing down unless he wanted to.

  “Rio, it’s fine.” She tried to placate him again.

  Carly released her breath slowly when she felt Rio’s muscles relax marginally. If she hadn’t had her palm on his chest, she never would have detected it from the stance of his body or the almost feral look in his eyes.

  “Hey, nice camel toe, Carly.”

  Carly gasped. The jerk had already turned to leave with that parting comment, but Rio still surged forward, nudging her out of the way as he grabbed at the other man and swung him around with a tight fist buried in his shirt. He snarled something she couldn’t catch and hit him with a vicious punch so fast, it was a blur.

  He fell to the ground, clutching his nose and mouth, blood everywhere. God, she’d never seen Rio like this. He was usually so mild mannered, easygoing, so in control, yet at the moment he reminded her of a snarling, wild animal.

  “I’ll sue,” the jerk warned, using his t-shirt to wipe his face as he gingerly stood, watching Rio warily.

  Rio smiled as he flexed his fist. It was a smile she’d never seen from him before, threatening and full of menace. “Bring it on, asshole.”

  “You gonna beat up every guy who looks at her, Reyes?”

  Carly looked over at Cole as he walked up. Despite his easy saunter and the pure mischief in his eyes, she knew he was ready to step in if he needed to. He’d joined Rio’s crew about three months earlier and had seemed to fit seamlessly into the clique the guys had.

  “He did more than look,” Rio snapped, flexing his hand again, his glare fixed to the back of the quickly departing figure.

  Carly frowned at Cole. “What are you talking about?”

  The look Rio threw at Cole had warning written all over it.

  “Man, she doesn’t know?” Cole whistled. “Sucks to be you.”

  Carly looked from one to the other. “What don’t I know? Whatare you talking about? Rio?”

  He finally turned his head. His jaw clenched as his dark eyes swept across her face, down to her toes and back up.

  “Don’t wear those fucking shorts down here again.”

  Carly gasped. “What?”

  “Every guy out here can practically see the cheeks of your ass.”

  “What?” Carly frowned, her initial shock giving way to a simmer of anger. “That’s bull, but so what if it is? Does that give him the right to cop a feel? Rio—”

  “Of course not. It’s just…” He broke off and looked around. “Fuck,” he muttered, obviously realizing what she just did. They were the center of attention. Everyone was standing on the field, watching them, and no one was making any attempt to hide their curiosity. Cole stood with arms across his chest, not even trying to pretend he wasn’t listening or interested.

  “Rio.” Carly frowned, but he’d already turned and walked off. “What’s the matter with you?” she called out.

  He didn’t answer, just kept going. She watched as he jerked up his bag and sweatshirt lying on the ground by the field and just kept going, without so much as a backward glance.

  Carly wanted Rio back. The Rio she knew wouldn’t have lost his cool, would have calmly but forcefully told the guy to get lost and he would never, ever speak to her that way. He wouldn’t have nixed their workout sessions. He wouldn’t have talked to her about sex so explicitly or thrown out the suggestive bet either. He was acting so out of character lately and she had the sinking feeling she was losing him, or as much of him as she’d ever had anyway. She’d wondered if it would be better to cut herself off from him completely. Be careful what you wish for, right? She felt the sting at the back of her throat and swallowed it back with an effort.

  She looked down at what she was wearing. She’d worn these shorts countless times, playing football and jogging with Rio.

  She looked up at Cole. “Are they really that short?”

  God, her voice sounded as if she were on the verge of tears and she hated that.

  His smile was gentle. “Nah. You look sexy and they make your ass look hot, but they’re not indecent. All the guys check you out. Why wouldn’t we? We don’t mean anything disrespectful by it and we don’t think it gives us the right to do anything about it. We all know Rio would go apeshit anyway.”

  Carly swallowed. “So, what’s up with him? Is there something going on at work?”

  Cole just shook his head. “You’ll have to ask him.”

  Chapter Three

  “So, why here? What happened to Duffy’s?”

  Carly looked around the bar. It was smaller, had more of a younger crowd and just didn’t have the same laid-back feel of their typical hangout.

  One of the guys from Rio’s crew laughed. “Reyes can’t go back there. He’s banned.”

  “Banned? For what?”

  “Fighting.”

  Carly frowned. “Fighting? Rio? Are you sure?”

  All at once the guy seemed uncomfortable, looked around at the group they were standing with and refused to meet her eyes. “Ah…you’ll have to ask Rio.”

  “Well, he’s not here right now.”

  “Right.” The burly guy scratched his head. “Ah, Greg…your ex now, right? Rio…might have…beat the crap out of him for shooting his mouth off about you.”

  “What?”

  “I wasn’t there, but from what I heard, the guy more than deserved it.”

  Rio had fought with Greg? Had beaten him up? What the hell? She looked around just as Rio stepped behind her. He had to have heard the whole thing.

  He shot a poison glare at his friend and leaned down to her.

  “Christ, Carls, he was telling whatever dickhead who would listen how you let him fuck you in the ass.”

  His tone was low. She doubted anyone else had heard him.

  “What?” The word came out a strangled gasp.

  He shook his head and she frowned.

  “You never said anything.”

  “You didn’t have to know what a slimeball he was, but when he started talking about you like that, I…”

  He broke off and ran a hand through the dark strands of his hair.

  “So you hit him?” God, she still couldn’t believe it. “Did you hurt him?”

  “I sure as hell hope so.”

  “Rio.”

  “What would you have me do? Pull up a seat? The things he said… I couldn’t let it go. I— He shut up, at least.”

  * * * * *

  “Hey, Cole, how’s it going? How you settling in?”

  Rio sat down next to the other guy, but his gaze was glued to Carly across the bar. He had no idea what she was thinking. She hadn’t said a word. Had just looked at him as if she didn’t know him anymore and walked off. Jesus. He hadn’t ever been going to tell her. He figured she’d never hear it from Greg. The jerk wasn’t about to tell Carly Rio had laid him out flat on his ass spouting what he now knew were lies. What a mess.

  “So, is this my ‘stay away from Carly’ talk?”

  Rio threw his attention back to Cole and frowned, his gut tightening. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  “So, are you doing her or what? There’s a lot of speculation, my friend.”

  “Who?”

  Co
le smiled. “Carly. Carly Wagner.”

  God, the fucker was playing with him. “She’s a friend, man.”

  “So?”

  Rio shrugged. He’d noticed the way the other man had checked out Carly’s legs at the game. He’d done it before, but Rio had shrugged it off. She had a boyfriend, Cole was a guy and Carly’s legs were killer. Who could blame him? Now it was different. She was single and Cole’s interest at their last game had just riled him so much that when that loser had felt her up, he’d been primed to go off like dynamite.

  “So, you don’t mind if I take a shot tonight? I hear she’s single.”

  Rio felt his hand clench on the beer bottle and took a swig from it so Cole wouldn’t notice. Christ, he hadbeen going to try to steer his interest away from Carly, but how the fuck had the discussion gone to hell and turned tables on him?

  “She doesn’t go for casual sex.”

  Cole looked him straight in the eye. “Maybe I’m not looking for a quick fuck.”

  Rio watched the guy look over to where Carly stood with her girls. Ever since he and Carly had connected, it had been a natural progression that had somehow merged Carly’s group of friends with his own work buddies. They tended to hang out at the same place on most Saturday nights and the guys looked out for the girls, made sure no one was bothering them. They were usually just out for a good time, to have a few drinks and dance. The guys ran interference for them. It worked out for everyone so far. A few hookups had happened, but nothing too serious.

  “She’s nice. I like her. A lot. There could be something, you know?”

  Panic seized him like a clenched fist in his insides. Cole was a good guy—hell, he was a great guy, and Rio could all too easily see Carly going for someone like him, really going for him, especially after Greg had bowed out. Suddenly the thought of her in a permanent relationship with a decent guy didn’t sit well with him. It was some fucked-up logic, but somehow when she was with the asshole, he’d known it was only a matter of time before Carly realized he was a jerk. He’d known it wasn’t really going to go anywhere. This was different entirely.

  “She’s hot and sweet, man,” Cole added when he didn’t say anything. “It’s a lethal combination. You hold off much longer, someone’s going to snatch her from under your nose and not just to bang for a while. Maybe for good.”

  Be cool.

  Rio took a deep breath, tried to control his reaction at hearing Carly referred to in those terms, but tempered it with an effort. “You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

  “You can’t deny the way you look at her. Don’t worry, I don’t think anyone else notices, least of all her.”

  “You’re way off base, man.”

  “You telling me I can take my best shot? That if I hit on her tonight, left with her, it wouldn’t piss you off?”

  Piss him off? The mere thought would burn his insides like acid.

  As Cole got up and turned away toward Carly, Rio couldn’t help the hand that grabbed on hard and swung the other man back toward him. “You’ll stay the fuck away from her,” he snarled before he could stop himself.

  Cole laughed. Laughed. “Yep. They all warned me.”

  “Warned you about what? And who’s they?”

  “The guys. Said if I showed any interest in her, I’d get warned off.”

  “Well, she’s off-limits.”

  Cole smiled. It was knowing and grated like hell on him. “Whatever, man. But some guys won’t respect you enough to step aside while you try to decide what the fuck you’re going to do.”

  When Rio didn’t say anything, he added, “Seriously. You need to make your move or someone with less ethics than the rest of us will ignore your warnings and go for it anyway.”

  * * * * *

  “Wildfires fueled by fierce desert winds continue to threaten scores of Southern California homes and have forced thousands of people to flee. One person so far has reportedly been killed and firefighters from the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department have been battling multiple fronts of the firestorm going on three days. With strong Santa Ana winds forecasted…”

  The voice of the newscaster faded out as Carly focused on the images instead of the words. All she could see were the fierce, out-of-control flames hungrily licking at everything they came into contact with, the thick billowing smoke, the homes, in danger and so close to the fires, some of them already smoldering ruins of black debris. Rio was out in that, somewhere, risking his life, facing God knew what, battling what looked to be an impossible adversary. She’d caught snatches of the news at work all day. It was a busy time for her. Usually she loved what she did, flourished on the challenge of it all. She had two projects nearing completion and hadn’t been able to focus worth a damn on any of it. And she’d been sitting in front of the TV ever since she’d gotten home. They were doing around-the-clock coverage and she’d missed dinner so long ago, her stomach had finally stopped protesting. She knew she was unlikely to catch a glimpse of him, but at least she’d hear if one of the firefighters got hurt. Wouldn’t she?

  She hadn’t seen Rio since the weekend, and even then it had been awkward. He’d been friendly enough, but something was wrong and she hadn’t really known what to say to him about Greg. He’d probably deserved it, but it seemed so out of character for Rio. They’d lost the sense of ease they’d always had together and already the emptiness was eating at her.

  Carly was so focused on the TV, she jumped at the soft knock on the door, her stomach lurching. No one could get into the building unannounced. Her heart leapt when she looked through the peephole and quickly swung the door wide.

  Rio’s whole posture screamed exhaustion and he looked awful. His eyes were red- rimmed, he had a bruise on his cheek and he hadn’t shaved for days. His jaw was dark with stubble, giving him more of a rugged look than usual. He had a bandage on his arm and despite the fact it was clear he’d showered recently from his damp hair, she could detect the faintest trace of smoke on him.

  “Hey. I wasn’t sure if you’d still be up. I just wanted to say thanks for taking care of my place, getting my mail and stuff.”

  His voice was hoarse and scratchy. She didn’t know if it was because of the smoke he’d probably been exposed to or because he was so clearly exhausted.

  He swayed a little unsteadily. “Rio, why don’t you come in and—”

  “Can’t. I’m dead tired, Carls. I’m going straight to bed. I have to be up and out again in the morning.”

  “Have you eaten?”

  God, he looked so lean, more so than usual, his face drawn with fatigue, his jeans hanging low on his slim hips.

  He shook his head as if it were the last thing he’d thought about. Carly grabbed his hand and pulled him into her apartment.

  “Carls, I can’t. I—”

  “Rio, you need to eat. Come on. Give me ten minutes and I’ll whip something up for you.”

  “Carls…”

  She led him to the breakfast bar. “Sit.”

  She was conscious of his eyes on her as she quickly poured him a large glass of chilled milk. He lowered his big body onto the stool slowly, angling it so that he could also lean against the side of the wall, as if he needed the added support to hold himself up.

  “Thanks.”

  Carly worked quickly, whipping up scrambled eggs, sprinkling in some ham and cheese as Rio demolished the milk. By the time he was done, she’d put a steaming mound of food in front of him. Her own stomach clenched, reminding her she hadn’t eaten either, but her attention was all focused on Rio.

  “It’s bad, right? I’ve been watching it on the news.”

  Rio looked up, his eyes dark and solemn. He nodded slowly and then went back to shoveling the food. He must have been starved.

  “Yeah, it’s bad.”

  By the time he was done, his movements were slow and jerky. She’d never seen him like this, totally out of it, docile. Usually he was so alive and vibrant he pulsed with energy.

  “Wh
at happened to your arm?”

  He shrugged and pushed back from the stool. “It’s just a scratch.”

  She’d never much thought about the risks he took on a regular basis. He’d invited her to watch a controlled burn once. She’d been more distracted at the time with how Rio looked in his gear, but she hadn’t been able to escape the harsh realities on the news. The thought of him having to go back was more than unsettling, it was disturbing and scary. She didn’t think she’d actually felt fear for another person before.

  Carly grabbed for him when he stumbled getting up from the chair. “Rio?”

  “Sorry.” He put his hand on the wall and shook his head as if to clear it.

  What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I… They shot me full of something before Cole drove me home. I—”

  Cole had driven him home? Carly frowned. “A shot? For what?”

  “Stitches I guess.”

  “Stitches?” Carly looked down at the stark white bandage on his forearm. “Jesus, Rio you’ve got stitches in your arm? How many?”

  “Ah, twenty or so. It’s nothing, it’s just—”

  “A scratch. Right. Come on,” Carly urged, grabbing his other arm when he swayed on his feet. God, the realization he could have been badly injured, had been hurt, burned coldly through her, its pang sharp and biting. “You can spend the night here.”

  “Carls, I’m…”

  “Yeah, so tired you can barely function and apparently drugged to the eyeballs. I got that, so you can stay here.”

  Where I can keep an eye on you. The thought of him alone, needing something in the night but being helpless wasn’t something she wanted to dwell too much on.

  “But…”

  “Come on.”

  Carly used her one spare room as her office so she led him into her bedroom. God, she was leading him by the hand into her bedroomand he was meekly following. How often had she pictured that? Trust her to be doing it while he was barely aware of it.

  She motioned to his arm. “Do you need to do anything for it?” “Nah. I…ah…I still smell like smoke. I’ll need another shower.”

  His words were slow, hesitant. Carly looked at the dazed look in his eyes, at the way he slowly blinked as if he were trying to focus on her and led him over to her bed.