by Debbie Mason
“You’re a tease, Diva.” Ty laughed, and added a couple of booty pops of his own.
She didn’t entirely forget about Easton’s eyes upon her, but she let the music take over and began dancing for herself and not for him.
Pointing at each other, Chloe and Ty sang the lyrics while bouncing to the techno beat. She was so caught up in the song that it took a moment for her to sense the approach of the men from the bar.
Two of them crowded Ty from behind, pushing at him with their plaid-covered chests. “Your kind’s not welcome here, faggot. Get lost.”
Horrified, Chloe gasped. Ty staggered into her with a humiliated look on his handsome face. Seeing his expression, Chloe acted without thinking and moved protectively in front of him. She pressed a palm on each of the men’s chests and shoved back. “You’re wrong, you no-neck Neanderthals. It’s you who’s not welcome here.”
The taller of the two men leaned in and grabbed her arm. “Why don’t you let a real man show you—”
Chloe put her hands on his shoulders and raised her knee.
“Diva, don’t!” Ty cried from behind her.
She ignored him. There was no way she was letting them get away with hurting Ty. But just as her knee was about to connect with his manhood, Ty’s attacker stumbled backward. Easton had him by the back of the collar. Spinning him around, he punched the man in the face while yelling, “Chance, get Chloe and Ty out of—” The man’s friends jumped Easton before he got out the rest of his command.
Chloe launched herself onto the back of the man about to take a swing at Easton, and covered his eyes with her hands. “You leave him—”
Chance grabbed Chloe around the waist and dragged her off the man, then threw her over his shoulder. She lifted her head to see Gage and Grayson trying to reach Easton, but they were waylaid by several other men getting in on the action. “Put me down! Your brother needs you.”
“After the little stunt you just pulled, I don’t trust you not to take swing at someone else,” Chance muttered as he reached for Ty.
“Are you crazy? I’m not going to swing at anyone. I already broke two nails!”
Chance snorted and plowed through the people converging on the dance floor. Once he lifted Chloe onto the bar, he put Ty up there, too. “Don’t move,” he ordered, then waded back through the crowd. Half the bar had joined in the fight, including Sawyer.
Chloe turned to Ty, searching his face. She took his hand. “You know they’re just idiots, right?”
He nodded, then bumped her shoulder with his. “I’ve never had anyone stand up for me like you did, Diva. That was pretty awesome, you know. And speaking of awesome,” Ty said, turning his attention to the McBrides and Grayson slugging it out on the dance floor. A moment later, he said to Chloe with a grin, “Now that’s what I call heroes.”
Watching Easton battle it out on the dance floor, she released a heartfelt sigh. “He always was.”
Ty laughed. “I meant all of them.”
She grinned. “Me too.” Then let out a small shriek when a man lurched toward Ty and tried to drag him off the bar. Chloe grabbed a bottle off the bar and broke it over the man’s bald head.
Ty stared at his assailant lying on the floor at his feet, then lifted his wide eyes to Chloe. He hugged her. “You’re my hero.”
* * *
As the deputies led the last of the men away, Grayson and Easton righted the overturned tables and chairs. “So what was it you said about Chloe this afternoon? At the first sign of trouble she’d be screaming her head off or hiding under a bed? Called that one wrong, didn’t you, mate?”
The agent’s memory could be annoying at times. But he was right, Chloe had shocked the hell out of Easton by standing up to the men on Ty’s behalf.
He glanced to where she sat on the bar, her body-hugging black dress riding up on her thighs as she crossed her long, shapely legs, dangling her right shoe from her toes. She and Ty had their arms around each other’s shoulders, singing “Heroes” into a wine bottle. Grayson followed his gaze and laughed, then winced and touched his fat lip.
Gage walked up to them and glanced over his shoulder. He grimaced and brought the tips of his fingers to the edge of his black eye. “In less than a week, she’s caused more trouble than my wife ever did. Saturday can’t come soon enough.”
At the reminder she’d be leaving town, Easton made a noncommittal sound in his throat. He’d spent half the night watching Chloe, and the other half listening to his brothers warn him against dating her. Other than Grayson, Easton was the only one who seemed to think it was a good idea. But now, at the reminder she’d be heading back to LA in a few days, even he wondered what he’d been thinking. That wasn’t true—he knew exactly what he’d been thinking watching her gorgeous face light up with laughter and her sexy moves on the dance floor. But now that his brain wasn’t totally fogged by lust, he had to think realistically.
The long-distance thing hadn’t worked for him and Kelly, the orthopedic surgeon in Virginia, so no doubt it wouldn’t work for him and Chloe. And his family hadn’t had a vested interest in his previous relationships, but they would in this one. The last thing he wanted was to cause problems between his dad and Liz.
“If you don’t need me, I’ll be heading out. Thanks for the entertaining night, boys.” Grayson lifted his chin at Gage, who’d answered his cell. “I’ll touch base with you in the morning, Easton.”
For all his talk that he’d come up with a lead on his own, Easton was no further ahead on the Martinez case. Maybe because he’d gone by the book. He didn’t think Grayson would appreciate, or condone, him hacking into the Bureau’s computers. “We should know how we’re moving forward by ten tomorrow.” Even if he had to work all night to catch the break he needed. “Are you headed to the ranch to see Cat?”
Grayson raised an eyebrow. “Your interest in my love life is bordering on obsessive.”
Possibly, but only because he wanted the heat off Chloe. And if he was honest, he felt guilty for his role in their breakup, too. But that wasn’t something he planned on sharing. Grayson had already figured out it was Cat who’d initiated the kiss. Something Easton would rather not get into now. So far tonight he’d done a good job not talking about it. “What can I say? I inherited my great-aunt’s genes.”
“Guess we all did,” Gage said as he shoved his cell in his back pocket. “That was Madison. She thought you’d like to know Cat is on her way home.”
“Okay, you win. I’ll head to the ranch. Happy now?”
“Over the moon.” Easton grinned as the three of them walked toward the bar. Chance, who was helping Sawyer sweep up the broken bottles, leaned on his broom to look them over. “How is it that you’re the only one of us not bruised and battered?” he asked Easton.
“What can I say? I’m just that good.” He turned to Chloe and went to help her off the bar. “Okay, Scarlett, time to get you home.” She gave him a sweet smile that hit him almost as hard as she did when she launched herself into his arms.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and looped her hands around his neck. “You were amazing,” she said with a look in her beautiful green eyes that he was oh-so-familiar with. And knowing what he had to tell her, one that punched him in the gut.
“Geezus, Chloe, what are you thinking? Get off him before you hurt his leg.” Gage reached for her.
His brother’s attitude toward Chloe was starting to piss him off. He got that she reminded Gage of his first wife, Sheena. She’d left her family for fame and fortune, but Chloe was nothing like her.
She slid off him, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. “I’m sorry. That was stupid of me. Did I hurt you?”
He shot Gage a back-the-hell-off look before responding. “No, you didn’t. I’m good.” And he was, he just wished he could pound that into his overprotective brothers’ thick skulls. “Ty, you need a hand down?”
“Maybe two?” He gave them a loopy smile. “And I should warn you, I’m going to hug you
all. So be prepared.”
Grayson and Chance helped him down, and Ty made good on his promise. “You all get free haircuts for life.”
“Ty, you don’t owe us anything. We were happy to clean up the floor with those clowns. You’re one of us now. We look after our own,” Gage said.
Easton was glad his brother tried to make Ty feel better, and he knew all of them felt the same. Intolerant bullshit wasn’t tolerated in town. He just wished Gage was as quick to defend Chloe. “But I’m not sure you really needed us, Ty. You had Chloe looking out for you.”
“I don’t know about that.” Chance laughed, and told them what she said about her nails.
Easton couldn’t help it; he laughed along with everyone else. Everyone except Chloe, who scowled at his brother.
Ty put his arms around her, rocking her back and forth. “I don’t care what you say, she’s the best friend I’ve ever had.”
“Well your best friend owes me for a two-hundred-dollar bottle of Scotch. If you had to hit the guy over the head, why didn’t you grab the twenty-dollar bottle of wine?” Sawyer asked Chloe.
“We don’t like Scotch,” Ty informed him with a straight face.
Sawyer sighed. “Yeah, and that makes perfect sense.”
“I’ll take care of any damages, Sawyer.” Chloe glanced around the bar. “You know, if you’re looking for bouncers, I have a couple of friends who could use a job.”
“I’ll give it some thought,” Sawyer said.
Chance looked at Easton, and he knew his brother was thinking the same thing. That was sweet…and thoughtful. The girl he remembered. Only lately, more often than not, that’s the girl he saw all the time. And right now, he kind of wished he didn’t. It made it more difficult to do what he had to do.
“We better clear out and let Sawyer lock up,” Gage said, ushering them toward the door.
“I’ll walk you two home,” Easton said, following Ty and Chloe onto the sidewalk. It was a nice night. The air was warm and sweet with the smell of spring, or maybe that was Chloe’s perfume. She was walking by his side, glancing up at him every so often as though trying to get a read on him. Ty kept up a running commentary of the night. It made it easier for Easton not to talk, but that was about to end as they reached the bakery.
Ty, as though sensing the tension, looked from Chloe to Easton. “I’ll go up now. Thanks again, Easton.”
He shoved his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. “Don’t mention it, Ty.”
As the door closed, Chloe looked up at him. “Do you want to come in? You could put your leg up, and we can talk…”
He’d been hoping she’d forgotten what he’d said earlier. “Chloe, I don’t…” He couldn’t do it. She’d had a rough few days, and he didn’t want to hurt her. “I can’t come up. I have a crapload of work to do on a case, and I have to get it done before the morning.” He didn’t know why he kept talking—maybe it was the disbelieving look in her eyes—but he told her why the case was so important that he had to pull an all-nighter and filled her in on what he had so far.
“Well that’s easy. It’s the wife.”
“What do you mean it’s the…Jesus, you might be right.” He lifted her off her feet and kissed her. And as soon as his lips touched her soft, pliant mouth, he knew he’d made a mistake. Letting Chloe O’Connor go would be one of the hardest things he’d ever done. But for everyone’s sake, he had to. He slowly lowered her to the sidewalk and stepped away, forcing a smile. “If you ever want to give up acting, you could get a job as a PI.”
Chapter Sixteen
Chloe checked her messages for the tenth time in less than so many minutes. She was becoming obsessive. She hadn’t heard from Easton since the night of the barroom brawl. That was two days ago.
“Still no word from the White Knight?” Ty asked from where he sat in the stylist chair beside her.
She held out her wineglass for a refill. “No. If we were dating, I’m pretty sure that kiss was the breakup kind.”
Ty filled her glass, then his own. “Show me how he kissed you again.”
She lifted her palm to her lips and demonstrated the brief, unsatisfying kiss they’d shared. Actually, it had been a very nice kiss. But with Easton, she’d never be satisfied with a quick lip-lock. And then there’d been that look in his eyes. The one that said he was thinking of an excuse to take off. Work had always been hers. It seemed they had something else in common. Within minutes, he was headed for his pickup. Though he did turn to tell her to get inside before he reached his truck. The man was nothing if not protective…
She blinked. “Ty, I think I know what the problem is.”
He nodded sagely. “Me too. His brothers don’t like you.”
Even though that hurt to hear, she made sure the emotion didn’t show on her face. “You’re right, but that wasn’t the problem I was referring to. I guess I didn’t think this through. Easton and I never had a chance. It’s probably for the best that we didn’t take our relationship any further. I’ll be going home after the fashion show anyway.”
“You’re not giving up on Easton. He’s your one. His brothers are just being overprotective. All we have to do is prove to them that you’ve changed. And the only way you can do that is to stay in town. There’s nothing for you in LA. You got an audition for Estelle in London next week, and we both know she’s a shoo-in for the part.”
In her bid to keep Estelle from interfering in Cat and Grayson’s life, Chloe had called her former agent yesterday morning. By nine that night, Estelle had an audition for a docudrama about the queen of England. Ty was right, Estelle was perfect for the role. It was kind of depressing that the older actress had received an offer for an audition in less than twenty-four hours while…
Ty cut her off mid-thought as he continued. “I don’t like to think of you by yourself in LA, Diva. You don’t need to be in Hollywood to get work, you know.”
Given her recent experience with Estelle, obviously that was true. And if Chloe was honest, she didn’t like the thought of being alone in LA either. At least here she had Ty and her family. Cat had texted her yesterday and extended an olive branch—more like a twig, but whatever. At least her sister no longer hated her. Grayson had explained their kiss, and he’d also told Cat about Chloe’s heroic defense of Ty at the Penalty Box. All right, so Cat hadn’t exactly said heroic. She was just glad Chloe had been there to defend Ty. As to her sister’s engagement, from what Cat said, they still had issues to work out.
At the ping of an incoming message, both Ty’s and Chloe’s eyes jerked to her phone. They reached for it at the same time. “Ty, it’s my phone,” she groused when he grabbed her cell.
He reluctantly handed it over. She opened the message and couldn’t help releasing a disappointed sigh. The text wasn’t from Easton. “It’s from Kit Kat,” she told Ty. “Grayson just told her about Estelle’s audition. She thanked me for arranging it.”
“Okay, so say something like ‘I’ve got your back, sista.’”
Chloe pursed her lips and arched an eyebrow at him. When Cat texted her yesterday, Ty had insisted she let him help with her responses. He didn’t want her to blow her chance at a reconciliation. “I think I can take it from here, Ty,” she said and typed. I’ve got your back, sista!
“Oh, shoot,” she said when she realized what she’d done.
Ty leaned over and angled the screen. He smirked.
At the sound of another incoming message, they both leaned in to read the text. Tell Ty to quit hijacking your phone.
He laughed. “She knows me so well.”
For several minutes, Ty and Cat texted back and forth while Chloe sipped her wine, contemplating her disappointment that it wasn’t Easton texting her. Obviously she wasn’t ready to give up on him just yet. If he really was her one, they deserved a chance. Which she told Ty as soon as he put her phone down.
He clinked her wineglass with his. “Your fairy godfather is back on the job. Now here’s what I think you should d
o. Are you ready for it?” When she nodded, he said, “Convince the citizens of Christmas you’ve changed. Win them over. What do you think?”
“That your plan is doomed to fail. It’s a small town, Ty. Everyone knows everyone’s business, and they don’t forget a single thing. They don’t let you live down your past mistakes or let you change.”
“Okay, so you do something for the town. You’re rich, buy them, I don’t know, a new…Oh, wait, I do know. They’re up in arms because the school board plans to close Christmas High. Maddie’s been working day and night trying to save the school.”
“I’m not helping save Christmas High. Some of my worst memories are from my years attending that school.”
He nodded and topped up her wineglass. “I forgot. Don’t worry about it, we’ll think of something else. But the most important thing we need to do is come up with a plan to get Easton to call. Now don’t argue with Uncle Ty, he’s your one. He just needs to spend more time with you.”
“I think I know why Easton isn’t interested in me anymore.”
“Oh, please, that man is so hot for you he nearly—”
“Let me finish. You didn’t see him the other night, Ty. I did. We both agree that Easton’s a protector, right?”
“I didn’t name him the White Knight for no reason, Diva.”
“That’s what I mean. Everyone knows I needed protecting or at least I acted like I did. But that night at the bar, I didn’t. And now that I know my panic attacks don’t have anything to do with my heart, I’m not as, well, emotional or high-strung.” She caught Ty’s smirk and sighed. “Okay, so I’m a little emotional. But do you see what I’m getting at?”
“Umhm, and I need to ponder this a moment.” He tipped his head back and closed his eyes. After a couple of minutes of humming to himself—it sounded suspiciously like the theme song from the Princess Bride—he turned his head and smiled. “I’ve got it. The White Knight to the rescue.”
When he explained the plan, she said with a nervous hitch in her voice, “Ty, I don’t know about this. If Easton finds out—”
