Page 37 of Drive Me Wilde

"So, is it true, pretty boy? You're a Wilde?" Kettle sprays spit as he yells toward the stage.

Ronan, Colin and I jump to our feet. The assholes all look our direction.

"Oh look, boys, more Wilde vermin. Your dad is a piece of shit. My dad's in jail because of him."

"Should we take out our tiny violins?" I ask as I move in front of my brothers. The last thing I want is to get in a brawl with these fuckfaces. I don't want to explain a black eye to my daughter.

"The police have been notified," Harry says shakily from behind the bar.

"Just texted Zander in case we need to take all these guys down," Ronan says quietly behind me.

Kettle's laugh is filled with spittle too. "Why the cops? We're not here to make trouble. We just came in to drink some beer and dance. Where's the damn music?"

Nate hesitantly gives his band the go ahead to start playing. Zach and Indi walk off the floor. Indi hurries over to Kinsley, who looks pale with fear. Zach comes over to our table. We all sit, cautiously, with our beers, waiting for one wrong move or something to trigger a brawl. It's the last thing any of us want.

"What a bunch of assholes, eh?" Zach helps himself to our pitcher of beer.

"Don't need a fight," Colin says. "I'm leaving tomorrow for a skate contest down south."

"So, you're saying you're going to be a pussy and let James and I handle them by ourselves?" Ronan asks.

"Nate's here too," Colin reminds him.

"Yeah, great, pretty boy is here too," Ronan says, but he knows damn well that Nate can hold his own in a fight. We all can. It was a necessity growing up in the Wilde household.

"Let's hope they get bored soon and leave," I say.

Ronan laughs. "Yeah, just like they were here to play pool."

The four men are at the bar now ordering beers. Kettle is surveying the room with a lecherous grin, and women are going out of their way to hide in the shadows. When Kettle's predatory scowl lands on Indi, my chair scrapes the floor as I jump to my feet. The noise can barely be heard through the music, but somehow, Kettle notices. He looks my direction, then looks toward Indi. He grins.

"You just gave the whole fucking thing away," Ronan says. "He now knows he's zeroed in on the right girl."

Zach sits up straighter. "Is he looking at Indi? I'm going to flatten him." He says it with conviction but doesn't make a move to get up.

"Shit's about to get ugly real fast," I hear Colin say behind me.

Adrenaline is coursing through every muscle in my body, and the second he moves her direction, I'm storming across the room. Indi doesn't seem to understand what's going on until the asshole is only a few feet away. Her face loses color, and she quickly looks around. She sees me heading her direction.

"Take Kinsley and move out of the way," I say sharply.

Kinsley looks frozen in fear as Indi reaches for her hand. Kettle's big hand shoots out, and he grabs Indi by the wrist. Shewinces as he tightens his grip. He glances back over his shoulder, and an evil laugh spurts from his blubbery mouth. "Does this little gem belong to you, Wilde? Thought I might take her for my?—"

My fist plows directly into his fat mouth. Blood spurts across my knuckles. The beast stumbles back, and I swoop and pull both women out of the way before he hits the ground. Chairs scrape everywhere, and people are running for the door.

His three equally disgusting wingmen are on top of me before I can turn around. Two of them grab my arms while the third throws a fist in my stomach. The only face I see in the rows of horrified onlookers is Indi's. She's pale, and her hand is covering her mouth. "Get out," I grunt to her before I get another fist, this time to my face. The two guys holding me pull away as Ronan and Colin haul them off to give them what they've got coming. Kettle has recovered, and is lumbering toward me. A chair breaks over his back, and he yells out in pain. I look past him. Indi is holding a broken chair. Kettle spins around and lunges toward her. I sweep my leg out and take him out at the knees.

"Get out," I tell her again. Zach and Nate have joined in the fight. A chair and table hit the wall, both splintering into pieces. Shards of glass are everywhere. Kinsley grabs Indi's hand, and they rush outside along with most of the other patrons. Nate's mouth is bleeding, and Ronan's swinging at anything that moves. He's got dad's quick temper and rage, and he's doing a number on the guy he's fighting.

Kettle is back on his feet, like one of those horror movie monsters who just won't die. He outweighs me by a solid fifty pounds, and he moves pretty fast considering his size. He is practically foaming at the mouth as he lunges at me. I don't notice the knife in his hand until the dim light catches the silver blade. It slices my forearm before I can react. I throw a punchwith the other arm and manage to hit the side of his face hard enough to knock him senseless for a second. I press my cut arm against my stomach to stop the flow of blood. At the same time, I'm having to fend him off with my left arm. His meaty fist pulls back like a rock in a slingshot. I'm quickly strategizing to see which way I'll jump to get out of the way when Kettle's beady eyes roll back in his head. He falls back hard and lands with a grunt and a thud. The floor vibrates beneath my feet. There, standing in the wavering light of the entrance, is my big brother.

Zander is shaking his hand and pulling at his knuckles. "Never cold-cocked someone from behind. That guy has a rock head." He looks at my arm and shakes his head. "Did you at least get a few good blows in before he cut you?"

"Nothing to write home about."

"Fatherhood has made you soft." Zander steps past the lump on the floor and gives him a kick for good measure. "Wish I'd seen it from your side. Did his eyes roll back?"

"It was a classic roll back," I say. The others are still fighting though my brothers have done some damage to Kettle's mates.

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