Page 19 of Timeless

“It won’t be him, Chels. He won’t be sober enough to remember yet,” I reassured her. Mason would come for her. But not yet. “Tinks must have gotten out,” I muttered and headed for the front door.

I heard Troy ask Chelsea what Tinks was. Chelsea was explaining my hatred for that cat, and our twisted relationship, when I walked up the hall.

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But my fake smile dropped when I found Mason there instead.

“Let me see her, Amber.” His normal stubborn attitude. Well, that wasn’t happening. Chelsea had let him hold her back for too long. He wasn’t touching her again.

“No, now get off my property.”

“I need to see her.”

“No, you need to get off my property.” He was so lucky Cole was asleep. Otherwise, the face he loved so much would be getting rearranged.

“She deserved it!”

My mouth dropped open. He did not just say that! He was really going to use that line! That’s it! Screw needing Cole; my right hook was better than nothing. I was going to punch him but he pushed me aside and stormed into my house!

“Get out, Mason!” I screamed after him.

“Chelsea!?” he screamed, charging down the hall. “You can’t just hide out! You deserved it!”

I ran after him, into my living room. Mason paused when he saw what I saw.

Troy was kissing Chelsea, holding her protectively to his chest, his arms wrapped around her. And Chelsea was kissing him back, up on her toes, her hands in his short hair.

I had seen Troy with women before. But never once had I seen him kiss a woman like that.

Troy was backing her to the back door, and I saw his hands go to her hips. His self-control was slipping. He was about to take this from PG to MA very quickly.

“What the hell is going on?” Mason shouted at them.

I was slightly shocked as well. But that shock disappeared when I realized Mason was still in my house.

Chelsea pulled back from Troy’s lips, looking stunned. Like she had completely forgotten why she was terrified when she heard that doorbell.

Then her eyes widened when she saw Mason. Troy was one second away from forcing her attention back on him, when Mason started ranting at her.

Mason was suddenly at them, his hand wrapped around Chelsea’s arm, pulling her away from Troy. And Troy… well, he snapped. Troy was always in control. Sure, he could get just as pissed off as Cole but the difference between Troy and Cole was that Troy kept a tight grip on his temper.

Troy pulled Chelsea from Mason’s grip and forced her behind him.

“Cover Jack’s eyes,” Troy gritted out, and Chelsea’s hands went over Jack’s eyes.

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

Troy lost it.

He never acted out. He prided himself on his control. But the only thing I saw on his face as he laid punch after punch in to Mason’s face was anger. The type of anger that consumed him when someone hurt me.

I was still in shock as Troy picked a very bloody and barely conscious Mason from the floor. Troy held him by the neck, dragging Mason past me and went to throw Mason out.

My eyes went to Chelsea. Who looked how I looked.

Shocked.

“I thought he didn’t have a temper?” Chelsea whispered.