Page 104 of The Runaway and the Rugged
Nathaniel gave her a murderous glare.
“Her fiancé, that’s fucking who,” he growled low, but Winnie didn’t so much as flinch.
“Seems to me like you didn’t get the memo when she didn’t show up to the wedding?”
Oh hell.
I was impressed, embarrassed, shocked all at the same time from her quick-witted response.
“She was scared!” he shouted, rocking my ears from the volume. “She was nervous. It was the nerves, that’s all,” he said like he was trying to convince himself rather than her.
“Nathaniel,” his name came out hushed, “I knew for a while that I wasn’t happy with you, and I’m sorry for choosing todo something about it on our wedding day, but I had no other choice. I knew you wouldn’t let me leave if I told you in person that what we had was over…”
His unsettling gaze fired over to mine, a torrent of emotion washing over him as his face twisted and eventually settled into a hostile sneer.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. This place has been fucking with your head, Emelia. I know you love me.” He shot forward, sending a red-hot alarm through me. Winnie reached for my arm and we both dashed toward the back door, when I felt another strong, firm hand clasp around my wrist.
“You’re not leaving me,” he seethed, yanking me forcefully back until my back was close to his front. Winnie’s grip had fallen, but she came swinging at him in full force.
And that’s when I heard him, my savior, my protector, shouting with an urgency that settled deep into my bones, filling my stomach until it was no longer sinking.
“Emelia, baby!” He tore past the mess of a picnic and stormed up the stairs with a ferociousness that tinged the air around us. Even Nathaniel wasn’t immune to his effect as he spun his head around and with a low snarl, found Garth.
“Who the hell are you?” he demanded, tightening his hold as I whimpered from the sting of it. Garth’s wild eyes never left mine. Stopping just shy of where we stood, he looked like a man ready to kill.
“None of your damn business. Now, let her go of her and we can settle this man-to-man,” Garth ordered, but Nathaniel scoffed in return, but then as if realization had smacked him in the face his body went still.
“This guy, Emelia? Really? You’ve been fucking him, haven’t you?” He yanked me back hard, his breath falling over me like an unwanted infection crawling over my skin.
He was hurting me.
“I let you off easy the last time you were here, and I’ll give you that opportunity again if you let her go and stop hurtin’ her.” He sounded desperate, but I knew what anger laid beneath his words.
Then unexpectedly, the air had thickened as the ominous sound of impending footsteps echoed nearby. Shadows appeared and converged as four figures, Greta, Griffin, Beau, and Clarke all stormed up the steps with gravity.
Clarke?
They all wore expressions of raw fury, their glowers heavy and unwavering, each one focused on Nathaniel. Clarke’s glare burned the brightest, glowing with an intensity that could set a room ablaze.
“You stupid motherfucker, what do you think you’re doing?” Clarke charged toward him with a determination stretched across her face. She didn’t get far, because Griffin, the person I least expected to manhandle her, reached his arm out and pulled her back with a firm tug. She sent him a fierce look, but he didn’t back down. Instead, he wrapped an arm around her waist to stop her from making things worse.
Nathaniel chuckled against my ear, the sound sending a chill down my back.
“Best let her go before she handles you herself,” Beau announced, his voice steady and lacking any doubt. He was referring to me.
“Who? Emelia?” Nathaniel snorted dismissively. “She’ll always be weak, being here on the ranch won’t change that.”
Something inside me ignited. Like a wildfire that began to spread and intensify until all I felt was unshakable anger. How dare he say that? How dare he come here and demand that I go back?
Garth sensed the shift, his frantic eyes flickering with relief, although I could still feel the undercurrent of worry. He knewwhat I was about to do, and with a final, low exhale, I drew my elbow in close, poised and ready.
“Nathaniel?” I said softly, catching his attention. Moments later, without warning, I was swinging my elbow back, slamming it directly into his gut, causing him to double over and release my arm. “I’m not weak, and never was, asshole,” I snapped, the words like pouring salt onto an open wound, and without missing a beat, I quickly shot off toward Garth and jumped into his awaiting arms.
“Fuck!” Nathaniel groaned, but I was too busy wrapping my arms around my savior, soaking in his warmth and everything else that made him the man I adored.
“You okay, baby?” With a hand laced through my hair, he pulled me from the curve of his neck to get a good look at me. Searching, inspecting, he swept a thumb beneath my eye to wipe away tears.
“Now I am.” I leaned in and pressed my forehead against his.
