Page 14 of The Alpha Option
To his credit, Jace had thrown his hands up to break the grip between him and the newcomer. But even faster, Cassidy caught hold of the woman’s ponytail and gave it a hard yank.
The motion jerked Blondie’s lips away from Jace’s.
The second jerk pulled the woman off his lap and sent her tumbling to the floor.
Blondie bounced, then moved to scramble to her feet, the look in her eyes warning she planned to lunge at Cassidy.
Nope. Cassidy still had food on her plate that she wanted to enjoy and having someone come to their table who was possibly all germy was beyond the pale. She shoved back her chair far enough to reach out a foot and step on the other woman’s thigh, pinning her in place.
“Don’t move,” Cassidy said quietly. Heck, her tone was even friendly and all that. “Steph?”
“On it.” The next minute her bestie was behind the blonde, and that’s when the stranger’s cursing really started. Like a rodeo cowboy, Steph moved in a wild yet precise rhythm, and seconds later, she threw her hands in the air with a satisfied grin. “Done.”
Except for the cursing blonde, whose hands and feet had been zip-tied in award-winning time, the entire café was once again utterly quiet, all eyes on their table.
Okay, Cassidy’s reaction had been extreme. She should feel embarrassed. Ashamed, even.
Nope, not even a little bit. The only thing that remained was a fine rumble of jealousy and fury that the bitch had dared sit on Jace’s lap.
Embrace the weirdness of the situation, Cassidy decided.
She turned to Jace. “Someone you know?”
6
Jace was so damn turned on at that moment.
It was all he could do to keep from grabbing Cassidy. If he hauled her across the distance between them, he could claim her right then and there. It was a bad idea on many levels but still very tempting.
It appeared the longer they hung out at Pete’s, the more likely things would continue to escalate.
Jace made a calculated decision and ignored everyone except for Cassidy. He met her gaze as he laid a hand on her thigh. “Emma is an old friend. She forgot we were no longer a thing, but I’m pretty sure she remembers now.”
Fire flashed in Cassidy’s eyes. “Old friend. Suppose that means you want me to untie her.”
Emma continued to mutter curses but was smart enough to not come right out and callCassidyany names. Instead, she switched to insulting Jace.
“Damn jackass. Think you can leave and then march right back in anytime you please? Del is going to have something to say about that. And you’ll deserve every bit of pain he gives you.”
“I really don’t want to untie her,” Cassidy said bluntly, ignoring Emma and speaking directly to Jace.
“But if you do, we can ask her to leave. Hell of a lot quieter, and you can finish your lunch in peace.”
Cassidy considered, then nodded. “Steph?”
The other woman had gone back to her seat on the other side of the table and was digging into both her food and the little that remained on Blue’s plate. She waved a hand airily. “I tie assholes up. I don’t set them free. Besides, I don’t have anything to cut the straps with.”
“I’ll do it,” Blue offered. He paused to point at Stephanie. “If you eat the last of my onion rings while I’m gone, we are going to have words.”
He slipped over to where Emma was still fuming.
Jace watched all this in his peripheral vision because keeping eye contact with Cassidy seemed far more important. She really did have the prettiest eyes. A deep green with the faintest hint of gold around the irises. “Emma. You need to leave.”
He put the slightest bit of dominance into the words, and the cursing stopped instantly. Interestingly, across from him, Cassidy’s pupils dilated the slightest bit, and a hunger crossed her face that made everything in him sit up and take notice.
Oh, now that was interesting.
“I’m going to tell Del,” Emma announced. Only she spoke far more politely this time, which was acceptable to his wolf.
