Page 107 of Starting Over with You
I don’t even think; I just react. I grab his shirt, slamming him into the Lexus as the girl cries out. I’m a few inches taller with more muscle, so it’s easy to hold him as he struggles against me. With my face right in his, I growl, “Not your leftovers. No, I get the best ofher, and I’ll erase all the pain you’ve caused, by loving her the right way.”
Stratford’s eyes are wide and he sputters, but I don’t allow him to talk. “Get the fuck out of my town. Your boys already gave me the go-ahead to kick your ass, and while I would love to do just that, you don’t deserve my time.” I jerk him forward as I glare deep into his eyes. “You deserve to watch me be what you couldn’t be. A damn good husband and a father to the family you made, but I’ll love.”
His eyes darken and he tries to push me off, but I’m a wall. “Make her wait.”
“Never,” I promise. “I am going to marry her the moment the ink dries on your divorce papers and not a second later.”
His eyes darken, and I hate men like him. The ones who cheat but then get mad when the person they cheated on moves on. Well, he can fuck right off. Kenni is mine.
“I’m calling the cops!”
I don’t even look at Jackie, my eyes trained on Stratford. “Go ahead. Kenni’s dad is the sheriff, and my brother-in-law is the deputy.”
Stratford sputters a curse as he says, “We’ll leave.”
“Now.”
“Now,” he agrees, and I push him back against his car.
I want to hit him as many times as the boys asked me to, but I won’t give him any more attention than he’s already had. He knows the truth. My words are a weapon that left their mark, and I’ll reap the benefits of what he tried to ruin.
Neither of us says a word. His eyes are dark with anger, and I stand like I have no cares in the world. I do, but I can’t let him know that. I stare in his direction as I wait for him to get into his car, but before he can, my radio sounds.
“Dean, you need to go home.”
My brows pull together as I tear my gaze away from Stratford to grab my radio. I click the button. “What?”
“Go home, Dean. There has been a shooting.”
My stomach plummets, and I hear a buzzing in my ears. Did Matt shoot someone? Probably Nyle for being a little bitch, but that can’t be true. Nyle doesn’t bother Matt like he does me. But no one really bothers Matt. He’s married to Sadie, for fuck’s sake. I feel an ache in my chest and I know I need to get out of here, but when I look up, I see something flash in Stratford’s eyes.
Excitement.
Pure fury takes over. My body vibrates with rage, and I don’t hold back; I slam my fist into his face. Not once, not even three times, but eight until he falls to the ground moaning. I hit the radio and give them my location. “Send Jackson to arrest this motherfucker.”
I try to give her his plate number in case he runs, but the distress in her voice stops me.
“Dean,” the dispatcher insists. “Kenni was shot.”
CHAPTER
FORTY-TWO
Kenni
I should have listened to my gut.
I should have canceled the meeting because I wasn’t into it. I really wasn’t, but I tried to push through. Then it all happened so damn fast.
Winston asked me for a drink, and being the good host I am, I offered him the lemonade Skyye had made before she left for Missy’s.
Then I heard Nyle yell my name. But when I looked to find him, I realized he hadn’t come in the front door but the back instead. He was running for me, and when I turned, the gun went off.
I screamed.
Nyle grunted.
Then…pure lava fire.
