Page 37 of No Fear
“Well, well, tell me if you’ve heard this one… a blonde, a brunette and a redhead walk into a bar…”
The familiar drawl sent a shiver of fear coursing down her spine and Rachel froze. She couldn’t look up, couldn’t move, could barely even breathe. She squeezed her eyes shut, praying that she was hallucinating, that this was some sort of nightmare, but when her friends closed ranks, rising and pushing her behind them, she knew that she wasn’t dreaming.
Her brother had come for her.
“Get out.” Skylar spoke first, her voice full of venom.
Craig chuckled, “Now, now, is that any way to treat a customer?”
“You’re not a customer and you’re not welcome here. You need to leave. Now.”
“Sure, I’ll be going, just as soon as I get what I came for.” Craig’s boots thudded across the floor, coming closer instead of away, “That’s my sister and I need to talk to her.”
She cringed backwards and shook her head violently. No. She couldn’t talk to him. She couldn’t go with him. She couldn’t even be near him. But she couldn’t make her mouth open to say the words, to stand up for herself. She was frozen with fear and even when she knew it wasn’t fair to leave it to her friends to defend her, to put them between her and her dangerous brother, she couldn’t move to do anything else.
“She doesn’t want to talk to you.” Jemma spoke up.
Craig snorted, “What the fuck is with you Bomars? What makes you think you have the right to interfere in family issues?”
“Rachel’sourfamily now. That makes it our issue.”
“The hell it does. Some trashy Bomar boy claiming her don’t make her one of you. She’s my blood.” He growled, “You hear that Ray-Ray. You’re my goddamned family, you belong to me, and you better straighten up and get your ass over here before you make me mad.”
“You’re not going to talk to her like that in front of me.” Skylar hissed. “Get out.”
“Who’s gonna make me? Some pregnant broad and a Bomar whore? I may let your men get away with thinking they’re high and mighty but they ain’t here now are they?”
Rachel could hear the threat in his voice. She knew what it meant. He’d threatened that she was going to make him mad but he was already mad. She didn’t need to force her eyes open to know that his fists were balled into deadly weapons and she cringed thinking about her friends being on the end of his rage.
“Those men you’re so scared of are right next door. One yell from me and they’ll come running.” Skylar threatened right back.
“Look.” Craig sounded like he was gritting his teeth, his patience about to snap, “I didn’t come here for trouble. I came for my sister. She needs to come home.”
“She is home.”
The bell over the door dinged again and Rachel couldn’t help but look. She had to know if Craig had brought reinforcements. As paralyzed as she was, she would have to do something, find her voice or her legs or just agree to go with him, whatever she had to do, if he truly meant to hurt Skylar or Jemma. But to her utter relief, it wasn’t Craig’s friends coming through the door.
It was more Bomars.
Ford barreled through the door, all tattoos and threatening muscles. Jemma seemed to almost sag with relief but she held herself up. The bearded Bomar quickly evaluated the standoff and his eyes narrowed on the other man in the room.
“There a problem here?”
“Nah. No problem.” Craig instantly took a step back from the women.
“Kind of looks like there might be.” Ford focused on Jemma, “You girls okay?”
“Yeah, just get him out of here.”
Ford scowled, “You heard the woman, Bug. Beat it.”
Craig glared at him and Rachel cringed at the nickname she knew her brother hated almost as much as she hated Ray-Ray. He’d gotten it when he was a kid, because his eyes were too big for his face. He’d grown into them but she knew he still hated them, hated that they were so feminine with their roundness and thick lashes. She supposed she should just be happy nobody had ever called her that.
“I’m gonna take my sister home.” Craig nodded, “Come on Ray-Ray.”
She shivered and cringed back when he tried to reach for her.
“I don’t think she’s going anywhere with you. Not today.” Ford stepped further into the room, closing the distance between them quickly with his long strides, “Now, are you gonna leave without her or are we going to have a real problem here?”
