Page 88 of Those Summer Nights (Sweet Cravings 2)

“Or what?”

Jesus. I untied my apron and tossed it on the counter.

“You don’t want to find out,” J.J. said.

Aiden laughed and shook his head. “All talk and no balls.”

I ran out the door, blinking from the bright sun.

“You can say whatever you want to me,” J.J. said. “But don’t you dare talk about her like that.”

I don’t know what Aiden had said about me in the few seconds I couldn’t hear their conversation. But I had never seen J.J. look so pissed. Not even at the beginning of summer when I kept trying to make him jealous.

“Just like I said. No balls.” He flicked J.J.’s shoulder again.

J.J. clenched his hand in a fist and shook his head.

“Let’s go,” I said to J.J. “Please, let’s just go.” I tried to walk past Aiden as quickly as possible, but he grabbed my arm.

“I just need to talk to you for a few minutes, babe.”

“Don’t touch me.” I pulled away but Aiden’s fingers dug into my skin harder.

J.J. had let Aiden flick him. Insult him. But it was like a switch went off behind J.J.’s eyes when he saw Aiden touch me. One of the fists he’d been clenching hit Aiden’s face so fast if I’d blinked I would have missed it. A sickening crunching noise echoed in my ears as Aiden’s hand fell from my arm.

“Jesus Christ.” Aiden grabbed his bloody nose.

“Don’t you ever lay your hands on her again,” J.J. said.

“She was mine first. And I’ll put my hands wherever I fucking want!” He lunged at J.J.

“Stop it!” I yelled as they collided. They slammed into the ice cream shop counter and Becca screamed at the top of her lungs before they fell onto the cement. Aiden had knocked J.J. over and landed at least one punch, but he was absolutely not winning this fight. J.J. could easily annihilate him. And he did. Punch after punch after punch. “Both of you stop it!” People around us started pulling out their phones. I wasn’t sure if they were filming it or calling the cops. Probably both.

I looked at Becca for help but she was just standing behind the counter with her mouth hanging open.

“J.J.” I tried to pull him off Aiden. “J.J., please. Let’s just go home.” I wasn’t sure if it was my voice or my hands on his arm, but he snapped out of his trance. He got up and ran his fingers through his shaggy hair like he hadn’t just been beating the shit out of my ex-boyfriend.

Aiden got onto all fours and spit blood onto the pavement. He wiped his bloody nose with the back of his hand as he stood up. “You’re fucking crazy.”

I wasn’t sure if he was talking to me or J.J., but it really didn’t matter.

“Good luck with that meathead, Mila.”

Screw it. I deserved a few punches too. I took a step forward to slap him, but J.J wrapped his arm protectively around me, keeping me by his side. “Let’s go home.”

Home. It wasn’t my touch or my voice that had stopped J.J. from fighting with Aiden. It was the fact that I’d referred to my apartment as our home. My home with him. I leaned into him as he pulled me away from the chaos.

“Just wait until she comes crawling back to me in Cali!” Aiden yelled from behind us. “All her stuff is still in my apartment. Whatever home you two think you have here is only temporary! See you in a few weeks, babe!”

I closed my eyes and let J.J. lead me back to our home. The one I wished could be permanent.

Chapter 26

Monday

J.J. exhaled through his teeth as I put some peroxide on his elbow. He was already sporting the start of a black eye. Fortunately the only other injury seemed to be the cut on his elbow. He had scratched it pretty badly on the cement. All in all he was in a lot better shape than Aiden. I blotted the wound as J.J. winced again. “Sorry.”

He adjusted the ice pack on his eye so he could get a better view of me.

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