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Kyler
Mr. Nelson and I have a stare down. He’s smug, pompous, and thinks he can do whatever the hell he pleases because he has money. Ally cries behind me, saying Lacey’s name repeatedly in between sobs. When I look at Thea, and subsequently Adam—who is just as arrogant as his father—I see nothing but red. Pure fucking hatred.
“Thea, take Ally and Lacey to the bathroom and lock the door. Do not open it for anyone but me.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see her nod and take off. Adam makes a move to follow her, but I step forward. “One more move from you, and I’ll end you.” The conceited bastard scoffs, and I step closer. I’m taller than him and much stronger. “Wanna find out if I can do it? I’ll even give you the first punch.”
“I’m not scared of you.”
“You should be.” Again, I step toward him, closing the gap between us.
“All right, boys, this isn’t a pissing contest.” Mr. Nelson touches my shoulder to move me away from his son. My arm flies up and knocks his arm away. He stares down at the ground and huffs. I don’t care if my reaction pisses him off. Behind him, his wife looks on, a look of either shock or contempt in her eyes. I don’t pretend to care what she’s thinking. She’ll be out of our lives soon enough.
I turn my focus on him and look into his soulless eyes. “What kind of man interrupts a child’s birthday party?” I ask him. “What kind of man tries to scare a mother? What kind of man?—”
He holds his hands up. “My timing may be off, but I was assured this would be the best location.” He looks at his son, and for one iota of a second, I see a hint of sincerity in his eyes, but it’s gone in a flash. They planned this ambush and did it with my girlfriend's help.
“Everything okay here?” The manager comes up to us. I shake my head slowly.
“These people are harassing my family, and I’d like the police called.”
“What the fuck?” Adam blurts out while his father holds his hands up.
“Now hold on, we just want to talk,” he says.
“This isn’t the time or the place. This piece of shit you call a son knows where I live. I suggest you visit me there if you want to talk about my niece.”
Mr. Nelson scoffs. “Actually, I can speak to Ally whenever I want.”
“Actually,” I say with the harshest tone I can as I step toward him. “You can’t. Come near her, and she will press charges. Come near my niece, and I will end you. Do I make myself clear?” Neither acknowledges the threat I shouldn’t have made, but I said what I said.
“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” The manager steps between us and holds her arms out as if she can stop an assault. When they don’t move, she reaches for her phone. “All right, the police it is.”
“We’re leaving,” Mr. Nelson bites. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Something tells me that’s the only honest thing you’ve ever said in your entire life.”
Mr. Nelson smiles and says, “You’re probably right. Let’s go, son.” He indicates to Adam and his wife before striding to the door.
Adam gives me a look and then shakes his head. The fact he thinks he’s better than me really sets me off. He’s nothing, just a little boy playing with his daddy’s money. I follow them out, keeping enough distance between us until they exit the building. The manager stands next to me and sighs.
“I’m sorry about this,” I tell her as I watch my sworn enemies get into their black Escalade.
“I’m just happy I didn’t have to call the cops.” She sighs and turns away.
“Me too,” I say to the space around me. I wait until the Nelsons leave the parking lot before turning away. I don’t need any more surprises as this one was enough to last me a lifetime.
I make my way to the bathroom at the back of the building. At least, this is where I hope Ally, Thea, and Lacey are. It’s the direction I saw them run off to, but I also wasn’t paying a ton of attention because I didn’t want to take my eyes off Adam and his father.
When I get to the back, there’s a small line of girls doing the very famous potty dance. Instantly, I feel bad because I’ve caused this, but also, it makes me wonder why there isn’t another bathroom in this place.
“I’ll get this door open for you,” I say to them as I pass by. A couple of them cheer, and to them, I’m probably a hero—Lacey’s uncle saving the day. My knuckle taps against the door. “It’s me. The coast is clear.”
The lock on the door slides, and I step back. Lacey comes out first and greets her friends, almost as if she has no idea what just happened. Ally comes out next. Her eyes are puffy, and her hair is in pigtails. I look at her oddly, but she says nothing as she buries her face into my chest. “He’s gone.”
“What if he comes to the house? What if he tries to take Lacey from me?”
“We’ll talk about this later, Ally. Believe me, I have a lot of questions, and I need some answers, but now isn’t the time or place. Go get new plates from the manager and let’s get the cake cut.” I don’t bother asking about the pigtails because I feel this was a diversion tactic to keep Lacey calm, for which I’m grateful.
When Thea and I make eye contact, my relief that Lacey and Ally are okay turns to anger. Deep down, I’m livid. Thea allowed Adam to play her, and that isn’t okay. She wraps her arms around my waist, and instead of embracing her like she wants, I stand there. She steps back slowly and looks up at me. “Ky?”
