“Why’d you do that?” I demanded, snatching my phone back.
“Because he put his hands on you.” He said it so simply that I almost missed how his words faltered at the end. “And I’d rather risk sitting in jail than know I stood by and did nothing.”
I looked down at my feet, ignoring the strange fluttering I felt. “Well, Davey wouldn’t have called the cops, so you wouldn’t have had to rot in a cell…”
The tips of his fingers brushed against my cheek, trailing lower until he gripped my chin and tilted my face toward his. “How are you?” he asked, eyes searching my own. “Did he hurt you?”
“I’m okay,” I whispered. My gaze darted to Lincoln’s lips, just for a second, but it was long enough. He tracked the movement hungrily, drawn into the desire like I was. “I’m okay, thanks to you.”
I wasn’t sure how long we stayed like that, trapped in a moment built by need. Oh, how I wanted to bridge that gap–to close the space between our lips and give in to the maddening temptation.
But reality came crashing down as Cleo and Lennox shouted our names above the crowd. “Are y’all okay?”
Lincoln and I jumped apart as they approached. Davey and Bishop were hot on their heels. “Yeah,” I said, tucking my hair behind my ear. “I’m fine. I just wanted to check his hand.”
Davey held up an ice pack before tossing it toward Lincoln. “You good, man?”
Lincoln took it with a dip of his chin in thanks, grimacing as he placed it on his knuckles. “Yeah, I’m good. No harm, no foul.”
Davey nodded. “Technically, I’m supposed to ask you to leave… Bishop told me what happened. I know you were just defending your girl, but you can’t go around punching the shit out of people. We wouldn’t have let him get far.”
Your girl.Two words had never sounded so good. I should havecorrected him, but I bit my lip and stayed silent—something my sisters both clocked.
“Naw, I get it.” He turned to me, giving my hand a squeeze. “I’ll wait in the truck until the concert ends, okay?”
“I’ll wait with you,” I said without hesitation, turning toward Bishop to ask for the keys. “I don’t feel like staying anyway.”
And that was the truth of it. If Lincoln wasn’t here, then I didn’t want to be either. I’d spent more than enough time denying my feelings, but those days were long gone.
“How about y’all take the truck home?” Bishop said, tossing me his keys.
“What about you?” Lincoln asked. “We can just sit in the parking lot until the show’s over.”
Bishop jerked his head behind him. “There’s a few hands here tonight. I’m sure I can bribe them to give us a ride home.”
I looked toward my sisters. “What about y’all?”
“We’ll bum a ride with Bishop,” Lennox said, looping her arm with Cleo’s. “You two go ahead.”
I shifted my gaze to Cleo. “You sure you’re okay with that?”
She nodded. “Yeah, it’ll be fun. I’ll be fine. There’s no sense in y’all waiting around for us.” She leaned in and kissed my cheek, lowering her voice. “Remember what I said, Josie. Nothing is holding you back anymore.”
josie
. . .
Lincoln ledme out to Bishop’s truck with one hand on my back. The balmy air made my skin slick even in the short walk, and I was all too aware of the way his fingertips brushed my exposed skin. My palms were itchy, and it wouldn’t go away no matter how much I scratched.
The adrenaline I’d felt only moments ago was fading fast, leaving room for reality to crash through the door and settle in. I’d never thought Ellis was capable of violence, and maybe in his sober state, he wouldn’t have been. He’d never been much of a drinker. A glass of wine here or there, the occasional beer if the mood was right, but I’d never seen him touch liquor once.
Did he have a problem I’d never known about?
It was strange how different I felt. I’d dealt with my fair share of assholes over the years—some I dated and some who’d tried to pick me up after I’d told them no several times. None of them had ever dared lay a hand on me until now.
Bishop would’ve stopped Ellis, of that I had no doubt. He was ready to throw him on his ass the moment he clocked him at theend of the table. Part of me wishes I would’ve let him before it’d gone too far.
I hadn’t realized I’d begun crying until Lincoln pulled me into his chest, resting his chin on top of my head. “It’s okay, darlin’.” He ran his hand in circles along my back. “I’ve got you.”
