Boston, horrified, reaches forward and rips the sunglasses off Callum’s face.
Declan gasps, Carter’s eyes widen, and Callum’s gaze hits the table.
I stifle the noise of shock that threatens to fall from my mouth.
Callum is sporting a big, bruised eye. It’s swollen to the point that his lid is almost entirely forced shut.Thatis the kind of injury that comes from a fist hitting a face. I’ve seen enough victims of my brother to know the look.
“What the fuck?” Seth hisses.
“Did that happen at my wedding?” Declan asks quickly, his voice full of concern. He leans forward, across Wyatt’s body, and touches his fingers to Callum’s face.
Callum jerks away from his hand, letting out a hiss of pain.
“Holy shit,” Lauren breathes from across the table.
Arden promptly gets to her feet, snatching a cloth off the table. She beelines for one of the coolers, her shoulders rigid, sliding right into nurse mode without a second thought.
Callum still doesn’t speak.
Declan drops his hand and slowly glances at Wyatt instead, trying to catch his eye. He can’t. Wyatt won’t look at him. It’s entirely clear that something is very, very wrong. Wyatt is simmering in his seat, his jaw pulsing, anger steaming from his every pore.
“Saltzy,” Boston demands, his voice firm.
“It’s fine,” Callum says sharply, ripping his glasses from Boston’s hands and putting them back on his face. “Thanks, Boss. Just the attention that I want.”
Boston seems to realize his mistake. He winces a bit, but his regret doesn’t override his concern.
“What the fuck is going on?” Carter hisses, leaning forward on his elbows. “Start talking Cap, because I’m about to blow a fucking fuse.”
“Aren’t you always?” Callum glowers.
“Wyatt,” Declan finally says, and his tone has an edge. Apparently, his lack of response is starting to become an obvious concern. “You don’t have anything to say?”
His boyfriend has a black eye. He should havemanyopinions on the matter.
Wyatt clenches his jaw, his gaze still burning straight ahead. He doesn’t look at Declan. He doesn’t look at Callum, either. He keeps his eyes on his safe person across the table. His best friend—EJ.
EJ stares right back, but says nothing, either. His gaze is softer, more understanding.
Penny shifts forward. “Wyatt.”
Arden strolls right between the concerned group of friends. She doesn’t even ask, she just pries the glasses off Callum’s face and slides her hand to the back of his head. He goes to move away from her touch, but then realizes who is touching him. He’s going to have to deal with her acting as his nurse if he wants to avoid dealing with my brother. He sighs, letting her cradle his head as she presses the homemade ice pack to his face.
“Someone better start fucking talking,” Boston orders.
“Maybe this can wait until later,” Tiffany suggests gently. “It’s not everyone’s business.”
Wyatt’s jaw pulses again, but he doesn’t move an inch.
“Does that feel okay?” Arden asks and Callum mumbles something in response.
“Saltzy,” Declan tries again. “I need to know if someone?—”
And it’s at that very moment that everything erupts.
One second, all the attention is on Callum and Wyatt—apart from Wyatt, who is glaring straight ahead at his best friend like he can’t physically hear a word that anyone is saying. Next, Carter is out of his seat and EJ is being torn from his chair. He’s thrown right onto his back atop the freshly cut lawn.
He lands with a loud, painful thump. A gasp of shocked pain leaves his body.
