Page 50 of Ice King

That’s when I noticed two of the guys from around the bar were no longer standing with the other three. Two of them were friends with the Knight family, the other one and the two missing in action were strangers to town. None of them were shifters, which made the situation testy by design.

I was surprised Jack Knight hadn’t shown up, the asshole someone I suspected was following me on a regular basis. Another wolf in a jerk’s clothing.

After swiveling the drink and paying attention to the hallway where she’d gone for another two minutes, I rose to my feet. As soon as I did, the assholes at the bar straightened up, every muscle tense. If they were looking for a fight, we could take it outside.

But not until after I took her home.

Instead of allowing my usual personality to pick the fight, I moved around them, ignoring the snickers. Even before Ireached them, I sensed there was an issue and could gather a whiff of her perfume along with something else her skin exuded.

Fury.

I could overhear the two assholes trying to convince her they were real men inside the women’s restroom, but she wasn’t buying what they were selling.

I pushed open the door, shaking my head as I did.

“A little crowded in here, boys,” I told the assholes, eyeing her as I did. She was frustrated, her chest rising and falling, but she was definitely holding her own.

“Hockey boy. I think it’s best that you leave us alone. The lady is taken.”

“Like hell I am,” she said in response.

I leaned against the door, more amused than anything, which was a change for me. I’d normally fall into the big brother mode, which had gotten me into some trouble in the past since I’d normally broken arms instead of asking for what I wanted. At least I was offering her the benefit of the doubt.

Or maybe the boys who acted as if they had a say in her well-being and who she planned on spending any time with.

“Hey, has-been. She’d rather be with a man than the likes of you.” I’d had shit tossed at me for years, more in the last three. While it pissed me off, I’d learned to control my anger.

However, all bets were off when the asshole decided to touch her, pulling on her arm. Maybe he was goading me on purpose after the win, but nothing mattered at this point.

Except ensuring her safety from the likes of two jerks who couldn’t care less about Georgia’s wants or needs.

The speed with which I reacted was a dead giveaway I wasn’t a typical human, but I didn’t need to keep secrets from the lady. She already knew about my wolf. What she’d yet to see was a demonstration of my abilities. There was no time like the present.

I wrapped one hand around the throat of the blond, smashing his head into the door. A loud crack indicated I’d broken his nose. He wasn’t going anywhere, holding his face while I turned my attention to the other goon. With the space being limited, I had to control my actions, gut punching the other three times in a row before using my elbow to drive him against the wall.

With a little more pressure, I could break his neck, but I was using just enough to grab and keep his attention. “Now, I know the two of you would prefer going home tonight in one piece so why don’t you run along and pretend you have other things to do outside this bar. I don’t think you want me to finish what I started in front of the lady. Now, do you?”

The guy underneath my arm wasn’t thrilled with my offer until I came close to crushing his windpipe. He threw up his hands in defeat, which allowed me to release my hold and back away. At least the two of them knew when they’d been defeated.

Even before the door was closed, I slammed it, locking just in case the assholes decided to change their mind. When I turned around, I faced her ire almost immediately.

Her arms were crossed, her reddish blonde hair even more fiery in the lighting, and her lips drew and kept my attention while she shook her head.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Her voice wasn’t raised, but everything else about her was, including a desire that captivated my wolf. Her scent had already filtered into my nostrils, making it very difficult to concentrate on anything but breaking the promise I’d made to myself about not touching her.

“Protecting you from jerks intent on devouring you.”

“Oh, really? Do you always go around beating up anyone who asks a lady on a date?”

“That’s not what it looked like to me.” I inched closer, unable to keep myself from doing so. The magnetic pull was even more intense than at the arena.

“Well, maybe you need to get your eyes checked.” The timbre of her voice was entirely too sensual, managing to echo in the dense space. Or maybe all my senses were simply in tune to the woman, including her wants and needs.

“My incredible eyesight is unreadable by an ophthalmologist’s scale.” I was only a few inches away, every muscle in my body stiffening while my blood ran hotter than before.

Her chest lightly rose and fell as she stared at me. Partially because she remained angry that I’d interfered. But mostly because she felt the same raging desire I did. Unthinkable. Unexplainable. And for several reasons, unacceptable.

But right now, all common sense was tossed aside. So was our very public location. When I was two inches away, the sensations tearing through me were overwhelming. With her lips twisted, her eyes flashing with the same fire flicking in my belly, all sense of control was gone.