Page 35 of Knox

“Everything okay here?” Knox’s voice was calm, but there was a hint of warning in the words.

Tyler’s eyes narrowed as he took in Knox’s casual clothes, the easy way he touched me, the familiarity between us. “Seriously?” he asked me. “This guy?”

“I think we’ve met, but I’m Knox Hawthorne.” Knox extended his free hand, the gesture polite but his grip undoubtedly firm when Tyler accepted the shake. “Sloane’s boyfriend.”

The word hung in the air. Boyfriend.

My breath caught.

Knox’s fingers tightened on my waist, and heat flooded through me. This was supposed to be fake. An act. A cover story.

So why did hearing him claim me make my heart race?

Tyler released Knox’s hand as if it was on fire. “Boyfriend? You’ve got to be kidding me. Didn’t you just meet?”

“No,” Knox said flatly. “And I never joke about Sloane. Now, excuse us. We have plans.”

“Sloane,” Tyler scolded. “This is insane. We just broke up a few months ago. You can’t possibly have moved on this fast. With a stranger!”

“I can and I have.” I leaned into Knox’s side, selling the performance. “Trust me when I tell you we are not strangers.”

Knox’s chest puffed, and I suspected he was attempting not to laugh at Tyler’s wholly stunned expression.

“You’re just trying to make me jealous.” Tyler trailed us to the checkout counter. “I know you, baby. This isn’t real. You’re still hurt about what happened, and you’re trying to make a point. I get it. You can stop now. We can talk it out.”

Knox stopped short, and I bit my lip in anticipation of what he might say next. I’d tried for months to get rid of Tyler, but my parents kept him around, feeding him false hope despite my complaints. He chose to believe them instead of me, because he only heard what he wanted to hear.

Luckily, at the rate this interaction was going, Knox would be rid of Tyler before we left the gas station.

“Do not call her baby.” Knox’s voice was hard as steel. “And don’t presume to know what she’s feeling or why she makes her choices. Sloane told you she’s moved on. That is the end of the conversation.”

Tyler’s hands clenched into fists, and I worried for the pretty flowers. “I don’t know who you think you are, but you have no authority here.”

Knox leaned slightly forward. “I’m the guy who’s going to stop you from speaking for a while if you don’t stop on your own right now.” He shifted again, positioning himself more fully between Tyler and me. The movement was subtle but unmistakable. A warrior’s instinct, protecting what was his. “Sloane has been through enough without you adding to her stress,” he continued. “So, here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to take your flowers, get in your car, and drive away. And you’re not going to bother her again.”

Tyler turned a livid face in my direction.

“What you’re doing right now is called harassment,” Knox said. “Sloane’s already made it clear to you and everyone in this store that she wants you to leave her alone. If you keep pushing, we can involve the sheriff’s department. Nash Sullivan loves nothing more than talking to pushy-ass men about respecting boundaries.”

Tyler looked between us, his jaw working. I could practically see him calculating his next move, trying to find an angle. Finally, he stalked toward the door.

“This isn’t over, Sloane,” he called over his shoulder. “When you come to your senses and realize you’re making a mistake, I’ll be waiting.”

He tried slamming the door behind him, but the hydraulics made that impossible. He looked unfathomably more ridiculous for the attempt.

“You all right?” Knox asked, his arm still around my waist.

“Yeah.” I looked up at him, enjoying the way his hand was splayed across my hip. “Thank you for that. He doesn’t handle rejection well.”

“I noticed.” Knox’s gaze was intense, searching my face. “Does he bother you a lot?”

“He’s been persistent since I ended things. My parents are partially responsible for that. But he’s mostly just annoying, not threatening.”

“If that changes, and he becomes threatening, I need you to tell me immediately.”

“I will.”

We stood there for another long moment, the air between us electrifying the way it had in my kitchen. Then Knox stepped back and cleared his throat.