Page 70 of The Broken Hearts Club

“Jeannie’s house is up ahead on the right,” he told me. “It’s that cute yellow one with white trim.”

The house was two stories, with a porch spanning the front of it. There were toys in the yard, and a tire swing hung from a big oak tree. It looked like it had probably been built in the early nineteen-hundreds, and at some point someone had tacked on a two-car garage.

The garage door was open, and when we got closer, we saw that there was a pickup truck inside it. Collie growled like a rabid dog and launched himself out of the van before it came to a full stop.

A tall, musclebound guy with dark blond hair had just stepped into the garage, carrying a box. Collie ran up to him and yelled, “What the hell, Brad? How could you cheat on your wife, after the promises you made to her? And what about your kids? Did you even consider them when you were sneaking around being a total sleaze?” While that was happening, I threw the van into park and hurried after him.

Brad put the box in the truck bed and told him, “This is none of your business.”

“Like hell it isn’t! I love Jeannie, and I care about what happens to her. Unlike you, you piece of trash!”

“Go to hell, Collie!”

Collie shoved him and shouted, “You first!”

Brad squared his shoulders and balled up his fists. He looked like he was ready to throw a punch, even though he was twice Collie’s size. But he backed down when I appeared, gesturing at me as he snapped, “Who the hell is this?”

I glared at him and said, “I’m the man who’s going to beat some sense into you if you don’t back off.”

He gestured at Collie and exclaimed, “He came onto my property and pushed me! I wasn’t doing anything.”

“It’s not your property, it’s Jeannie’s,” Collie hissed, “and you need to get the hell out of here.”

“That’s exactly what I was doing when you showed up.” Brad slammed the tailgate and got behind the wheel. I pulled Collie back as the engine roared to life, and the truck shot out of the garage and down the driveway.

Once he was in the street, Brad threw the truck into drive and paused long enough to give us the finger. In response, Collie flipped him off with both hands. He put his whole body into it, pumping his hands up and down as he yelled, “Fuck you, Brad!”

After the truck drove off, Collie dropped his arms and muttered, “I always hated that guy.”

“Understandable, but what were you doing? I thought you two were going to get into a fist fight.”

He turned to me and raised his chin. “I could have taken him. I know he’s huge, but I fight dirty. I would’ve gone straight for his nuts, like a crazed squirrel.”

I tried not to grin at that. “Do I need to remind you that you’re only a month out from major surgery? One punch to the chest and he could have cracked your sternum, which isn’t even fully healed yet.”

“As if he could’ve landed a shot. He might be bigger, but I’m faster.”

“Okay, Rocky Balboa. I’m going to move the van, because it’s in the middle of the street.”

After I parked on the edge of the wide driveway, we brought Kate and her things inside. While we got her set up in the guest room, I asked, “What did you mean when you said the house is Jeannie’s, not his?”

“Technically, it belongs to her parents. The deed is still in their name, and Jeannie has lived in this house all her life. There’s no way Brad can try to stake a claim to it in the divorce.”

“That’s good.”

Collie sat down on the edge of the bed and pressed his hand to his chest. I sat down beside him and asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m a little achy.” He leaned against me, and I put my arm around him. “I shouldn’t have acted like that,” he said, “but I hate him so much for what he did to Jeannie.”

“I get it. I hate that guy too, and I don’t even know him.”

“Thanks for having my back out there.”

“Always.”

A moment later, his phone buzzed. He read a text and sent a reply before telling me, “Jeannie and the baby just left the hospital. She’s on her way to see her kids. Scotty, Allie, and Maddy are going to stay with her mother-in-law over the weekend, so Jeannie can spend time with the baby, and hopefully get some rest.” Collie got up and pushed his hair out of his face. “She’ll be home in about two hours, so I’d better get busy.”

“What are you going to do?”