Page 54 of Love You Like This

“It’s okay.” I hesitate before leaning over the center console and pressing my lips to his briefly. “It’s not your fault. Plus, I put him in his place.”

He looks down briefly at my lips when I pull away but doesn’t say anything else. I feel him watch me until I close the door behind myself. As soon as I’m completely alone, I let the tears I held back flow, and my body expels the fear and anger in a rush.

Twenty-One

XANDER

Fifteen years ago

I look down at the pin Jose sent me of their location as I fly down the freeway. There’s not a single fuck to be found in my body about my own safety. The look on Jade’s face as I was trying to get to her will haunt me forever.

Chase is the last person I would ever introduce any girl to, especially one I care about so much. It enrages me to know he approached her. That he touched her.

When I finally pull up to Jose’s house and throw my Jeep in park, I’m ready to beat his ass. A little pink tricycle sits on its side in the small front yard. Sidewalk chalk drawings cover the path to the front door. Their presence reminds me that Jose’s little sister is probably home, which means I might not be able to beat the motherfucker’s ass like I want to.

Before I can even knock, the door swings open. Jose’s expression mirrors my own.

“Is Cece home?” I ask him. His sister is adorable, and usually I’d stop to play with her for a couple minutes. Not this time, though.

“No, she’s at the park with my mom.”

“Good.” I walk into the house. “Out back?”

“Yep.”

Jose lives in the garage, which his mom converted into a small apartment. I stalk through the cozy home, navigating my way around the dolls and stuffed animals littering the floor. Jose follows silently.

Chase and Zach are sitting on the couch passing a joint back and forth between them when I storm into the apartment. Their eyes are already bloodshot as I approach. Chase doesn’t even get a word out before I grip the collar of his shirt and slam my fist into his face. Pain explodes in my hand, but I don’t give a fuck. This piece of shit touched Jade. Made her uncomfortable.

He drops his joint and charges at me, wrapping his arms around my waist and knocking me to the floor. He was a wrestler in high school, but the weed has dulled his reflexes. He lands a punch to the side of my face, and I relish the pain that comes with it. I’m a lot taller than him, so it’s fairly easy to maneuver us back until I get the upper hand again.

I land two more punches, one to his face and the other to his stomach. He manages to connect his knee with my ribs. I catch his jaw with my elbow, and bloody spittle flies from his mouth as his head snaps to the side.

Through my rage, I feel two hands pull me off him. I know it isn’t Zach because he’s just sitting on the couch watching. He hasn’t moved a muscle to defend his cousin. I lift my hands up, so Jose knows I’m done.

I stand and look down over Chase. “If you ever come near Jade again, I’ll ruin your life.” I crouch down and grab him by the jaw, squeezing until he whimpers. “I mean it. I’ll use every bit of the power of my name to make sure you never escape this shitty existence you carved for yourself.”

As my final fuck you to him, I spit on his face, so he doesn’t forget he’s less than nothing. Zach meets my eyes when I stand and wisely says nothing. The fact that he didn’t try to stop me tells me everything I need to know. I’ve spent enough time around Chase to know he had to have said some fucked up things for Zach to not get involved.

Jose gives me a nod as I walk out. He’s the only one I’m interested in ever seeing again. I know the only reason he ever spends time with these guys is because of his childhood friendship with Zach. I don’t hold it against him.

Blood trickles down my temple from a cut I still can’t feel due to the rage and adrenaline pumping through me. I flex and squeeze my hand a few times, letting the sting of the split skin of my knuckles burn and ground me.

Blasting some nineties grunge through the speakers on the drive back helps settle my nervous system down. I’m hitting rush hour, so while the drive down to Newport only took a little over an hour, I know I’m probably looking at least two hours before I’m home.

The scent of tacos fills the car when I pull into the garage. I grab the bag of greasy Mexican food from the passenger seat and walk into the house. I drop my keys and the bag on the counter and look around for Jade. She’s not in the living room or by the pool.

“Jade?” I call out, too tired and hungry to go hunting further for her. “I have tacos.”

“Coming,” she calls from down the hall.

She’s showered and let her hair airdry, so the waves are a bit out of control. With her face free from makeup and the touch of sun she got earlier today, her freckles stand out proudly. But the smile drops from her face when she sees me.

“Xander? What happened?” She rushes over to me.

“Nothing.”

She reaches up, her fingers grazing the scab on my temple. “This isn’t nothing.”