Page 41 of Home Is Where You Are

The man she was dancing with held her a little tighter, and she tried and failed to get out of his grasp.

Every part of me wanted to rush over there and save her, but I waited. She could handle her own, and if she couldn’t, then I’d intervene.

That lasted all of two seconds. The moment she broke free of his hold on her waist and went to walk away, the man had the audacity to grab her by her arm to pull her back.

I moved faster than I thought possible and let out a loud whistle that her brothers and I used on the ranch, hoping they could hear me during the break in the music.

I was at her side in seconds. She pushed him way, and he pulled her right back.

Not on my watch.

“Hey, man, let the lady go,” I demanded as I put my hand around Ainsleigh’s hip to try to get her free from his grasp.

She screamed as he pulled her arm harder.

I saw red.

I didn’t think.

I just reacted.

I let her go and punched him in his nose.

His hand let go of her arm to grab his nose, and blood spewed everywhere as he stumbled back and away from Ainsleigh.

I pulled Ainsleigh into my side and rubbed my hand up and down her arm. She tensed for a moment in my embrace and then turned her head, resting against my chest.

Just as the man stumbled away, her brothers surrounded us.

“What happened? I thought I heard you whistle, but I couldn’t find you until I saw a break in the crowd just as you punched some guy,” Brooks said.

“The guy manhandled Ainsleigh. I saw it from the crowd and rushed over here.”

“I’m going to tell the owner so he can blacklist him. Did you get a good look at him?”

“Wasn’t really paying attention to what he looked like. Your sister was more important,” I told them as Ainsleigh shivered in my arms.

“You want to head out, butterfly?” I leaned down and whispered in her ear so she could hear me over the music.

She nodded against my chest.

“We’ll come back with you. I’m not really in the mood to stay out anymore. Are you okay, Ainsleigh?” Aspen asked.

She pulled away from me, and I wanted to pull her back. She fit just as perfectly now in my arms as she did back then.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Ainsleigh said as she rubbed the arm the man had grabbed.

“Dylan, you mind driving? I don’t think Ainsleigh should drive since she’s still shaken up,” I asked.

I fully expected her to argue or tell me to mind my own business, but instead, she grabbed her keys from her bag and tossed them toward Dylan.

He caught them, and we said our goodbyes to Ainsleigh’s brothers, each of them hugging her goodbye and whispering words that I was sure were questioning if she was okay based on how she nodded to each of them before finishing off at Holden.

Holden and I did our handshake and as we pulled each other in for a hug, he told me to make sure I texted him when they got home and to let him know how Ainsleigh was doing. I agreed, and we headed off toward the Jeep.

Ainsleigh shocked me when she fell back to walk beside me.

She shocked me even more when she wrapped her arm around my waist and nudged my arm. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, and she nestled her head against my chest just the same way she’d done moments before.