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Turning away to serve the other patrons, he didn’t stay to see what happened next. They needed time to themselves.
“She never wanted it in the ass anyway.”
Lawrence’s hand froze above the two-dollar tip he’d been about to take. Normally, he collected tips and gave them away to local charities, but it was Toni’s shift and the money was hers.
Glancing toward Tyler’s table, he watched as the group of guys laughed at his joke, the reference clear. It took every ounce of restraint he possessed not to bleed the asshole dry where he sat, consequences be damned. But that wouldn’t do Toni any good. Instead, he waited, served drinks, listened . . . and stewed.
Good timing, Tyler. When Tyler’s group finally got up to leave, Lawrence excused himself, telling the other bartender he was signing off. The college student nodded as Lawrence followed Tyler and his gang out the front door.
Without saying a word, Lawrence walked through the group and grabbed Tyler by the back of the collar. He’d dragged him to the side of the building before his friends even realized what was happening.
“It seems we need to make a habit of this,” he said, letting his hand drop but not backing away.
“What the fu—”
“Get the hell away from him—”
Lawrence looked Tyler in the eye, ignoring his friends’ threats. “Warn them off,” he hissed. “Unless you need backup?”
Just as he’d suspected, the jerk’s pride responded immediately. “I got this,” he said to his friends. He gave Lawrence a hard shove, one that should have made him stumble backward.
He hardly moved.
“What’s your problem, asshole?” Tyler demanded.
In their first encounter, Lawrence had lost control. He wouldn’t make the same mistake this time.
“You.”
He deflected the man’s punch, then punched him back, his fist connecting on its first blow. Remembering himself, he allowed Tyler to land a punch.
The fight didn’t last long before Tyler found himself pressed against the back of Murphy’s Pub, his chest to the wall, Lawrence at his back.
“If I find out this break-in had anything to do with you—”
Tyler appeared genuinely confused. “Break-in? What the hell do I—”
He’d heard enough. The look on his face couldn’t be faked. “More importantly, if you ever disparage Toni again,” he growled in Tyler’s ear for only him to hear, “I will kill you.”
In fact, he likely wouldn’t, not if he wanted to stay in Stone Haven, but Tyler didn’t have to know that.
Stumbling to stand erect, Tyler turned and gave Lawrence the exact look he’d hoped for—hatred seasoned with the slightest bit of fear.
“Jesus Christ,” one of the guy’s friends muttered. Lawrence just smiled and walked away.
He didn’t once look back as he made his way down the alley toward the courthouse, where a set of stairs led up to the street behind it. He generally avoided using his unfair advantage against humans, but in some cases, it was necessary.
Like tonight.
He had a feeling Toni wouldn’t be pleased. With any luck, the cut on his face would be healed by the time he arrived home. Or maybe she would be sleeping. Although Lawrence didn’t think so.
He hoped she’d be awake.
Although he still hadn’t heard from either of his siblings, Lawrence resolved to concentrate on Toni for tonight. To forget about the Cheld, if only for the moment, and enjoy the things that still made life worth living.
He found himself thinking of the couple at the bar as he turned the key and pushed open his front door. Children. If only they knew how keenly he felt their pain. While it wasn’t impossible for his kind to foster children, it was rare. And frankly, the only woman he’d ever considered to share in such a miracle had died many, many years ago. Since then, Lawrence had put the thought far from his mind.
Until now.
