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He felt someone’s hand on his arm and shot a look to Jack that had his brother holding his hands up and backing away.
Tucker looked at Sonya, his dislike and anger evident as he slowly unclenched his hands. “You’re going to leave this benefit right now, even if it means I have to drag you out of here myself. Got it?”
Her flush deepened, but she didn’t budge. “Were you fucking her when you were fucking me?”
That’s it. He was done. Tucker had never come close to wanting to slap a woman before, but this one, with her crude talk and nasty insinuations had him considering it.
He took another step closer, but Jack was suddenly in his face. “Don’t make a scene, Tucker. I’ve got this.”
Tucker looked at his brother and then back to Sonya. “I suggest you listen to Jack, because he’ll be a hell of a lot nicer than I will.” Tucker gave Jack a quick nod and turned on his heel, pushing past a small crowd near the bar.
Kendrick still had his arm on Abby, and Tucker’s mood went from bad to worse. The guy was just a little too friendly for Tucker’s tastes. Hell, the week before they’d attended a Ranger game and Dean had come up to the VIP lounge afterward—something he rarely did—and Tucker had a sneaking suspicion it was because he knew Abby was there.
Tucker hadn’t mentioned it, but a man knew when someone else was interested in what was his. And Dean Kendrick would be all over Abby if she wasn’t with Tucker.
When he reached them, his temper was in check.
“Dean. Nice to see you made it out. The family appreciates it.”
Kendrick glanced to his side, surprised. “Hey, Tuck. I’m glad I could make it. Thanks for the invite.”
“No problem.” Tucker checked his watch. “Big game tomorrow. You shouldn’t stay too late.” Male posturing? Maybe. But Tucker needed Dean to move away from Abby in the worst way possible.
Dean’s eyebrows rose slightly. “Ah, yeah, I guess. Early road trip out to LA in the morning.”
“All right then.” Tucker moved aside and for a moment, no one moved. He felt Abby’s eyes on him but didn’t take his off Kendrick.
“We were in the middle of a conversation, Tucker,” Abby said.
“I know,” Tucker replied, “But Dean here needs to go.”
“Are you kidding me?” Abby’s eyes widened as a hint of pissed off crossed her face.
Tucker wished he was. He wished he didn’t feel all the stuff going on inside him. And maybe he was acting like a fucking Neanderthal, dragging his knuckles along the floor, but he couldn’t help it.
Dean cleared his throat, shook his head slightly and then smiled at Abby. “Okay. I guess I should be getting home. Nothing like getting to bed before nine on a Wednesday evening.” He shot a dark look at his agent. “But hockey comes first.”
He bent and kissed Abby’s cheek, and if Tucker was all sorts of twisted up before, right now he was ready to bounce something off the wall, and Dean Kendrick’s head looked pretty damn good.
“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what’s gotten into Tucker. But remember what I said?” Abby said softly.
Dean chuckled. “Will do.” He nodded to Tucker. “See you at our meeting next week, Mr. Simon.” And then he disappeared in the crowd.
“Okay, what the hell was that all about?”
Tucker’s eyes moved from the back of Kendrick’s head to the flashing brown eyes that stared up at him. Okay, she was pissed. Seems as if he was two for two tonight.
“Nothing,” he said. “The guy needs his rest.” Weak, he knew, but it was all he had.
“Bullshit. You were rude to him. You were more than rude. You were unprofessional and rude. Dean Kendrick is probably your biggest client and one of the nicest guys I know. He doesn’t deserve to be treated like a five-year-old the night before a big game. And considering he was doing you a favor by showing up to this charity shin-dig, you owe him an apology.”
Wait. What?
“How the hell would you know if Dean Kendrick is nice or not? You’ve met him, what, twice? Maybe three times?”
“First of all, that has nothing to do with it, and secondly, you don’t know everything there is to know about me.” Something flashed in her eyes and for a second Tucker thought that maybe they were arguing about something totally different.
“Dean is into art, Tucker. Art. He’s into sketching and painting and we’ve had more than a few conversations about it.”
