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I wave my hand in the air. “Just spit it out, Noah. I don’t give a fuck if they know.”
He flinches at my sharp tone but nods. “Someone filmed you guys last night at the bar and posted it online. Natasha got her hands on it, and her followers are all over it.”
My heart is pounding so wildly, it’s hard to focus on anything else. The adrenaline in my body takes over completely, and I pick up the empty glass from the table and throw it across the room. It collides with the wall with a satisfying crack and explodes into a hundred different pieces.
Jace is on his feet and between Noah and me. “What the fuck is going on?”
Shit. What just happened? My jaw is clamped so shut I’m worried my molars will shatter any moment. Actually, it’s like my whole body is in lockdown after the lid just blew off when I lost my cool. Damn it.
Noah puts his arm on my shoulder. “Sorry, dude. Maybe I should have waited until later to tell you.”
I shake my head and try to calm down my pounding heart and quivering muscles. “Not your fault.”
The guys are all standing around me, probably waiting for me to say something.
But before I can get out a word, the front door slams shut.
“Ryan?” My brother’s voice carries through the house, and a second later, he walks into the room and straight for me.
I put aside my own shit for now and open my arms for him which he walks straight into.
For a long moment, he squeezes my middle like he’s trying to break me, and I’m paralyzed by his emotional display. I can’t imagine what he must have gone through in the last twelve or so hours.
“Hey.” I pat his back but don’t make any effort to let him go. If he needs this, he’ll get it. “You okay?”
He pulls back and nods, his eyes as shiny as mine are probably. Fuck, just imagining him going to prison is almost enough to buckle my knees. A part of this uncomfortable tension in my body releases because he’s home, and I can see with my own eyes that he’s all right.
Zane scans the room as if he notices the guys for the first time. Then his gaze lands on the mess I made with the glass. “What happened?”
“Nothing you need to worry about. I’ll tell you later.”
He yawns and nods. I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t sleep a single minute last night. I know I wouldn’t have.
I put my hands in my pockets to keep from fidgeting. “Do you need anything?”
He shakes his head and yawns again. “I think I’m just gonna go to bed and try to get some sleep.”
“Do that. Holler if you need anything.”
“Will do, thanks.”
The guys all clap him on the back, happy he’s home safe and sound. He stops by Jack and talks to him before getting a clap on the back from him too, and disappearing in the hallway to go to his room.
I close my eyes and exhale loudly.
What a fucking mess. Figuratively and literally.
When I open my eyes again, everyone’s staring at me.
Jack has my complete focus, and I walk to him to give him a quick hug and pat on the back. “I can’t thank you enough. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
He shakes his head. “It’s nothing, really. I’m just glad the police did their job quickly and let him go.”
“So there are no charges or anything?”
“Nope. The professor woke up at the hospital early this morning, and the police talked to several witnesses who came forward after they took Zane. Unlike the people who only saw Zane push the professor, they saw that Zane was only helping the girl. The scuffle ended badly for the professor, but I doubt he’s happy to be spending time in prison for attempted rape once he’ll be discharged.”
“That bastard deserves it,” Jace chimes in.
