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He sighed. "Fine. He probably doesn't know shit anyway." He nodded to Ben. "Get him out of here."
Ben nodded and he, Cooper and a couple of other security guys hauled the attacker away.
The crowd muttered, but most of them went back to their drinks. The lights went back down to the normal, dim level and the doors were unlocked.
I stepped towards Hutton and looked appraisingly at his cheek. "There should be a witch around here if you want that healed." Personally, I thought it would leave an awesome scar.
He shook his head and dabbed at his cheek with his fingertips. "It's nothing."
"If you're expecting gratitude, forget it," Jake snapped.
Hutton returned his gaze unflinchingly. "I'm not expecting anything. I saw the guy and acted, that's all."
"Were you working with him?" Jake asked. He obviously wasn’t going to give Hutton a millimetre.
"We can talk about this somewhere else," I said. I nodded towards the office at the back of the bar. It was for the use of the manager and senior staff at Crimson, but I liked to commandeer it from time to time.
Jake was obviously not happy, but he nodded. At least I hadn't suggested going up to my apartment. I would fight him every step of the way if I did that, and this was too public a place for an argument.
We stepped into the office and I made myself comfortable sitting on the desk. That left the guys to stand, their eyes on each other like they were sizing each other up. Sometimes I wondered how humans didn't realise wolf shifters lived amongst them. These two had it written on every centimetre of their body, from their posture to their narrowed eyes.
Jake closed the door. "Answer the question," he demanded. "Did Dagen send you?"
"No," Hutton said firmly. "I haven't seen Alistair Dagen for nine years. I haven't been in communication with any of them. No one was happier when Barnaby and Gus Dagen were dead than I was."
"That's debatable," I said dryly. "I don't think even Alistair misses his father very much." Yeah, cry me a fucking river of blood. The bad apple didn't fall far from the tree, but I gathered there wasn't much love lost between father and son.
"No one does," Hutton said. "Killing him was a community service."
"You're welcome," Jake said. "Now, what do you want? You better give us a fucking good reason not to take you downstairs with the other asshole. I would enjoy hearing you scream."
"You usually enjoy screaming no matter who it is," I pointed out.
"Yeah, but I'd enjoy it more if it's this asshole," Jake said. "After all the things he and his friends did."
"Were fuckingmadeto do," Hutton said forcefully. "You have no idea what it was like. Guys like you were sitting around, all high and mighty, ready to take credit for every move against Dagen. Meanwhile, you did absolutely fucking nothing. If anyone should be ashamed of themselves—"
Jake growled and took a step toward Hutton.
"All right," I said before this turned into a full-blown fistfight. "Those were dark days. No one came out of it unscathed."
Hutton snorted and gave Jake the side eye.
"Can I kill this motherfucker now?" Jake asked. He crossed his arms over his chest and gave Hutton a death stare.
Was it wrong that I found this whole situation really hot? The smell of testosterone, the body language, it was like a drug.
"Are you fucking kidding?" Hutton snapped. "You realise I saved her life, right?" He waved a hand towards me.
"Which I'm grateful for," I started.
"If you hadn't stepped in, someone else would have," Jake said coldly.
"Who? You?" Hutton laughed bitterly. "You were too busy being a smug bastard to see the threat. By the time you had, it would have been too late."
"Jake doesn't have eyes in the back of his head—" I tried to say.
"I would have seen it before he touched her," Jake growled. "If not me, then one of the members of our security detail."
