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“To clear my name, asshole, why else?” Jackal yelled, taking a step closer to Ryder, who put his hands up again to hold the men apart.
“I doubt that’s possible, since you’re the one who let things escalate,” Montgomery muttered.
“Ms. Meyer accused me of being involved with the sabotage and then fired me,” Jackal said.
“Actually, technically… you were laid off,” Nita volunteered, then grimaced again when all three men looked at her with confusion. “Sorry. Carry on.”
“I didn’tletanything escalate,” Jackal sneered. “But maybe you’re more involved in everything. You were on the property when that client was pushed out the window.”
Even in the dim light, Nita could see Montgomery’s face go purple in rage.
“Du stück Scheiße,” Montgomery growled.
“Okay, okay,” Ryder said, both his hands pressing against the men’s chests as they stepped towards each other. “I don’t know German, but I know the word shit when I hear it. I think you need to settle the fuck down and go talk about all of this up at the manor.”
Ryder shoved them away.
Montgomery stumbled slightly and looked at Ryder with surprise. Jackal, too, stumbled, going down on one knee before bouncing back up. He smoothed his hair and clothes and took a deep breath.
“All right,” Jackal agreed.
Montgomery stood to the side, sullenly staring at Jackal and shaking his head.
The stand off was getting to Nita, and she felt shivers start deep in her core and radiate throughout her body.
As if attuned to her body, Ryder marched to where she stood.
“We’re leaving,” he announced over his shoulder and, in one breath, scooped her up in his arms, closing the door with his hip.
His smell, his warmth, and the way his hard muscles moved as he walked around the car, eased Nita into a semi-coma.
“I thought we were going—” Montgomery said, his voice coming from far away.
“I don’t care about what you think,” Ryder said.
He circled the car and opened the passenger door, sliding her into the seat.
“Jesus Christ, you’re cold as ice,” he muttered, buckling her in then leaning close to look at the dashboard. All the lights were on, and she realized the surrounding hum was the engine still running.
He punched a few buttons and the fan blasted hot air at her feet and face. He punched another one and the seat warmer light readHigh.
“Oh, yeah,” she moaned as she felt warmth flood up into her thighs and back.
He moved back but still hovered in the open door. Resting a hand on her knee, he looked at her with that wide-eyed concern she’d seen earlier.
“I’m fine,” she assured him. “Can we go?”
“You bet, darlin’,” he murmured and closed the door.
She heard the men talking as Ryder walked around to driver’s door. He paused, his body going tense. The talking fell to low murmurs. Then Ryder jerked the door open.
“I’ll get there when I can,” he stated as he slid into the car. “If you guys want to kill each other before I get there, go the fuck ahead. It’ll free up my night.”
He closed the door and pulled on his seatbelt, reversing the car out of the driveway with squealing tires. When she jerked against the seatbelt, he looked at her with a grimace.
“Sorry,” he said, putting the car in drive, then reaching over to grab her hand. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll live. What did they say before you got into the car? It looked serious,” she asked, glad that he was driving at a slow pace.
