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Jenny bristles and stabs a finger at Bryce’s chest. “You don’t work here because Ididfire you over voicemail. You never showed up for inventory yesterday which left me in a jam. Fortunately, I found a replacement.” She hitches her thumb over her shoulder at me.
“Well, I’m here now. So you don’t need a replacement.”
“Are you really that stupid?” I ask, unable to bite my tongue any longer. Jenny hired me to be the assistant manager so I’m damn well going to assist.
“Excuse me?” Bryce seethes as he steps around Jenny to move closer to me. His eyes are bloodshot, and his pupils are no bigger than the head of a pin. “Who the fuck are you, you stupid bitch?”
“I’m neither stupid nor a bitch,” I say calmly, although I’m anything but. Bryce is clearly unhinged, or high, and he’s scaring me. But I’m not the weak woman I was raised to be.I hope.“My name is Kennedy, and I’m the assistant manager of Barlow’s Bar.”
Without warning, Bryce hauls his arm back and rams his fist into my cheek. Pain explodes in my face a split second before shooting up my arms when I try to brace my fall. Chaos erupts around me as Toga and Brady jump over the bar to tackle Bryce, and Jenny rushes to my side.
“Oh my God, are you okay?” she asks, running her hands over my body as if assessing for injuries.
I try to open my mouth to speak, but it hurts, so I keep my lips pressed together and shake my head.
“You good?” Brady yells.
Bryce is shouting, demanding to be let go, but Brady and Toga are having none of it.
“I’ve got her,” Jenny assures them. “Just get him the fuck outta here.”
“No can do,” Toga says apologetically. “Dip’s gonna want a piece of this prick for hitting his girl, but we’ll keep him under wraps until D gets here.”
His girl?
“Fine, whatever, just…” Jenny shakes her head. “Take him to the other corner so I don’t have to hear him breathe, otherwise there won’t be anything left of him when Dip gets here.”
“You can’t do this!” Bryce shouts. “I’ll have you arrested for kidnapping.”
“Dude, shut up,” Brady says before elbowing him in the face, knocking Bryce out cold.
They drag Bryce’s limp body to the corner and toss him to the floor. I expect them to return to what they were doing, but instead, they stand like sentries, guarding the unconscious man.
“Let’s get you some ice,” Jenny says as she helps me to my feet. “I think you should probably go to the ER too, just to make sure nothing is broken.”
I shake my head, still not trusting my pain level to speak. I’ve never been struck before. Not by a man or anyone. Dammit, it hurts.
Jenny walks me into the kitchen, where she pulls out a block of ice from the freezer and wraps it in a dish towel before gently pressing it against my cheek. I hiss at the contact but welcome the numbing cold.
“Kennedy, I am so sorry. I wouldn’t have goaded him if I knew that’s how he’d react.”
Jenny is distraught and blaming herself, and I hate that. It wasn’t her fault. I need her to know that.
Trying to ignore the agony, I say, “It’s okay. Don’t blame yourself.”
“It’s not okay,” she cries.
I reach out to grab her hand, and wince at the sharp twinge when I squeeze her fingers. “Jenny, I’ll be fine. Promise.”
“Shit, you hurt your arms too, didn’t you?”
I shrug, instantly regretting the movement. “A little.”
“Screw waiting.” She gently wraps an arm around my shoulders and guides me back toward the main area. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”
I don’t even try to argue because I really am in pain, and I’d rather be sure that nothing is broken than assume and make things worse.
We’re halfway across the bar when Dip strolls in, a wide grin on his face. But when he sees me, his grin disappears, and his eyes glow with murderous intent.
