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TWENTY-SIX YEARS AGO
“You’re right about Cole. He isn’t worth it. I’m sorry that I let him get to me like that. Usually, it’s easier to ignore his shit,” Sierra tells me.
“You say that like dealing with his shit is a common thing.”
She lifts a shoulder, avoiding my scrutinizing stare. “He just likes to push his boundaries. It’s an ego thing.”
My shoulders pull tight, scowl deepening. “It’s not a damn ego thing, Sierra. What kind of boundaries does he push? Has he touched you?”
The unmistakable flame of anger flickers across her face before she can hide it.
“Tell me what he did. Now.” I seethe.
Sierra’s fingers tap her hip. There’s worry in her eyes. “Can you promise me that if I tell you, you won’t hunt him down and stomp him into the ground?”
“No.”
“Then I won’t tell you.”
I laugh once. The sound is anything but humorous. “Simple as that, huh?”
She nods. “You’re not getting involved.”
“I’m already involved. You’re my girlfriend. We’re going to have a baby together, dammit!”
I want to pull my fucking hair out right now. Not smashing Cole’s face into a brick wall at this very moment almost feels like a punishment of some sort. And the longer Sierra keeps me shut out, the more this feeling of rage heightens, and the harder it becomes to ignore.
I’ve always been an act first, think second kind of guy. I’m a fighter; I like to feel the surge of adrenaline in my veins before throwing a punch and the burn in my knuckles that follows.
Sitting back and letting things play out on their own is not something that I ever planned on doing. Especially not when it comes to Sierra and that butt plug of a boss of hers. He’s crossed the line one too many times.
When Cole is introduced to how I deal with boys who fuck with my girl, he won’t have anybody to save his sorry ass. It’ll be just me and him.
“Yes, we are going to have a baby together. But that doesn’t mean that I need you to fight all my battles for me. I’ve got it handled,” Sierra says, exasperated.
My stare hardens to stone. “Handled it how? By sitting back like a good little worker bee and letting him continue to make you fucking uncomfortable?”
“Don’t talk down to me because I won’t let you act like a caveman out to save my honour.”
I run a rough hand through my wet hair, tugging on it and expelling a harsh breath. “I’m not trying to talk down to you. I just don’t want you to keep quiet about this. If he didn’t touch you, then tell me right now, and I’ll drop it. But if he did, he needs to be dealt with. He can’t continue to put his filthy hands on you. He won’t stop unless I make him.” My voice softens. “Guys like him, baby, they don’t just have a change of heart and leave you alone. He won’t stop until he gets what he wants, and that’s not okay.”
Something I said seems to resonate somewhere in that pretty head of hers because some of the stiffness in her shoulders melts away, and her eyes finally clash with mine.
Her inhale is shaky. “Before you got here, there were a couple of times where he touched me. Just lingering brushes on my arms and sides when we would pass each other in the halls or get pushed together in a crowded meeting.”
“Fuck. And? There’s more. I can hear it in your voice.”
“There was only one time . . . that he tried for more.” She has to pause to clear her throat, blinking a few times. “I was looking for extra sugar packets in the breakroom for my coffee. They’re in the bottom cupboard, so I was bent over or squatting, I don’t remember. But I felt hands on my ass, squeezing it roughly. I shot up instantly and just froze. My thoughts were scattered all over the place. It took me a few seconds to turn around and see that it was Cole. He had the biggest fucking grin on his face, like he had just won a gold medal for touching me like that. Some intern walked in before Cole had a chance to say anything or touch me again.”
A ball gets lodged in my throat before sliding free and tumbling through my insides like I’m a living pinball machine before it lands with a splat at the bottom of my stomach.
“I’m going to break each one of his fingers,” I promise.
* * *
Cole’s chairscrapes across the floor when he stands abruptly. His jaw is clenched so tight I’m surprised he hasn’t broken any teeth. Who knows, maybe he’s leaving that honour for me.
“Can I talk to you outside, Sierra? This can’t wait for Monday morning.”
