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I crossed my arms and cocked my hip. “What did you say to him?”
Ream’s hands splayed my waist. “That if he looks at you like that again, he’ll see my fist.”
I snorted. “Jesus, Ream.” But I shouldn’t be surprised. That is exactly the response I should’ve expected.
“Kat, why would he always be watching you? He’s never asked you out, but whenever I’m here I see his eyes on you.”
“It’s meaningless, just like Molly looking at you.”
Ream’s hands tightened on my waist. “I don’t fuckin’ like it. Men watching chicks lead to shit and I’m not taking the chance.”
“What? God, Ream. This is going overboard. Brett’s been around since Avalanche opened. He’s Matt’s friend. God, you know him. What’s next? You going to say I can’t be friends with Crisis and Kite? That we can’t live with them anymore because you saw Kite looking at me?”
“No.” Ream’s face hardened and he was really agitated. “That’s different. Brett has never been my friend and he’s never hung out with us, has he?”
“Well, no but—”
“The guy has more money than he knows what to do with. Can have any chick he wants and yet he works here looking at my fuckin’ girl. It stops.” Ream cupped my chin and kissed me, right there in front of Brett. It was a deep, claiming kiss that made my knees weak and my pissed off attitude seeped into the unknown land of forgetting my name after that kiss.
But this was too far. Ream was going to alienate our friends if he continued down this road. I pushed on his chest. “No.” He looked a little startled, and when I put my hand up, he went to move in again, his brows lowered dangerously over his eyes. “You need to apologize to him. You stepped over the line this time, Ream.”
His back stiffened at the word apologize. “Not happening.”
I put my hands on my hips. “God, you’re such an ass.”
“Yeah, but I’m yours.”
“No. Not if you’re going to act like this.”
His eyes narrowed. “You threatening me, Kat?”
“Not a threat. A promise.” I would not be putting up with him threatening my friends. I got that he had issues, I accepted that, but there was a line and he just broke it.
“This is fuckin’ bullshit,” Ream shouted.
“Bullshit? Ream, this is crazy. Can’t you see that?”
“Maybe it is, but I’m not apologizing for it. Bad shit happens when guys watch a girl.”
“Does this have something to do with your past? Because if it does maybe it’s time you told me.”
He stared at me for several seconds, stiff and unyielding then said, “Let it go, Kat.”
“Are you kidding me? Give me something here, Ream. I’m trying to give you time, but acting like this for no reason won’t cut it.”
“I have my reasons.”
“Then tell me.”
“I can’t.” He went to take my hand and I pulled back. “This is who I am, I told you that.”
“Yeah, and I accepted it, but I let you in. I gave you all of me and you’re still holding back from me. Why? I need to understand.”
“Just back off.”
I huffed and crossed my arms. “Wow, I really don’t like you right now.” It was more to myself than him, but he heard me and flinched.
I felt someone’s hand on my arm and turned. It was Emily and she looked worried. I saw the guys sitting at the table and watching us.
“Kat, maybe we should go. I’ll drive us back to the farm. I’ve only had one beer.” Emily squeezed my hand and then tugged, whispering, “Let’s go before you both say something you’ll regret.”
Shit. Maybe she was right. I needed to cool off and so did Ream. I nodded then followed after her.
“Kat.” Ream’s voice cut into me. It was pissed off and quiet like I’d imagine the silence after the pin on a grenade is pulled. But I didn’t turn around because Ream had to get that this went over the line. Then his voice changed and it was haggard. “If I tell you I might lose you.”
I stopped, but I didn’t turn around. “You’ll lose me if you don’t.”
We both needed to settle down before we had a collision. Ream would get what I was saying. We both were just so stubborn that stepping away from our fights was sometimes the best course of action.
“Drunk make-up sex is amazing,” Emily whispered in my ear. Yeah, I hoped I’d get that tonight. We both just needed to cool off. “And make him beg a little.”
Hmm, my guy begging. I might never do it, but he sure could. That sounded like great make-up sex. And then maybe I could persuade him to give me a part of what he was hiding.
But I didn’t get the begging or amazing make-up sex because Ream didn’t come home. I lay awake most of the night, and when I couldn’t resist anymore, I texted him. After a half hour passed and it was now three in the morning, I called and it went straight to voice mail. I knew he was pissed off, and Ream liked to think things through, so I thought maybe he’d taken off to that cottage to think it over. Where else would he go?
He probably crashed at Matt’s condo. I was overthinking. Besides, I had walked away from him last night.
I texted again then got out of bed and went into the sunroom and painted until I finally saw the sun rise. My phone never rang, dinged, or vibrated.
I went into the kitchen and made coffee.
By the time I got to my third coffee, my heart was racing and my hands trembled so bad that I had to keep them steady by interlocking them around my mug.
Fear and uneasiness started to sink into me. It was a combination of mistrust of Ream not being able to cope with what I needed from him and the memory of the morning the police officer knocked on our door. The two were colliding. One was the dread that something had happened to Ream and I was worried about him, and the other was scared he’d taken off and I was furious with him.
