A Perfect Ten (Forbidden Men #5)(96)

I lifted my hands, proud of myself. “Of course he pissed his pants. I’m a badass motherf*cker. I got this intimidation shit down.”

Noel shook his head, seemingly disappointed. “Well, hell. I can’t hit him now.”

“Can I hit him?” I asked.

“Ooh.” Brandt eagerly jumped forward. “I want to hit him, too.”

Noel sighed and set his hands on his hips as he gazed at the pathetic-ness that was Sander Scotini. “What the f*ck is he even doing here?”

“Mommy and Daddy finally got tired of his shit, I guess, and cut off his play money, so he came crawling to Caroline to beg for some of her hush-hush-go-away payment.”

“Oh, hell to the no,” Noel murmured. “You are not getting one cent from her, you little f*cktard. And if you want to live to see your next breath, you will leave here now and never come back. In fact, if you ever try to contact Caroline again, you’re dead. Got it?”

When Scotini didn’t respond within two seconds except to glance beseechingly at Caroline, Noel growled. “Damn it, you looked at her. Brandt, go inside and get my gun.”

“Shit!” Scotini yelped, holding up his hands and backing away. “Oh, f*ck. Don’t shoot. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’ll go. I’ll never come back again. I’ll never talk to her again. I swear to God.”

“Then go,” Noel roared.

Scotini turned tail and half sprinted, half hobbled from the yard.

After he was gone, Brandt glanced up at Noel. “I didn’t know you had a gun.”

Gam shrugged. “I don’t.”

We all had to chuckle about that. When I couldn’t help it any longer, I let my attention slide to Caroline. She seemed to be okay after what had just happened, but I still hated the fact that I couldn’t physically go to her.

As if feeling my gaze on her, she blew out a breath and looked up.

“How much of that money do you really have left?” I asked, needing a reason to talk to her.

Her scheming grin was downright gorgeous. “Oh...about fifteen grand.”

My mouth fell open. “Holy shit.” Then I smiled and shook my head. “Sweet.” I held out my hand for a congratulatory fist bump. I wanted to grab her, yank her close and kiss the f*ck out of her when she pressed her knuckles to mine. But yeah...Gamble was right there.

“Why don’t you two go inside,” he ordered Brandt and Caroline, motioning them toward the door as if he were herding cattle. “I gotta get back to work. I left Quinn at the bar alone.”

Caroline sent me one last glance but finally nodded and followed her brother into the house.

I watched her go as a sinking feeling struck that Gamble was going to start talking the moment the door shut, leaving the two of us alone out here. Scared he’d seen something in the way I’d looked at her or could tell how I felt about her from the way I’d treated Scotini, I sucked in a bolstering breath and faced him, ready for a punch in the gut, or face, or—God I hoped not—the junk.

Instead, he stuck out his hand. “Man...” After his own serious sigh, he added, “Thank you.”

“Thank you?” I echoed stupidly.

“Yeah. Thanks for being here for my family when I couldn’t be. You’re a real friend.”

I stared at his hand, feeling so shitty and fake I could scarcely draw in a breath. When I didn’t shake with him within five seconds, he furrowed his brow. “What?”

I shook my head. “Nothing.” After grabbing his hand and pumping, I pulled away. “But I didn’t do anything,” I finally added.

“Yeah, you did. You kept him from coming into our house. You kept him away from Caroline. You kept him here until I could show up.”

With a shrug, I glanced away. Yeah, I’d done all that. But I hadn’t done it for him. I hadn’t even thought of him.

It struck me like a wrecking ball through the chest that I no longer valued my relationship with him more than I valued my relationship with Caroline. He wasn’t more important than she was to me. If I lost my friendship with Gamble after this, I could survive it. If I lost her, it would destroy me.

Him finding out was no longer the biggest thing I was afraid of. So I opened my mouth, on the very brink of saying, I’m in love with your sister, when he blew out a breath.

“You know what pissed me off the most about what he did to her?”

I shook my head. “What’s that?”

“That he kept her such a f*cking secret. Her first boyfriend, and she probably wasn’t even allowed to talk to him in public, or f*ck, even hold his hand.”

My mind flittered to the moment I’d first taken her hand before introducing her to my parents. She’d been so unsettled by it; I knew he had to be right. Guilt crept over me. She still couldn’t hold her man’s hand in public, could she?

“She’s probably never even been on a real date. Done anything the proper way it’s supposed to be done.”

I closed my eyes. No, I’d never taken her on a date.

Fuck.

Noel clapped me on the shoulder, making me jump out of my f*cking skin. My eyes flew open.

“What’re you doing here, anyway?” he asked, eyeing me strangely.

“I, uh...” My mind raced. I suddenly couldn’t remember why I was here. All I could see was Caroline’s face every night that I’d picked her up at the curb a block from her house. She always looked happy to see me, but there had to be a part of her that remained disappointed, rejected. Did she think I thought of her as some kind of dirty secret?