Takedown Teague (Caged #1)(86)

“Fuck you,” I said with a glare.

“You don’t belong here!” he bellowed.

“Well, you got that right,” I replied as I waved my hand toward Brandon and then back behind me and toward the house. “I wouldn’t stand for this shit.”

“What have you told him?” Keith asked Brandon in disbelief. “You shouldn’t be talking to him at all!”

“What does it matter?”

“Dammit, Brandon!” Keith yelled. “I told you about him and how he’s screwing around with her! You really want her involved with someone like that?”

Brandon looked over to me, and his shoulders rose and fell again.

“I dunno,” he replied quietly. “I mean, he seems okay, and Tria really seems to like him. I mean—it’s not like what he’s doing is illegal or whatever.”

“He fights in a f*cking bar for cash.” Keith snarled and it was obvious he was losing the cool fa?ade he had been trying to keep up. It was funny, and I gave him a big smile as I took another sip of beer.

“Yeah, and you do what?” Brandon’s words were sharp. “Wait around for your dad to retire or die so you can get his disability checks? It’s not like you’re doing anything all that noteworthy. When was the last time you even went fishing?”

“What the hell?” Keith threw his hands up in the air. “This guy is around for a couple hours and has you poisoned against your own people?”

“I’m not poisoned!” Brandon said. He pushed himself off the steps and stumbled a little. “Everything I’m doing today is about my family, and we are a part of this community! You think I want this? You think I want to watch you lose your virginity with my wife?”

It just figured.

Keith’s hands clenched into fists, and he looked away from us with a tensed jaw. I was pretty sure his dark complexion was the only thing hiding his embarrassment.

I couldn’t help myself; I snorted out a laugh.

“Well, at least you don’t have to worry about getting her actually turned on or anything,” I said with a nasty, cocky smile. “By the time you get to her, she’ll be so full of cum you ought to be able to slide in pretty easi—”

The punch to my face wasn’t from the direction I expected it, and it caught me off guard. I spun to my right, caught my balance before I fell over, and then looked to Brandon as I righted myself. He was standing with his legs spread slightly and knees bent. His hands were still in fists like he was ready to take me on fully, but I just held my palm out to him as I stood up straight.

“You’re such a tough guy,” Keith said with a sneer still plastered across his face and his own embarrassment forgotten for the moment. “You don’t even defend yourself?”

“No reason to,” I replied as I rubbed my chin. It was a pretty good hit for a guy without much muscle. “I deserved that one.”

“Yes, you f*cking did,” Brandon growled.

“I know, dude. Sorry. My mouth is on its own sometimes.”

Brandon narrowed his eyes for a second and then nodded briefly as his hands relaxed again at his sides. He bent over and picked up his dropped cigarette and spilled beer.

“You just don’t get it,” Brandon said quietly. “Nikki wants a baby, and I haven’t been able to give her one. What am I going to do? We don’t have health insurance, and there’s no way we could afford going through a doctor to have it done.”

“You’re doing it for your people,” Keith said. He smiled down at Brandon as he nodded.

“I’d do anything for her,” Brandon said. He got this faraway, dazed look in his eye, and I figured I shouldn’t have given him another beer.

“Yeah, we had that discussion,” I reminded him. I rubbed at my chin a bit more, and it was pretty achy.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Keith grumbled as he looked between Brandon and me. “What’s next? He going to join in the ceremony?”

“Hell, no,” I replied.

“He’s going to be there,” Brandon said.

“I am?” I responded. I was definitely going to need more beer. I wondered if the peyote would be in a little bowl next to the chips and dip.

Brandon shrugged.

“You’re with Tria,” he said simply. “You should be there with her.”

“Until she comes to her senses,” Keith said. “Now that she’s back home, she’ll remember where her place is!”

“Tria has a home,” I said as I narrowed my eyes at him. “With me.”

“Come on, Keith,” Brandon moaned. “This shit is hard enough as it is. Can you just lay off for tonight?”

“I can’t believe you are taking his side over—”

The front door opened then, and Keith halted his little rant as Tria came outside. She had changed her clothes and wore a fitted shirt and long skirt that looked like it was made of soft, tan leather. There were green beads down the arms and sides, creating a line all the way to the bottom of the skirt.

Tria looked at Keith and then quickly looked over to me. I could see her checking out the side of my face, and I wondered how much of a mark there might be.

“You’re fighting already?” She glared at me.