The Strength of the Pack (Suncoast Society #30)(48)

The witnesses thought Nate was trying to help the older man to his feet.

“You really shouldn’t drink quite so much, sir,” Nate said, raising his voice even more. “I believe you’re inebriated.” He leaned in and whispered, “If you so much as look at Eva again, I will kill you, sir. Don’t think I can’t do it and make it look like an accident. And I have friends in law enforcement who’d be happy to help me, considering your checkered past regarding children.”

The last was supposition on Nate’s part, but it certainly seemed to shake the older man, whose eyes widened.

Nate released the hand pressure point and grabbed Abraham’s elbow as if concerned about the man’s balance as he helped him back to the front porch, but he had a finger dug into another pressure point on the inside of the man’s arm and was pretty much forcing him to stay upright at that point.

“Mrs. Banks,” Nate said, “you might want to think about giving him a couple of cups of coffee.” He let Abraham go, glaring at him.

Well, the stupid bugger didn’t know when to quit.

Abraham turned around. “I’m not drunk, you *! You attacked me.”

Nate looked hurt. “You tripped on the lawn. I helped you up.”

“Uncle Abraham, you were running and tripped,” one of the men said. “I came out the door as you went down. I saw it. Mr. Crawford helped you up. He didn’t trip you.”

“You didn’t just see him attack me right there?” Abraham waved his hand at them. “Look what he did to me! And…and he attacked me inside the house, too!”

Nate gave a pitying look to Mrs. Banks and sadly shook his head. “Is there a history of dementia in his family?”

Abraham shoved Nate, hard, but Nate had anticipated his motion and been prepared for it and played it up, rolling with it, making it look like he’d been caught by surprise as he went down.

“Abraham!” his wife screamed as several people rushed to help Nate to his feet and a couple of the men dragged Abraham back. “What the hell has gotten into you!”

“He…he attacked me!”

“You just attacked him,” Gayle screamed back as she bent over to help Nate up. “What is wrong with you, Dad?”

Nate let them fuss over him and pretended to be rattled. “Mr. Banks, it’s obvious you’re not feeling well. I’ll let that little incident go.” He brushed his clothes off and turned to Lorie, taking her hand and kissing it although he didn’t want to.

It did, however, complete the tableau in a very satisfying manner. “Mrs. Banks, it was terribly lovely meeting you. Thank you for your hospitality.” He turned, barely able to conceal his smile as he walked down to his car.

Behind him, Abraham ranted, shouted, and no doubt if people weren’t holding him back, he would have taken another run at Nate.

He heard the locks click open as he reached for the handle and then he smoothly slid into his seat, closing the door behind him. He held his hand out, palm up, and Eva dropped his keys into it.

He waited until they were away from the house to glance over at her.

She stared at him with wide, terrified eyes.

“Are you all right, love?”

She nodded.

He focused on the traffic ahead. “What did he say to you in the house, before I came out of the bathroom?”

She burst into tears.





Chapter Eighteen


Nate pulled over into the same parking lot and held her until she calmed down.

She couldn’t tell him. Not right then.

“When we get back to your place, please,” she whispered.

“All right. Call home, sweetheart,” he gently said. “Check on Laurel.”

She did. “What happened?” Leo asked upon answering. “It’s way too early for dinner to be over.”

Nate got them back on the road again.

“It’s okay,” Eva said, sniffling. “Nate took care of it.”

“Did that f*cker try to lay a hand on you?”

“I’m okay. He…” She closed her eyes, not even sure how to begin explaining what happened. It’d be better to let Nate tell him tomorrow. “It’s okay. Nate took care of it. I’ll be home tomorrow. Nate and I need to have a long talk tonight.”

“About…him?”

She knew who he meant. “Yeah. I need to tell him.”

“I was afraid something like this might happen if you went. I think your dad was always a little afraid of me.”

She didn’t know exactly what Nate had said to her father when he helped the man up off the grass, but from the brief flash of terror in her father’s eyes, she knew it had to be threatening.

“Yeah, well, now’s he’s even more afraid of Nate.”

“Heh. Good. I want to hear that story tomorrow. I always knew Nate was good people. I expect both of you here for dinner. Love you.”

“Thanks. Love you, too.”

“Here’s Laurel.”

When Eva ended the call, she sat with her hands in her lap, her gaze out the windshield. “Thank you, Sir,” she said. She still couldn’t believe what she’d witnessed.

It was like she was dating a British ninja basketball player or something.