Coming Home(127)

This time he reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back in front of him.

“Take your hand off me,” she said, her voice low but firm.

She was not in the place to deal with this tonight; she had already been teetering on her breaking point before they’d even walked through the doors of the bar. She had nothing left for him.

He leaned in and cupped her face in his hand. “I can’t let you go. That’s what I’m trying to tell you. I still want you, Leah. I still want us.”

She leaned back and his hand slipped from her face, but he tightened his hold on her wrist so that she couldn’t walk away.

“Scott, knock it off. You’re hurting me.”

“You don’t think I’m hurting?”

Leah closed her eyes and shook her head. She needed to change her approach. She needed to stop antagonizing him. If she had any hope of putting some distance between them, she was going to have to placate him.

“Look,” she said. “I don’t want to make a scene. Let’s not do this here. We can talk, but just not here, okay?”

His eyes searched hers before she felt his hand go slack on her wrist. “Okay,” he said. “Where, then?”

Leah slipped her wrist out of his hand, and before she could answer, she felt someone grip her other hand and pull her away. She glanced up just as Danny drew her against his side, his eyes trained on Scott.

“Is everything okay over here?” he asked, his eyes appraising her quickly before settling back on Scott.

“Hey, buddy, no one needs you to play the hero. We know each other, okay? This is none of your business.”

Scott reached for Leah’s arm, and Danny used his hold on her to pull her partially behind him, shifting his body in front of her.

“She is my business,” he said, his voice disconcertingly calm. “And if you put your hands on her again, we’re gonna have a problem.”

Scott looked at Danny, the corner of his mouth lifting in a smile, and Leah’s heart began thudding in her chest. She didn’t like the look on Scott’s face, and at that moment, she didn’t care how much she hated him, or that he didn’t deserve a chance to explain himself. Her only priority became separating the two of them.

Leah tugged gently on Danny’s hand. “We do know each other,” she said, and Danny looked down at her, his jaw relaxing slightly. “Please, just let me handle this.”

“Yeah, let her handle this.”

“Scott,” Leah barked, and Danny’s eyes widened before they flew back to him. As soon as Danny realized who he was, the muscle in the side of his jaw flickered, and Leah immediately brought her hand to his face, pulling his attention back to her. He looked down again, but this time his expression didn’t soften.

“I’ll take care of this, okay? And then we’ll leave. We’ll go somewhere else.”

Danny stared down at her, hesitating as his eyes searched hers. She knew he must have seen the panic there—that he attributed it to her being uncomfortable about talking to Scott, when in reality she was afraid of what would happen if she didn’t talk to him.

Leah forced a smile. “I’m fine. I’ll be okay. Let me handle it.”

Danny dropped his eyes, his jaw still flexing as he inhaled. “I’ll be right over there, okay?”

She nodded as she leaned in and kissed him quickly, and as Danny straightened, his eyes turned to Scott. He held his gaze for just a moment before he turned and walked the few feet to the end of the bar.

“So, I guess that’s your man?” Scott said, his brow quirked in amusement. “He’s a little overprotective, don’t you think?”