In the Middle of Somewhere (Middle of Somewhere, #1)(82)

“No, I am not a model. Now f*cking hit me.”

Leo tries to replicate the stance, but somehow gets his feet all tangled up when he punches.

“Do it again,” Will says.

Leo repeats the maneuver a few times, finally landing a punch near Will’s chin. At the last moment, Will puts his fist up, so Leo hits that instead, and Leo drops to the ground holding his hand. Will shakes his hand out, not even flinching.

Will reaches a hand down to Leo, who blushes as he stands up. Will cups the back of his neck and Leo smiles tentatively, looking up at Will shyly through thick eyelashes.

“You,” Will says, shaking him a little by the back of the neck, “are a terrible fighter.” Leo drops his head.

“We just started,” I mutter, but Will’s right: Leo has no aptitude for this at all. Kid’s just not a fighter, and I kind of like that he’s made it to eighteen without needing to be.

Rex comes outside, hair still damp from the shower, and holds a beer out to Will.

“Why don’t we leave them to it,” Rex says. He must’ve been watching through the kitchen window.

“No way,” Will says. “This guy’s helpless. Can’t let him wander around like that. God knows what kind of trouble he’ll get into. Especially with that come-f*ck-me smile.”

“Right?” I say to Will. For once we’re in total agreement. Leo looks mortified and Rex looks uncomfortable.

Will looks at me and back at Leo. He’s not that small. Maybe five foot ten—only an inch or so shorter than Will and me. But he’s skinny and he’s got no instinct for fighting. Maybe I should just teach him what I taught Ginger, who had no interest in fighting, just in making sure she could get away if it came down to it.

“Let’s just show him how to get out of a fight,” I say. Will nods and comes to stand next to me.

“Okay, Leo. You’re never going to be a fighter,” Will says. “But you strike me as someone who pisses people off enough to need to defend himself. Believe me, I’d know. So, here’s how to avoid getting your ass kicked when you find yourself in that situation.”

“Rip off his ear, hit him in the nose, and crush his throat,” Will and I say at the same time, and laugh. Huh, maybe he’s not such an idiot after all. He’s regarding me as if he’s thinking the same thing. I can almost hear Ginger saying jinx in my ear.

“Jesus,” Rex mutters under his breath, but he doesn’t go back inside.

“Someone gets in your face this close,” Will moves close to me, “they can’t throw a punch. They’re just messing with you. So, you grab their ear.” He takes hold of mine and I give him a warning look. He winks at me. “Don’t pull out, pull toward you, like ripping a piece of paper in half.”

Leo laughs nervously, like he can’t tell if we’re serious.

“No joke,” Will says. “That sucker’ll come off no problem and it will f*cking hurt.”

“Also, it bleeds a lot and looks dramatic, so if there’s more than one person, it’ll help freak them out and discourage them from jumping into the fight,” I add. “Okay, second, you smash the heel of your hand up into their nose. It doesn’t take nearly the force or the precision of a punch to do damage, and you can do it in close quarters. Plus, it bleeds a hell of a lot and it’ll make their eyes tear up so they can’t see you as well.” Will demonstrates on me.

“Third,” Will says, “hit them in the throat, right here. It barely takes any force at all to totally incapacitate someone.” He puts one hand on the back of Leo’s neck and Leo’s eyes briefly flutter shut. Will doesn’t seem to notice, just presses the fingers of his other hand into the cartilage of Leo’s neck. “Feel that? Now imagine I hit you there.” Leo gags a little and Will lets him go. “If you hit a little harder, you’ll crush their windpipe completely,” he continues. He comes over to demonstrate, grabbing me by the shoulder so I can’t pull away, and miming first a punch and then a chop to the throat. Leo looks a little freaked out.

Will still has me by the shoulder, so I drop my body weight down and twist away from his hand, coming around so that my fist is at his throat. I’m looking at Leo, about to show him the move, when Will swipes my feet out from under me and takes me down hard. I roll over and throw my elbow up so he can’t grab me. Then I flip us over and pin Will with his hands behind his back. Will wriggles out of it somehow and pushes my face to the side. We’re pretty evenly matched, I think, so I know I could probably take him if it came to it. This is just in fun, though.

“Stop it.” Rex’s voice cuts through the haze that has started to fill my ears, like always happens during a fight. He reaches down and hauls Will off me effortlessly, his biceps flexing, but his eyes never leaving mine. He pulls Will to his feet and then turns around and stalks into the house. I look quizzically at Will when he reaches a hand down to help me up. He looks guilty. Did he actually think he could have hurt me?

“I’m gonna—” I gesture toward the house, leaving Will and Leo outside.

Rex is in the kitchen, jerking things out of the cabinets and throwing them on the counter. The muscles in his shoulders and back are clenched and his neck is corded.

“Are you okay?” I ask, coming up behind him and putting a hand on his shoulder.