Playing With Fire (Tangled in Texas, #2)(51)

Cowboy stopped on the wooden floor, turned, and pulled me into his hard chest, wrapping a strong hand around my waist. “That wasn’t a conversation. That was a full-on tactical assault by Bubba Ray. Women are sex toys to him.”

I pulled back slightly and raised a brow. “Look who’s talking.”

“Hey, at least I respect women afterward.”

“Oh, really?” I rolled my eyes as he led me around the dance floor. “If you had any amount of respect for them, you wouldn’t sleep with them to begin with. At least not so soon. Maybe try spending a little time getting to know something about the woman, other than what kind of underwear she wears…or doesn’t wear.”

His firm hand tightened on my waist, and I could feel the aggravation in his fingertips. “Oh, that’s rich coming from a woman who was letting Bubba Ray feel her up two minutes ago.”

My feet stopped moving. “Excuse me?”

“I saw him touching you. You shy away from me every chance you get, but you’ll let that f*cking idiot put his hands all over you?”

“Put his…?” I shook my head, not believing what he was accusing me of, then the anger took over. “He touched my arm, you jerk!”

Irritation tightened his jaw. “Yeah, and it wouldn’t be long before he was playing grab-ass with you and rolling you into his bed for a slumber party.”

I dropped my hand from his as other patrons danced past us. “Bubba Ray’s been nothing but a perfect gentleman with me, which is more than I can say for you. If you think there was anything going on between him and me back there, then you’re more delusional than I gave you credit for.”

“Yeah right,” he scoffed. “That’s why tonight you dressed up and put on all that heavy makeup—because there’s nothing going on?” His eyes filled with hostility, and his lip curled with revulsion. “You know, maybe you’re more of a liar than I gave you credit for.”

Outraged, I barely had time to register what I was doing when my hand smacked across his face. I blinked, shocked by my own reaction. Actually, I wasn’t sure who was more surprised—him or me. No matter. I refused to apologize for my behavior after the way he spoke to me. I turned and walked quickly away. He didn’t even try to stop me.

I squeezed through the crowd, fighting back tears of frustration, when I bumped a man’s arm and spilled his beer on both of us. “Oh, I’m sorr—”

“You!” Joe Barlow stood there, looking none too happy and wiping his beer-soaked hand on his pants. “What the hell are you doing here? Now you’re following us?”

“Of course not.”

Clay peered around his brother. “Then what’s a stuffy girl like you doing in a place like this? I’ve never seen you in here before.”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m here with my friends.” I motioned to where Emily and Jake stood talking to Bobbie Jo across the room, though none of them looked in my direction.

“You’re with that FBI guy?” Joe looked at Clay, then back to me. His jaw clenched as he grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him, whispering into my face with his beer breath. “You better keep your damn mouth shut, if you know what’s good for ya. If I find out you’re talking to him about us, then you’re going to see firsthand just how mean I can get.”

I glanced down at his fingers clutching my skin, then made the mistake of trailing my gaze upward to the tattoo on his arm. A large red fire-breathing dragon covered the bulk of his bicep with its red tail wrapping the length of Joe’s forearm and ending at his wrist. Bright orange flames shot from its mouth.

It only reminded me of their earlier intimidation tactics and made me wonder if I was the only neighbor the Barlow boys had threatened to burn out of her home. That’s when I remembered something. Cowboy had mentioned the Barlows getting into an argument with the chief the day of his death. Also, the fire chief and his wife had lived only half a mile up the road from my home next to the Barlows’ residence.

Was it possible they were involved in the deaths of the chief and his wife? The thought terrified me, but I couldn’t verbalize my fear. The brothers would just feed on it.

Not wanting to show how scared of him I truly was, I met Joe’s gaze directly and narrowed my eyes. “Let go of my arm.”

He chuckled, not the least bit intimidated. “Who’s going to make me?”

A rich male voice rang out from behind me. “Me, that’s who.”



I didn’t recognize the voice.

Flustered, my head jerked in his general direction, wanting to get a look at the bystander who was brave enough to step in and stand in my defense. With just three little words, he’d drawn the defining line between the Barlow brothers and me.

The dark-haired man’s chiseled jaw was held tight and his arms were crossed, as if he were waiting for the idiot body builder to release me on command. Something I didn’t see happening anytime soon.

“Why don’t you mind your own business, dickhead?” Joe told the man, waving him off with his free hand.

The unknown man smirked at that. “I’m making this my business. Let go of her. Now.”

“And if I don’t?”

The man took a step forward just as Mandy Barlow walked over. “Hey, guys. What’s going on over here?” She took notice of Joe’s fingers wrapped around my arm. “Joe, you stop it right now, ya hear? If you don’t let her go this instant, I’m gonna call Momma and tell on you.” She glared at her other brother standing on the sidelines. “On both of you.”