Surviving Love - K.F. Breene Page 0,39
ya goin’?” Duke cut her off again, this time spreading out his hands to block the whole hallway. He stepped forward, making her, once again, retreat. She was running out of hallway. “I just want to talk.”
“I have to go. They’re probably waiting.”
“Now, don’t be shy. And don’t worry about Mike Frost. Me and him have history. I wasn’t talking about you earlier. That’s just something—wait a minute.”
Cold prickles of uncertainty started in her stomach as Duke pushed in close. Her back bumped against the wall. Shadows fell across her face. She couldn’t see beyond Duke’s large body, poised to trap her.
“They’ll wait.” Duke reached out for her midsection. Sara gulped a breath, ready to scream. “I just wanted to say—”
His body jerked backward before being thrown to the side. Limbs slapped the wood. A dull thunk accented his head bouncing off the wall.
Mikey stepped toward Sara, positioning himself between her and Duke.
“What the fuck, man?” Duke bounded from the wall, wiping spit from the corner of his mouth. His heated gaze fell across Mikey.
“I told you to stay away from her. She doesn’t want any,” Mikey said in a low tone.
Faster than lightning, Duke’s fist struck out.
Mikey arched his back and Duke’s fist sailed past Mikey’s face with only inches to spare. Before Duke had regained his balance, two fast punches rocketed out from Mikey, landing on Duke’s body, hard. Mikey stepped forward in a rush, practiced and lethal, no stranger to this style of fighting. Another fist hit home, doubling the other man over. He grabbed Duke’s body and pinned him against the wall.
“You ever touch or speak to her again, and I’ll take you for a walk you won’t return from. She’s off limits. Got it?” Mikey shook the other man.
A nod had Mikey giving one final shove, before stepping back. Eyes on fire, he waved Sara on. As soon as she hurried past, he followed, gaze staying on Duke until they were around the corner.
“You okay?” Mikey asked quietly as they headed toward the front of the bar.
“Yeah. He didn’t do anything.”
Mikey nodded, those wrath-filled eyes sweeping the bar, like a predator sussing out his territory. As they neared the front of the bar, Mikey took two fast steps to get in front of Sara. He pushed open the door, waiting until she went through before following her out.
As they stepped outside, the chill of the evening having her pulling her wrap around her shoulders tightly, she halted. “Where’s the van?”
Mikey scanned the street quickly. He dug in his pocket, brought his phone up, and glanced at its face. “It appears Jake’s leaving me to get you home.”
“Oh. Do you have a car?” she asked, looking around the deserted street. Reno was no longer a really busy place, but she’d never stood in the center of any town and seen… stillness.
Dark windows peppered empty establishments along the deserted road. One streetlight, twenty feet away, showered the sidewalk in a faint glow. Three cars were parked further down the street, but there were none in front of the bar.
Mike turned to her, his body relaxing slightly. That didn’t stop him from glancing at the door to the bar, though. His mouth tweaked up in a smile. “Of sorts.”
He led her around the corner, where a shiny black motorcycle with orange fire curling down the sides gleamed at them.
“Of sorts?” Sara asked tentatively.
“Jake probably thought I’d brought the truck. But you’ve always wanted to ride a motorcycle, right? Or did you fulfill that dream?”
“I hate that you remember dreams from a time when I wasn’t worried about dying in a freak accident. Or freezing to death.”
He took off his jacket and handed it to her.
“Won’t you be cold?” she asked, clutching the well-worked leather.
He shrugged, taking a helmet off the back. “I’ve been in some pretty extreme conditions. A chill for a half-hour won’t kill me. Here.”
She eyed the motorcycle dubiously. “These are dangerous, though, right?”
“So am I.” He winked at her.
As the image of him ruthlessly shoving Duke against the wall tumbled through her head, he gently fastened the helmet on to her. Tingles crept up her body as she remembered the possessive way he had steered her outside. She scanned his face, trying to reconcile this new facet to her old friend. “It’s like you’re two different guys. Kid Mikey that I remember, and grown-up Mike that… changed.”
He stepped away, his gaze finding hers. One more moment had his brow crinkling; he was clearly reading her.