space, all the while staring at her nutjob of an ex looking to start a fight he couldn’t win.
“I’m dancing with him,” Bree said as calmly as she could. “That’s what people do at a club. They don’t attack people like a psycho.”
Dave’s eyes narrowed. “He stole you and Brandon from me.”
She opened her mouth to set him straight about that, but Dave was already rushing them, bloody hand reaching for Diego, madness in his eyes. He’d had that same look the night he beat that man to death all those years ago.
Diego moved to intercept Dave and got a hand on Dave’s outstretched arm, spinning her ex around and tossing him across the dance floor until he thudded to a stop against the speakers again.
The music ground to a stop as Dave once more scrambled to his feet, face suffused with so much anger Bree thought he might explode. Then again, he’d just gotten tossed around like a dog’s chew toy and gotten embarrassed in front of all these people. Dave’s pride was one of his biggest faults.
“You should probably stop,” Diego said, the hint of a growl in his deep voice. “There’s no version of reality that exists where you’ll get your hands on Bree, Brandon, or me ever again.”
Bree held her breath, waiting for Dave to try anyway, right there in front of everyone. For a moment, it looked like he was about to, but then a dark-haired man in a dress shirt and slacks hurried onto the dance floor.
“I called the cops,” he warned, looking first at Diego, then at Dave. “They’re already on their way.”
Dave looked at the man for a moment, then stared daggers at Diego. “I will fucking destroy you for this.”
Turning, he strode toward the door and stormed out of the club.
Diego started to move after him, but Bree caught his arm. “Let him go. I want him out of our lives.”
She could tell from the set of Diego’s jaw that he didn’t agree with her, and part of her wondered if it would be better to let the cops arrest Dave and send him to prison again. But she hadn’t been kidding. She wanted the drama to end. And it never would if she kept pulling Dave back into her life.
“I didn’t actually call the cops,” the guy from the club said to them. “But I will now if you want me to. I have video footage of everything that happened and have no problem turning it over to them.”
Diego looked at her questioningly, but Bree shook her head. Sighing, he turned to the guy, pulling his badge from his pocket and flashing it. “No, don’t call them. But if you could hold onto that video footage for a while, I’d appreciate it.”
The man nodded. “You got it.”
The music started up again and people slowly moved back out onto the floor, though Bree doubted the energy level in the club would be the same as it had been. Not for a while.
“You want to dance some more?” Diego asked.
From the way he said it, she could tell his heart really wasn’t in it, but she knew he’d stay and dance if that was what she wanted. It wasn’t.
“No, let’s go home,” she said, taking his hand. “Brandon will be at Kevin’s house for a few more hours, and I don’t want the date to end yet.”
* * *
“You know you should get a restraining order against him,” Diego said as they walked into her apartment. “At the very least.”
Bree leaned in far enough to see the kitchen counter and the dining room table. Nothing was lying on either one, which meant neither Brandon nor Beth were home yet. They both constantly left their stuff around on the first available flat surface they found. She was glad they weren’t there. She didn’t want either of them hearing this conversation about Dave. If Bree had her way, neither of them would ever have to hear that man’s name again, much less see him.
“I know.” Dropping her purse on the couch, she flopped down on the soft cushions with a sigh. “Any chance you know the right people I need to talk to? Maybe I can go see them tomorrow in between working my case.”
“Yeah, I know some people at the courthouse,” he said as he joined her on the couch. “I can call them and get them a copy of that video from tonight, too. That, along with describing his behavior over the