Holding Strong

“Bullshit.” Armie’s preferences were well known—because he made them known. He was congenial with all women, but made it clear that he divided the fairer sex into three categories: women up for grabs because they were fast, nasty and rough around the edges, or in other words, perfect for his tastes; nice women, which he considered all fluff and uninteresting; and women related to anyone he knew, which put them off-limits—like Cannon’s sister, Merissa.

Although Denver thought Armie might fight a losing battle with the last.

Through his teeth, Denver said, “I thought you didn’t like nice girls.”

With a shrug, Armie murmured, “Cherry is a different type of nice.”

Didn’t he know it. She was the perfect mix of sweet and sexy. Her brand of nice could give any guy a boner.

Determined to set Armie straight right now, Denver came forward in a single aggressive step—

And Armie laughed at him.

Far from amused, Denver warned him, “You’re pushing your luck.”

“And you’re being entertaining.” Armie shook his head, then said with mock pity, “I can be a prick, Denver, I know. But I wouldn’t do that.”

Shit. No, he wouldn’t. Denver retreated with a deep breath that didn’t even come close to helping. “Yeah, I do know it. Sorry again.”

“Tell it to her, not me.”

“Already planning that particular chat with her.”

Snorting, Armie said, “Good luck with that.”

“Meaning what?”

“You’re coming on too strong, man. But then, hey, who am I to say? Maybe she’s into that caveman shit.”

If Armie didn’t stop being so deliberately provoking, he’d flatten him just for the fun of it.

With a clap on the shoulder, Armie said, “I can see you’ll enjoy unleashing that big badass protective streak tonight, huh?”

Shaking his head, Denver scowled. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“That’s why I’m here, actually.” Going far too serious for Denver’s peace of mind, Armie said, “I overheard some stuff and I figured you should know. When I didn’t find you in your room, Stack said you’d be here.”

“What stuff?” More than anything, he wanted to get back inside with Cherry. He’d lose his edge in her soft body and then maybe he could feel like himself again instead of suffering so many chaotic emotions.

“I went to my car, but Havoc, the sneaky bastard, was hanging around there, so instead I went back toward the bar—”

“You dodged Havoc? Jesus man, just talk to him already.”

“And,” Armie went on with emphasis, ignoring both the interruption and the derision, “off to the side of the bar, three guys were talking about Cherry.”

Forgetting Havoc, Denver straightened. “What do you mean, they were talking about her?”

Armie rubbed the back of his neck. “See, that’s the troubling part. It sounded all covert and underhanded, so I got closer.”

“What did they say?”

“Something about having to see her, but knowing she wouldn’t welcome them, so they’d have to catch her off guard then force the issue.”

None of that made sense, but still it pissed him off. “You’re sure they were talking about my Cherry?”

Armie grinned. “Already claimed her, huh?”

“Armie—”

“Yeah, I’m afraid so. See, when I heard the biggest one use her name, I interrupted. Not like Cherry is a real common name, ya know?”

Figured Armie would get involved. “What happened?”

“I asked if they were talking about Cherry Peyton. You should have seen their faces. They were busted and knew it. The youngest one got all shifty and asked if I knew her. I said yes, and he asked what room she was in.”

When they traveled together, the group always shared room numbers for emergencies, but he knew Armie wouldn’t give that info to an unknown. “I hope you told him to fuck off.”

“Those exact words, actually.”

Impatient, Denver glared at him. “Jesus man, it’s like pulling teeth. Spit it out already, will you?”

Armie shrugged. “The biggest one—who, by the way, is bigger than you—tried to insist that I spill my guts. And by insist, I mean he went ugly real fast. Actually grabbed my shoulder and tried slamming me to the brick wall.”

“Stupid.”

“Yeah. But the dumbest part? The oldest one pulled a knife.”

“Jesus,” Denver breathed again. His brain scrambled, wondering what the men wanted with Cherry.

“Punches were thrown. I kneed the knife wielder in the balls. Decked the other one. Some other people got in on it and the oldest of the three called a halt. The cowards were going to limp off but I figured you’d want some answers, right?”

He didn’t give Denver a chance to reply.

“So I...insisted.”

“You insisted?”

“Yeah. I mean, Cherry’s one of us, right? Like you said, she’s your Cherry. And if they meant to hassle her—”

Jumping past all that, Denver asked, “What’d you find out?”

“They claim to be related to her.” Armie heaved a sigh. “And given how they told it, I sort of believe them. I mean, they were snotty about it, like maybe defiant. I dunno. I’d have grilled them more, but Havoc nosed in and trapped me.”

Damn. Lousy timing. “He interfered?”

“Not really.” Now evasive, Armie glanced at the door. “You aren’t going to rush in there and take care of her?”

Of all the... “That’s none of your damn business.”