“Spring semester is starting again. I just need you to find a way to balance your duty with Bee and your duty to the Nicolasi family.”
Dread filled my entire body, making me damn near shake myself off the chair and go into a seizure on the floor. “Speak plainly.”
“I enrolled you. Well, actually Nixon did. Sergio helped with the specifics.”
I threw my water bottle against the wall and glared at Sergio. He held up his hands. I was going to freaking cut off every finger and feed them to the chickens out back.
Did we have chickens?
Mental note: Buy chickens. Feed Sergio’s parts to them.
“I don’t need to finish school,” I said more calmly than I felt. “Can’t you put one of the associates on bodyguard duty?”
“She’s my sister. The sister to the Cappo.” Tex shook his head. “Do you trust anyone else with her? Honestly, Phoenix. Tell me the truth.”
“No.” I swallowed. “But do you really trust me with her?”
“Of course.” He waved me off like it wasn’t a big deal that my past consisted of attacking women and almost raping my best friend’s wife. “You wouldn’t touch her, because you know if you did, you’d find your body parts scattered all over the good old US of A. Don’t worry though. I make really pretty cuts. You wouldn’t even feel the first slice, or the second… now the third? The third cuts always the deepest, hurts like a bitch.” He stretched his arms above his head. “So, tomorrow. Any questions? Concerns? No?” He rose from his chair and then turned, tapping the counter with his knuckles.
I schooled my features, pretending disinterest when he smirked. What now? More threats? Then again, asking Tex to just deliver an order and leave was basically unheard of; the man liked to make sure everyone understood where he was coming from, even if it meant he needed to make graphic demonstrations on his part.
“Oh, and just in case there was any confusion just now… you watch her. You don’t touch her. You never touch her. I don’t care if the only way to save the planet is to hold her hand. You keep your damn hands to yourself, or I cut off each part of your body that came into contact with hers. Capische?”
I stared him down, my eyes giving nothing away, even though blood surged through every vessel in my body, causing my temples to throb with both irritation and dread. I didn’t respond well to threats — on account of my father had been a sick bastard hell bent on doing just that — threatening me every damn day he breathed air. I knew it was different with Tex, but it didn’t make the anger any less real; instead it boiled, swirled below the surface, just begging for release. Snapping my jaw shut to keep myself from saying anything that would make the situation worse, I gave him a curt nod.
His cold stormy eyes begged me to try and say something in my own defense. But I didn’t have a leg to stand on.
Tex nodded his head once and then glanced at Sergio. “Walk me out. I have a job for you and your brother as well.”
“Watch me contain my excitement,” Sergio said dryly.
“Aw, getting me alone makes you wanna break out in song? You should have said something man… Now I’m married.”
Sergio rolled his eyes and stormed past me, following Tex out of the room.
Once I heard the front door slam, rage overtook me. I threw the table over, knocking it into the wall, and slammed a barstool on top of it. Wood scattered all over the floor. “Son of a bitch!”
I slammed each piece of wood until it splintered into tiny pieces. I still didn’t feel better. Frantic, I reached for another barstool just as Bee charged into the room.
“Phoenix!” she yelled. “Stop!”
I raised the second stool above my head. Bee wrapped her arms around my middle, tugging me back against her soft body. I shook. Everything shook with rage, with so much rage I didn’t think I could control myself. Didn’t she know I could hurt her? “Bee, go,” I said through clenched teeth.
“No.” She held together. “Put the barstool down, Phoenix.”
“Bee…” My voice broke. “Please, please just go. Now.”
“Put the chair down first.”
“It’s a stool.”
“Fine, put the stool down first.”
Shuddering, I lowered the stool slowly to the ground and tried to jerk out of her embrace.
She held firm, tight.
My muscles ached with the need to touch her. “Bee…”
“You calm now?”
“Leave.”
“Phoenix—”
“Just leave me the hell alone, Bee. I don’t want you.” My voice was cool detached; it had to be to make her believe that I didn’t want her arms around me, that it didn’t cause me severe pain to be touching her but not really touching her the way I wanted to be. I was a mess. And she was ruining everything. “Bee, I don’t know how else to tell you.” I turned in her arms until we were chest to chest, face to face. “Leave me.”
Her blue eyes darted back and forth then filled with tears. “I’m just trying to help.”
“I don’t need your help.” I said with a sneer, my voice cracking. “I grew up all on my own without your help, Bee. You really think a guy like me would ever need a girl like you to get through the day without going bat-shit crazy? How big of an ego do you have?” She flinched as each word appeared to land a physical punch to her body.