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Excerpt

We head into the deli and Skye spends a few minutes studying the menu. “What’s good here?”

“Everything.”

She chuckles. “Helpful, Rome.”

“My favorite’s the pastrami on rye, but honestly, you can’t go wrong with anything here.”

Wrinkling her nose, she squints at the choices, finally deciding on turkey and swiss on wheat. We place our order, grabbing chips and drinks while we wait.

“You okay if I hit the restroom?” I survey the empty deli, gauging the risk to be low.

Skye nods. “Yes. I’m fine, go.” She waves me off and I hurry to the back, ducking into the closet of a restroom.

I’m gone less than five minutes, but walking out, my blood runs cold. Jagger’s holding Skye by the arm, Cash and Damon circling around the two of them like sharks sniffing blood in the water.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me…” I mutter, hustling over.

“Well, well, well. I didn’t know you brought your little attack dog, Romeo, with you. Y’all on a date? How cozy.” Jagger gives me a once-over and blood roars in my ears.

“Fuck off, Jagger. And take your hands off her. She has a restraining order against all three of you, so you need to bounce.” I squeeze his wrist until he winces, dropping Skye’s arm.

“Really, Skye? You went to the police? After all we’ve been through together? I’m hurt.” Jagger blinks, trying to cull up tears but failing.

“And Romeo, that’s not a very nice way to speak to me. Especially when you’re running around town with our ex-lawyer. Who still owes me a whole lotta cash, by the way. Skye, when you paying up?” He stands taller, pressing closer to us, and I tuck Skye behind me.

She doesn’t stay tucked away, though. Folding her arms over her chest, she glares at Jagger.

“I’m pretty sure we’re square. You blew up my dad’s trailer. We’re even.”

“How dare you accuse me of such a heinous crime.” Jagger splays a palm on his pumped-up chest, feigning indignance. “I’d never do such a thing.”

He drops his voice lower. “And there’s no evidence, right?”

Then that little fucker purses his lips and winks at Skye and she loses it, storming straight at him, punching at his chest. He laughs as her fists pound on him, again and again, bouncing off with little effect. The dude has to be on ‘roids.

After a few seconds of her boxing efforts, he seizes her forearms and she winces. “Guess I need a restraining order now. Romeo, get your bitch off me, will ya?”

Cash and Damon laugh like hyenas as Skye kicks at Jagger’s ankles. I step in, grasping Skye’s waist and pulling her away from him. She’s breathing hard from her efforts, her face flushed.

“Hope that was as good for you as it was for me.” Jagger leers at Skye and she scowls in his direction.

“Fuck you, Jagger.” She emphasizes each syllable and he clutches at his heart.

“Ouch. Such nasty words, Skye. And after I gave you extra time to pay off Daddy’s debt too. Really though—how are you going to repay me?”

He runs his finger down her arm and she shudders beneath his touch.

That’s the last fucking straw. Black spots dance in my peripheral vision and my heart pounds as I smack his hand away from Skye.

“Don’t you fucking touch her, Jagger. You got me?” I block his view of Skye, keeping her behind me as I square up with him. He’s considerably shorter than me, and I stare down at his close-cropped hair that could almost be classified as a buzz cut.

“Pretty sure you don’t own her, Romeo. I can touch her, lick her, kiss her. I bet I could even fuck her if I wanted to.” He licks his thin lips, peering around me at Skye’s breasts, and I snap.

Lunging at him, I seize his throat and throw him against the wall. Squeezing his neck hard, his heartbeat speeding beneath the pads of my fingers, his face grows redder by the second. His lips move like a guppy dying on the land, and I’d love nothing more than to keep pressing, crushing the fucker’s windpipe and ridding the earth of this miserable human being.

“Don’t do it, Rome. He’s not worth it.” Skye’s voice permeates my consciousness and I loosen my grip, allowing Jagger to sip at the air. He inhales sharply, but I keep him pressed against the wall.

Bending in close enough to count the stray whiskers dotting his face, I deliver my message.

“If you so much as touch a strand of hair on her head, I will end you. Are we clear?”

Jagger stares at me, his beady eyes cold. He doesn’t respond, and I step even closer to him, kicking at his feet.

“Now’s your chance to save your own miserable life. Don’t try me, Jagger. I’ve killed much greater men than you for a whole lot less, I promise you that.”

Maybe the scene in the deli could be an excerpt?

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Other Titles Within this Series

UNMISTAKABLE

Seaglass Beach Series #1

UNSTOPPABLE

Seaglass Beach Series #2

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