Scurrying to the front, she kept her eyes wide, but the only deputies she saw as she shoved through the entrance were the ones already piled in at a booth. Their glances immediately turned her way before smiles starting kicking in. Doing things the way she had probably made Killian and Adam the joke of the day, but she didn’t feel any sympathy.
They’d made her their joke. That reminder hardened her enough to walk past their looks to where Hailey sat slumped over a table. Coming around the edge to drop her purse on booth’s bench seat, Rachel assured Hailey of the one thing she knew for certain.
“It can’t be that bad.”
Cracking an eye, Hailey frowned back. “At least, not as bad as it is for you today.”
“I don’t really want to talk about that,” Rachel muttered as she slid into the booth.
Hailey rose up, her features softening into a sympathetic look right along with her tone. “You sure?”
“I’m not dying, Hailey.” As wretched as she felt, Rachel didn’t have the stamina to talk about it. Nor did she have the patience for pity. “We just broke up, happens all the time, all over the world. It’s not any big news.”
That didn’t erase the concern from Hailey’s gaze, but at least she tried to stiffen her lips into a smile. “Thank God there were no children, right?”
Rachel gave an unwilling laugh at that. “What’s got you thinking procreation? Did Kyle finally manage to lasso you into his bed?” She’d expected an instant “no,” but when Hailey glared back, beginning to slouch back over, Rachel’s eyes went wide. “Oh, my God. You slept with him.”
“It was only the once,” Hailey snapped back as if she’d been accused of a crime. “Okay, maybe twice, but that’s it. It’s over.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Oh, don’t use that tone on me,” Hailey groused, flipping open her menu only to bitch at Rachel from behind it. “I did it. I got it out of my system. I’m moving on.”
“Trust me, there is no moving on from a Cattleman. There is only being left broken in his dust.” Rachel knew that too well.
Hailey peeked out from the top of her menu to cast Rachel another pitying glance. “I’m sorry about Killian and Adam. I know how much you liked them.”
Liked? Try loved, but Rachel kept that response to herself. Instead, she shrugged it off. “They made their decisions. Nothing I can do about that.”
Her cryptic comment caused Hailey to scowl, jumping to the wrong conclusion. “Did they cheat on you?”
Not that she knew. Given they kept too busy with her to stray, Rachel knew about almost every moment of their day. Almost. “I don’t think so, but sex isn’t all there is to a relationship. There also has to be respect and trust and not being bossed around all the time or having them go behind my back to arrange my life to suit them. I mean, seriously, I’m not some damn doll to be dressed and posed at their convenience.”
“Thank you.” Hailey’s menu slapped down onto the table. “That’s just what I was trying to tell Patton earlier, but she’s so ruined by her men. With them wrapped around her little finger, she doesn’t even know how hard it is for the rest of us.”
“Hard?” Rachel snorted. “Try impossible.”
“Absolutely impossible,” Hailey repeated like Rachel had spoken from the gospel. “You know I try, try to get along, but does he? Not likely. He’s always having to have things his way, trying to push me around my own damn shop and intimidating me, tempting me into all sorts of things, but we both know where that ends, don’t we, Rachel?”
Rachel sure as hell did. “Collared and leashed, like a damn dog trained to their command.”
“I’m not a dog.”
Rachel was about to agree when the door to the Bread Box flew open enough to bring the tension back to her stomach. Expecting to see Killian storm in, she was caught off guard by Cole Jackson’s sudden appearance. He might not be her problem, but he was trouble and heading their way fast.
“Uh, Hailey—”
Rachel didn’t have to finish that warning. Cole delivered the rest of it when he slid right into their booth, doing as he pleased. The man kept going until a blink later, he had Hailey pinned up against the wall.
“Hey, Hailey, been a long time since I’ve seen you around here.”
Rachel gave Cole two seconds with that drawl and cocky grin before Hailey gutted him right then and there. Except Hailey had gone white, looking as close to afraid as Rachel had ever seen her. It didn’t last a second before Hailey flushed with anger, her gaze narrowing on the rude man.
“Cole.”
“Hailey.”
“Get out of my booth.”
“I don’t think so, darlin’.”
Now Rachel would really like to see Hailey hit him, especially because Cole had actually tried to touch her. When Hailey only flinched back instead, snarling at him, Rachel began to realize how flustered her friend really was. At least she hid it well, snapping at Cole with a proper edge to her words.
“Don’t touch me.”
“But you like it when I touch you. Don’t you? Just a little?”
“No.”
“You’re a liar, Hailey Mathews.”
Rachel rolled her eyes at that response. How like a Cattleman to be so confident…and blunt.
“It’s those hard, little nipples, darlin’. They give you away.”
Rachel would have kicked him for Hailey, given her friend didn’t seem in any condition to. Hailey sputtered, clearly overwhelmed.
“I think maybe you need to leave us alone, darlin’.”
Now it was Rachel’s turn to gasp at the man’s audacity. Finally appearing to recognize her presence, he thought he could dismiss her? That she’d leave her friend to this predicament? The man must be on drugs. Either that or she had wax clogging her ears.
“Excuse me?”
“There is no excuse for him.” Hailey recouped enough of her spirit to actually try shoving Cole back. Rachel really hoped he fell off the bench and busted his ass. He’d deserve the spanking.
“I’m beginning to see that.”
“Now why do you two got to be so mean? Huh?” Cole Jackson should have been an actor. With those looks and that ability to fake indignation, he’d have made a million. “And you…you don’t even know the story, but you’re going to stick with Hailey just ’cause she’s a woman, right? It don’t matter at all that this little darlin’ here almost got my ass beat. Three against one, that’s the odds this little girl set me up against.”
“You deserved it,” Hailey retorted. “And you’d better get your ass out of my booth before I call up the Davis brothers and get them to issue another invitation to the dance.”
Rachel laughed, a second from cheering her friend on when her world started to slide sideways. Without even giving her a chance to keep upright with the motion, Kyle Harding put his hard-ass hip into her side and pushed Rachel into the corner as he smacked down into the booth.
“Hey! I was sitting here.” What the hell was she, a damn Beanie Baby to be tossed about? Not that anybody paid her any attention.
“I told you to leave Hailey alone.”
Straightening up and matching Kyle’s snarl, Cole squared off with the male interloper in a way that reminded Rachel of two feral dogs about to attack. “And since when do I take orders from you?”
“Do the two of you mind?” Hailey snapped. “I’m sitting right here.”
“I haven’t forgotten about you, darlin’.” Cole curled in on her, brushing her ear with a whisper Rachel didn’t catch. She heard Hailey’s response as clear as day.
“I didn’t issue—”
“I’m going to be putting my hands all over that sweet body, darlin’, and you’re going to be begging.” That came out loud enough for Rachel’s cheeks to flame in embarrassment for her friend. Hopefully, nobody else had caught that rude comment. Nobody but Kyle, and that was bad enough.
“Damn it, Cole,” Kyle spat. Not that anybody paid him any mind.
The on
ly person getting less attention was Rachel, who didn’t even know what to say about the situation blooming around her. Perhaps she should have rethought that whole “nobody makes a scene in public” theory because obviously Cattlemen did.
Thankfully, it wasn’t her scene. Hailey could handle it, as evidenced by her sharp retort. “Maybe you’ll be the one that’s begging.”
Rachel would have advised against provocation right then, especially with Cole curling back in on Hailey with that no-good grin spreading across his face.
“Is that so, darlin’—ahhh!”
Hailey didn’t give him a chance to finish that taunt or corner her. In a flash of motion, her hand shot out and latched onto Cole’s shirt. Correction, Cole’s nipple, and Hailey twisted. Rachel gasped as Cole hollered. The man almost banged his head into the table he doubled over so fast.
“And don’t call me darlin’.”
The only thing that could have shocked Rachel more was Cole’s response. He didn’t play fair but went for even, sending Hailey shrieking back as she smacked his hand away from her chest. Not to be left out of the drama, Kyle shoved the table hard at his friend and, inadvertently, Hailey.
“Damn it, Cole. I told you not to touch her.”
“Why are you sitting next to my woman?”
It was as if hell itself had decided to consume Rachel because this day couldn’t get any worse. Kyle didn’t appear to realize that the devil himself had come to cast his shadow over the table. Kyle might not understand, but Rachel did. She was trapped in a booth, defended only by a fool against the very large, very pissed off deputy glaring down brimstone and fire on their heads.
“What?” Kyle really should have obeyed and not questioned.
“Get out of my way, Kyle. I need to have a word with my woman.”
Oh, the hell with it. Rachel had tried to do things the civilized way, but if Killian wanted a war, then by God, she’d use all her pain and anguish to fuel her rage and give him a battle that would go down in Pittsview’s history forever.
“Don’t you take that tone with me.” Rachel shot that back at Killian over Kyle’s head. “And don’t you call me yours. I’m not a damn dog, Killian.”
“Don’t you worry, darlin’, I’m going to get to you once this prick gets out of my way.”
“Get to me?” Rachel could not believe her ears. The man couldn’t think he’d be dragging her out of here to the nearest bed to be punished, but she had a sick feeling he did. “Listen up, you prehistoric baboon, there isn’t going to be any getting to. I called red light.”
There went Killian’s ears, turning bright red as his nostrils flared. “Don’t start with that light shit again. You’re going to shut up and listen to what I have to say, and when I’m done, you can apologize for being an irrational bitch.”
Rachel shrieked, about ready to crawl over Kyle to get her hands on Killian. “What did you call me?”
“You heard me.” At first, she thought he’d dared to bark at her, but a second later when Kyle went whipping out of the booth and stumbling across the floor, Rachel realized Killian had turned his focus onward. “I said get away from my woman!”
That did it. There could be no hope of escaping the gossip now. The diner had gone silent, and all eyes had turned toward them. Well, Rachel would give them a story to tell. Once she finished, the whole town would be talking about how Killian got his because Rachel would not be the one humiliated at the end of this day.
“Damn it, Killian! I ain’t interested in Rachel.” Kyle shoved himself free of the fist clenched in his shirt.
“And I’m not interested in you.”
Rachel made sure everybody knew who she meant by giving Killian a hard shove in the back as she came out of the booth. He didn’t budge an inch but whipped around fast on her, a snarl already falling from his lips.
“Don’t even start with all that unimpressive whimpering,” Rachel snapped back, leveling a finger at Killian’s chest that actually did have him backing up. “I’m not going to take you back, no matter how much you beg or how big a tantrum you throw. You’ve been dismissed, deputy. Now find the damn door.”
Mouth open, eyes wide, Killian stared back at her in such shock Rachel almost snickered. She’d finally rendered him speechless after all this time. Score one for her, or maybe not. Not when the click of Killian’s jaw snapping shut was drowned out by the shuffle of too many feet across the tile floor. The deputies were rushing their way, and they wouldn’t do that if she wasn’t in a whole lot of trouble.
“You fucked Hailey Mathews, and you didn’t even share!”
No, Rachel certainly hadn’t, but Killian hadn’t yelled that accusation. Cole had. Roaring like the first cannon blast of a battle, his shout heralded the sudden eruption of violence. Shoving Killian out of the way, Cole launched himself at Kyle in a full body tackle that had them falling back to crash through a table full of customers.
As absolute chaos consumed the diner, Killian paused long enough to lean in and growl a warning at her. “We’re not done with this conversation, so you best stay put.”
He really is out of his ever-loving mind. Rachel couldn’t explain his behavior any other way. He couldn’t appear to grasp the concept that she didn’t want to see him. For some strange reason, that actually made her feel better.
Taking a deep breath, Rachel reminded herself that what she should feel was utter annoyance at his arrogance. Then the way he’d dismissed her to join the pile of deputies trying to separate the brawling friends could only be considered rude. He’d come in here and caused half these problems. Now he expected her to wait on him?
“Men,” Rachel muttered in disgust.
Directing that comment at Hailey, she finally turned to find her friend in an apparent state of shock. White as paper, not even appearing to breathe, Hailey stared unblinkingly at the battle knocking down tables and scattering people everywhere. It dawned on Rachel right then what Cole had actually said, what he’d shouted out to the whole world.
With one hand, Rachel snatched up her purse and with the other, she latched on to Hailey. Not even sparing a second to worry over disobeying Killian’s order, she began dragging her friend out of the building. There would be no point in hanging around. If the sheriff wanted a statement, he could come over to Hailey’s and get it himself.
Chapter 31
“Sit down.”
Killian helped Kyle follow that order by giving him a shove into his chair. He sounded too damn happy by Adam’s reckoning. Since he’d shown up at the Bread Box to help lug Cole and Kyle back to the station house while Alex handled things with Heather, Killian had been full of nothing but swagger and bluster.
“Hey,” Kyle objected, fumbling around in his seat. “Don’t you think the cuffs are a little overkill, Killian?”
“It’s Deputy Dog to you, scumbag.” Killian matched that cocky response with an even more dramatic gesture. He whipped out his baton to slap it threateningly, but nobody seemed impressed.
“You know, Killian, I’m going to enjoy when it’s your turn.”
Unfortunately for Kyle, that time had come and now gone. Apparently, Killian should be told, too, because he didn’t appear to have gotten Rachel’s message in the slightest.
“Never gonna happen. ’Cause, you see, I already got my lady, and I don’t plan on humiliating her by screaming out the intimate details of our sex life in a public building before engaging in yet a second brawl this week.”
“Your woman?” Kyle asked with as much apparent doubt as echoed in Adam’s head. “That little brunette that called you a prehistoric baboon? That one?”
“Yeah, she’s feisty, ain’t she?” Killian smirked. “’Course, it won’t take me long to get her settled down, and then she’ll be back to purring. I’m thinking naked, on her knees, and asking me how she can serve her master. You know, those kind of fantasies. The kind you won’t be indulging in with Hailey anytime soon.”
Kyle snorted at that. “Well, ain’t your
shit just all shiny and sweet smelling.”
“Hey.” Killian tilted Kyle’s chin up with the end of his baton. “Consider this, you jackass. My girl is good friends with the girl you’re trying to get with. You know what kind of position that puts me in?”
Kyle jerked back away from the hard wood under his chin and glared.
“That’s right, buddy.” Killian nodded, projecting an arrogance that could only be a cover.
That’s all Adam could figure any of this show was. He’d heard about what Rachel had said. She’d dismissed Killian. There could be no worse blow to a Cattleman’s ego. Killian must be overcompensating. Either that or grief had overwhelmed his sense and caused him to have a psychotic breakdown.
“You just remember that, and maybe if you sit here nice and quiet, I’ll just be suggesting to the judge a little anger management therapy instead of suggesting to Hailey you’ve got serious issues.”
Kyle stilled at that threat. “You wouldn’t.”
Nobody with any sense would tempt Killian with those two words. Killian never could resist a challenge. Adam knew that well enough.
“I’m talking psycho, dude. I’ll have that woman convinced you’re one twitch away from going all postal.” Killian grinned, clearly enjoying his authority over Kyle. “Now sit there and be a good boy, okay?”
“That goes double for you, dumbass.” Adam shoved Cole toward a seat, not bothering to pay attention to how he landed. He’d already forgotten about Cole in his rush to catch up to Killian. His partner had strutted off down the hall, no doubt to go wash up.
That’s where most of the deputies from the Bread Box had gone. As Adam pushed in, their snickering gazes shifted to him from where Killian lurked over a sink. Adam shot them back a hard glare with the clear sign that they should leave before somebody got hurt. All five remained, gleefully tracking his every step until Adam paused out at the edge of the row of lockers.
“Is there something you wanted?”
“Nah,” Brandon answered for the group, “we’re cool.”
That cheerily obnoxious answer had Adam turning. He didn’t want to fight them, but if it came to it, he’d do it. “Then why don’t you be cool elsewhere?”
Penn, Jenny - Rachel's Seduction [Cattleman's Club] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 32