Olivia Cunning - Wicked Beat

“You used to be lovers!”

“So what? We can still be friends.”

Eric scoffed. “Let me tell you something about guys. Once they’ve fucked you, they can never just be your friend. They might say it and pretend, but every time they look at you they’re thinking about how great your pussy feels around their dick.”

She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “That’s probably true for someone like you, but Isaac’s different.”

“Someone like me? Your perfect pansy of a doctor is better than me, is that what you’re saying?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“But you implied it. Get out of my car.”

She was too stunned to move. “What?” she breathed.

“You fuckin’ heard me. Go back to him if you want him so much.” He leaned across her body and opened the door. “Get out!”

“Eric?” She’d never known him to behave this way. It made absolutely no sense. She wasn’t even mad anymore. Just confused. “I don’t want him that way. Why are you being like this?”

Staring out the dark windshield, he said, “Because I don’t want to be with you anymore.”

Her heart caught in her throat until she thought she’d suffocate.

He started the car and gunned the perfectly tuned engine.

“Well? What are you waiting for?” he asked, still not looking at her.

Her heart was breaking, and he was being an insufferable asshole.

If he didn’t want her, fine. It wasn’t like she didn’t know how to be alone. She climbed out of the car and slammed the door. He took off so fast, the Corvette was nothing but an emerald green blur. She knew she shouldn’t have helped him fix it. He was going to kill himself in the damned thing. At the moment, she wasn’t sure she cared.

Eric’s chest was so tight he was going to suffocate. He punched the accelerator and drifted around a corner with skidding tires. From nowhere, a little black dog darted in front of his car. Gritting his teeth, Eric slammed on his brakes and slid to a screeching halt. Heart hammering, he peered over the hood, afraid of what he’d see. The dog trotted unharmed onto the sidewalk with its tail between its legs and ears drawn back, eyeing the car warily.

Eric released a breath of relief and eased forward at a speed more reasonable for a residential area. Why was he so pissed off? And so hurt? And why had he kicked Rebekah out of his car? Had he really broken up with her? Ten minutes ago, he’d told her mother that he wasn’t stepping aside for Isaac. Isn’t that what he’d just done?

Stepped aside for Isaac?

“Fuck,” he growled. He had to go back. Eric drove around the block and headed to the house. Rebekah was still standing in front, but she wasn’t alone. Isaac was holding her securely in his arms, one hand smoothing her silky hair. Isaac caught sight of Eric and grinned. He tilted Rebekah’s head back and kissed her deeply. The middle finger Isaac extended in Eric’s direction behind Rebekah’s back was more provocation than Eric could handle.

Eric was out of the car and crossing the yard in a heartbeat.

He wrenched Rebekah away from Isaac’s lips. Her tear-streaked, startled face scarcely had time to register before Eric’s fist was flying.

It connected with Isaac’s nose, knocking him flat on his ass. Eric’s satisfaction was short-lived. Rebekah dropped to her knees beside Isaac, who had both hands cupped over his nose, trying to clear his vision by forcing his eyes open and closed several times.

“Oh my God,” Rebekah cried. “Are you okay, Isaac?”

“Get up, you fucking pansy,” Eric said. “I’m not done kicking your ass yet.”

Isaac didn’t get up, but Rebekah leapt to her feet and turned on Eric, spitting mad. “What in the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

“He was kissing you.”

“So that gives you a right to punch him?”

Uh, duh. “Well… yeah.”

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You need to leave.”

“But I came back for you.”

“Leave!”

“Call the cops,” Isaac said, climbing to his feet and brushing off the seat of his slacks. His perfect nose was still perfect, though swollen. Not even bleeding. “He’s obviously unstable.”

“I’ll fuckin’ show you unstable,” Eric said. Before he could throw another punch, Rebekah stepped between them.

She squeezed her eyes shut, as if expecting him to actually hit her.

After a tense moment, she opened her eyes and took a deep breath. “I asked you to leave, Eric. I’m not sure who you are right now, and you’re scaring me.”

Scaring her? Eric immediately relaxed his stance. “Rebekah?”

He’d never hurt her. Not for anything. She had to know that.

“Good-bye, Eric. You need to cool off before you do something you regret.” She grabbed Isaac by the sleeve and pulled him into the house, leaving Eric alone on the front lawn.

Eric stood there, oscillating between anger and anguish. It took him several minutes to notice that his unattended car was rolling down the street.

Rebekah watched Eric chase his car down the road. He caught it, climbed inside, and sped off.

“Is he gone?” Isaac asked.

She nodded, the tears she’d been holding in check flowing freely now.

“Good riddance.”

“Why did you kiss me, Isaac?”

“I think that’s fairly obvious, angel,” he murmured. He cupped her face and brushed her tears away with his thumbs. “I love you.”

That was the last thing she wanted to hear at the moment. “Isaac.”

“Will you marry me?”

She stared at him in disbelief. Marry him? Was he serious?

Eric had been driving on autopilot for almost an hour. He didn’t even know where he was going until he turned into Jace’s driveway.

He parked beneath the portico and sat there trying to collect his scattered thoughts.

Maybe he should just go home. The thought of being in that big fairy-tale house by himself was intolerable. He climbed out of the car and rang the doorbell. Aggie answered in full dominatrix regalia.

Had he not been so distraught, he’d have probably gotten a stiffy and started panting. Thing was, he was already panting. His only other option seemed to be crying, and that wasn’t going to happen.

“Eric?” Aggie said. “I thought you were a client. I was about to hit you for not going to the back door.”

There was probably a quip he should be spouting, but nothing came to mind. “Is Jace here?”

“Yeah, come in.” Aggie ushered him inside. She appraised him in the lighted entryway. “Sweetie, you look like shit. Is something wrong?”

“Had a little fight.”

“With Reb?”

He nodded.

She patted his back. “It will all work out.”

Eric wasn’t so sure about that, but he nodded again. The doorbell rang. A chime that sounded like a doomsday theme.

“That’s for me,” Aggie said. “Jace!” Aggie called into the house.

“Eric’s here!”

Jace came into the foyer carrying his black tuxedo cat, Brownie, on one shoulder. His smile of greeting faded when his gaze landed on Eric’s face. “Dude, you look like shit. Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know.”

Jace patted Aggie’s butt as she sauntered by. “Do you have your panic button, babe?”

She cupped his cheek and gifted him with a lingering kiss.

“Yeah. I told you subs aren’t a threat. I don’t know why you worry about me so much.”

“Yes you do.”

She smiled and slapped Jace’s ass with a resounding crack. He tensed, his lip curling with primal desire.

“Get Eric a drink,” she said. “He looks like he can use one.”

Jace approached Eric and handed the cat to him. Eric held the creature at arm’s length and stared into her appraising amber eyes. She batted a beckoning paw at him and he drew her closer.

She sank a set of claws into his shirt and pulled herself closer. For a second, Eric thought the cat was going to bite him, but she rubbed her face against his jaw and purred. “Browww wwwooownnnn,” she meowed. Eric chuckled and cuddled her against his chest like a baby.

He followed Jace deeper into the house, while Brownie batted at the lock of blue hair that rested against his collarbone.

Eric expected Jace to lead him to the family room, which had a well-stocked bar, but he led him into his home gym.

“Do you have a secret stash of booze in here?” Eric asked.

“You don’t need booze.”

“I beg to differ.”

“You need to hit something.”

“Or someone.” Though he’d already hit a certain someone, and it hadn’t solved his problems, only made them worse.

“Sit,” Jace said, indicating a bench along the wall. He picked up a roll of white tape and grabbed Eric’s free hand to tape Eric’s knuckles. “Talk.”

Eric released Brownie, who went to stare at herself in a floorto-ceiling mirror along one wall. Eric allowed Jace to tape his hands and wrists while he told him what had happened at the Blake residence.

“Do you think she still cares about him?” Jace asked when Eric reached the end of his story.

“Looked like it.”

“I’d have hit him too.”

“You would have?”

Jace nodded. “But not in front of her.”

“Too late to fix that part.”

“Yeah. So now you’ve got to play it cool. Get the aggression out of your system so you don’t do it again.” Jace walked over to a large punching bag suspended from the ceiling. “What’s his name again?”

“Isaac.”

Jace used the tape to make a letter I on the punching bag. “I’ll leave you two alone,” Jace said. “I’ll be in the family room. Come find me after you kick his ass.”