Page 2 of Burn Bag (Owens Protective Services #31)

KAVANAUGH

I watched IKE from across the room, pissed that I even had to be in the same fucking place as the man. Everyone here went behind my back and rescued him when he found himself in a world of hurt. And why? Because of Isla. He meant something to her, and therefore, they all ran to the rescue.

The pencil in my hand snapped in half when he shot that cocky grin at Eli. How dare he try to talk to my teammate and get him on his side.

“Dude,” Lock leaned in and whispered. “You might want to take it down a notch. You’re putting off some major murdery vibes.”

“That’s because I could seriously kill someone right now.”

He clasped a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “I know you hate him, but he’s part of the team. You need to find a way to deal with this anger.”

Deal with my anger.

Didn’t he get it? This went so much deeper than anger. I was hurt. I was fucking depressed. I was…I was struggling to find a reason to stay. IKE took the one good thing from me with a snap of his fingers. Isla was mine, and he fucking knew it.

But she wasn’t really .

I swatted at the voice in my head, irritated that it chose this moment to return and annoy the fuck out of me.

I gnashed my teeth together as I continued to glare across the room, but that stupid fucker wouldn’t even look at me.

Sitting there in his pristine suit with his slicked back hair, you’d think he was in a fucking board meeting.

Who wore a vest under a suit? Didn’t he know it was fucking Kansas, not a wedding?

And we protected people—we didn’t try to sway them into doing the right thing with charm and debonair.

“Fucking prick,” I muttered, not even realizing I said it aloud until everyone at the table looked at me.

IKE smirked, already aware I was talking about him. I could wipe that smirk off his face in two seconds. I shoved to my feet and bared my teeth.

“Outside. Now.”

A collective gasp hummed through the room, but no one moved.

“Are you challenging me to a duel?” IKE asked, flashing that cocky grin.

I didn’t bother responding. I shoved the chair out of my way as I stalked to the door. He’d either follow or he’d prove what a pussy he was. I was nearly to the elevator when Eli and Red caught up with me, both of them watching my six.

“You sure you want to do this?”

“Yes,” I said, not a hint of uncertainty in my voice.

“Kavanaugh, he’s on the team now,” Eli argued. “You need to face that.”

“This has nothing to do with the team.”

It had everything to do with the team. They fucking chose to go rescue him. I told myself it was all temporary, but then he stuck around. He started going out on missions. He fucking slept with Isla every night.

And now she was pregnant.

It gutted me to find out. That was supposed to be my kid. She should be with me. She should be worshipping my cock at night. She should be snuggled in my arms on her front porch. Not this fucking three-piece suit.

The elevator doors opened and I stepped into the fake office building, heading out toward the doom and gloom that was fall in Kansas. Torrential rain hit us hard yesterday and it hadn’t let up yet. But I wasn’t worried about that. Unlike IKE, I had no fucking problem getting a little dirty.

I shoved the door open and stepped out into the rain that hit like sleet on a cold day. IKE was right behind me, already tossing his jacket to the side as he rolled up his pretentious blue sleeves.

“You really want to do this?” he asked.

“Afraid?”

“Only for you,” he grinned.

“Don’t be. There’s a reason I don’t wear a fucking suit.”

“And there’s a reason I do,” he countered.

“Ooh, the trash-talking has begun,” FNG said sarcastically. “Seriously, I haven’t heard a good Momma joke in a while. Can we get to that?”

“Shut the fuck up, FNG. Don’t you have some umbrellas to play with?”

“Turning on your friends. That’s a good one,” he laughed.

I motioned IKE forward, ready to get this shit over with. We would settle once and for all who would win the honor of Isla’s hand.

Not that she was going to choose me just because I kicked this prick’s ass.

“Let’s do this,” IKE said with a sigh.

He was already too fucking bored to be here. That just pissed me off even more. I circled him as the rain pelted me from all angles. I didn’t dare wipe the water from my face. Losing concentration would only make me lose this battle.

He came at me hard out of nowhere, but I was ready, side-stepping his hit. I sniggered just as his other fist rammed into my side. I internally flinched, but countered with my own hard left. I caught the wince as my hit landed exactly where I intended, but he didn’t give in.

Not that I expected him to. He wasn’t going to be that easy to break. The bastard circled me again, flashing those pearly white teeth at me. I wanted to smash them into his fucking face and see what Isla thought of him then.

Despite the mud and the rain, he danced around me on those fucking twinkle toes, showing off just how little this bothered him, which only pissed me off further.

I struck hard, slamming my fist into his face with so much force that his nose crunched beneath my knuckles.

I didn’t take the win and walk away. I followed it up with a hard left to his side, relishing in the feel of his rib cracking.

And then I ended the assault with an upper cut that sent his head snapping back.

A grin spread across my lips as I danced away from him, shaking out my arms in the cool fall air. He staggered on his feet and a flash of victory raced through me, only to be instantly washed away when he stood tall and spit blood into a puddle that quickly turned into a small river of red.

Raising his hands, he motioned me forward, urging me to attack again. And that’s when I knew this battle was long from over.

“Oh shit,” Eli muttered, seeing the same thing I was.

For a fucking grueling hour, we battled back and forth, trading punches in the pouring rain.

We ended up in the mud more than once, and both of us were covered in blood that trailed down our soaked bodies.

Our hits became weaker with every minute that passed, yet neither of us was willing to call the fight.

My pride was on the line and his right to Isla was all he was fighting for.

I was chilled to the bone, barely able to move by the time the hour had passed. My footsteps were slow and lethargic, and all I wanted was a hot soak in the tub. But I would not be the one to call the fight.

Something slapped in the mud in the distance, but I didn’t dare take my eyes off IKE. “What is going on?” Isla shrieked.

I knew that voice anywhere. It haunted me at night. It reminded me of everything I lost, but I didn’t turn to her. I trusted my team to keep her out of it.

IKE charged at me hard in one final attempt to take me down. My legs buckled underneath me at the hit and we both crashed to the ground, mud flying all around us. Our ragged breathing could be heard over everything else as we both struggled to get the upper hand .

I had him in a weak headlock, and he threw punch after punch into my already broken ribs.

“Stop this!” Isla screamed, but neither of us yielded.

“Alright, this is getting pathetic,” Eli muttered. “They’re just lying in each other’s arms. Can we call it now?”

“Fuck you,” I hissed, slamming my fist one last time into IKE’s face.

He finally released me, flopping back in the mud as I did the same. Breathing hard, we both laid there staring up at the sky as the rain continued to assault us.

“I need a fucking soak,” I muttered.

“Same,” IKE said, climbing to his feet. He turned and held out his hand for me, and now that the fight was over, I nodded and took his proffered hand. He pulled me in for a hug that lasted exactly one second before we both backed away.

“What…what the hell was that?” Isla snapped.

“We’re working shit out, gorgeous,” IKE slurred.

“But…” Grunting in frustration, she turned and stomped away, mud splashing everywhere under her feet.

“Beer?” I asked.

He snorted. “Scotch.”

I shrugged, not caring what he drank. I just wanted that fucking hot tub.

We both headed inside with everyone else trailing us.

My bones ached and my body trembled under the weight of the fight we’d just endured.

A hot shower would probably work just as well, but I had the feeling that I’d never get warm again unless I let my bones rest in some hot water.

As soon as we hit the locker room, I stripped out of my clothes and quickly rinsed the mud from every crevice of my body before heading over to the hot tub. Sinking down in the heat, I closed my eyes and finally relaxed.

“This is what I’m talking about,” IKE groaned as he got in across from me. “Fuck, you had to choose a rainy day to have it out.”

“Where the fuck is the beer?” I grumbled, already feeling my eyelids growing heavy. Fuck, I was exhausted, and not just because of the fight .

“So, we’re cool?” IKE asked, breaking the silence.

I nodded, not bothering to open my eyes. “Yeah, we’re cool.”

“Good, because I was taking it easy on you.”

Amusement slithered through me at his words. I felt the weight of his punches. He gave everything he had, just as I did.

“I’m glad it was you,” I admitted, finally peeling my eyes open. “I still fucking hate you, but I’m glad it was you.”

“Because of my pretentious three-piece suit?” he jested.

I stared at him with all seriousness and shook my head. “Because I know you’d fucking die for her.”

He nodded as the smile slipped from his lips. “Well, let’s hope it never comes to that. I would hate for her to go running back into your arms after I just kicked your ass.”

“Fuck you,” I spat. “I had you in the mud, begging for the fight to be over.”

“Only because I was so fucking bored of your pathetic hits.”