Page 4 of Chase’s Kind of Trouble (Obsessive Protectors #3)

FOUR

Chase

“No!” My yell is loud enough to rattle windows. “You bastard!”

He will not touch her! Propelled by fury, roaring like a madman, I leap toward the car.

This is the moment everything becomes deadly clear. Time slows. I’m as calm as a deadly ocean inside as I reach into the driver’s side window, my hand finding purchase on his throat.

The cold sweat that was on my skin is gone. In its place is a river of venom and fire. “You’re a dead man.”

My beautiful waitress lets out a startled shriek. “Oh god!”

Traumatized, shrinking back, her face contorts beneath the stain of tears. Strands of her hair are disheveled like someone has been ripping at it.

My stomach fills with fury, turns completely inside out.

I want BLOOD!

“Who are you?” she stammers.

I’m a bull. I’m a wild bear. I’m fucking anything but human right now.

Breathe. Just fucking breathe. You’ve got her now. Don’t scare her.

Coughing, I clear my throat so I don’t sound like a death-metal singer. “Get out of the car, sweetheart. I’ve got him under control.”

As if I’ve released her from a trance, she scrambles for the handle and stumbles into the street, slamming the door.

My focus returns to the corpse-to-be.

Gurgling sounds fill the air inside the car.

“Now it’s just us. Man to man,” I grit out between clenched teeth, sweat dropping from my temple, hitting the car door between us.

Help! he mouths silently as he claws at my hands, jagged nails tearing at my already scarred skin.

His gasps for air might as well be birds chirping.

He was going to hurt my girl.

My. Girl.

“You like roughing up women, little man? How does this feel? You like someone bigger than you treating you rough?”

He struggles against my hold as my head fills with her. Her scent. Her pretty gaze glued on mine, awareness swirling behind them when she knew I was there to keep her safe.

I swallow hard as I picture the delicate line of flowers from her wrist to her elbow.

My girl.

I’ve already decided whoever the gorgeous creature is that she’s mine. My future.

My future wife.

I’m snapped back into my body…the one that’s asphyxiating her attacker when she grabs my arm.

“Stop!” She begs through tears, voice torn to shreds, eyes begging me so desperately that a sharp pain pierces my sternum. “Don’t kill him.”

“I must make sure?—”

“Crash!” Someone behind me shouts my call sign, a surefire way to get my attention when nothing else will. “Keep your head, man!”

My head? My head is in the right fucking place. In the murder zone.

“Step back, honey. I’m gonna deal with this fucker so you never have to again.”

Her hand falls away, a look of disbelief clearing the tears from her gaze.

“You piece of shit.” Breathing fire, I go back to my mission and wring and wring, waiting on his final breath. “You scared her.”

“Crash! Stop!”

Before the man codes in my palm, there are hands all over me. Voices. People grabbing him, tackling me, pulling us apart.

“No!” I bellow, panting, trying to throw them off of me, until Kane gets in my face and shakes me by the shoulders.

“Chase. Go to her. Go.”

No. Must. Destroy.

“Go!” He shoves me with all of his body-weight, forcing me toward the restaurant’s back door. “Get your shit together before you talk to her. She needs you. We’ve got the bastard and don’t worry, we won’t be easy on him.”

I’m suddenly acutely aware of everything. The big fucking picture. No more furious rage. No more crashing fury rampaging my insides.

She needs me.

Me. No one else.

Chest pumping, pulse still in the danger zone, I search the darkness for her, burning up with a different kind of fuel. This kind burns deep in the pit of my body. My loins. My essence.

When I see her, every hair on my body stands up.

God. Help. Me.

I was going to stay away. Wasn’t going to taint her innocence with the likes of me. But that’s done.

This is happening.

She’s crying again. Head bent, wrecked braid of hair on her shoulder. One of my team’s girls is comforting her, but I barely notice the other woman.

My angel looks small. Broken. Destroyed.

Possessiveness rears up inside of me, a giant beast that can’t be restrained. There is no hope for taming the animal I will become with this woman.

I already know this as truth.

She flinches when she realizes someone is approaching, but Kane’s girl soothes her. “It’s okay, it’s just Crash. No one will hurt you.”

“Ever again,” I vow.

Our gazes lock, the waitress and me, and something palpable pulses the air between us. Alive already. Filled with promises.

“Babe.” One word rasps out of me around the rock lodged in my throat. I stride into the pool of light from a window above, trying to stop myself from dragging her into my arms. “What did he do to you?”

“He—” she nervously rubs her hands down the small apron tied around her waist. “Just scared me.”

“Don’t say just. He scared you. That motherfucker scared you. Now he’s gonna pay.”

I won’t let myself move. I’m too jacked, too desperate to get her in my arms. But the way I feel right now…I’ll scare her more. That’s the last thing she needs.

“Crash,” Eagle says gently, “this is Celeste. I told her you saw that she was upset and followed her out the exit.”

“You did?” The girl…Celeste, asks quietly, her tear-soaked eyes rising to meet mine.

If I wasn’t already in love with her, I would be in this instant.

“I did. Crash is my call sign, call me Chase, please.”

I sound…scary.

My voice is raspy and rough, barely functional. Like I’ve been living in a cave and just emerged back to civilization after not talking to another human in years.

That’s not far from the truth because I haven’t talked to a woman I’m in love with ever before.

But every cell inside my brain is working triple-time.

Her name is Celeste. And it’s a beautiful name, just like the woman with the pale blue eyes, the soft peach skin, and the dark mane of hair she always keeps braided in a thick tail.

“Why would you do that?”

“Hey, I’m going to leave you two alone to talk.” Eagle interrupts as she squeezes Celeste for a quick hug. “I’ll be right over there if you need me.”

Eagle gives me a look. One that says a thousand words. A warning: do this right. Don’t be a scary beast. Don’t come on too strong…

Copy. Got it.

I tip my chin and she walks away. When we’re alone, I have to fight for oxygen, like we’re locked in a private vacuum chamber, just us.

Folding her arms around herself, Celeste nods and watches Eagle go. When we’re alone she asks again, “Why did you do that?”

Every cell in my body spins and locks on in her direction. Billions of antenna receiving her signals.

How is she so…tiny. So perfect?

She looks even smaller now that I’m hovering over her.

“You were upset,” I offer, careful to stay utterly still. “I…was worried.”

Glancing everywhere but at me, she bites hard on her lower lip, fresh moisture coating her eyes.

“But…” A rough swallow moves her delicate throat as she struggles. “You’re a stranger.”

When I touch her face, just brushing my thumb over the rise of her cheek to catch a tear, my heart catapults up ward.

Remember, I have to play this right. Which is why I tell her the truth.

Only the truth. Forever.

“You might not know me, but I’ve been watching you for months.”