Page 26 of Protecting Player #73 (Portland, Settlers #1 | Gridiron Warriors)
T.K
M y brother T.C., Cash, Kace, and I sit outside Brea’s old house, watching Thor enter and slam the door shut. “He’s pissed,” T.C. mutters, a sly grin on his face. If there’s one thing my younger brother loves doing, it’s stirring the fucking pot.
“So?” Kace steps forward, crossing the street before I even make a move.
After arriving home from Las Vegas yesterday, Brea asked me sweetly if we could finally get the rest of her things today. I told her she couldn’t come, but I’d bring the boys, and we’d collect her belongings.
“She asked us not to cause a scene,” I remind Kace, stopping cold when I notice none other than Erika parking in Thor’s driveway.
“The fuck,” I hiss. Nothing good can come from the two of them together.
I had already discovered, from watching my camera footage after she’d gone to sleep, that Thor had hidden his own on Brea’s dresser. The things I saw made my blood boil.
“Erika!” I shout as she exits her car. She’s startled like a deer caught in headlights as I storm closer. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
T.J. was able to submit the paperwork for a restraining order after we met up last week, but he said it could take a week or more to be accepted and presented to her.
“T.K.,” she coos, her shocked face morphing into what she likely considers a sultry expression, but it just gives her the appearance of duck lips. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.” She saunters over to me, heels clacking on the pavement.
When she reaches forward to put a hand on my chest, I step back and say, “Don’t fucking touch me.”
A pout crosses her over plumped lips. “Come on, you don’t really want that other girl. She can’t give you what I can.”
T.C. snorts, and I shoot him a glare before replying, “You’re right, Erika, she can’t.” The woman smiles triumphantly. “She gives me more…better… She’s my wife now.”
Her jaw drops. “What!” she screeches, and I wince.
The front door opens to Thor standing there looking like he had gone ten rounds with a boxer and lost. He has a black eye, a busted lip, and a bruise on his cheek.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” His arms cross defensively as he eyes us up and down like he’s about to start a brawl he has no chance of winning.
“Came for the rest of my wife’s belongings.” The color drains from his face, and his arms drop.
“W-wife?” he stutters, stomping down the few steps leading into the house. “She married you? YOU! When? There was no media coverage. You’re lying!” He gets up in my face and shoves at my chest. Maintaining composure is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
T.C., however, does not have those same issues and slides between us, badge in one hand and cuffs in the other. He tells Thor, “You can calm down, or you can invest in the justice system. The choice is yours.”
Thor frowns, and Erika grips onto his arm with both hands, pretending to be the concerned girlfriend. “Let it go, honey. He’s not worth it.”
He ignores her and focuses on my brother. “What do you mean, invest in the justice system?”
“Sure,” T.C. grins widely. “Bail is a great resource to the system. Especially since you look like a jumper.”
“A jumper?” Erika frowns.
“Someone who would skip out on their bond, forfeiting the bail proceeds to the courts. We like those types of guys. They usually put up a fight when we catch them, too.”
My brother is having a little too much fun with this.
“Enough,” I snap, drawing everyone’s attention to me. “All I want is Brea’s belongings.” I don’t mention knowing about the cameras Thor placed in her room or why T.C. is really with me. He’s collecting the evidence, but in order to do so, we must be invited in for it to be a lawful seizure.
“Fine, whatever. Take her shit. I don’t want to hear from that whore again,” Thor growls, stepping to the side and tripping over the foot I extend so that he falls on his ass in a bush.
We leave him cursing up a storm, and T.C. stops me before we enter Brea’s room. “I need to go first. Where are your cameras?” After telling him, he steps into her personal space, careful to only go for the one we know Thor installed.
He slips on gloves and opens an evidence bag, and I observe as he retrieves the camera from her dresser, where it sits between a jewelry box and a stack of books. He photographs the device and location before sealing and signing the bag.
“All yours,” he says, exiting the house to lock the camera up in the safe in the trunk of his SUV.
Kace comes in with the boxes and a large suitcase that we brought along.
Brea gave me a list of things she wants for our condo and a list to donate to a women’s shelter.
After separating the items and emptying her dresser, closet, and vanity, we start carrying some of the donation boxes out to Cash’s truck.
Brea has instructed that I leave anything not within her bedroom or bathroom, but when I notice the macrame plant hangers and wall hanging, I know they’re hers. Hell, I wouldn’t be shocked if she made them herself.
“What are you doing?” Thor tries to sound angry.
“You telling me you made this?” With my hands full, I glance back and notice his eyes light up at the opportunity to catch me off guard. “Try it, Thor, and I’ll fucking bury you alive.”
“Fuck you.” He storms off to another room, slamming the door and leaving an unsure Erika in the kitchen.
By the time we’re finished, it’s mid-afternoon, and I’m more than ready to return home to my wife. Kace and Cash head to the shelter, while T.C. goes back to the station with the collected evidence to meet up with T.J.
Brea stands in the building lobby, waiting for me as I park in the loading zone. A few of the maintenance guys have waited to help me unload her stuff after paying them handsomely this morning. They deserve more than what they make here, and I ensured they’re comfortable for a few months.
“Any trouble?” Her nervousness makes it easy to forgive myself for the lie I’m about to tell.
“Nope. Thor was even helpful enough to let me know these were yours.” Opening the door, I show her the plant holders and wall decoration, and tears immediately well in her eyes.
“You got them!” Her hands cup her mouth as she turns and buries her face in my chest.
“Why didn’t you tell me they were important to you?” I’d have made sure she had them sooner.
“My grandma and I made them together before she passed away a few years ago. She made a living from selling her macrame creations. I didn’t want to cause any issues with Thor. I just wanted us to part ways.”
“Pup, look at me.” Her head lifts, and our eyes meet. “Don’t leave stuff out. Tell me everything because I’d move heaven and earth for you. You know that, right?” She nods as the tears streak down her cheeks.
“I love you, husband.” I’ll never get tired of hearing those words from her.
“I love you more than anything, my beautiful wife.”
I kiss her senseless, keeping her occupied until everything is unloaded and we can go upstairs alone to show her just how much I worship her.