Page 29 of Shared by my Ex’s Best Friends (Twisted Desires #2)

Chapter twenty-nine

ETHAN

I t all happens fast.

Too fast.

I see Jake tense from across the garden—shoulders tight, jaw locked, that split-second of stillness right before everything explodes. I know that look. I’ve seen it on the ice, in bar fights, in locker rooms. It means move .

One second, Nick’s grabbing Maya’s wrist like he owns her, and the next, Jake’s there—lethal, cutting through the noise like a warning bell.

And then Nick throws the first punch.

“Shit.”

I’m already moving. My drink hits the grass behind me as I weave through the crowd, cutting past guests who’ve started to notice the tension spiking like electricity in the air.

I see Liam reach Maya first—his hand on her elbow, pulling her back, murmuring something low and steady in her ear. She doesn’t budge.

Her eyes are locked on the two figures disappearing behind the hedges, her face pale and stunned.

My jaw tightens. “Stay with her,” I tell Liam as I pass, and then I’m sprinting after Jake.

By the time I round the corner, they’re full-on brawling.

Jake’s holding his own, but Nick’s wild—sloppy and mean, all boiling ego and rage. His movements are erratic, fueled by something deeper than just too much whiskey.

This isn’t about tonight. This is every crack in his pride, every inch of control he’s ever lost, every part of Maya that slipped through his fingers and landed somewhere better.

Jake ducks a punch and lands one in return, sending Nick stumbling into the side of a shed with a grunt. Gravel sprays underfoot. The dull thud of fists against flesh echoes off the wooden slats of the house.

I move in just as Nick recovers and launches at Jake again, spitting blood and venom.

“You think you’re some goddamn saint?” Nick snarls, staggering but vicious. “All of you—pretending like you’re above it. Like you’re not all just trying to get into her pants.”

I step in fast, shoving Jake back with a forearm to his chest. He doesn’t fight me—his chest is heaving, his knuckles bleeding, but he trusts me enough to pause. For now.

“It’s over,” I snap at Nick. “Back off.”

But Nick’s eyes lock on mine like I just lit the match myself. His pupils are blown wide, wild with fury and something uglier. He sneers, staggering as he throws his arms out like he’s preaching to an invisible crowd.

“You too, huh?” His voice is ragged, bitter. “Falling for her little act? That sweet, innocent girl act? The wide eyes. The soft voice. The whole wounded bird thing.”

I take a step forward.

“God, she’s got you all wrapped around her perfect little finger like a good little whore.”

My blood turns to ice.

Jake exhales sharply behind me, his hand twitching like he’s barely holding himself back. But I don’t need him to move.

Because I already have.

I close the distance in a blink and swing hard, my fist slamming into Nick’s jaw with a sickening crack , sharp and final. There’s a pop, a grunt, and then he’s falling.

Dead weight.

He hits the gravel hard, out cold, limbs crumpled beneath him like a puppet with its strings cut. Blood runs from his lip, pooling against the stones.

Behind me, Jake’s hand clamps onto my arm, yanking me back. His eyes are wide with alarm. “Ethan—”

“I’m fine,” I grit out, though my knuckles are already swelling, the skin split clean across the ridge of bone.

Pain pulses hot and angry with every heartbeat, but it’s nothing compared to the fire still roaring in my chest. But none of it compares to the guilt tearing through me.

I was supposed to be the calm one. The protector. And I let rage speak louder than reason.

Nick’s body lies sprawled across the gravel, face slack and bloodied like someone finally punched the venom out of him.

A muffled gasp breaks the quiet—someone behind us. Maybe more than one person. I hear the scrape of shoes on gravel and the high-pitched rustle of whispers starting to swell.

We don’t have long.

Liam jogs over, breath tight. His voice is low, urgent. “She’s not okay.”

That’s all it takes.

I don’t ask questions. I don’t need to.

Jake and I move fast, instinct guiding us now. He grabs my shoulder, turning me away from Nick and toward the garden’s edge, the side path that loops behind the venue.

We round the corner and she’s already there. Frozen beneath the lantern light, staring at nothing. Her arms are wrapped around herself, her posture small. She looks lost in a sea of wedding lights and too-loud music.

Her dress is rumpled. Her hair’s slipping from its pins. Her eyes—

God, her eyes.

They’re wide, glassy, not blinking. Like she’s somewhere else completely.

“Maya,” I say gently as I step in close, lowering my voice like it might reach her where nothing else has.

She turns toward me, but it’s like she’s not really seeing me. Like she’s looking through me instead of at me. Her lip trembles, and I see the smudge of Nick’s handprint on her wrist—red and ghostlike.

My chest squeezes.

“I’m so sorry,” I whisper, voice breaking around the words.

Jake’s right behind her, his hand settling at the small of her back. The quiet is thick with everything we’re all carrying.

Liam’s already scanning the crowd, eyes sharp. “Let’s move. Now.”

Liam leads the way toward the gravel parking lot out back. Jake and I flank Maya on either side, close but careful, creating a shield without making it obvious.

The noise behind us swells—someone calls Nick’s name, sharp and alarmed.

Perfect. Let them find him. Let them waste their breath dragging him off the gravel and figuring out what the hell just happened.

Maya doesn’t say a word as we walk. Her steps are slow, unsteady, but she doesn’t resist. Her whole body shakes with the adrenaline still pouring through her, and I hate that we didn’t get to her faster. I hate that we even had to.

When we reach the truck, Jake opens the passenger door and gently helps her in like she’s something breakable.

He doesn’t rush her. He just waits, hand steady on her elbow, eyes soft with something like protectiveness—or maybe reverence.

Maya doesn’t protest. She climbs in without a sound. But just before she disappears inside, I catch her hand.

She flinches at first. Just slightly. But she doesn’t pull away.

“I lost it back there,” I say, my voice low and raw, so only she can hear. “I shouldn’t have hit him. But I won’t let anyone talk about you like that. Not ever. Not in front of me.”

Her fingers curl around mine. Tentative at first. Then firm.

She lifts her gaze, meeting mine for the first time since everything exploded. There’s something there—something fierce and shining through the fog. She leans forward slowly, like she’s testing gravity, and then presses her forehead to my chest

It only lasts a second.

But it says everything.

“I know,” she whispers. “Thank you.”

Jake climbs into the driver’s seat. Liam climbs in on the other side. I get in beside her, still watching her as I close the door.

Her hands are tucked in her lap now, twisting the fabric of her dress. She stares out the windshield, her expression unreadable, but there’s color in her cheeks again.

There’s life in her.

We drive away from the chaos—tires crunching over gravel, headlights cutting through the night.

But I can still hear Nick’s voice in my head.

And I swear to God, if he ever comes near her again…He won’t walk away next time.