Quinton releases Jacob’s neck and turns to the red-faced bartender. His name is Dex and he’s no one to mess around with.
“We were just trying to clear some trash from your bar, that’s all,” Quinton says diplomatically. I guess he thinks that since he’s the fire chief, he can get away with whatever bullshit his crew tries to pull.
“This is the second time you guys go at it in my bar,” Dex growls. “If there’s a third time, I’m taking you all out.”
There’s no doubt that either crew can take him four on one, but none of us want to be banned from the only bar in town. That threat is more terrifying than the threat of getting your ass whooped.
“All right,” Quinton says as he lifts up his palms. “We’ll be cool.”
Dex turns to Jacob with a heated glare.
“We’re just trying to have a nice relaxing night,” Jacob says with an innocent shrug. “We’ll get back to our beers if these firecunts stay away from us.”
They all turn their attention to me. I still have Enzo’s head pinned against the table and I really don’t want to let this prick go.
“Fine,” I mutter as I release him.
He lunges up and grabs my beer. “Fuck you!” he shouts as he throws it in my face.
Before the beer even hits my skin, chaos erupts all around me. Cameron and Grey start throwing hard bombs at each other, Jacob and Quinton are grappling as Dex struggles to break them apart, and Easton has his arm wrapped around Brees’ head in a headlock as they crash into a table full of young men who look eager to join in.
Enzo tackles me as the beer hits my face. I grunt as he slams his shoulder into my stomach, lifts me up, and slams me into the ground. We’re both throwing fast and furious punches, but he’s on top so his are landing harder.
My bear lets out a furious snarl as he tries to claw his way out.
Fuck off. I got this.
It’s hard enough to fight this guy from the bottom without having to hold back my raging bear as well.
All I hear is screaming and swearing and chairs breaking all around us as I fight with everything I have. I manage to swing my leg up and wrap it around Enzo’s shoulder as he leans back to deliver a hard punch. I wrench my leg down and yank him off. I’m up before he knows it.
I get a glimpse of the bartender Dex throwing Easton and Brees out. He’s got one of them in each hand, gripping them by the back of their necks.
Enzo pops up in front of me and I grit my teeth as I let my fists fly. I hit him hard twice in the face and he follows up, cracking me in the jaw. Pain shoots through my head and momentary stars flash between us, but I shake it off and let him have it again.
Cameron slams Grey into the table beside us, shattering it to pieces. Everyone is rushing out of the bar.
Quinton breaks a beer mug on the back of Cameron’s head before turning back to Jacob to continue the mutual beating.
“I want you out of my fucking town,” Enzo hisses as we circle each other with our fists raised.
“We’re not going anywhere,” I growl back at him. “We’re staying here forever. Just to piss you fuckers off.”
He lunges forward with a savage roar, but he’s stopped in mid-air. Dex is grabbing the back of his neck.
I grunt as a strong hand grabs the back of my neck and practically lifts me off my feet. I knew polar bear shifters were strong, but holy fuck, Dex is a beast.
He half carries us, half drags us to the entrance of the bar and pushes us out. It’s late at night and a few dozen people are outside watching the commotion.
“Thirty days,” Dex grunts. “Both crews are banned for thirty days. You fight again in here and it’s permanent.”
He throws us to the pavement and turns back inside to get another pair.
Almost immediately, we’re throwing punches at each other again in the parking lot. I crack Enzo in the temple with a hard roundhouse that makes his legs wobble. But just as I lunge in to finish him off, he somehow spins and manages to throw a flying knee in my face.
Blood spurts out of the top of my nose, my eyes water, and pain rockets through my brain. I get a little woozy, but I recover fast. My bear is itching to get out.
I’m almost about to release him when the sirens start ringing down the street. It’s the Sheriff and his crew. More bear shifters…
And they won’t be on our side. The police and fire department are friends and we’re just the trouble-making outsiders. It doesn’t matter that we were sitting there minding our own business when they came over. The shifters in blue are not going to take our word for it.
I catch Jacob’s eye. Easton pulls the truck around and Jacob, Cameron, and I leap into the flatbed.
Enzo and I are glaring at each other as Easton pulls the truck through the back way and speeds off down the street.
My bear slinks back down now that the fight is over. He’s pissed that I didn’t let him out, but the ban would have been permanent if we would have let the fur fly.
“What happened to your nose?” Cameron asks with a laugh when he looks at me.
I touch my face and it’s slick with blood. The cut must be nasty if it hasn’t closed up by now.
“What do you think happened?” I ask as I yank my shirt off, press it into a ball, and hold it against my nose. “I was in a bar brawl.”
Jacob’s hand looks
