I grit my teeth and start charging over when she turns around.
“Roman, this is my brother Enzo!”
I stop in my tracks as my stomach drops. My brain fizzles out. Her… brother?
Enzo growls when he spots me standing there. He takes Bailey and shoves her behind his back like he’s protecting my own mate from me.
My bear snarls inside, begging to be released.
“Bailey!” Enzo snaps. “Get in the fire station. Now!”
“Don’t talk to her like that!” I snap back. Adrenaline is surging through me. Every muscle in my body is flexed and ready for violence.
“What is going on?” Bailey asks, looking confused as she yanks her arm out of his grasp and walks between us. “Do you guys know each other?”
Her head keeps whipping from me to Enzo and back again.
“Get in the fire station, Bailey,” Enzo snarls again.
I can’t stand this fucking guy. If his sister wasn’t here, I’d bite his head off.
“What is happening here?” she asks in a panic. Enzo’s face is nothing but cold hard hate. She’s getting nothing from him so she turns to me. “Roman?”
“What are you doing with him?” Enzo snarls.
She turns back to her brother. “He’s my mate.”
Enzo’s face drops. He looks like he’s going to be sick.
Then he looks mad.
Then, murderous.
“Come with me,” I say as I grab Bailey’s arm. Enzo is shaking all over and I can tell his grizzly bear is about to explode out of him.
I throw her over my shoulder and take off running down the street. I hear the ripping sound behind me and then a bloodthirsty roar as Enzo phases into his bear.
I don’t stop to turn around. It’s going to slow me down too much.
My pulse is racing as I pump my legs as fast as they’ll go, slamming my feet into the pavement as I sprint to my pickup truck.
I can hear the grizzly bear’s grunts behind me as he chases us down. There’s no doubt he’s going to try and kill me if he catches up to us. This is no longer a fun bar fight. This is life and death.
I could kill him if I wanted to, but I don’t want to anymore. He’s my mate’s brother and she would never forgive me if I murdered her sibling in front of her.
My truck comes into view and I grab my keys out of my pocket as I run.
Bailey is clinging onto my shirt, too scared to scream. I’m clutching onto the small of her back and even through all of this, I can’t help but realize how close my face is to her pussy.
I reach my truck, yank the door open, toss her in, and leap over the hood. I manage to get behind the wheel just as Enzo’s furious grizzly bear arrives.
“Come on,” I hiss under my breath as I shove the key in and start the engine. I turn the wheel and hit the gas as hard as I can. The grizzly slams into my truck, knocking it onto two wheels for a second before it falls back down.
I floor it out of there and wince when I hear the sound of grinding metal. I glance in my side mirror and see the grizzly’s paw running along the side of my truck, tearing up the metal door with his long black claws.
“What the hell was that?” Bailey asks when we’re flying down the street.
I glance in the rearview mirror and see the bear chasing us, but I quickly leave him in the dust. I take a deep breath as I pull onto the highway and accelerate.
“You know my brother?” she asks again. “Roman!”
“Yes,” I quickly say. “We met a few times. It didn’t go well.”
“Did you guys fight?”
She’s looking at me and the last thing I want to do is cause her pain, but I can’t lie to her. “Yes, we fought.”
She drops her head into her hands and makes a noise that eats at my soul. “How many times?”
“Twice.”
She looks depressed as she stares out the window.
“I can’t have my mate and my brother fighting,” she says. “That won’t work. It can’t be like that.”
I swallow hard as I remember the furious grizzly bear chasing me down. It appears we have a long way to go.
But we’ll get there.
I’ll go anywhere and do anything for her.
Chapter Four
Bailey
“Where are we going?” I ask when I realize we’ve been driving down the highway for quite some time.
“I don’t know,” Roman whispers under his breath. “We can’t go back to my place. Your brother will be waiting for us on the road.”
I sigh, knowing he’s right. Enzo has always been so protective of me. He’s not going to let this go easily.
I start trying to think of what our next move can be, but the thought of being pressed up against this big sexy man beside me keeps taking over my brain.
I suck in a breath as I look at him. His tattooed arm is extended as he grips the steering wheel. I study his inked-up skin as he studies the road. I’ve never thought too much about tattoos on a guy, but I like them on him. Especially the roses around his elbow.
He’s watching the road, his face tight with concentration. I didn’t think I’d end up with a man like Roman. He looks so gruff and unfriendly. Like someone you’d walk across the street to avoid.
He’s a book you can’t judge by its cover or else you’re going to miss all of the magic inside.
If you look past the rough (and sometimes scary) exterior, he has a good heart and I can tell he’s going to treat me right.
I just wish that my brother could see that too.
He turns to me and his lip twitches up in a sexy grin. I
