Page 16 of Idaho

Some man, obviously someone connected to the guys here, as he was wearing a leather vest like the rest of them, was on Thomas's back, trying to subdue him. The man Thomas had thrown through the door groaned on the floor, shoving himself up to his hands and knees as he shook his head.

I realized my mistake about the time that Idaho moved toward Thomas and yet another man burst through the door, taking Thomas down by the knees. I'd forgotten to let my long-time protector, and friend, know that I'd been rescued. He thought these were the men who had harassed us on the street. These men probably thought he was with the others as well. There was an app on my phone that allowed Thomas to track my whereabouts. One of the concessions I made when I moved in with the girls. That way he could always find me if needed.

The glint of metal off Idaho's gun made my heart clench in fear, but it also finally snapped me back into the present. I'd been watching everything happen from the minute Idaho beat up the man who'd tried to take me away. I had been a spectator outside of my life rather than being inside my own body.

I kicked my heels off, shoved off the bar stool, and ran toward them. "No! Stop!" My feet flew across the hardwood floors, and I side stepped so that I shoulder checked Idaho in case he planned to use the gun. His curses didn't even slow me down, though slamming into him almost knocked me on my butt. I scrambled forward, throwing myself on top of the man who was still on top of Thomas as they all struggled on the floor.

"The fuck!" The man shouted as I landed on top of him and started hitting him anywhere I could.

He rolled off Thomas, taking me with him. I grunted when I landed on the floor with him pinning me down. Struggling, I glared up at him. "He's my friend," I wheezed, trying to fix the situation. More yelling and I could vaguely hear Jo's loud voice trying to explain that we knew Thomas.

"Wait," the man on top of me said, a look of confusion crossing his face. "He's with you?" He wasn't hurting me, but he had me pinned so that I couldn't move. His dark brown eyes were narrowed on my face.

There wasn't a chance for either of us to answer, because he was jerked up and off me, and tossed backward. His arms pinwheeled as he tried to catch his balance. "What the hell, Idaho?" he barked.

Angry hazel eyes filled my vision. This man had the face of an angel. A fallen angel. Just being on the receiving end of his glare made my heart race in my chest. His hands reached out and plucked me off the floor as though I weighed no more than a feather. "What the fuck were you thinking, Duchess? You could have gotten hurt."

A quick glance over his broad shoulders assured me that the fight was over. Thomas was unharmed and climbing to his feet. I blew out a breath of relief. It would have been my fault if something had happened to him. Thomas was ten years older than me and had been working for my family since I was eight. I knew his family very well and I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself if something happened to him because of me. "Thomas is my… cousin," I stuttered out, remembering the cover story I'd told Jo.

A huge group of men were surrounding us now, they'd all been about to jump into the fight. Thomas was a huge man, but so were the rest of these guys. There was no way he'd have been able to fight them all, though he would have tried.

"Eva," Thomas said, giving Idaho a sidelong glance before coming to my side. "Are you okay?"

"She's fine," Idaho growled.

I'd never heard a guy sound so much like an animal before. The look in his eyes put me in mind of the rabid dog who'd made his way on to our estate grounds. Despite that, Idaho made me feel safe. Like he was my personal rabid dog. He'd protected me. He didn't even know me, but he'd saved me from that man on the streets. I put my hand on Thomas's shoulder. "I'm so sorry. I meant to call. These gentlemen saved us and brought us here so we'd be safe."

"Gentlemen," the guy I'd jumped on top of repeated with a snort. "That's downright offensive, see if I ever fight your cousin again."

I frowned at him, but the glittering humor in his eyes made me relax. "I'm so sorry I attacked you," I told him.

"No need for apologies, Sweetheart," he drawled, winking at me. "If your...cousin...hadn't crashed through our gates like a bat out of hell we would have been a lot more reasonable."

"You would have," the man who'd taken Thomas down said, folding his arms over his chest.

"Fuck off, both of you," Idaho told him.

"Maybe we want to get to know your friend," the first man said, with a patronizing smile aimed Idaho's way.

"Toxic, enough."

My eyes found the authoritative voice and my eyebrows winged upward. I looked between the man and Idaho. Identical twins. The new man stepped forward. "I'm Lockout," he said. "You've met my brother and Static. That's Toxic, Butcher, and the guy still laying over there is Dash." His eyes locked onto Thomas. "We going to have any more trouble out of you?"

Thomas looked from man to man, assessing the room, then back at me. I silently pleaded with him. "Apparently not." Not much phased Thomas. "I was just making sure La-" He broke off with a grunt when I elbowed him in the ribs for almost calling me Lady Desmet.

Now everyone was staring at me. A grin was spreading over Toxic's face. "I really like her," he declared. "Can we keep her?"

I couldn't help the laugh that slipped out. It had been such an intense last couple of hours, his humor was helping me relax.

"She's not a fucking puppy, Toxic," Lockout sighed.

"And she's not yours to keep," Idaho added with a murderous look. His hand wrapped around my arm and he pulled me closer toward him.

"Excuse me," I hissed, looking up at him. "I'm grateful for all your help, but what I don't appreciate is that you keep dragging me along behind you. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself." His demeanor was bothering me; I just couldn't place why. He was high handed. It sort of reminded me of my father in that way. Wanting me to do everything he commanded. It didn't matter that when he aimed those intense eyes my way my knees shook a little. He didn't get to tell me what to do and force me to stand where he wanted me. I smacked at his hand when he didn't let me go.

One eyebrow rose and his expression turned smug. It made me want to wipe the look off his face, but I refrained, barely. "Is that so?" he asked, voice deep and mocking. "It didn't look like you were taking care of yourself when I showed up."

Jerking out of his grasp, I planted my hands on my hips as I glared up at him. "That's not fair."