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He pointed his chin at my stomach. “You need to stop playing these games and come home. You’re carrying the Ortiz family heir in your belly there. This Podunk shithole town is not the place for an Ortiz boy to grow up.”
I knew what I was going to say before I opened my mouth, and it was going to feel good. “The baby isn’t yours, Luis. I got pregnant after I finally found out you were one big, walking, talking STD waiting to happen. Cheating on me every chance you got.”
He sneered at me. “Nice try. You’re trying to piss me off. You’d never jump into bed with another man so soon. No way you could move on from me so fast.”
“You’ve got a major ego problem, Luis. You aren’t God’s gift to women, even though that’s how you live your life. Besides,
I had a DNA test done. You are one-hundred percent not the father. There is nothing between us, no connection. You can go home and get out of my life once and for all.”
Luis’s face went red, and he looked angrier than I’d ever seen him. He jabbed his finger in my direction. “What a fucking whore. Spreading your legs to the first damned meathead who whips his cock out. Fucking slut. I was right to fuck your car up. When I found out you were running around with some jackass cocksucker.” He laughed. “You really downgraded baby, you’ll never get a man like me again.”
From a car behind Luis, three more men got out and slowly walked toward us. I didn’t let it show, but I was getting scared. I didn’t really know what a shifter could handle, but four guys versus Steff didn’t seem like very good odds.
With his men now at his back, Luis said, “You aren’t even worth my time. Besides, you’ll come crawling back eventually.”
“Don’t hold your breath, asshole,” I said. “Or, on second thought, you should hold your breath. A half hour sounds just about perfect. Then you’ll be out of my life for good.”
Luis held up a finger. “Watch your mouth, bitch. I’ll fuck you up. Make that pretty face not so pretty anymore, then you’ll regret playing me.”
Steff stepped toward Luis, getting right up against him, almost chest to chest. That shocked Luis. As though he couldn’t remember the last time someone had invaded his personal space.
Steff leaned in, his forehead nearly touching Luis’s. “
You need to watch
your mouth. Understand?”
Luis found his footing again and shoved his chin forward. “Who the fuck are you? And what are you going to do about anything?”
Steff growled, deep in his chest, an inhuman terrifying sound. Luis and his three goons took a fearful step back, and a
flash of fear crossed their faces. “Ask your boys who were at the mansion about what my friends and I can do.”
I had no idea what the guys had done at the mansion that night, but it had looked like a war zone. None of Tate’s guys had even looked winded or injured. I would have enjoyed hearing what the men who had recovered said about what went down. Luis and his men took another couple of steps back.
Luis leaned forward and spat on the ground in front of us. “Fuck the both of you. Trash.”
He turned and got into his car with his men and revved the car before pulling out of the parking lot. Steff kept his eyes on them until they were out of sight. Then he helped me into his car and started the trip back home. I could only imagine how Tate would react when we told him. So much for my special dinner putting him in a better mood.
Once we got there and Steff gave him a run-down on the altercation, Tate went ballistic. I’d never seen him so angry. I was glad the girls weren’t home because his eyes started glowing.
“That motherfucker doesn’t know what he’s in for,” Tate bellowed at one point.
Steff looked at me and rolled his eyes. “Tate, bro, go outside. Get some air. Shit, man, I know it’s daylight but head off into the woods for a shift if you need to. You’ve been kind of a dick the last few days. No offense, but it’s true. You need to get whatever is boiling up inside you out.”
“I’ve been fine. Who the fuck are you to say that?”
Steff didn’t look offended. He merely crossed his arms. “You know, maybe the girls were desperate to spend the night somewhere else because of your shit mood. I wouldn’t want to hang around you like this.”
The anger on Tate’s face fell away almost at once. He looked like Steff had kicked him in the stomach. He stopped pacing, a
heart-wrenching look on his face. “Have the girls said anything? Is that true?”
I sighed. It was best to be honest. “They did mention yesterday that you’ve been a lot grumpier than usual.”
Tate flinched. Literally flinched, like I’d slapped him. His eyes went cloudy, and he wiped at them roughly. He coughed. “I think you’re right, Steff. I need to blow off some steam.”
He walked over to me and kissed me. It was a long kiss, hard and intense, but not passionate. This wasn’t a sexy kiss. It was a kiss that said
I’m sorry. He pulled away and put his hands on my shoulders, staring into my eyes. “I’m sorry I’ve been such an asshole lately. I’ll be back in a while.” He looked at Steff. “Don’t leave her alone. Not for a second.”
Steff saluted him sarcastically and locked the door behind Tate. We exchanged an awkward look, then I went to the fridge. I could still make Tate his special dinner. Hopefully, it could still lift his spirits a little.
THIRTY-THREE
TATE
It had damn near broken my heart to hear that the girls hadn’t wanted to be around me. That I’d become so much of an ass that the people I was bonding with couldn’t stand to be in the same house as me. Making it worse was that I knew exactly why I was so damned edgy. That fucking spell. Every day that went by without claiming her sent my body into agony. The pain wasn’t even something I could explain. It was some painful, irritating malaise that screwed with my emotions. The longer I held off, the angrier I got.