A Man’s Worth(Brac Pack 31)(7)

“No, you don’t. I like coming here and you are not about to get us permanently banned,” Abe argued. “Let’s go for a walk so you can cool off.”

“I don’t want to cool off,” Bryce said from between clenched teeth. “I want to kill a used-to-be blue elf.”

“If taking a walk doesn’t cool you off, I’ll help you bury the body.”

Bryce stilled, gazing down at Abe, and then gave the man a wicked grin. “Somewhere no one will find him.”

“Deep in the woods.”

“You got a deal.” Bryce turned away from the club and headed toward the street. He needed to calm down. He knew this. Christian would hand him his ass if he went in there and wiped the floor with Ahm.

They had just remodeled not too long ago.

There was no doubt in his mind shit would get broken if he and Ahm went at it. Besides, his pa would kill him as well for acting like an ass. Bryce may be a grown man, but his pa still had the power to put fear in him.

“There’s a fish place around the corner,” Bryce said. “Papa Dock’s. Are you hungry?”

Abe grinned up at him. “You bears are always hungry, but yeah, I could use a bite.”

In all honesty, Bryce wasn’t really hungry. Seeing Ahm had hurt more than it should have. He had decided to let the man go, to forget that his mate didn’t want him. But after the scene in the club, Bryce knew forgetting the man wasn’t going to be an easy task.

What he didn’t get was Ahm’s behavior. For an elf who had avoided Bryce for years, the man sure as hell became enraged when Bryce was dancing with another man. Bryce felt he was justified in seeking out company. What was he supposed to do, go the rest of his life without sex, pining away for a man who didn’t want him?

He had wanted a mate for as long as he could remember, but fuck if he was going to have blue balls because the elf didn’t mate outside his race.

Ahm could kiss his hairy ass.

“Bryce,” Abe whispered his name.

Bryce was pulled from thought when he saw a handful of men sauntering his way. He was getting bad vibes from these men. Abe must have felt it as well because the little fey looked as if he were about to wet himself.

“Get behind me,” Bryce said in a less than audible voice, but knew Abe had heard him. The slim man slid behind Bryce just as the strangers began to surround him.

“Looks like we have a snack,” one of them said as his eyes raked up and down Bryce’s body with a hungry leer. “And a big one at that.”

Bryce had heard that rogues were joining forces, which went against what a rogue was. They were supposed to be solitary creatures with nothing but killing on their mind. They shouldn’t be able to reason things out, and they sure as shit shouldn’t be in a small group.

But he knew they were vampire rogues by their red irises. It was a sign that they had given in to their baser needs and had killed their victims while drinking from them.

Bryce let his claws slide free as his canines elongated. “Come try and drain me.”

The stranger threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, I planned to, bear.”

The guy speaking leapt, his fangs gleaming and razor-sharp as he landed in front of Bryce. The shithead was trying to show off. Well, so could Bryce. He used his brute strength and grabbed the man around his throat, pulling him close. This vampire had just gone rogue because Bryce could see the fear in his red eyes.

What a dumb shit.

Bryce was outnumbered. Normally, that wouldn’t be a problem. But he wasn’t going to shift on the city street. It was bad enough that there were vampire hunters, but Maverick had warned the bears that someone named Mr. Kenyon was keeping a close eye on things around here, especially in Brac Village.

If Bryce shifted, he chanced putting the shifters’ species in danger—which meant he had to kill these men in human form. Not shifting was going to be a hindrance, but killing all these men in human form was doable.

The vampire he had a hold of fought to get out of Bryce’s grip just as the others converged on him and Abe. Bryce knew Abe was not a fighter.

Bryce howled when he felt a set of fangs sinking into his shoulder. He spun, using the vampire in his grips as a weapon, knocking the others back with the vampire’s body.

He was pretty surprised to see Abe kicking out wildly beside him. Although he wouldn’t blame the fey for cowering beside him, Bryce had expected just that.

“We are going to take your big ass down,” another of the vampires said in challenge. “It’s only a matter of time before you tire out, and then I’m going to enjoy dining on you.”

“You can dine on my damn fist.” Bryce slugged the guy in the jaw, making the vampire’s head snap back. Even though he was putting up a good fight, Bryce knew the creature was right. Without being able to shift, he was already tiring out.