"You can't. You had sex with her. You don't own her, man."
Eddie frowned. "She can't go out with him."
"She can. She totally can. If she wants to. It's her life, not yours."
Raf held his eye. Eddie knew what his brother was saying made sense, but he didn't give a toss. There was no way he could let Blue walk out the door with the other man.
No. Way.
He glanced across the room again. Blue was disappearing through the doorway to the workrooms, and Thompson was smiling and looking like a smug bastard.
"Jesus. She's going out with him." Eddie started forward, ready to intervene despite his brother's advice, but Raf blocked his path.
"Eddie. Cool down, okay?"
"Get out of my way."
"How do you think Blue will take it if you try to lay down the law with her?" Raf challenged.
Eddie frowned. Blue hated being told what to do, to the extent that she almost always made a point of doing the opposite.
"So, what? I'm supposed to stand by while King-freaking-Kong takes his best shot at her?"
"You don't own her," Raf repeated.
Which was another way of saying yes, he was supposed to simply stand back and let it happen.
"Fuck."
He ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. Rationally, he knew that everything Raf was saying was true and correct, but he wasn't feeling very rational right now.
"I don't think I can do it, man," he said. His shoulders ached just thinking about it.
He became even more tense when Blue returned to reception, denim jacket on, the old-style satchel she used as a handbag slung across her chest.
Raf put an arm around his shoulders, his fingers digging painfully into Eddie's biceps to keep Eddie in place.
"Be smart, man."
Eddie stood rigidly, his gaze locked on Blue and Thompson, everything screaming at him to intervene as they walked toward the entrance. Blue glanced at him once, her expression wary, before quickly looking away. The moment they stepped through the doors, Eddie started forward, ready to go after them.
He couldn't stand by and let this happen. It simply wasn't possible.
Raf still had a grip on him, however and he used it to wheel Eddie around, pointing him in the other direction.
"Move," Raf said, half-dragging, half-pushing him forward.
The next thing Eddie knew, they were in one of the workrooms, and his brother was standing between him and the closed door.
"Get of the way," Eddie said, hands curling into fists.
"Take a deep breath and think. Blue will hate you if you go after her. She will never forgive you."
"I don't care."
"Yeah, you do. What are you going to do, chase them up the street? Punch Thompson out? I don't want to be the one to tell you this, but that's not going to end well. In case you hadn't noticed, the guy's got a couple of inches and about fifty pounds on you."
Eddie ducked his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. He knew Raf was right, but this was intolerable. Even before he'd been with Blue, Eddie had hated Thompson. The guy was nowhere near good enough for her. Now that Eddie had held Blue in his arms, kissed her, made love to her … He didn't want Thompson breathing the same air as her, let alone sharing a meal or anything else.
"I'm sorry, man. I really am," Raf said quietly.
More than anything, the quiet pity beneath his brother's words took the wind out of Eddie's sails. He lifted his head to meet Raf's sympathetic gaze.
"How the hell am I supposed to do this?" Eddie asked helplessly.
"Did you try talking to her?"
"She told me I was thinking with my dick."
Raf winced. "She's got a real way with words."
"Tell me about it."
"Come have dinner with me and Maggie."
"So you can distract me or so you can babysit me?" Eddie asked.
"Does it matter?"
Eddie considered the question for a moment then shrugged. "Probably not."
"Give me a few minutes to clear my desk."
Half an hour later, Eddie followed his brother through the garage door into the foyer of Raf's apartment and stood uncomfortably as Raf and Maggie greeted each other with a warm kiss and hug.
"Hey, Eddie," Maggie said when they were done, throwing him a bright smile and moving to hug him, too. "I hear you're joining us for dinner."
"Yeah," Eddie said. He tried to sound enthusiastic, but it was hard to concentrate when most of his brain was busy wondering what Blue was doing.
Where Reid had taken her. What they were eating. What they'd do after the meal.
"Eddie."
A nudge in his ribs brought Eddie to the here and now and he realized his brother was looking at him, a frown on his face.
"Sorry, did you say something?"
"Yeah. I asked if you wanted something to drink? We've got a bottle of shiraz open, or -"
"Vodka," Eddie said. "Thanks."
Maggie's eyebrows shot up. "Um, okay. I'm pretty sure we've got some in the freezer."
Eddie and Raf followed her as she entered the living space, trailing her toward the kitchen area. Eddie parked his ass on one of the stools on the non-business side of the island counter and watched as Maggie poured him a drink.
"Thanks," he said as she slid it across to him. He downed it in one burning swallow.
"Might as well leave the bottle out," Raf said, and Maggie nodded.
"Okay." She shot a glance between him and Raf, clearly wondering what was going on.
"Don't tell me Raf hasn't told you?" Eddie asked.
His brother and Maggie were tight. He would have put money on Raf spilling the beans about Eddie's night with Blue the minute Maggie got home on Saturday.
"Told me what?" Maggie asked, looking between them.
Raf frowned. "It's your business, man."
Eddie paused with his drink halfway to his mouth. "Seriously?"
Raf looked genuinely pissed now. "You're my brother."
"Hey, thanks, man. I appreciate that." Eddie reached for the vodka bottle and sloshed more alcohol into his glass before looking at Maggie. "Blue and I slept together Friday night. I want more, she doesn't. And she just left Ink with Reid Thompson."
He figured that pretty much covered everything.
Maggie blinked a couple of times. Then she nodded slowly.
"Okay. Thanks for bringing me up to speed."
Raf was watching her closely. "You're not surprised."
It wasn't a question, Eddie realized.
"I may have known already," Maggie said, looking guilty. "Sorry. Blue asked me not to say anything."
Eddie nearly choked on his vodka. "She talked to you? What did she say?"
"I can't tell you what Blue told me in confidence." Maggie looked scandalized.
"Sure you can."
"Okay. So I can tell her anything you say to me tonight, then?" Maggie countered.
Eddie narrowed his eyes for a moment, but he knew she had him.
"Okay, fine. Don't tell me."
Maggie eyed him sympathetically. "Is Reid that guy with no neck? The one she was seeing before the accident?"
Eddie nodded tersely. He hated even hearing the guy's name.
"Isn't he a bit of an asshole?" Maggie asked, looking worried now.
"He's all asshole," Raf said.
Maggie made a frustrated noise. "Blue has such appalling taste in men, I swear."
Eddie raised his eyebrows.
"Present company excepted, of course," Maggie said quickly.
Raf opened the pantry and started pulling out ingredients.
"I was thinking spaghetti carbonara. That okay with everyone?"
"I love your carbonara," Maggie purred, walking to slip her arms around Raf and kiss the underside of his jaw.
Eddie didn't bother responding. They could serve him cardboard for dinner and he'd eat it. The only thing he was interested in right now was vodka.
Maggie and Raf started preparing the meal, checking in with each other about their respective days. Eddie sat and brooded, knocking back vodka and waiting for the alcohol to burn away the tight feeling in his chest and gut.
He was on his third generous drink when Raf took the bottle away from him.
"You can write yourself off after dinner, but at least get some food into you first."
"Fine. Whatever." Eddie shrugged.
"Poor Eddie," Maggie said.
"She thinks I'm a bad prospect," Eddie said before he could stop himself. "She thinks that because I haven't had a long-term relationship in the past, I'm a bad bet and that anything that happened between us would be doomed to disaster."
"Hmmm," Maggie said, nodding.
"That's it? That's all you have to say?" In the back of his head, he knew he sounded like a pathetic loser, but he was way beyond caring right now.
Blue was out with another man. That was the only thing he could focus on.
"I'm trying to be diplomatic."
Eddie made a come-and-get-me' gesture. "Hit me with it. I can handle it."
"Well, you don't have the greatest track record," Maggie pointed out.
"Yeah, so I gathered."
"But Blue's is even worse," Maggie said.