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Evangeline sucked in her breath in fear—and pain—as Eddie got into her face, his expression murderous. His grip on her arm was crushing, and he’d flung off his girl du jour, which freed his other hand.
Her glance skittered to that hand, which was now balled into a fist, and he lifted it. Oh my God! He was going to hit her and there was nothing she could do about it. She tried to lift her knee and ram it into his balls, but her damn dress was so tight she couldn’t raise her leg more than a few inches.
She began struggling wildly, her eyes darting around the room, pleading for someone—anyone—to intervene. Were they all just going to stand by while he assaulted her in public?
She managed to get one hand into his face, raking his cheek with her nails, a pitiful defense when she was so much smaller and wasn’t nearly as strong. He roared and she knew she’d made a very bad mistake.
She saw his fist coming at her. Tried to duck but knew he’d hit her. Knew he’d probably knock her out, leaving her completely helpless against God only knew whatever else he planned to do.
But then to her complete bewilderment, a hand, a really huge, beefy hand, lashed out and caught Eddie’s fist as if it were nothing more than a child’s. An enormous man loomed over Eddie, a killing rage flashing over his features. He squeezed Eddie’s hand and Evangeline could swear she heard bones snapping.
Eddie let go of her completely and screamed. He actually screamed. She winced because wow, it was pathetic. A grown man screaming like a girl. The man continued his assault, bending Eddie’s arm until Eddie went to his knees, whimpering like a kicked puppy.
Evangeline backed hastily away, wanting only to get out as fast as she could. She would have run if her legs hadn’t been wobbling so badly.
The man, seemingly unruffled by Eddie on his knees begging piteously, turned and pinned Evangeline with dark green eyes. She swallowed because, whoa. Not only was the man seriously hot, but he was extremely intimidating. In that moment, she didn’t know if she was more terrified of Eddie or the guy who’d intervened on her behalf.#p#分页标题#e#
“You, don’t move,” he clipped out.
She locked her knees and nodded, wondering why she’d just obeyed this man. But then there was the fact that he looked like he could crush her like a bug—hell, he’d just crushed Eddie like a bug, and Eddie was a lot bigger than Evangeline—that was the deciding factor in her compliance.
Shit, shit, shit. What the hell had she gotten herself into? She knew this had been a bad idea and that she should have never let her girlfriends talk her into this complete debacle. She needed to apologize fast and then swear she’d never come back and get the hell out as fast as she could. Go home to her girls and eat a pint—no, a gallon—of ice cream and at least give them the satisfaction of hearing of Eddie’s humiliation.
Eddie was on the floor in a fetal position now, and Evangeline just now noticed that the bartender was just to her side, a look of disgust on his face. Had he intended to intervene? For that matter, a quick look around the room told her that everyone thought Eddie was a pathetic excuse for a man. She’d take what little satisfaction she could derive from that. A few bruises on her arm was a small price to pay to see him so humbled. She wasn’t so nice and forgiving that she’d expend even a morsel of compassion or pity for Eddie’s plight because he deserved every single thing done to him tonight.
Okay, so her arm would hurt like hell for a few days. But still.
The man who’d commanded her to stay, like she was some trained dog, turned his attention back to Eddie and then roughly yanked him up by his collar and tossed—yes, tossed—Eddie like a rag doll to another man who was as big and as intimidating as he was. The new guy, someone she hadn’t even noticed until now, simply turned, dragging Eddie behind him, away from the entrance where Evangeline had entered the club, as though he weighed absolutely nothing. How had she not noticed the new guy’s arrival? He was every bit as impressive as the guy who’d intervened on her behalf and then ordered her not to move, and certainly not someone she’d ever overlook in any other circumstances. Geez, but suddenly the small front bar was filled with hot, badass-looking guys who had simply materialized in a matter of seconds and prevented Eddie from punching her directly in the face. He could have easily broken her jaw or her nose, and God only knew what other damage he would have inflicted if not for the men who’d effortlessly put a stop to his assault. No matter how badass and intimidating they looked, they hadn’t once threatened her or made her feel unsafe. Nervous? Yes. Because she’d been commanded not to so much as move from where she stood, but as naïve as it made her sound, she truly didn’t believe these new men would lay a finger on her. Maybe that made her stupid and a complete moron, but given a choice between them and Eddie, who she knew meant her serious harm, she’d take the unknown without a second thought. And that gave her a measure of comfort and reassurance.