I’ve never been jealous; even in school, when I was dating Mellissa and guys would hit on her, I couldn’t have cared less. Ellie is different. I can’t stand the idea of anyone looking at her, and if someone ever has the balls to touch her, I won’t be able to control myself.
“If you’ll follow me,” he says, picking up two menus and leading us through the restaurant.
Placing my hand against Ellie’s back, we cut between tables then stop at one of the booths in the back. My teeth grit when I look to the left and see Mellissa is here with her sister, mom, and dad. Mellissa’s dad, Calder, owns one of the most profitable real-estate agencies in the county. If you drive around and see a for sale sign on a house, it’s his company’s logo normally attached to it. He’s an okay guy, but he’s a pushover and has babied the women in his life.
Mellissa’s mother’s job is to stay home and look pretty, and she has raised both her girls to do the same. They expect everything to be handed to them and whatever man they are with to act like their father, giving them whatever it is they want. And if you don’t fall to your knees and act accordingly, cue the tears and the bitchiness.
Placing Ellie so that she’s faced away from them, I take a seat then raise a brow when the maître d’ stands at the head of the table, staring at Ellie again. “You can go,” I hear myself growl, and I watch Ellie’s cheeks darken as she looks at me and narrows her eyes. Like it’s my fucking fault the kid is checking her out.
“Sorry, would you like to see the wine menu?” he asks suddenly.
“No, thank you.” I shake my head and feel Ellie kick me under the table before she looks at the guy.
“We’ll just wait for our waitress.” She says softly and smiles, taking the menu from him setting it on the table. She then watches him walk away before looking at me and growling, “You’re so rude.”
“Really? And it’s not rude to stare at another man’s woman when they are obviously out on a date?” I ask as one of the bus boys stops by the table, dropping off water.
“He wasn’t staring. He was just doing his job.” She shakes her head.
“His job isn’t to check out your tits, baby.”
“He wasn’t,” she hisses in anger and annoyance.
“Fuck yes, he was,” I growl. “And since those tits, that ass, and that mouth all belong to me, he doesn’t get to look at them,” I say, watching her chest heave and her mouth open and close.
“Jax, Ellie.”
“Fuck,” I clip, watching as Ellie’s body grows tight across from me then her head swivel towards Mellissa. Turning my head, I say shortly, “Mellissa,” through gritted teeth.
“I just wanted to come over and say hi.” She smiles her fake smile then looks at Ellie, running her eyes over her. “That dress totally fits you.” She sneers. “It’s very trailer—”
“Get the fuck away from my table, Mellissa, before you force me to make a scene,” I threaten.
“I’m not afraid of you, Jax,” she snarls, placing her hands on her narrow hips.
“One more time, Mellissa. Get the fuck away from the table.”
“I can’t believe you traded me in for some slutty trailer trash bitch.”
Like it happens in slow motion, I see Ellie out of the corner of my eye as she wraps her fingers around her glass of water and tosses the contents on Mellissa, who shrieks at the top of her lungs. Ellie scoots out of the booth and storms towards the front of the restaurant.#p#分页标题#e#
“You bitch!” Mellissa screams, going after Ellie. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I pick her up, turn her around, and shove her into her dad’s arms.
“Put a leash on your daughter, Calder,” I tell him. His eyes narrow and his arms lock around Mellissa.
Moving through the restaurant, I see Mani, the owner, walking towards me from the kitchen. “Is everything okay, Jax?” he asks with concern in his tone, looking at me then over my shoulder at the commotion going on behind me.
“I’ll call and explain what happened, but right now, I need to go make sure Ellie is okay,” I tell him without stopping on my way past the maître d’.
“Sure.” He nods.
Pushing through the door, I look toward my truck and see Ellie isn’t there. Jogging up the road, I spot Ellie in the distance, walking with her arms wrapped around her body, her shoulders stooped inward and her head bent toward her feet.
“Ellie, stop,” I shout, watching her body jerk forward and her head move back and forth. Reaching her side, I wrap my arm around her shoulders and the other under her knees, lifting her to my chest. Hearing her soft sob rips my heart open.