The Marked Men Series Books 1–6: Rule, Jet, Rome, Nash, Rowdy, Asa. Jay Crownover
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that before; she was normally so cool and unflappable. Against my better judgment I was climbing to my feet. I wasn’t the type to give two shits about a damsel in distress, and this damsel, I knew for a fact, could take care of herself. But she looked like she was struggling and, despite how I felt about her, I was going to intervene.
“I’ll be back in a second.”
Since I’m tall and have a good portion of visible skin covered in designs that cry “don’t mess with me,” I didn’t have to worry about people in the crowded bar moving out of my way. When I got close enough her eyes snapped to me and I was pretty sure I saw relief flood into their sparkly green depths. Polo Shirt leaned in even closer to her, and I thought I heard him say something about how things were going to look when he went home alone over winter break. I saw her stiffen and try to pull away, but Polo Shirt just moved in closer to keep her pinned against the bar.
“I don’t care what my mother told you, Gabe. We’re over. I have no interest in going to Aspen with you or your family. Stop calling me and stop showing up where I’m at.”
“Baby, we’re meant for each other and once you stop being stubborn you’ll see how great we could be together.” I hated guys who called girls “baby.” Baby was what you used when you didn’t remember the girl’s name or you were just too lazy to come up with your own nickname for her.
She wiggled a little more and I noticed the way the guy’s eyes followed the deep vee of her revealing outfit.
“Let go of me, Gabe. I didn’t want to be with you like that when we were dating, and I sure as hell don’t want to be with you like that now. Leave me alone.”
Polo Shirt got red in the face at her blatant rejection. He was about to lean even farther into her, about to put his other hand on her, when I reached out and grabbed her wrist and tugged her free. Polo Shirt was a good four inches shorter than me so I tucked Shaw’s small frame under my arm and glared at him over the top of her head.
“Sorry I’m late, Casper.” Without missing a beat she put an arm around my waist and practically collapsed into my side. I had used the nickname to tease her when we were younger because her hair was almost white and I knew she hated it. Now it sounded intimate and personal, like we had some kind of secret Polo Shirt wasn’t in on.
“No problem. I’ve got an hour or so left of my shift. Can you hang out until I’m off?” Her eyes were pleading with me to play along but I was too busy wondering why my side felt like it was on fire where we touched.
“No problem. Who’s your friend?”
Polo Shirt was glaring at me and turning an alarming shade of red. He didn’t even give Shaw a chance to respond.
“I’m her boyfriend, Gabe Davenport. Who are you?”
Shaw went stiff next to me and I felt her fingers clutch the back of my shirt.
“Gabe, this is Rule Archer. Rule, this is Gabe, my EX-boyfriend, only he’s having a hard time getting the ‘ex’ part down.”
“Shaw, get away from him. What are you thinking? You can’t possibly think anyone is going to believe you would go from me to someone like him, can you? Just look at him, he’s a mess.”
I was immune to the “someone like him” tactic—I heard it all the time—but apparently Shaw wasn’t. She bristled like a wet cat and made a move like she was going to poke the guy in the chest. I wrapped her back up against my side and subtly tried to calm her down by rubbing a hand up and down her bare arm.
“I’ve known Rule most of my life, Gabe. I couldn’t care less what he looks like because he isn’t anybody’s puppet, and the same thing cannot be said about you. Don’t think you can stand there and judge him or me, not when you’re practically stalking me and trying to bully me into a relationship by manipulating my parents because you know they like you. Ayden is here and you can bet your ass if she saw you she’s going to go get Lou. Lou doesn’t like to see his girls upset so unless you want a scene I’m sure you’ll never live down, go away and don’t come back. You can call my mom, talk to my dad all you want, I don’t want to be with you and nothing is going to change that.”
He looked like he was gearing up to keep fighting but there was a sudden surge toward the bar, knocking Shaw even farther into my embrace and I took full advantage by pulling her small frame completely in line with mine. The girl was rocking some serious curves and I wondered what in the hell I had been smoking to miss it right up until now.
“We got a problem, bro?” I asked him. She pulled away from me slightly with a scowl and put her hands in the center of my chest to get a little space.
“Yeah, bro, we do. But now isn’t the time or the place. I don’t have time to mess around with a peon like you. Shaw, I’ll see you later. This isn’t over.”
He shoulder-checked me and glared as he pushed around us. I gave Shaw a squeeze and let her take a step back but kept my hand loosely at her waist. I was watching Polo Shirt walk away and trying to catch Nash’s eye over her head. She let out a breath that fluttered against my throat and sent a chill running across my skin.
“Thanks.”
“No problem. That guy needs to get a clue.” Nash finally looked up and I jerked my head toward the door, where Polo Shirt had just exited. He gave me a slight nod, stood, and said something to Rowdy and Jet, which had the two of them climbing to their feet as well. I saw Shaw’s dark-haired roommate hanging by the door with a mountain of a man. She gave my friends an odd look as they filed out the door but didn’t say anything. I dug my Amex out of my wallet and put it in Shaw’s hand. Her luminous eyes were watching me curiously.
“Close our tab out on that, will ya? I’ll be back in just a second.”
She took the card and fell back a step. I tried not to notice what it did to her breasts when she crossed her arms over her chest.
“Where are you going?”
“To run an errand.”
“Leave Gabe alone, Rule. He isn’t like you and Rome. He was born to be a politician—threats and intimidation don’t mean anything to someone like that. Just forget about him. The idea that I would leave him for a guy with tattoos and purple hair is enough of a blow to his ego to get him to leave me alone for a while, trust me. Besides, I’ll talk to Lou, the bouncer. If I tell him that Gabe is harassing me they’ll eighty-six him for good.”
“Look, Rome would kick my ass to Nebraska if he found out some douche bag was giving you trouble and I didn’t say something, plus I hate a guy who thinks he can just do whatever he wants to a girl because he has an in with the parents. I’ll be back in a second; just close our tab and hold on to the card in case you have to bail one or all of us out of jail.”
I thought it was funny, but she didn’t even crack a smile. She was just looking at me like I had suddenly grown another head. I needed to get a move on before the asshat left.
“It’ll be fine, Shaw. Seriously, I got this.”
I set her fully away from me and moved around her to follow the guys out the front door. The pretty roommate caught my eye and lifted a brow. “Maybe you have redeeming qualities after all, Archer.”
I flipped her off, because, well, that’s what I do. I made my way to the edge of the block, where Nash and the boys were leaning against a white Lexus. A very nervous-looking Polo Shirt was pacing back and forth in front of them threatening to call the cops, waving his iPhone around and asking repeatedly if they had any idea who his dad was. I tucked my hands in my front pockets and cocked my head to the side. I could see why Shaw’s parents loved this guy. He was all right looking, if you went for a dude who looked like Banana Republic threw up all over him. He actually had coloring similar to mine, dark hair minus the purple and spikes, and light blue eyes, but he oozed entitlement and vanity in a way only the idle rich can. He was custom-made to be the husband who had a piece on the side while the pretty wife smiled for the cameras during election time. While my relationship with