Not.

Good.

I gave no headspace to what this might mean—this soldier free to make his move—if Brian or Tex didn’t clock him or if they did and they had some plan.

I needed to remain clearheaded and calm.

I also needed to remain alive so I could have my red and black Pope-approved nuptials then give Ren babies.

In my head I whittled the length of Ren and my f**k-a-thon down to two years prior to making babies and whispered to the men at my table, “You don’t waste any time.”

“No woman f**ks with me,” the big-guy-brains-of-the-crew growled at me.

“Uh, just saying, I didn’t f**k with you. You f**ked with me,” I pointed out.

“Okay then, I don’t waste time f**kin’ around with women unless I’m actually f**kin’ them,” he amended.

Well, he’d proved that.

“Now, you’re gonna come easy. Leave your phone,” Whiney Guy ordered.

“And if you’re thinkin’ your backup is gonna see to things,” Brawny Guy added. “The black dude with the tattoo outside is outta commission.”

Fuck.

Fuck!

That was Ike, one of Lee’s men. And I did not like to think with the cold dead I saw in Brawny Guys’ eyes what his definition of “outta commission” could be.

Fuck.

I let go of my beer and slid off my stool.

The presence behind me moved with me.

Calmly, I cleared the table and headed to the door as Whiney Guy and Brawny Guy flanked me.

Suddenly the presence behind me disappeared. I took this as what I hoped it would be, Tex or Brian instigating their plan, and I flew into action.

As Tex pounded a fist in the face of the guy who had been behind me and he went flying into a table, losing purchase on his gun, I turned to the primary threat, Brawny Guy. I got my hand around his package. Once there, I twisted and squeezed and I did this with no mercy.

He made a high-pitched noise that made the backs of my teeth ache before his knees buckled and he went down hard. I bent with him, let him go then came up, at the same time jerking up my knee and catching him hard under his jaw.

He flew back and I roundhouse kicked him in the cheekbone with my boot. It was then he flew to the side, and I knew by the way his face hit floor without him trying to break his fall he was out.

Before I could turn my attention to him, Whiney Guy caught me by my hair. It hurt like a mother but I yanked it loose, turned on him, and aimed a hard punch at his throat.

He also went down on his knees, hands to his throat, wheezing.

By the time I took three steps back, I saw Tex with a knee in the chest of a big guy on his back on the floor. Brian was there, gun out aiming between the three as he pulled his badge out of his back pocket and shoved it into his belt.

“Police. You’re under arrest,” he announced.

We had onlookers and we also had company as Lee, Hank, Eddie, Mace, Luke, Willie, Matt, Bobby and Jimmy Marker joined us.

My eyes went to Lee. “Ike?” I asked.

“Vest,” he answered. “He gets his breath back, he’ll be fine.”

The grip on my insides released.

“Are there more?” Tex asked.

“Only these three,” Lee answered.

“So this is it?” Tex asked, sounding peeved.

Lee just stared at him.

Tex looked at me.

“Told you, woman. Boring.”

Whatever.

I felt fingers wrap around my arm and saw Lee had hold of me. He propelled me to the front door and out of it, Hank following.

We stopped on the sidewalk. He let me go and I looked up at him.

“I’m missing the fun part of cuffing and hearing them get their Mirandas,” I complained.

“How’d you know?” Lee asked bizarrely.

“What?” I asked back confusedly.

Hank got close and reiterated Lee’s question. “How’d you know?”

I looked at Hank. “Know what?”

“You ran your hand through your hair before they sat down. Brody sent word the situation had deteriorated about two seconds after they walked in. Last report, which was five seconds before that, their man inside was nowhere near you,” Lee explained, and I looked back at him. “How’d you know?”

Oh. I got it.

How did I know they were a danger.

I shrugged. “Felt it.”

“You felt it,” Hank said.

I nodded to Hank, but Lee was again talking.

“They had no witnesses outside, so I reckon they intended to do you here or get you to a car and do you somewhere else. As long as you were inside you were safe, and Tex had the element of surprise. You gave him the heads up. He moved, got the drop on them. They had five seconds more, they could have got you to a place where Tex couldn’t get to you fast enough, including outside where they had the upper hand,” Lee said.

I knew what this meant.

I knew exactly what this meant.

So I held his gaze and said quietly, “I’m good at what I do.”

Lee looked at Hank.

Hank started, “Ally—”

My eyes went to him.

“I knew they were who they were the minute I saw them, and I knew they were not there to negotiate. I didn’t waste time. I also,” my eyes went to Lee, “took two down. I know I had surprise on my side, but I still kept my shit together and I didn’t f**k around and do it like a girl. I did it like I meant it and incapacitated them both without hesitation.” My eyes moved back to Hank and I repeated, “I’m good at what I do. And what happened in there is only part of it.” Again I looked to Lee. “And if you’d listen to Darius and Brody—not like a brother, but like a colleague—you’d know exactly how good I can be.”

I left it at that. They were macho alphas. Drama only worked on them if it ended in them giving and receiving an orgasm.

This was going to be my livelihood, and these two men who happened to be my brothers were integral in me making a go of it.

So, like an alpha badass, I let my actions speak for me, moved around Hank and walked back into Lincoln’s to give my statement to Jimmy.

Chapter Sixteen

I’m Me

I parked in front of Ren’s and I was a little freaked.

This was because I’d texted him after Operation Takedown Baddies and told him our plans for the evening had to change. I also asked him to phone me when he had a few minutes to talk so I could explain.

He didn’t phone, and when I phoned him he didn’t pick up.

During the Not-Really-Fuck-Buddies phase of our relationship, we didn’t text or call to shoot the shit, be funny or flirty.