Page 12 of The Clinch
Still he found me.
The room narrows fast. Sound goes distant and tinny like I’m underwater. I know this feeling. I’ve been here before.
“You’re coming home with me,” he growls, stepping closer. “Back to Louisiana. Back where you belong.”
I force a laugh, brittle and hollow. “No.”
His eyes flash. “I’m your husband, Lillian.”
The name hits like a fist.
Lillian.
I killed her. Buried her. Built someone new from the ground up so I’d never have to hear him say it again.
Beside me, I feel Leo shift. His attention sharpens, cutting between my face and Travis’s, reading the imbalance.
Then Travis’s hand shoots out. Rough fingers clamp around my arm. The pressure. The way he squeezed. The way he twisted. The way he?—
He finds the exact spot he always gripped. The same pressure. The same angle. He knows exactly where it hurts most.
Panic flares, hot and blinding.
“Let me go!”
He leans in, eyes bright with possession. “You’remine.”
Another hand slams down over his wrist.
“You heard her,” Leo says evenly. “Let go.”
Travis’s attention turns to him—amused, dismissive. His mouth curves.
“Hands off, champ.” Drake’s grip tightens. “This is between me andmy wife.”
No.
Not him.
Of all people, it has to be Leo. Eden’s brother. The one man in this room whose life could shatter on camera if this goes wrong.
Leo doesn’t raise his voice. He simply steps in, crowding Travis’s space. The shift is subtle, controlled, and suddenly the space around me feels managed.
“She said no.” Leo’s voice is calm. “That’s the end of it.”
Travis snorts. “Go celebrate your win. Before you get hurt.”
Leo’s grip tightens on Travis’s wrist, making his meaning unmistakable.
“Walk away, Drake.”
But Travis is exactly who he was four years ago. Aggressive, unreasonable, petty. I know exactly what his next move will be,a highlight reel I’ve seen play out too many times to count. He jerks forward, shoulder slamming into Leo’s chest.
They collide. The crowd gasps. Bodies scramble back. The music cuts dead.
I should run. Scream. Stop this. But I’m frozen in place while he decides what happens to me.
Travis lunges, an ugly, looping hook aimed at Leo’s jaw. Leo slips it, answering with a right cross so fast it snaps Travis’s head sideways. The sound is sickening. Bone on bone. A sharp, wet crack that turns my stomach.
