Page 27 of All Hale the Queen

Antonio

Istorm down the corridor with fire in my veins, my military training coming back to me as I catalogue everything with one sweep of my eyes. Men’s restroom on the left. Women’s just past that. Storage closet on the right. Exit door at the end.

First, I push open the men’s room door and barrel inside, startling some poor bloke taking a piss. It’s not Jenkins.Fuck.I retreat without an apology and pause beside the women’s room. The crowd and music sounds are muffled back here, so I can clearly hear two voices from inside. One woman’s and one man’s.

Slinging open the door, the fire in my veins turns molten when I take in the scene. Ophelia—myOphelia—is cowering away from the arsehole gripping her wrist, and I see fucking red.

“Get the fuck away from her,” I roar, and Jenkins jerks his hand away. Ophelia had been pulling against him, and his sudden release causes her to stumble backward and fall on her bum onto the forest-green tiled floor.

I think I could take down a raging rhinoceros at this point, and I rush forward, delivering a brutal backhand across Jenkins’sface on my way to her. I hear him cry out and hit the ground as I kneel beside Ophelia.

The fear in her eyes almost breaks me in two, and I hold up both hands, assuring her I won’t hurt her. Dammit all to hell, I scared her.

“It’s okay, darlin’,” I say in my most soothing voice. “I promise you’re safe with me.”

“I know,” she says, her voice raspy and anxious. She launches herself at me, and I catch her, feeling some measure of relief that she’s in my arms.

“Are you okay, love?” I ask, rubbing my hand from her lower back, up to her neck, and back down again. Over and over.

“He just frightened me when he came in here. He’s really drunk.” The trembling of her body matches my own, though hers is from fear. Mine, on the other hand, is pure rage. How fucking dare Jenkins follow her into the restroom and scare her. I want to beat the life from him, but I need to calm myself long enough to take care of Ophelia.

“Does anything hurt?” I ask softly.

“My wrist is a little sore where he grabbed me,” she admits before quickly adding, “but it’s fine. Can you help me stand up?”

“I’ll carry you,” I say definitively, and she emits a tremulous laugh.

“It’s not that big of a deal, baby.”

Baby. She called me baby, and I damn well liked it.

“You were assaulted,” I grit out, though I do as she asked and rise, setting her carefully on her feet with my hands on her waist to steady her. She swipes at the skirt of her dress and smooths down her mussed hair. I gently take her arm, seeing red fingerprints marring her perfect skin. “Swear to god, if he bruised you…”

“I’m okay,” she says, her tone placating. I bring her arm to my lips and kiss each fingerprint he left on her… to replace histouch with mine. Tears well in her eyes as she uses her free hand to stroke my hair. “Thank you for finding me and taking care ofthat.”

Her nose wrinkles as she nods at the pathetic man whimpering in the corner with his hand over his mouth. Blood seeps from between his fingers, and the sight of it stirs something dark inside me and makes me want to see more.

“No one hurts you, love,” I whisper, leaning in because I need to kiss her more than I need my next breath.

Just then the door to the restroom bursts open, and we yank apart as Helix, Phoenix, and Remi pour into the room. Their eyes dart from their mom to me to Jenkins before they converge on Ophelia.

“Mom, are you okay?” Remi asks, his voice raspy with concern. I can barely see her because she’s surrounded by her sons.

“I’m fine, honey,” she assures.

“What happened?” Phoenix asks. “I saw Antonio storming the corridor like his ass was on fire, so I grabbed Helix and Remi.”

His mother gives them a rundown. She’d come into the bathroom, and while she was washing her hands, she saw J.P.’s reflection behind her in the mirror. It startled and scared her, especially when he staggered drunkenly toward her and grabbed her arm, barking about her rejecting him.

“Then Antonio came in and bitch slapped him,” she finishes, meeting my eyes in the small gap between Helix and Phoenix with the tiniest smile on her face.

Remi crosses to me and places a hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Antonio. You have no idea how much we appreciate you.”

“He hit me,” Jenkins whines, and we all glare at him.

“You’re lucky that’s all he did,” Remi snaps.

“Now that you’re here with your mum, I’ll take care of this piece of shite,” I grunt, snatching Jenkins by the hair. When he yells in pain, I grab a hand towel and stuff it in his mouth. “Shutthe fuck up. You don’t have the privilege of speaking in front of her.”