Page 20 of Shattered By the Currents

“Don’t argue with her, man,” Joel said, sipping his beer. “You won’t win.”

Connor pulled his phone from his pocket, unlocked it, and handed it to Polly.

She typed something in before handing it back. “There you go.”

“You gonna tell me what you did?”

She smiled. “Check on her tonight. I think she’ll appreciate it. Now, we’re going home. Saint doesn’t like it when we’re out too late.”

Joel growled. “We’re cutting our night short for a cat. Unbelievable.”

As the two of them left, Connor opened his contacts and saw it.

Raven Price.

He had her number. He should have asked for it himself, but he’d been too distracted by her blue eyes. Her pretty pink lips.

One by one, the team started to leave.

Connor didn’t go anywhere. His attention was partially on the guys and partially on the bar. He tapped his phone, the number on his mind.Ravenon his mind.

Fuck it. He typed out a text before he could think better of it.

Connor: Hey. It’s Connor. Just checking that you got home okay.

Ryan, the last of his friends remaining, drained his beer. “I’m going to head off too. You leaving?”

Connor glanced at the bar, then back at Ryan. “Soon.”

Ryan followed his gaze before looking back at him. “Connor?—”

“I just want to talk to him.”

“So I should stick around as backup.”

“I don’t need backup.”

“I’m not talking about that kind of backup.”

Connor lifted a brow. “You think I’m gonna do something stupid?”

“No. But I know you feel protective of Raven.”

“I’ll be fine. And so will he.” Although, hitting the jerk would feel good.

“Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow. No fists.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

As Ryan left, Connor’s phone vibrated.

Raven: Hey. I didn’t know you had my number. I’m home safe and sound. Thank you for tonight. It was great chatting. And thanks for the help with Nathaniel.

Connor: Has he done that before?

Raven: He hasn’t approached me one-on-one since getting back, just been a jerk from afar. I think he’s just trying to intimidate me as a way to show he’s on Xander’s side. I don’t think he’d actually hurt me.

Connor’s jaw locked. He wasn’t so sure about that. The guy looked like a bully. Like someone who liked to throw his weight around to prove he was in control.