Page 40 of Crimson Heart

18

Fuck!

Byron moved out of pure instinct. His first thought was to protect Charlotte and shield her naked body from the intruder who’d given the command he could never yield to. To let go of the woman he loved. Water sloshed over the tile floor while he tried to hide Charlotte’s nakedness from Jude’s eyes. To no avail. There was no foam left in the tub that could possibly cover Charlotte’s nude body, and the tub was too small for him to shift positions to cover her with his own naked body. Recognizing the futility of his actions, he pressed Charlotte to him, covering with his hands what he could.

“Get the fuck out of here, Jude!”

Only now, he noticed that Jude hadn’t come alone. Austin appeared next to him.

“Not a chance, you fucking asshole!” Jude yelled, his eyes red, his fangs peeking out from between his lips. “How dare you touch my sister?!”

“I love him,” Charlotte yelled back. “Leave us be.” She made a movement with her hand as if with that simple gesture she could make them vanish.

“You love him?”

Disbelief washed over Jude’s face, and Austin looked just as stunned and confused.

With an accusing finger pointing at Byron, Jude added, “You don’t even know him! You have no idea what he’s like!”

“I know everything I need to know about him!”

“No, you don’t,” Jude claimed. “Now get dressed. You’re coming with Austin and me.”

“I’m not leaving!”

Jude made two steps into the bathroom, and Byron readied himself to lunge at him should it become necessary.

“Maybe you prefer I call Dad to fetch you instead.”

The threat in Jude’s voice was clear. Byron felt Charlotte stiffen in his arms. No reply came from her.

“Yeah, didn’t think so.”

Then Jude shifted his gaze away from Charlotte and stared right into Byron’s eyes, issuing a warning, “I’ll deal with you later.”

“You’re not gonna win this time,” Byron replied. Because this time, he would fight for the woman he loved. This time, it was personal. Their future was at stake.

“You’ve got three minutes to get dressed,” Jude announced and turned on his heel.

A moment later, the door closed with a loud thud.

“Shit!” Charlotte cursed under her breath.

Byron framed her face with his hands. “Listen to me. I love you, and there is nothing Jude or Austin can do about it, okay? I won’t give you up, no matter what they threaten me with.”

Tears welled up in Charlotte’s eyes. She sniffled.

“Babe, please, trust me on this. I will make this work.”

How exactly he would accomplish getting Jude to back off, let alone support their union, was another question.

He noticed her push back the tears and pressed a gentle kiss on her lips. “That’s my girl. You’re strong. We’ll get through this.”

“I love you,” she murmured and pressed her lips to his.

Her kiss was filled with need and hunger and a large portion of doubt. He responded to her by showing her just how much she meant to him, pouring every ounce of love into the kiss.

A loud bang on the door made him sever the kiss.