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Zack rubbed hishands over his face. It wasn’t like he’d seen her naked. The towel covered a lot more of her than a bathing suit would. Not that he’d seen Laurel in a bathing suit. So while the towel was modest, the fact was with the flick of a finger she’d have been naked.
Yeah, and she’d have slugged you, too. Which you’d have deserved.
Damn, the woman was driving him crazy.
Someone banged on his door. “Zack, open up.”
Shit. Travis. What the hell is he doing here?
Travis banged on the door again. “I know you’re here. I saw your truck in the parking lot.”
Zack opened the door but didn’t let him inside. “What? I’m busy.”
“This is important.” He shoved Zack out of the way and walked in. “I can’t find Laurel and she’s not answering her cell. I saw Nathan at the airport and he said you were with her when he left Booze’s last night. Do you know where she went? Savannah told me she lost her job and I’m worried—”
“I don’t suppose you have an extra toothbrush somewhere I didn’t think to look?” Laurel asked, walking into the kitchen. “Oh. Hi, Travis.”
Her hair was wet and she wore her work clothes. It was pretty damn clear where she’d spent the night. It was also clear that Travis wasn’t going to listen to reason.
Travis looked from Laurel to Zack and back again, reaching the obvious, though wrong, conclusion. “What the fuck is this?”
“It’s not what it looks like,” Zack got out just before Travis punched him in the mouth.
He touched his fingers to his lip. Shit, bleeding already. “Damn, Travis, nothing happened.” It had been a long time since he’d been in a fight with Travis, but he didn’t remember Travis having anything like the right hook he’d just landed. His fist had felt like a lead weight.
“Travis, no!” Laurel said and ran toward them. “Stop it!”
“The hell I will.” He grabbed Zack by his shirt. “You’ve got thirty seconds, you bastard, to tell me why I shouldn’t kill you.”
Part of him wanted to fight back, but he knew he’d have done the same thing in Travis’s place. Before he could answer Laurel stepped in. Grabbing Travis’s arm, she attempted to pull him away from Zack. When that didn’t work, she grabbed a hunk of Travis’s hair and yanked on it. And kept yanking until he let go of Zack.
“Shit, Laurel, that hurt.”
“Good. Now you listen to me, Travis Sullivan. Zack was simply being a friend to me last night. He knew I’d gotten fired. He knew I was upset. I drank too much and…never mind. The point is, nothing happened and if it had, that would have been my choice. My God, I’m divorced with two kids and you’re acting like I’m still in high school. Now apologize to Zack. He’s already put up with a lot from me and you punching him in the face makes it even worse.”
Travis scowled at him, still looking as if he had murder on his mind. “Is that true? You were looking out for her?”
Zack shrugged. “She was with Nathan. He didn’t know who she was,” he added hastily, just in case Travis decided to kill his copilot as well as one of his best friends. Zack grabbed a dish towel and applied it to his mouth. Then he got an ice cube out of the freezer and put that on his mouth too.
“I’m going to explain something to both of you,” Laurel said. “I am a grown woman. I’m divorced. I’ve been on my own for a long time now and if I want to flirt with a man, or have a one-night stand with him, or dance naked on the tables at Booze’s that is my business and none of yours. Either of you. Understand?”
“We get it,” Zack said, though he wasn’t sure about Travis.
“Sorry,” Travis muttered but Zack couldn’t tell which one of them his friend was talking to.
“You’re forgiven. I know you love me and worry about me, but I don’t need my brothers—either of them—to protect me.”
“That’s debatable,” Travis said. “Come on, I’ll take you to your car.”
“No. Zack will take me later. But you can leave.”
Travis argued with her but she wouldn’t budge. When he finally left he gave Zack a look that said Travis wasn’t through even if Laurel was.
“That was fun,” Zack said, leaning back against the kitchen counter.
“I’m sorry. You know how overprotective Travis and Harlan are.”
