Page 57 of Wedding Wrecker

Cooper spreads his arms and frowns at me. “Logan? What the fuck?”

Kyle’s smile is soft, his cheeks rosy as he pulls on my sleeve. He is juiced-up, alright. If he went home with Cooper, he might not even remember how it happened.

“Since when are you so clumsy?”

He’s not slurring at least.

Cooper peels the damp shirt away from his flesh and stares at me. “Are you blind, or something? Jesus.”

I glance at Kyle’s flushed cheeks once more and I’ve had it. My patience is up. I put away my glass and push Cooper’s massive chest in warning.

“Are you? Do you not see how drunk he is?”

Cooper releases a chuckle and his gym-formed body doesn’t even budge. “Really? He looks just fine to me.”

Kyle cocks his head and finishes his whisky. He’s so gorgeous with eyes darkened by booze. “I’m not that drunk.”

Cooper smirks, lifting one eyebrow. “See? He’s good to go. What is it to you anyway?”

I see red. “I said back off!”

I ball my hand into a fist and aim under his ribs, but even though he bends in two with a grunt of pain, he still grabs me by the T-shirt and pulls. There’s a ripping sound and when he yanks me to the side, I land at the nearby table, my hat flying into the crowd.

“Logan!” That’s Kyle. At least now he’s less likely to go home with Cooper, and as pathetic as that is, that’s the only thing I care about.

My ankle aches, and I stiffen, worried it might be broken again, but the pain passes. What’s more urgent is the wetness of the spilled drinks on the back of my shirt and the frowning faces all around me. Kyle steps between me and Cooper, spinning when the bastard grabs his arm.

“Is he your little brother or something?” Cooper asks me loudly enough that I can hear it through the melody of a Britney Spears song, which the karaoke participant stopped singing the moment our fight broke out.

“Hands off!” I yell and jump back to my feet despite the pain resonating up my leg. Without thinking, I lean forward and charge at Cooper head-first, wishing I had horns to gore him with.

My hands go for his sides, and the moment my head collides with his chest, I slam him against the counter with a primal scream.

I see stars when Cooper’s elbow descends on my back with great force, but then two pairs of arms pull me away from the bastard, and I helplessly swing my first at his grinning face.

The music switches to a new RnB hit, which plays louder than the karaoke, but before I can rip myself out of the merciless hold, Levi appears in front of me and grabs my face with one hand.

“Get out, Logan!” He spins around to face Cooper and gestures for him to fuck off as well, but in another direction. I can see rather than hear him protesting, but he eventually rolls his eyes and storms toward the back door held open by Quinta.

I know I’ve made myself into a spectacle and don’t struggle as Levi pushes me through the crowd. I’ve lost my hat, my T-shirt’s torn, and my body hurts in several places.

“What did I say?” Levi yells as he pushes me out into the rain. “No drama!”

“You know how Cooper is. Would you let him fuck around with a good friend?” I try but Levi is squinting as he watches me from the open door while rain soaks into my clothes and hair.

“‘Good friend’? Get a grip on reality, Logan!” He shakes his head.

I frown at him. “What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?”

But Kyle passes him in the door and steps out with his mouth pressed into a tight line. Fat droplets of rain roll down his face and neck, soaking into the dark T-shirt he’s wearing, and I suddenly can’t breathe.

Levi exhales. “Talk it out and don’t come back tonight,” he says and retreats into the cafe, leaving us in the downpour that turns everything around us blurry.

I don’t have the breath to speak at first, but then Cooper’s broad, tall figure looms at the entry into the alleyway behind Rainbowology, and it’s as if something flips a switch inside me. I don’t want him anywhere near Kyle. But as soon as I turn in his direction, Kyle’s mouth opens.

“Stay,” he commands as if I am his dog.

I take a deep breath and clench my fists, but Cooper must have decided to call it a night and backs off.