Uncivilized (Uncivilized 1)

"Geez, Moira... any day now," Lexi calls out.

"We'll talk about this later, okay?" I tell Zach, and he gives me a nod.

Moving over to the pool table, I check out my options. I have two decent shots but we're so far ahead of Lexi and Kelly now, I opt for the more difficult one. Bending over, I line up the five ball with the pocket, drawing my gaze back to the cue ball. Before cutting my eyes back to the five, I make the mistake of looking up at Zach. He's watching me intently and, when our gazes meet, I know that our talk tonight is probably not going to be productive. I can see it in his eyes... hungry, hungry eyes that hold mine just a moment before dropping to my breasts, and a shiver runs through me.

Sliding my eyes back to the five ball, I pull my cue back and let it loose.

And miss my shot by about a mile.

Lexi and Kelly snicker behind me, and I give Zach an apologetic smile as I walk back over to him. He hesitantly returns it, but his look is no less needful.

From the corner of my eye, I see Michael return with his friend and holds out a shot glass to me with a smarmy grin. "Here you go, Moira. I bought you a shot of tequila. Figured it will loosen you up a bit."

"I'm not drinking tonight," I tell him with a bit of ice in my voice, because I also don't miss out on the fact that he didn't offer Zach anything.

"All the more for me," he laughs and shoots my tequila back, followed by the other one he was holding in his hand for himself. Reaching over, he slams both glasses down on the table and says, "That's what I'm talking about. Let's get this party started."

I start to roll my eye, but I'm cut off in mid-roll when Michael's arm shoots around my waist and he hauls me into the side of his body. Leaning over, he nuzzles my neck, and I can smell more than just those two tequila shots on his breath. "Any chance I can get you to come home with me?"

Squirming out of his grasp, which is giving me heebie-jeebies, I push away at him. "Cut it out, Michael. What is wrong with you?"

His arm snakes back out again to make a grab for me, a stupid grin on his face. "Come on, Moira. Lighten up."

Just before he's able to get ahold of me, Zach flies by me in a blur. Then it turns into slow motion as Zach cocks his right fist back and lets it fly at Michael's face. It connects solidly with his jaw and Michael goes careening backward, landing hard on the concrete floor. Zach's not finished though. In a flash, he leaps onto Michael, straddling him at his stomach and wrapping his hands around Michael's throat. Bearing all of his weight down, he tightens his grasp, and Michael's eyes widen in fear.

It's all so surreal as I watch... Michael's eyes bugging out in distress, his fingers digging into Zach's hands to try to get him to release his hold. Zach's face though is eerily impassive. No anger, no rage... just pure calm as he bears down on Michael and strangles him.

Philip finally jumps into action and tries to pull Zach off, but Zach's too big and too strong for him. A few women nearby cry out for someone to get the bouncers, and Philip finally gets a chokehold on Zach from around his back.

It's not working though. Zach merely tightens his grasp, and Michael's face starts to turn red.

Oh, my God... he's going to kill him.

Snapping out of my stupor, I run forward and grab onto one of Zach's arms. "Zach... stop it. Right now. Let him go."

Zach doesn't even acknowledge me, just continues to stare calmly at Michael, who is now turning a heart-stopping shade of purple.

I tug furiously at Zach, tears now filling my eyes in panic. Leaning forward, I put my own face in his line of sight so he's forced to look at me. When he makes eye contact, I implore him, "Zach... I'm begging you, please let him go. Please."

As if "please" was the magic word, Zach releases Michael's neck, but he's not done with him yet. Even as Michael coughs and sputters, his one hand massaging his neck, Zach leans in closer to him and snarls, "If you touch her again, I'll kill you."

Two sets of meaty hands attached to two bouncers reach out and haul Zach off Michael, but he doesn't fight them. Instead, he just stares at Michael, making sure he understands him clearly.

"What the fuck, Moira?" Michael rasps. "Look at what your freak of a jungle boy did to me. He's fucking insane. I want someone to call the cops."

My mouth opens and closes, but no words come out. I'm beyond appalled that Zach did that, and I know had I not intervened, Michael would probably be seriously hurt. All because he tried to grab me. A violent shudder runs through my body, and I feel nauseous.

"All right... you need to go, buddy," one of the bouncers says and starts to haul Zach out of the club.

"I demand that you call the police," Michael yells at the bouncers as he stands up from the floor. I can see purple marks starting to rise on his throat.

"Call the cops if you want," one of the bouncers says over his shoulder. "But take it outside. We don't want that shit in here."

Looking around in a panic, I lunge for my purse and look at Kelly and Lexi, who are standing there with their mouths hanging open. "Make sure Michael's okay, and whatever you do tonight, please talk him out of pressing charges. Zach does not need that right now."

"Moira... I don't think you should go home with him. He's dangerous," Lexi says with concern etched deep in her eyes.

"I'll be fine. The situation just got out of control," I tell her as I turn away.

Kelly is the one that reaches out and grabs me. "No, Moira. This is stupid for you to go home with him. Did you just see that? He would have killed Michael if you didn't get him to stop. He could hurt you."

I give her a tremulous smile and tell her, "I promise, I'll be fine. Zach would never hurt me. Just trust me on that."

I spin away from my friends and hear Lexi call out, "Call us when you get home, okay?"

I give a hasty wave over my head and run out of the club so I can find out what the bouncers did to Zach.

Chapter 9

Zach

Moira is silent on the ride home, but I can feel anger and confusion rolling off her in waves. I, however, have never felt calmer. I don't even think my pulse sped up once as I tried to kill that motherfucker for touching Moira when she clearly didn't want his attention.

He'd be dead too... right now, if Moira hadn't begged me to stop. It's the first time I've ever had a woman beg me to do something, and I didn't hesitate for a moment. The terror in her voice, the panic in her eyes... I released my hold on that douche--another new, favorite word of mine--and it was over.

Mark my words, though. I guarantee you Michael won't be sniffing around Moira anymore.

The drive home is short, and I follow Moira into her house. I brace myself, because I know that she's going to have some harsh words for me. I hope she treads lightly, though, because I'm not in a mood to hear it. I gave Moira one concession already by putting my murderous rage aside for her plea. But she's not going to get much more from me tonight.

> After setting her purse down on the kitchen table, she walks into the living room and sits down on the couch with a sigh. The move causes her dress, which had been resting at mid-thigh, to creep up her legs, and my eyes can't help but take in the long expanse of creamy flesh.

"Zach... we need to talk about what just happened at the nightclub," Moira says tentatively, and my eyes move up her body to rest on her face. It's grim, determined, and filled with censure.

"What's to talk about? I let him go," I say with a shrug of my shoulders as I lean up against the wall that borders her living room and back hallway.

Moira's eyebrows furrow inward, completely dismayed over my disinterest in this conversation. She stands from the couch in one quick push and stalks up to me. Her face is angry, but there is still a bit of fear there. Not fear of me, but fear for me. I can tell the prospect of me getting in trouble over that incident has her rattled.

Pushing a finger into my chest, Moira says, "You cannot go around attacking people because they do something you don't like. You most certainly can't try to kill someone for putting his hands on me. Do you understand--?"

"I most certainly can kill someone for putting his hands on you," I cut in over her tirade, one hand flying up to grab her by the back of the neck. I give her a slow shake, so she listens to me well. "I am my own man. Don't ever forget that, Moira."

"Zach... you can't kill someone. There are consequences, not only in the law, but also on your own soul. Taking a life is something that is irrevocable. You're a good man... I think that would shred you--forget about what that would mean for your future. Prison... being locked away... no freedom."

Pulling Moira in, I bring her face in tighter to me, causing her to go up on her tiptoes just a bit. "I know what it means to kill someone. I've done it before and never had a moment's regret, so hold the lecture, Dr. Reed."

"What? You've killed someone?" she asks in disbelief, and far more fear in her voice than I want to hear. That dismays and pisses me off, all at the same time.

"Let's just call it another cultural difference. My tribe warred with the Matica for years. We raided each other, and blood was shed. It was our own form of justice and when I return, I'll do it again."

Moira's face pales over my admission, and my grip tightens on her. I wanted to shock her, to remind her that I am still more animal than human, at least when you compare our societies. But I don't want to disgust her. I don't want her to look at me with shame or disappointment.