Mastered (The Enforcers 1)

Okay, so her arm would hurt like hell for a few days. But still.

The man who’d commanded her to stay, like she was some trained dog, turned his attention back to Eddie and then roughly yanked him up by his collar and tossed—yes, tossed—Eddie like a rag doll to another man who was as big and as intimidating as he was. The new guy, someone she hadn’t even noticed until now, simply turned, dragging Eddie behind him, away from the entrance where Evangeline had entered the club, as though he weighed absolutely nothing. How had she not noticed the new guy’s arrival? He was every bit as impressive as the guy who’d intervened on her behalf and then ordered her not to move, and certainly not someone she’d ever overlook in any other circumstances. Geez, but suddenly the small front bar was filled with hot, badass-looking guys who had simply materialized in a matter of seconds and prevented Eddie from punching her directly in the face. He could have easily broken her jaw or her nose, and God only knew what other damage he would have inflicted if not for the men who’d effortlessly put a stop to his assault. No matter how badass and intimidating they looked, they hadn’t once threatened her or made her feel unsafe. Nervous? Yes. Because she’d been commanded not to so much as move from where she stood, but as naïve as it made her sound, she truly didn’t believe these new men would lay a finger on her. Maybe that made her stupid and a complete moron, but given a choice between them and Eddie, who she knew meant her serious harm, she’d take the unknown without a second thought. And that gave her a measure of comfort and reassurance.

How they pulled that off she would never know, because these men were not men who would ever go unnoticed even in a much, much larger crowd. They were big, tall men, with broad shoulders, ripped muscles and faces you could break a stone on. And they all looked . . . pissed. At her? For her? It was hard to tell, although not one of them spared a glance in her direction. No, their anger and disgust was solely focused on Eddie and the pitiful sight he made squirming around on the floor.

Eddie was not a small man, but these guys? They made Eddie look like a scrawny boy.

She swallowed. Hard. And her hand automatically went to her arm as the man who’d intervened on her behalf turned his attention fully on her now that Eddie had been dragged away.

She idly wondered where exactly they were taking him, but then decided she needed to be more worried about how she was going to get out of here. Or if they were taking her anywhere. Panic swamped her and she could feel the beginnings of a full-scale mother of all anxiety attacks. Not what she needed tonight. She just wanted to call the number her girlfriends had provided and be picked up and out of there as soon as humanly possible.

“Um, thank you,” she stammered out. “I’ll just be going now. I shouldn’t have come.”

The man’s expression gentled and he put his hand out to her shoulder. She flinched involuntarily, a natural reaction after being assaulted by another man. He frowned, his eyes narrowing, as though he’d been insulted by her response, intentional or not, but his displeasure wasn’t in any way reflected in his touch.

It was exceedingly gentle and he gave her a reassuring squeeze even as his frown disappeared and he regarded her almost tenderly.

Now Maddox understood all too well Drake’s reaction and his instant call for Maddox, Zander and Silas to intervene, because this was one mean son of a bitch taking out his rage and humiliation on a beautiful woman half his size.

He also understood Drake’s uncharacteristic response to this particular woman because she was a lone sheep in a pack of vicious, bloodletting wolves.

“Are you okay?” he asked quietly in a very gentle tone, not wanting to frighten or intimidate her further. It was obvious to anyone that she was absolutely at her breaking point, and it fired all the protective instincts he’d seen reflected. She needed extremely gentle care or she was going to fall apart at any moment. And fuck it all, but that pissed him off royally. He wanted to be outside teaching the little bastard a lesson even though the others were more than capable of beating the little bastard, a lesson he wouldn’t soon forget. He just wished he could take part. But this woman needed very careful handling, and now he understood Drake’s adamancy that Maddox take care of the woman and see her safely to Drake’s quarters. If Drake hadn’t already staked a claim, she would be coming home with him tonight and never have to worry about the asshole he’d gotten off her ever coming within a mile of her.