He didn’t have a clue as to what he was saying. Would they be thinking more clearly, and could they pursue something physical without hurting each other? Would they be thinking clearly enough to walk away from each other still as friends or at least acquaintances?
His dick was voting for the first option.
And to his surprise, it wasn’t the only body part that was starting to want something more with Liam. Only, his brain was holding up the plan and shaking it like the damn thing was the answer to everything in life. It might have been at one time, but it sure as hell didn’t feel that way any longer.
“Yeah, I know you’re right,” Liam said with a rush. He shoved one hand through his hair and scratched his scalp for a second, leaving Seth to wrangle his wild libido back into its pen after catching sight of Liam’s wonderful biceps straining his shirt. “I think it’s worse today because Geoffrey and Sven are home from their honeymoon. Rowe called to ask if I’ve talked to him. I hate putting him in a position of hiding this from my brother.”
“When are you telling him?”
Liam shrugged. “Geoffrey texted and invited me over to dinner this Saturday night. I guess I’ll tell him, then. I…I was just hoping to have some kind of real information to tell him, like we found out who Gerald owes money to or even how much he owed.”
A bell rang through the store announcing someone’s arrival. Liam sighed, his shoulders slumping.
“You want me to get it?” Seth offered. He was getting pretty good at talking to the customers. There had been a few times where Liam had been busy ringing up people that he’d taken orders.
“No, I’ve got it. It helps.”
Seth understood. Talking to shoppers helped to take Liam’s mind off his other worries. It also didn’t hurt that every sale took a little more pressure off him financially. Or so Seth hoped.
Liam returned to the front of the store while Seth moved over to the worktable to try to figure out what the hell Liam planned to work on next. He wanted to make sure the man had everything he might need close at hand. But he didn’t get far when Liam’s tense, angry voice reached him.
“I told you Gerald isn’t here. I have no idea where he is,” Liam growled.
They’re back!
Seth pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and opened the camera app as he stepped into the front of the shop again. Liam was standing behind the counter, his hands balled into fists in front of him. As he walked around a display of ferns on a table, he lifted the phone to snap several clear pictures of the two men standing in the middle of the display area, glaring at Liam. The third man—possibly Bill—was missing.
No, this was just a visit to put fresh pressure on Liam. Hurt him some more. Damage his goods. The mouthpiece, Bill, wasn’t needed for this.
All the same, it didn’t look like the first rodeo for either of the two men. Gidget would undoubtedly be able to pull something valuable from their photos, but first Seth needed to get these assholes out of Liam’s shop without any more merchandise being damaged.
With the pictures secured, he placed his phone on a little shelf behind the counter next to Liam and glared at the two men.
“Who the fuck is this?” Buzz demanded.
“His new assistant. He said Gerald isn’t here. You need to leave,” Seth replied evenly.
“And my boss wants his money,” Buzz snapped.
“How much?”
“Hundred and fifty large,” the other man barked. “With interest.”
Liam gasped, and even Seth’s heart skipped at the enormous sum. What the fuck was Gerald doing borrowing so much money from a fucking loan shark?
Now wasn’t the time to ask that question. And judging by the ragged pants coming from Liam, Seth had to get these idiots out of here as quickly as humanly possible.
“Who’s your boss?” Seth demanded. He was already moving around the counter, putting his body between the hired muscle and the florist. Yeah, he was easily six inches shorter than both of them, but Seth had faced far larger opponents and had little trouble coming out on top.
“No more stallin’. You got the money or not?” Buzz demanded.
“Not,” Seth snarled.
Buzz growled and took a step toward Seth, who lifted both of his hands, ready to defend himself. He just hadn’t expected the other guy to grab the edge of a circular display table filled with plants in ceramic pots. The bastard jerked upward on the table, sending it onto its side. The plants crashed to the floor, the pots shattering.
“Motherfuc—”
The distraction worked when it shouldn’t have. Buzz landed a hard punch to Seth’s jaw, sending him stumbling backward into a heavy, sturdier table. The vases and plants rattled, but nothing fell. Pain radiated through Seth’s jaw, but it was a damn good wake-up call to pull his head out of his ass.
“Seth!” Liam shouted. There was a scrape of shoe on the tile floor. Liam was approaching Seth, but he couldn’t allow it. Right now, the big man was safely out of the reach of the two attackers, and that was exactly where Seth wanted him to stay.
“Stay!” Seth shouted without even looking in Liam’s direction. Please let that man listen to me. This was the whole reason he’d gone to Ward in the first place. And after everything Liam had suffered, Seth had been looking forward to this moment very much.
Grabbing a vase from where he was leaning against the table, Seth slammed it into Buzz’s face. The heavy glassware shattered, and Buzz crumbled to the floor with a scream in a shower of glass, roses, and cold water.
With the first fucker occupied, Seth snatched up the push broom he’d used earlier in the day to clean a bit of dirt and leaves off the floor. He jerked the handle free as the other man stepped over his moaning companion. Grinning, the bodyguard slammed one end of the wooden rod behind the attacker’s knee and lifted. He pulled him up off his feet and then swept the other end down on his chest, slamming him on the hard floor and on his friend.
Both men cried out in pain, but it wasn’t quite enough. Seth deftly twirled the makeshift bō staff once before smashing an end on the second man’s face. There was an ugly crack, and Seth was fairly confident he’d broken the man’s nose.
The two attackers pushed, groaned, and generally scrambled on the floor to separate from each other amid the chaos of dirt, plants, and broken pottery. Seth took a menacing step toward them, the staff held at the ready to strike out. The piece of wood was lighter and shorter than what he was accustomed to working with, but he could make it into an effective weapon, little more than an extension of his own body.
“You’re going to pay for this!” Buzz shouted, but it wasn’t quite as threatening as it could be since he was backpedaling toward the door. Glass was still embedded in his forehead from the broken vase, and blood streaked along his ugly face.
“No, you will if you or your friend take another step into his shop. Tell your boss if he wants his money, then we want a meeting!” Seth shouted. He took another step toward Buzz, and both men barreled out the front door, bloody and covered in dirt.
As soon as they were gone, Seth rushed over and turned the lock behind them. He grabbed the open sign and flipped it to closed. The place was a fucking mess, and he needed to check on Liam. Not a good time for nosy customers.