Adam’s truck fishtailed as he turned into Billy Rockefeller’s gravel drive. His headlights bounced across the front of the house just as the front door flew open.
Bianca burst outside with Clancy and Ewan right behind her.
Adam put his truck into park and jumped out before the engine finished rumbling. “Bianca!”
She spotted him at the same moment.
Then she ran straight toward him. Panic showed in every stride, her hair whipping behind her in the night wind.
Adam ran straight toward her.
Behind her, the front door crashed open again. Billy Rockefeller stepped onto the porch with a shotgun in his hands. “And if you come back,” Billy shouted, “I’ll shoot you!”
Bianca reached Adam at a dead sprint. Clancy and Ewan were at the SUV, which was way too close to the porch.
Adam caught Bianca and shoved her behind his back, placing his body between her and the porch. Everything in his vision turned red.
Billy stood on the porch steps, shotgun raised halfway toward them.
Adam launched forward before Billy had time to react, slamming into him full force. He drove his shoulder into Billy’s chest and knocked him backward against the porch railing. The shotgun slid sideways in Billy’s grip.
Adam grabbed the barrel and twisted. The weapon jerked upward toward the sky. He forced it away from Billy’s hands and slammed the stock toward the ground. Then his knee drove into Billy’s ribs.
Billy folded over with a choked grunt, his blond hair falling across his face as the air left his lungs.
Adam snapped the shotgun open. Two shells sat in the chamber. He yanked them out and flung them into the dirt beside the porch. The metal clicked shut again in his hands.
“You’re trespassing,” Billy gasped out.
Adam hauled Billy upright by the front of his shirt. “Did you actually just point a gun at her?”
Billy sucked in a ragged breath. “She came into my house.”
“You invited us,” Bianca shouted from behind Adam.
Adam grabbed Billy by the throat with his free hand and drove him backward into the doorframe. The wood cracked under the impact. Billy’s eyes bulged.
“Did you invite her inside,” Adam said, his voice low and deadly, “and then point a gun at her?”
Billy clawed at Adam’s wrist. “You’re trespassing,” he croaked. His face turned red as he struggled for air.
Ewan jogged up beside Adam, hands raised. “Uh… he can’t breathe, dude.”
Adam barely heard him. His entire focus locked onto Billy. “Answer me,” Adam growled.
“Yes,” Billy gasped. The word scraped out of his throat.
Adam was careful not to cause permanent damage. Not yet, anyway. “Why the hell would you invite them inside and then pull a gun?”
Billy coughed and wheezed. “I told her to leave.”
Adam glanced over Ewan’s shoulder and saw Clancy standing near the SUV, watching the entire scene with wide eyes. “Bianca,” Adam said without turning around. “Get in the truck.” His voice stayed calm and steady.
For once, she didn’t argue. Behind him he heard his truck door open.
Adam turned back to Billy. “You ever point a gun at her again,” he said quietly, “and we’re going to have a much bigger problem.”
Billy glared at him through watering eyes. “You people are bringing trouble to this town.”