“Funny. He said the same about you and Kate.”
Kate sank down on the sofa, dropping her face into her hands. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“This isn’t your fault, Kit,” Rafe said, not looking away from me for a second. “It’s this cheating fucker’s right here. You can’t deny it, Ryan. Kate’s seen the photos already.”
“I wasn’t going to deny it,” I said, tearing the photos topieces and dropping them into a bin. “I came here to admit to everything and break things off, I swear.”
“Rafe,” Kate said, getting up and coming to his side. She touched his arm gently. “Give us some privacy. Please.”
He snarled, giving her a disbelieving look. “I’m not going to leave you alone with him.”
My eyes widened. “What the fuck? I’m not going to hurt her. Jesus, what kind of man do you think I am?”
Rafe’s jaw was tense as he turned his attention back to me. “One stupid enough to have a precious jewel like Kate and then throw her away.”
I winced at that. He wasn’t wrong. “I’m not going to hurt Kate. I just want to talk.”
Rafe’s hand slid under his jacket. I realised then that he was dressed for the wedding. Had he really planned on watching her marry someone else? Or would he have waited until the opportune moment and stood up to claim her as his?
Something told me he’d been planning the latter.
His hand reappeared and the sight of what he held had my blood running cold. “If you so much as make her feel bad…”
I choked on a gasp, backing up against the door. “Jesus, fuck. No. What is wrong with you?”
Kate narrowed her eyes at my reaction and rounded Rafe, cursing when she saw the gun in his hand. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, Raphael. Why do you always have to make shit ten times more complicated? I love you, but you can be a fucking idiot sometimes.”
I didn’t know what I was more surprised by. That my quiet, sweet Kate was snapping and cursing at him with a temerity that would make Xander proud, or that shecasually took the gun out of Rafe’s hand and shoved it into a drawer.
Or that Rafe let her.
She wasn’t done either. Bristling from head to toe, Kate put herself between us. Hands on hips, she squared up to Rafe, glaring up at him from her five feet and three inches. “Right, Raphael Marino. Time to put your money where your mouth is.”
I marvelled as the man who’d just been glaring daggers at me with a fucking gun in his hand literally curled in on himself under Kate’s glare. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Oh yes you fucking do,” she retorted hotly. “If you meant what you said about not interfering in my life, about letting me make my own choices, then you’ll walk out of here right now and let me speak to Ryan. Alone.”
Rafe glowered down at her before giving a tight nod. “Fine. But you’ll call me the second you need me.”
She went up on her toes to brush a kiss over his lips. “Go make trouble somewhere else, Rafe. I’ll be fine.”
With one more murderous look in my direction, Rafe stormed out of the room.
“I’m sorry about that.” Kate sighed. Exhaustion lined her face as she watched him go. “That’s not how I wanted you to find out.”
“It’s okay.” I gestured at the bin. “That’s not how I wanted you to find out about me and Dom either.”
She gave me a weak smile. “Shall we sit down? I suspect this conversation might be easier that way.”
Somehow, I didn’t think this conversation would be easy for either of us. But if it made Kate more comfortable, then I’d do it. And not out of fear of what Rafe might do to me, but because I wasn’t a complete twat.
Just mostly.
I couldn’t help but smile softly as she arranged the skirt of her dress around her. “You look beautiful, Kate.”
The wistful smile she gave me in return had my chest aching. “It’s a shame no one’s going to get to see it.”
“Is it? Because given what I just walked in on, and that you know I’ve cheated on you, I thought you would’ve been glad.”