“Damn, Trev, you look fine. It didn’t take you long to find your way back here. But then everyone knows Trev McNamara likes a good time.” She actually smiled and leaned forward, letting her hand trail down his chest.
“You get your hands off me right now.” There was no way to mistake the coldness in his tone.
She turned toward Leo.
Leo shook his head, dismissing her. “I’m not interested, either. Go find easier prey. And think twice before spreading rumors about Bo. I can make your life hell, and quite frankly, I would probably enjoy doing it. I get bored.”
Yep, Leo was one scary dude, and Clarissa seemed to finally get the point. She stood up, and a look of fury crossed her face. She opened her mouth.
“I wouldn’t if I were you.” Trev’s face was a stony mask. Maybe Trev was a little scary, too.
Clarissa turned on her perfect boot heels and strode away.
“Now you’ve done it.” Bo turned back to his whiskey. It looked like he was going to need it after all. He reached for it, but Trev’s hand whisked it away. He shoved it down the bar where Leo handed it back to the bartender.
“I think you can consider Mr. O’Malley’s tab closed until further notice,” Leo informed the bartender.
“Hey, I was drinking that,” Bo protested.
“Not anymore you aren’t.” Trev sat down on the stool next to him. His face had softened.
“You have a lot of right to tell a man what he can and can’t do.” What the hell was Trev doing here?
“I’m exactly the person to listen to about this. That whiskey isn’t going to fix your problem. Let’s get out of here. We can talk about Beth.”
Fuck. Trev had obviously heard his message to Mouse. “I’m not going to talk about this with you. I’m not going to try to kiss her again, if that’s what you’re worried about. She picked you. You win. I lose. Now leave me be.”
“What if neither one of us had to lose?”
Bo stopped. What was Trev saying? Fuck. He knew exactly what Trev was saying. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t thought of himself in the hours since he’d realized Mouse wasn’t going to leave Trev for him. How could he not think about it? He had living, laughing, loving proof paraded in front of him every day that a relationship like that could work.
“I don’t like men.” That was why it couldn’t work. He wasn’t bisexual. No matter what his father said. He didn’t begrudge his brother and Lucas. Hell, Bo loved Lucas like a brother himself. Lucas was part of his family, but Bo didn’t view other men as sexual objects.
Trev sighed. “I don’t have sex with men, either. I know it seems like I’ve done just about everything decadent the universe has to offer, but I haven’t done another dude. I don’t have a problem with it. I’m just not intrigued. So rest assured, I’m not after your dick.”
Bo finally really looked at Trev. “Fine. I don’t like you.”
Trev seemed nonplussed about that fact. “We got along once. We could get along again. For Beth’s sake.”
Crap. His cock twitched at the thought. Hadn’t he had enough to drink that his cock should be asleep now? He had a sudden vision of Mouse, her gorgeous pale form surrounded by their tanned skin. She would be so fucking small in between them. They could turn her from one to the other, kissing her at will. She would be a pretty doll between them. They could lavish her with pleasure in a way one man alone couldn’t.
“I don’t think Mouse would go for that.” No way was this going to happen. And even if she did want it, would he be able to do it? After what Trev had done? What had Trev really done? He’d closed a door in Bo’s face. And Bo had walked away. That was what he always did. He always walked away. And he never he really tried. He just expected that it would all go bad. He just expected that if he fought, he would lose.
Wasn’t that what he’d done with Mouse?
His head was swimming with alcohol and possibilities.
“You are going to call her Beth. I won’t allow you to call her by that nickname anymore. Her name is Beth. That’s one of the rules.”
Rules? There were rules now? “I think I’ll call her whatever I like.”
Bo tensed as a big hand went around his neck, and he was hauled out of his barstool. Trev looked down at him, his eyes narrow and his face as hard as a rock. “You will show her some goddamn respect. Whether you end up accepting my proposal or not, if I ever hear you call her by that demeaning name again, I will beat the fuck out of you. You can’t take care of her while you’re putting her down. And you sure as fuck can’t take care of her until you start taking care of yourself.”
Bo put a hand on the barstool, trying to regain his balance. The whole world felt like it had tilted, and he wasn’t sure where he was going to land. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“What were you about to do with Clarissa? Tell me what your solution to that little problem was.” Trev said the words like he already knew the answer. Bastard.
There was nothing that said he had to be honest. “I was about to tell her to go fuck herself.”
Leo shook his head. “No, he wasn’t. He’s lying. He was going to leave with her to keep the peace, and he would have ended up sleeping with her.”
“I was not going to sleep with her.” He damn straight knew that. “I wasn’t going to touch her.”
“You weren’t going to stand up for yourself, either,” Trev said, letting him go.
Bo took a quick step back. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I wasn’t going to sleep with her.”
Leo crossed his arms over his chest. “I doubt that. I believe you would go into the situation thinking that. But would you really be able to make the decisive effort it would require to put her off? She’s an aggressive woman. Would you really be able to tell her effectively that you didn’t want to sleep with her? Or would you fall into the situation because it’s easier to do what she wants than it is to piss her off?”
“I wouldn’t have slept with her.” He said it with a stubborn bent to his words, but he could see some truth to what Leo had said. He didn’t like to admit it, but a whole hell of a lot of his life had been about keeping the peace and fitting in.
It had cost him Mouse. Beth. Her name was Beth.
What would have happened if Beth had made the first move? Would he have just gone along with it? Would they be together now? Would he be happy?
Trev’s hand came down on his shoulder, though this time there was an air of almost fraternal affection in the gesture. “It’s all right. It’s just like anything else. Standing up for yourself is something that has to be taught in some people. I can help you with that.”
He’d heard that before. “Yeah, I’m not buying the shit you’re shoveling, Trev. I think I bought it once. I might not be the strongest man around, but I’m sure not a fool.”
Trev’s face fell. “Damn it, Bo. Can we talk about this? I don’t even fucking remember what I did to you. I was a different person. I would really like to talk this out for Beth’s sake. Can’t you see she’s going to be miserable without you?”
“Fine, then you can leave, and I’ll take care of her.” Even as he said the words, he realized just how selfish they were. Mouse…Beth deserved better. And how would he take care of her? According to his brother, Beth needed more than he could give her. Beth needed a Dom. He wasn’t an idiot. He knew about the books Beth read. She was interested. How could he say he loved her when he wasn’t even willing to explore something she needed?
Trev took a step back. “I’m not going anywhere, and you know it. And I don’t have to be here. I have the girl. I don’t have to share her. She’s mine now, and she’ll stay that way. But I lo—care deeply about her. It’s my job in this relationship to make sure she has what she needs. I think she needs you.”