Cut and Run 7 - Touch and Geaux

hell can I trust you now?”
    Ty rolled his eyes.
    “You were meeting with Burns in Baltimore, weren’t you?” Zane growled.
    “Burns wasn’t in Baltimore, Zane!”
    Zane took several long strides and grabbed Ty by his shoulders, shoving him up against the wall. “Stop lying to me!”
    Ty’s eyes flashed and he clenched his jaw, baring his teeth. “Call me a liar one more time and I’ll put you down.”
    Zane’s grip tightened. His breaths came harder and faster. Maybe a good knock-down, drag-out fight would do them both some good. Zane certainly wanted to smash his fist into Ty’s teeth right now.
    He pushed away instead, backing toward the door so he wouldn’t be tempted to lash out. “You might want to get used to it. That’s the kind of stuff you call people who lie for a living.”
    “Where are you going?” Ty demanded.
    Zane turned his back on him. “I need a drink.”

    Ty had to take a few seconds to gather himself before he could follow Zane out the door. He’d be goddamned if Zane headed down there to drink, not because of him, not without a fight. He glanced down the hall as he pulled his shirt back on. Nick had come to his feet, his gun in hand.
    “What’s going on?”
    Ty waved him off. “I got this.”
    He hurried down the steps and reached the barroom just in time to see Zane pouring a snifter full of whiskey.
    “Zane.”
    Zane glared at him, and Ty had to fight every fiber of his being not to avert his eyes. He plowed on, though, stepping up behind the bar, opposite Zane.
    “I’m going to give you ten seconds to get the fuck away from me,” Zane snarled.
    Ty’s heart stuttered. He had never seen Zane like this, had never known he even had it in him to seethe like this. He squared his shoulders, though. “I’m not going to let you do this.”
    Zane held perfectly still. He didn’t even seem to be breathing. “ You did this, Ty,” he said, then lifted the glass to his lips.
    Ty grabbed his wrist. The whiskey spilled all over the bar. Zane stood so fast that his stool clattered to the floor. Ty barely managed to block Zane’s arm before the glass crashed into the side of his head, then Zane reached across the bar and grabbed Ty by his shirt, lifting him off the ground and dragging him across the bar top.
    Ty could do nothing but grasp Zane’s forearms and hold on as Zane yanked him off the bar and threw him to the floor. He rolled and pushed to his hands and knees, then to his feet. Zane picked up the barstool beside him and swung it with one hand, as if it were nothing more than a pillow.
    The stool crashed to the floor at Ty’s feet as he staggered back. He was both shocked that Zane had lashed out and chastising himself for not expecting it. He knew how deeply he’d hurt Zane, and he knew what happened when Zane’s anger went unchecked. He should have known. Zane’s rage only served to calm Ty further.
    “Everything I’ve done, Ty, I’ve done it for you!” Zane shouted.
    Ty was peripherally aware of Kelly hovering near the bar and Nick and Liam standing on the stairs watching. He waved at them to make sure no one interfered. He couldn’t have anyone getting hurt in a scuffle. He shook his head as Zane came at him. “Not like this, Zane,” he tried.
    Zane’s fist flew at him. Then again. Ty was able to block the first two punches, but the third caught him in the kidney and he doubled over. Waves of pain almost brought him to his knees. He lunged forward, wrapping Zane up to try to stop him without hurting him. He refused to throw a punch in retaliation.
    Zane shouted, his voice full of anger, pain, and betrayal. He picked Ty up and slammed him against the large wooden support beam in the middle of the room. The glass of a picture frame cracked against Ty’s shoulders. Ty tightened his hold on Zane’s arms, locking him down, trying to immobilize him before he hurt himself or Ty.
    “I’m sorry, Zane,” he gasped, trying to hold tight.
    Zane pressed his face into Ty’s neck, fighting back a sob. His entire body was trembling.
    Ty dug his fingers into Zane’s back, holding him close. He put his lips to Zane’s ear. “I’m so sorry.”
    Zane’s shoulders tightened under Ty’s hands. “I would have chosen you over anything,” Zane hissed. He pulled back, breaking Ty’s hold, bunched the front of Ty’s shirt in both hands, and jerked Ty forward until they were nose-to-nose, until Ty’s feet weren’t solidly on the floor. “My job, my family, my