Love and Relativity by Rachael Wade Read Free Book Online Page B

before, but never anything like this. He was unrecognizable.
    “I don’t know. But Ruben said that’s Chase Barker. Jackson went to high school with him or something. Guess they have history.”
    I cringed when I heard another smack, Jackson delivering a weighty blow to Chase’s side. Ruben shouted at Jackson, working hard to break it up, but he was failing miserably.
    “It won’t be long before the staff or the cops get involved,” I said. “Where are Jeff and Enrique? They need to help Ruben!”
    “I haven’t seen them. Probably off with Kelly or Michelle and Kayla somewhere, I don’t know.”
    All it took was one more glance at Jackson’s rage and Ruben’s failed attempts to tame it, and I knew we couldn’t wait around for someone else to step in. This had to be stopped before things got worse.
    Letting go of Whitney’s arm, I nudged past the front row of the crowd—now audience—and jumped into the clearing.
    “Em!” Whitney shouted from behind me, but I inched forward, determined to get just close enough so Jackson could hear me.
    “Jackson!” I yelled. “Jackson, stop it, damn it. Stop!”
    Ruben swung around to meet me. “Emma, get the hell back. Just get back there with Whitney.”
    “No, not until he stops.” I took a few more steps forward, pulling the clip from my hair to let my waves fall around my shoulders. The bun I was wearing was giving me a headache, the room’s adrenaline intensifying the throbbing pain in my forehead. It was too hot, and I could feel myself growing dizzy.
    Jackson slammed his fist into Chase again and straightened up, his head doing a double take when he saw me. “Emma, get back.” Chase stumbled backward and landed on the floor with a thud, but quickly sprang back to his feet.
    “No. Let’s get out of here. Now .”
    Chase rebounded and flew toward Jackson with so much momentum, I shuddered at the sight, knowing the next punch would render one or both of them unconscious. This was ridiculous. Dashing forward, I screamed at both of them to stop and flung my body between them, Ruben pouncing on my heels to grab me before they collided.
    Jackson caught me first, wrestling me to the side and then shoving me behind him, right into Ruben’s arms.
    “Emma, are you insane?” Ruben snapped.
    I didn’t have time to answer him. Brian and Jace pummeled through the crowd and past us, surging forward to pull Chase away from Jackson.
    “That’s enough, man!” Brian yelled. “Let it go, bro, just let it go.”
    Ruben took the intervention as an opportunity and jumped into the clearing again, rushing forward to grab Jackson’s arm.
    Jackson pushed him away, turning and veering to the right toward the exit. He broke through the human wall and his head disappeared into the crowd, with Whitney, Ruben, and I rushing to follow him out. I eyeballed the space behind me, catching one last glimpse of Chase’s friends restraining him. He was hunched over and bloody, nostrils flaring wide.
    “Let’s get out of here,” Jace said, yelling at people to move aside so they could exit. Our eyes met for a second, confirming our night of fun was over before it even started.
    “Holy crap,” Whitney shrieked when we made it out the door. “It was like Fight Club back there. I feel gipped! Where the hell was Brad Pitt?”
    We rushed down the hall, side by side, Ruben jogging in front of us to catch Jackson before he made it to the elevator.
    He got to him just in time. “Jack, hold up, man. Take a breath.”
    “Back off, Ruben.” He let the elevator doors close in his face.
    Ruben let out a loud sigh and leaned on the elevator doorway with one hand, his head hanging low while he caught his breath.
    “Just let him go, Ruben,” Whitney said. “He needs to calm down. It’s no use talking to him right now. Whatever just went down, you can’t reach him.”
    Ruben lifted his head. “You don’t understand. He hasn’t seen Chase in years. And of all times to run into him...” he