Free Loving Jay by Renae Kaye

great fun. I suddenly saw a flash of hot pink and my head swung around, zeroing in on the blond head I could see between the shoulders of the bullies.
    Jay.
    He must’ve been on the train with me and I didn’t see him in the crowd. He must’ve had to work late, like me. He must’ve run into trouble out here with the three stooges.
    I registered these thoughts in a millisecond, and my heart froze as I watched Thug Number One swing him around and slam him face-first, hard, up against the brick wall. Jay’s head snapped back as he crumpled to the ground with a cry of pain. I heard the yelp of pain and didn’t even realize I was moving until Thug Number One was within arm’s reach. Thug Number Two had moved in and landed a kick in Jay’s side and I saw red. But I was already running on my bung leg, yelling at the top of my voice. Number One turned at my yell as I barreled into him, dropping my shoulder into his side, pushing him into Thug Number Two and sending them both sprawling on the concrete.
    “You leave him the fuck alone!” I realized it was my voice shouting and the violence in it scared me.
    Thug Number Three turned and eyed me up and down. “Who the fuck do you think you are, motherfucker?” he growled at me.
    All I heard was Jay whimpering in pain. Number Three took a swing at me, which I dodged, so he brought his foot around to kick out at me. The useless idiot was wearing white sneakers so I saw the foot coming at me from a mile away. Four brothers and roughhousing with them for twenty-four years stood me in good stead, and I jumped to the side to avoid the upward thrust of his shoe, followed through with my arm, chopped upward, pushed his leg up beyond its normal flexibility, and sent him completely off balance.
    He smashed into the ground with a large thud. I heard the crack of his skull with great pleasure.
    I turned to defend myself from Number One and Number Two, only to find that not all humankind had lost their humanity. A middle-age woman was thumping Number One over the head with her handbag, while a white-haired old-timer in a business suit had Number Two’s arm twisted up behind his back and was kneeing him to the ground.
    I registered the flashing lights approaching with relief, but my focus turned to Jay. Beautiful, lively Jay who was still curled in a ball on the ground. I dropped to my knees beside him, ignoring the blast of pain from my leg, and slowly turned him toward me, terrified of what I would see.
    It was better and worse than I expected. Half his face was covered in blood, but I quickly noted that it was just a gash under his eye—the blood dripping down to his chin. I could see grazes on his cheek where he had hit the wall, and his eye was swelling, turning purple already. But his eyes were thankfully open, and he blinked rapidly as he struggled to focus on me.
    “Jay? Jay? Shit, dude! Are you okay?”
    He turned toward me, confused and scared. “Liam?”
    “Yeah, man. It’s me. It’s okay, dude. I’ve got you. They won’t hurt you again. I won’t let them get you again.” He buried his bloody face in my shirt and I hugged him tight, rocking him slightly back and forth. “They won’t get you. I’ll take care of you. It’ll be okay.” I felt him burst into tears against my chest and I stroked his back in comfort. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
    I was aware of people shouting and yelling behind me, but I just crouched over Jay, protecting him from any further harm. Someone touched my shoulder and said, “Is he okay?”
    I continued my rocking as Jay sobbed. “I don’t know,” I answered the stranger. “I think so. Shh, Jay! It’s okay. I’ve got you.”
    “Okay,” the stranger answered. “The ambulance is on its way.”
    Ambulance? With shock I comprehended what had just happened. Jay had been attacked by three men and I had fought them. Was I in trouble? Was I going to be arrested? Shit! Maybe I would need to call Dale for that favor before the