�Danny, I�m so sorry to cause all this trouble. I ruined your party,� Diane looked at him with moist eyes.

�No trouble. No trouble at all. Here, you take my bed, and I�ll take the couch.�

�No, Danny. Thanks. I can�t put you out of your bed. Just grab me a blanket and a pillow. I�ll be fine on the couch.�

�Hey! Hey! Denby! Get your sorry ass up!�

Harry groaned, rubbed his eyes to remove the haze, and squinted at his watch. It was 2:00 a.m. A boot slammed into his stomach, and he cried out in pain.

�Get your ass up. Now!�

Denby turned to catch a glimpse of his assailant. He moaned in pain, put his hands on the ground and pushed himself up to his knees. An angry, wrinkled face topped by wavy blond hair with a touch of gray appeared in his line of sight. Beside him, a taller black man.

�Mmmmmph. What the hell do you want?�

�To give you a message,� Medavoy growled in his most menacing tone of voice. �Stay away from her.�

Jones grabbed Denby by the shoulders and lifted him to his feet.

�You must be the bouncer. The last I was aware, this is still a free country, and I�m entitled to wait here.�

�She�s not coming back here tonight. And you�re not staying here either. Go home and leave her alone.�

Harry�s eyes became black pits of anger. Medavoy jumped back in shock at the transformation.

�Denby, back down and leave. I will incarcerate you if you do anything,� said Jones, in a far more menacing way. �Just go. Leave.�

�I�m not leaving until I get a chance to apologize��

�You�re leaving now,� Jones said quietly.