Chapter 36
Thirty-Six
Asher
I parked and headed inside Surf ’N Shack to pick Violet up once her shift ended.
The restaurant was relatively busy, though I knew this was calm compared to how packed it got during their rushes.
I nodded in her direction as she took an order while a few younger kids cleared the tables from a large group that had just left.
I sat at one of the tables in the back by the window and watched as Violet smiled at the elderly couple she was helping. I loved the way her face lit up and how animated she was when she spoke to them. I was so lost in my thoughts about Violet that I hadn’t noticed her boss come up to me.
“You hungry?” he asked, grinning when I looked at him. He glanced over in Violet’s direction and gave me a knowing look.
“I’m just here to give Violet a ride,” I replied, my face immediately flushing when he lifted an eyebrow in response.
Fuck, I was acting like an idiot and tripping over my words for no reason.
Okay, there was a reason, and that reason was currently watching me from across the room with a gorgeous smile on her face.
“Home,” I corrected, turning my head to meet his eyes. “I’m here to give Violet a ride home.”
“Thanks for the additional information. I was worried there for a moment,” he teased with a cocky grin on his face. “We had a mix-up in the kitchen, and one of my new guys made too much food. I’d hate to see it go to waste. So, if you’re hungry and like fried catfish, I’ll bring you a plate.”
“Sure, that sounds good. Thank you.”
He gave me a nod and then looked over at Violet, his brows pinching together in a way that had my head whipping to see what happened.
Capshaw strode off, a determined and pissed-off look on his face, while Violet looked shocked and a bit scared.
I stood up and was moving toward her before I even realized it.
“I’ll take over,” Capshaw said to her, stepping in front of the register as he gently guided her out of the way. I searched her face as I struggled to figure out what was wrong. Her eyes stayed fixed on the man in front of her with his arm draped over a girl’s shoulders.
“It was really great to see you,” the man said, disdain dripping from his words. “I guess the whole servant thing always suited you. Though going from taking care of someone like me to working at a place like this... doesn’t really speak highly of you.”
Her lower lip trembled as I approached her, gently extending my hand to pull her into my side. As soon as I did, he turned to look at me and anger seared my vision as I stared at the asshole in front of me.
His eyes tracked my every movement as I wrapped my arm around her waist and held her protectively. Capshaw watched everything play out but said nothing as his jaw clenched.
Jared dropped his head and shook it as he laughed. The woman stood next to him, looking confused by what was happening.
“Seriously? You went crawling to that douchebag next door?” Jared sneered at Violet and I felt her stiffen in my arms. “Guess it just shows you’ll sleep your way to getting what you want.
That’s what you did with me, wasn’t it? Put out often enough that I would take care of things so you didn’t have to? ”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I growled, trying to stay as calm as possible so I didn’t further upset Violet. I hadn’t seen her like this since the day she’d broken up with him and Enzo and I had taken her in.
“That’s funny because I was just thinking the same thing. Wow, you really sank low. I swear, Violet, I knew you didn’t have much of a backbone when we were together, but I honestly expected better from you. Between working at a dump like this and being with a pathetic loser like him...”
“Get the fuck out of my restaurant,” Capshaw growled, his hands gripping the side of the register as he stared at Jared. “Now.”
“Our pleasure,” Jared said with an eye roll. “The food here is as satisfying as sex with her.”
He nodded to Violet, and my heart sank as her head dropped in embarrassment. I let go of her and felt relieved when I saw Capshaw move to stand beside her. I took two steps until I was standing toe-to-toe with Jared.
I cocked my head to the side and loved the fear I saw in his eyes when he realized exactly who he was dealing with.
“You say that as if you know shit about Violet or what she likes in the bedroom.”
“Trust me, I had to suffer through that for months. I am well aware of how disappointing she is.”
He tried to puff his chest out as if that would make him a worthy match in this fight.
I worked my jaw back and forth, glancing at my beautiful girl behind me before I unleashed my fury on her ex.
“Do you know how thin the walls are where we live?”
I didn’t wait for him to answer because I knew he wasn’t going to. His jaw clenched while the woman beside him shuffled her weight and seemed like she was as uncomfortable as the rest of us.
“I want you to know that every time you hear a moan or a woman screaming, that’s Violet as we get her off. SEVERAL times a day. I know the sound might not be familiar, since you’ve probably never heard it before. It can be confusing the first time you hear a woman come and she’s not faking it.”
The woman’s eyebrows rose as she listened. Typically, I would have responded with a wink to get further under Jared’s skin, but I was not about to disrespect Violet in any way.
“We?” Jared asked, looking from me to Violet. “So you’ve turned into a little whore now? Is that what I’m hearing?”
Before I could say or do anything, Capshaw pushed past me and clocked Jared in the face, sending him to the ground. Violet shrieked, and the woman moved out of the way as Jared cursed and laid there, clutching his nose that was now bleeding.
“I will not tell you again. Get the FUCK out of my restaurant and don’t you ever step foot in it again,” Capshaw growled.
“And if I find out that you so much as breathe in Violet’s direction, I will let her boyfriends deal with your ass.
Trust me, you don’t want that to happen, so stay the fuck away from her. ”
The woman looked nervous as she reached down to help Jared up. He glared at Capshaw before glancing at Violet. I moved and stood in his way, making it clear that he would never have the pleasure of looking at her again.
He shook his head and started walking off, shaking off the woman’s arm as she tried to help him. I felt bad that she was with someone like him, but my main concern right now was Violet.
I turned to look at her and found Capshaw had already gone to the back, giving us some privacy.
“Are you okay?” I asked, standing in front of her as I brushed a piece of hair from her face.
She nodded, then looked down at the small puddle of blood.
“I know,” I said, letting out a heavy breath. “I’m mad that I didn’t get to hit him, too.”
“Maybe next time,” Capshaw said as he walked past us with a mop and a bucket of soapy water. “You’re done for the day, Violet. Take a break, and I’ll bring you guys food in a few minutes.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Violet said quietly. “I can finish my shift.”
The door chimed as it opened.
“I know. I would prefer you sit and have some food. It’s slow, and you only have twenty minutes left of your shift anyway.”
The women who came inside walked up to us, their eyes wide with concern as they looked at the blood Capshaw was mopping up.
“What happened?” one of them asked.
“Unruly customer,” Capshaw said, pulling her in for a hug and kissing her.
“Asher, this is Kensy, Capshaw’s wife,” Violet announced, standing beside me. “And that’s Bella and Lia. Lia is his sister.”
“It’s great to finally meet you ladies,” I said with a warm smile. “Violet has said great things about you guys.”
“I’m sure not as great as what she’s told us ab—” Lia said, stopping when Bella shook her head and nudged her in the ribs with her elbow.
I looked down at the floor to try to hide my grin, but failed. I loved that she talked about us in a way that had color staining her cheeks.
“Justin made too much food, so if you guys want to eat, take a seat, and I’ll bring some out,” Capshaw said to the girls.
“You’re welcome to join us if you’d like,” I offered, snaking a hand around Violet’s waist as she smiled and leaned into me.
“We would love to,” Kensy said, smacking Capshaw on the ass as he bent over to pick up the paper towels he used to dry the floor.
“Woman, I am at work,” he said, teasing her.
“I know. But that’s never stopped me before.” She winked and walked with us over to a larger table.
A few minutes later, plates of food were brought out and set on the table for everyone to share. I pulled my phone out of my pocket to find a text from Enzo asking if I could stop by the grocery store on our way home to pick up dinner.
“Everything okay?” Violet asked, looking at my phone.
“Yeah. Enzo was asking if we could stop by the store on our way home to grab stuff for dinner.”
“Why don’t you tell him to meet us here? There’s plenty of food and then we won’t have to cook later, which will give us more free time,” Violet said, her unspoken words making her blush.
“Yeah, tell him to come here. We’d love to meet both of the guys that have Violet wanting to skip cooking dinner so she can fuck their brains out,” Lia teased.
“LIA!” Kensy scolded and shook her head, though her grin confirmed she was just playing. “Stop it, or you’re going to scare him off. Then we won’t get to know all of the dirty details Vi has been holding out on us.”
Violet covered her face in her hands and shook her head.
“I already know I’m going to regret this,” Violet murmured.
“What could possibly go wrong?” I teased after messaging Enzo to join us. “Don’t you want your friends to meet the guys behind that winning combination?”
Violet groaned as Lia kicked her feet under the table while the girls around us laughed. I could already see why Violet loved having them as friends.