Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
It had been a week since our kiss. I’d seen Joy just once since then.
There was a Harley build and another extensive motorcycle repair at Thatcher’s that I needed to help with, and at her place, the other kennel assistant was out sick with the flu.
So, when our schedules finally aligned for Saturday night, I wasn’t wasting the opportunity to do things right.
It started with taking Joy to a steak place in the Old City in Knoxville, with soft lighting, cloth napkins, and a chocolate dessert I knew she would love. I planned to end the night back at my place, away from the world, where we could explore the fire that had ignited the night we kissed.
“You’re sure concentrating hard,” I noted as I watched her take another slow bite of her chocolate mousse.
“It’s just so good,” Joy moaned. “It has something special in it. I’m trying to figure out what it is.”
“You take your time, Doll.” Of course, if she did, I wouldn’t be able to walk out of here without the entire restaurant realizing I had a hard-on.
After three more excruciating bites, her eyes lit up. “I’ve got it! Well, I’ve narrowed it down. It’s molasses or honey! I’m going to have to experiment with each one.” She reached out and grabbed my hand. “Will you let me experiment on you?”
I looked down at her hand and then up into her excited gaze. “Doll, you can experiment on me to your heart’s content.”
I watched her cheeks turn the same rosy pink as her body-hugging dress. She tried to draw back her hand, but I caught it before she could.
“Y-y-you know what I meant.”
I turned her hand over and stroked my thumb across the rapid pulse at her wrist, then smiled. “It’s okay, Joy. I knew what you meant.”
She blew out a breath that sent a strand of blonde hair flying from her face. “Good. That’s good,” she said with a relieved grin.
“But I’d absolutely love it if you would experiment on me in other ways. Maybe even tonight… at my house.”
The way her eyes widened, I could tell she understood my meaning.
I waited with bated breath to see what her reaction would be.
It didn’t take long. Her lashes fluttered down.
Then she looked up at me, giving me the same sultry, sensuous smile she had been reserving for the mousse. “That sounds absolutely wonderful.”
Damn, if I thought I was ready to get her alone before, hearing her say those words in that sexy tone had me about ready to throw my credit card at the waiter the next time he walked by and haul her ass out of here.
Somehow, I refrained and reached for my wallet.
I pulled out my card and placed it on the edge of the table like a gentleman, praying the waiter would take it fast.
By the time we were out the door, I had to work hard not to throw Joy over my shoulder and carry her to my truck. Her silver heels were out of this world, but she wasn’t walking nearly fast enough as far as I was concerned.
We’d made it partway to the parking lot when a woman called out Joy’s name.
“Joy, what are you doing down here?”
It was Ava, shouting from halfway down the block. She was with her man, Brent. She was all tricked out, and I’d bet my bottom dollar she was out for a night of clubbing.
Joy waved but didn’t yell back an answer. Instead, she looked up at me and tugged at my hand, making it clear she wanted to go to Ava, not to my truck. I was putty in her hands.
Literally.
We walked their way, and Ava bounced toward us.
“This is great luck,” Ava enthused as she caught Joy up in a hug. “You’ve got to come with us. We’re meeting everybody over at Louey’s. It’s karaoke night. It’s going to be a blast.”
I looked at Brent and saw that his look of pain matched mine.
“I don’t know, Ava. It’s going to be too loud to really talk to one another,” Joy protested.
“What it’s going to be is fun. That’s one syllable. Three letters. F-U-N. Fun! Come on, Joy, you’ll love it.”
Before I knew it, Ava had her arm linked with Joy’s and was pulling her down the street.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
“My thought exactly.” Brent nodded. “But at least Roan, Simon, and Hart will be there.”
“They will?”
“Yep.”
“Well, then it won’t be a total bust.”
“Plus, get three shots of tequila in Ava, and my night is made.” Brent grinned. “But any more than that, and the window closes.”
I watched Joy as she and Ava walked ahead of us. The way her heels made her ass sway was killing me. “I don’t know Joy’s window yet.”
“You don’t? I’m surprised. You’re moving kind of slow, my friend.”
“Joy’s a little jumpy. I don’t want to rush her. I want to make sure she feels safe with me.”
“Safe?” Brent gave me a long look. “Do you think something’s happened to her in the past?”
“I’m not sure, but she shows some signs of past trauma. I just don’t want to push her.”
“Well, she hasn’t said anything to the girls, 'cause Ava would have told me in a heartbeat.”
Of that, I had no doubt. “It could be nothing,” I admitted.
“No,” Brent disagreed. “You’re like Simon. You led a team of SEALs. You’d know. I trust your gut. But if she’s your destiny, this slow shit must be killing you.”
He was right about that. But if my girl needed slow, then that’s what she’d get, and I told Brent that. “Well, good luck,” Brent said, clapping my shoulder as we followed our women to Louey’s.
When we got inside the bar, it was packed to capacity.
“Follow me, everybody,” Ava ordered. “Roxie texted me where their table is.”
“You tell me where it is,” Brent told her. “I’ll clear the way.”
She looked up at her man and grinned. “Sounds good.”
I positioned Joy behind Ava so that the women were between us. When we got to the table, I saw that somehow, they had procured chairs for us. What’s more, the table was close to the stage.
I gave a chin tilt to Roan and Hart as I got Joy seated. She looked up at me, excitement in her eyes, and that made me happy. Even if I had been cock-blocked for a while, Joy having fun was worth it.
“I ordered drinks,” Roxie said.
“What did you order?” Ava asked.
Roxie rolled her eyes at her friend. “Tequila shots, of course.”
Oh God, here we go. I’d better buckle up. Brent eyed Ava with anticipation. Something told me he’d be getting her out of the place before she had her fourth shot.
Joy shook her head. “I don’t do tequila. It makes me too woozy.”
“You have to drink a shot of tequila. It’s a karaoke tradition,” Ava insisted.
I looked over at Brent and saw that his expression was indulgent. Apparently, he knew her window as well.
Joy sighed. “Well, remember, I warned you.”
At that point, the waitress came over and deposited five shots in the middle of the table, along with four glasses of ice water. The waitress looked at me and the three other men. “Can I get you fellas anything?”
We all placed our beer orders as we eyed the women. Roxie passed the shots out. I nudged Joy’s shoulder and whispered in her ear, “You don’t have to drink it if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s okay.”
Roxie held her shot glass aloft. “To strong women!” she shouted.
The three other women did the same, and I watched as Joy swallowed her drink and gasped. I grabbed one of the glasses of water and handed it to her. She gave me a grateful look before drinking down half the glass, her eyes watering.
“Is that the first time you’ve had a shot of tequila?” Ava asked.
Joy nodded as she wiped her eyes. I bit my lip to keep from laughing. My arm, which had already been resting on the back of her chair, now pulled her into my side. She looked up at me and smiled.
“Don’t worry, it’ll get easier,” Ava assured her.
When the waitress came back with our beers, Roxie yelled out for four more shots. I watched as Brent slipped a bill to the waitress and gave her a slight shake of his head.
Smart man.
“I’ll get to you ladies as soon as I can,” the waitress promised as she winked at Brent, pocketing the money.
We took some time catching up. Roxie and Ava wanted to know more about my time growing up with Piper and Emmie. I told them some of my more watered-down stories. They quickly caught on to the fact that Emmie was the instigator.
“But she looks so innocent,” Ava said.
“Yeah. That fooled everybody, especially the fact that she was the soloist in the church choir.”
Joy turned to Brent, who she didn’t know all that well. “How about you, Brent? How did you get into the automotive restoration business? I know about Roan, he inherited the business from his father.”
“Yeah, but then Lisa came along and immediately proved she could run circles around me.” Roan looked at his wife with pride as he gathered her closer.
“Believe it or not, it wasn’t my dad who taught me,” Brent said. “In high school, I signed up for home ec, but the class was already full, so I had to take shop instead.”
“Home Ec? You’re shitting me,” I said.
“Of course, home ec,” Brent said with a big grin, “that’s where all the girls were.
Instead, I got stuck in a dick factory. But it turned out all right.
I found out I had an aptitude for working on cars, especially fixing up older cars.
Turned out to be lucrative, and I didn’t have to go to college, so I was all in. ”
“That’s great, Brent. I love that,” Joy clapped her hands.
“That’s my man.” Ava beamed.
Just then, the DJ started talking really loud. Apparently, karaoke had started.
God save us all.
There was a small line of would-be stars eager to show their stuff that had shuffled close to the stage. First up was a trio of kids. They must have just turned twenty-one, and if I had to guess, they were part of a bachelor’s party.
As soon as the first few bars of the song played, I knew what they were going to sing—“Love Stinks” by The J.
Geils Band. These guys could actually carry a tune, and it was pretty damn funny when the groom rushed the stage to demand they stop singing.
Then the groom started singing “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis Presley, and the entire bar was soon roaring with laughter.