Astrid
In order not to get distracted and have sex a second time tonight, after Mayhem returned from dealing with the staff, we finished up what we were doing, and then we went out to the main floor. It was crowded, just like last Friday, but it seemed even busier to me.
I hung at one end of the bar, while he made his rounds.
I was drinking a rum and Coke and chatting with one of the bartenders.
It was their newest one. Her name was Kelli.
From what I could tell, she was doing a great job.
She was easygoing, often smiling and joking with customers and other staff.
She was attractive, and it earned her, along with her personality, great tips.
“So, how long have you and Mayhem been together? You two are a great couple. The way he watches you shows how much he loves you,” she said.
“We met by accident in this club ten months ago. I was traveling after that, and it wasn’t until I decided to settle down here that we got together. We’ve been together a month.”
Her eyes widened, then her mouth dropped open. “Wow, he claimed you as his old lady that fast? He doesn’t waste time. Wish I could find a decent man who would treat me right. All I seem to attract are the frogs and freaks.”
“I’ve attracted my share of those, too. I never imagined being with a man like him or for us to be this serious so fast, but it seems to be a trend in his club,” I told her.
Before she could say more, her name was called by the other bartender. He needed help.
“Oops, better get back to work. We need to talk more, girl,” she said before she hurried off.
A bit later, I was turned on my stool, watching the dancer on the stage. I didn’t pay attention when the stool next to me was taken. People had been on and off of it since I sat down. What got my attention was when a man’s voice asked, “What’re you drinking?”
I glanced over to see who he was speaking to. I found him staring at me. “Excuse me?” I asked.
“What’re you drinking? Let me buy you another.”
“Thank you, but I’m good.”
“Come on, a beautiful woman like you, sitting here alone. Let me buy you a drink.”
“I’m not alone. I have friends, and my man is here.”
I switched my gaze back to the stage. I thought my words and ignoring him would make him quit. Wrong. He tried again.
“Hey, there’s no need to lie. I know you don’t have a boyfriend here.
If you did, there’s no way he’d leave you alone.
And if you’re in a place like this, you expect men to buy you drinks.
Let me be the one who does, and at the end of the night, we can go somewhere quiet and get to know each other.
” His tone and the leer he wore told me what he expected his drink to “buy” him.
This lecher wasn’t the first of his kind I’d run into throughout my life. Pickup attempts like this and worse had been somewhat familiar over the years. I had always wondered if it often netted them a woman for the night. This time, I would appease my curiosity while shaking him off.
“I have a question for you,” I said softly.
He smiled and leaned closer. The lust was clear on his face.
“Does this kind of behavior ever get a woman stupid enough to say yes and then leave to have sex with you? I’ve got to think it does at least once in a while, otherwise you would’ve stopped doing it. It’s sad when you think about it.”
His smile dimmed. “What the hell does that mean? I’m paying you a compliment.
I don’t offer drinks or my company to just anyone.
I have standards. I watched you from across the bar.
You’ve been sitting here for twenty minutes, and the only person you’ve interacted with is that bartender.
You’re dressed in that skirt and those heels, looking the way you do.
I know what you’re here for, and I’m the man who can give you the ride of a lifetime.
Hell, if she’s willing, why don’t you, I, and that sexy bartender go to my place after she gets off?
We can all have a party there. I’ve got plenty to entertain us.
” His leer and smile were back. His hand came down on my knee, and he squeezed.
Automatically, I grabbed his wrist and applied pressure to his pressure points, causing him to cry out in pain. His fingers involuntarily released my flesh, and I shoved his arm back toward him. I let my distaste show on my face.
“Let me assure you, it’s not a compliment.
And I don’t believe you’re discerning at all.
You have no standards. The only reason I’m on this stool is that my man is busy making his rounds.
He manages this place. And your disgusting offer is declined, for both of us.
Kelli has standards, and so do I. Even if I didn’t have a man, I would never fuck you.
” I bluntly laid it out. There was no reason to be cordial to this idiot.
His face grew red with indignation. I was prepared for whatever he did next.
It might be hateful words and storming off, or he might get physical.
Whichever way, I was ready. And he was an idiot.
He hadn’t noticed the property cut I wore.
Even though the back of it was turned away from him, the front should’ve clued him in on the fact that I wasn’t lying about being claimed.
If he knew anything, he had to realize that if my man was the manager of Eden, it made him a Punisher.
It was no secret around Bristol or the surrounding towns who owned Punisher’s Eden.
“You fucking, bitch! I’ll show you. You’re coming with me,” he snarled.
He stood from his stool and latched onto my arm, this time at the bicep.
He tugged on me. I allowed him to grab me for one reason only.
There were security cameras everywhere. If this turned into something the police got involved in, which I doubted, but if it did, I wanted it plain that he was the aggressor and I responded in self-defense.
“Let go of me or you’ll regret it,” I warned.
I stood as if to go with him. He glared at me and yanked me toward him.
I took a step and followed it up with a punch to his gut.
It drove the wind out of him. I put power behind it.
The creep hunched over, holding his stomach with both hands, which meant he let go of me.
I put a foot of distance between us. I wasn’t confident that this would end the matter.
“You…you…bitch,” he wheezed.
If he was about to say more, it was stopped by the arrival of Mayhem, and he wasn’t alone. Shadow and Riot were with him. All of them were pissed, but none as much as my man. Mayhem immediately encircled my upper body, bringing me against him. His anxious eyes scanned me as he did.
“Are you alright, Fury? What did this guy do?”
When he said guy, Mayhem glared daggers at the still hunched-over man. Riot and Shadow were standing behind the guy, silently waiting. I didn’t believe he knew they were there. His gaze was glued to Mayhem and me.
“I’m fine, honey. This guy seems to have a hearing and intelligence deficit.
Despite turning down his offer for a drink and then his offer to go back to his place to have fun, he still kept it up.
He then offered to take Kelli with us so we could do it together.
I tried to make him stop, but he got handsy, so I got handsy back,” I told my man calmly.
A deep, angry rumble came rolling out of Mayhem. The guy slowly straightened. I watched his eyes focus on the front of my old man’s cut, then switch to mine. He grew pale. His swallow made his Adam’s apple bob.
“Listen, there’s been a mistake. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any disrespect. I thought she was here alone and was looking for company.”
“And I informed you I wasn’t, and even that I was waiting for my man to get done with his rounds.
You didn’t believe me. You must be desperate to try your routine to get women.
And when they decline, you try to force them.
How many women have you forced to have sex with you?
” I asked, growing angrier. I imagined there had been women who gave in or weren’t able to shake him off.
“I don’t force women. Sure, sometimes they play hard to get, but in the end, they happily go with me. I’m sorry I misunderstood that you weren’t playing. I’ll leave and let you get on with your night. Excuse me,” Creeper said before swinging around.
The way he stiffened as he stumbled backward told me he hadn’t known his two shadows were there.
They stood tall with their arms crossed over their broad chests.
Biceps bulged underneath their T-shirt sleeves.
Even if I loved Mayhem, I was a woman and could appreciate how attractive they were, among other attributes.
“You’re not going anywhere until our enforcer is done with you,” Riot informed the man.
“You touched Mayhem’s old lady. Even after she told you to leave her alone, surely, you can’t be stupid enough to think you can walk out of here scot-free. There has to be atonement,” Shadow added.
“Hey, let’s not get carried away. I’ll leave. How much?” the guy questioned.
“How much what?” Mayhem asked.
“How much money to forget this and let me leave. I know you must like money. I’ve got it. Will five grand make you release me?”
All three Punishers snorted. “Are you fucking kidding us? You think you can bribe us to forget you touched Astrid against her will? It’s not happening. You need a lesson,” Mayhem growled.
Glancing around, I saw we were gaining attention from the staff and customers. “Babe, why don’t you take him elsewhere? Too many eyes in here,” I suggested.
“Good idea, baby. Guys, mind taking him to the back? You know where. I’ll be there in a minute,” Mayhem told Shadow and Riot.
“No problem,” Riot replied.
A sputtering, protesting man was grabbed by the arms and then marched, half-dragged, down the hallway to where the office and other rooms were located, including the dressing room. Mayhem was back to studying me.
“Jamie, I’m fine,” I told him.
“I bet you have bruises from where he grabbed you.”
He was right. Those spots ached. Plus, I bruise easily. I remained quiet.
“Astrid, no one lays a hand on you or scares you and walks away without reprisal. It’s the same with all the old ladies.
Hell, even a stranger would warrant the same.
You’re mine to protect, and I will do my duty as your old man.
I would like you to go to my office and stay there until I come to get you. This shouldn’t take long.”
“What if I want to go with you?”
“I prefer you stay in my office,” he countered.
“Why?”
“Because I said so,” he said.
“Mayhem, you know by now that kind of macho thing doesn’t work with me. I know what you’re gonna do. You plan to beat his ass and then send him off with a warning. I deserve to be there. I was the injured party. Hell, I should be the one issuing his beating.”
“Goddamn it, Astrid, why can’t you just do as I ask?” he snapped.
“Why won’t you let me come with you?” I shot back.
“Because I don’t want you to see me when I have to be Mayhem! That’s something, someone, I reserve for those who deserve it,” he growled.
I lifted my hands and gripped the sides of his face. I stared hard into his eyes. “And I need to know all sides of my man. Don’t be afraid that I’ll run if I see you as the club’s enforcer. I won’t. Short of you beating me or cheating on me, I won’t leave you.”
I stopped talking and let what I said sink in. We stood there a good minute or more before he sighed. He brought me flush against him. His head lowered. “Then you’ll get to see all of me. For God’s sake, don’t leave me. I couldn’t take it,” he muttered before sealing his lips to mine.
Our kiss was a passionate one, tinged with more than a hint of fear on his part. I hoped I poured enough love into mine so he knew I was fully with him. When we reluctantly parted, I dropped my hands. Mayhem turned me toward the hallway and wrapped my arm through his.
“Let’s get this over with,” he said before walking us down the hallway.
He took me to a room I hadn’t been in. By the looks of it, it was a storage room based on the shelving and supplies everywhere.
I was confused why we were there, until he moved a set of shelving away from the wall.
It was on a section of wall that pulled out.
That’s when the secret opening was exposed.
The stairs were going downward. I knew he saw the surprise on my face as he gestured for me to go ahead of him.
As I did, Mayhem closed the door behind us, then took my arm to guide me downward.