Chapter 3
Menace
“So, what’s the deal with the new girl?”
“No deal.” The music was blaring as I glanced over my shoulder at Aubrey.
I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off her all night.
She was at the bar collecting her drink order, and she looked fucking incredible.
Wearing the club’s waitress uniform, it looked like it was made for her.
The short skirt clung to her delicate curves, and the low-cut halter top showed off just enough cleavage to drive me fucking crazy.
She’d been working for the last couple of nights, and it had been hell.
At least, it was for me. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
She, on the other hand, seemed to be doing just fine.
Apparently, she was entirely unfazed by my presence, but I intended to rectify that.
“Just a girl who needed a job. We had a waitressing spot open, so I gave it to her.”
“Mm-hmm,” Rafe muttered in disbelief.
“Peter Brant told her to come here.”
“Lynch’s grandfather?” Rafe sounded just as surprised as I’d been. “How’d she know him?”
“Apparently, she used to work for them.”
“Was she around when all the shit went down with the robbery?”
“Don’t think so, but can’t say for certain. The whole deal seemed a little sketchy.”
“You think we should be concerned?”
“I wouldn’t have hired her if I did.”
“Well, I’m sure glad you hired her. Damn, she’s hot,” Country added. “Like really, fucking hot.”
“Steer clear, asshat,” I warned. “The last thing she needs is you giving her a hard time.”
“What makes you think I’d give her a hard time?” He brought his hand up to his chest like he was wounded. “I was just making an observation.”
“Yeah, sure you were.”
I watched as Aubrey carried the round of drinks over to one of the rowdier tables right next to the stage.
The guys were all carrying on, cheering and shouting, and it was clear they had a thing for their pretty little waitress.
I couldn’t blame them. Aubrey was the best-looking woman in the room, and her confident swagger only made her that much more desirable.
They were all throwing her complements and dinner date offers, but she politely blew off their advances as she put their various beers down on the table.
I was pleased to see that even though she looked sweet and innocent, she could handle her own. I turned my attention back to Rafe.
“This girl got a name?” Rafe asked, sounding concerned.
“Aubrey Cash. At least, that’s what she told me.
I did a little digging after her interview, and there’s no mention of any Aubrey Cash before the year 2019.
Just says she grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and her parents, Janice and Daniel Cash, were killed in a car crash.
That’s it. No school. No college. No mention of her on any social media platform.
Hell, there’s not even a single photograph of her anywhere online.
It’s like she didn’t exist until a couple of years ago. ”
“So, she’s lying about who she is?”
“No doubt about it. The chick is hiding something, and I got a feeling it’s not good.” The thought had me taking another pull from my beer. “She went to an awful lot of trouble to get herself a fake name, social security number, and driver’s license.”
“You think she’s in some kind of trouble?”
“Don’t have a clue.” I found myself looking back over in her direction as I said, “She hasn’t said much since the interview. Been keeping her head low and doing her job like she’s supposed to.”
“Marlowe told me she’s staying in her old apartment.” Rafe crossed his arms as he said, “She also mentioned it was your idea for her to move in there.”
“Yeah, well, she needed a place to stay.”
“So, that’s it? There’s not some other reason why you decided to go the extra mile for a girl you don’t even know.”
“I figure there’s a reason why Peter Brant sent her here.” I shrugged. “I figure we owe it to him and to Lynch to figure out why.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Not looking to get in her pants, brother. Just trying to do the right thing.”
“If you say so.”
I could see the wheels turning in my brother’s head.
He was concerned, and he had every right to be.
I knew nothing about this girl, which meant I’d put us all at risk by hiring her.
I knew I was taking a chance when I did it, but I couldn’t turn her away.
And I’d meant what I’d told Rafe about Brant.
I wouldn’t feel right sending her on her way after he’d sent her here for our help.
With everything that was going on with the new hires, I hadn’t had a chance to look into her like I should; in all honesty, I didn’t know when I would.
There was a part of me that hoped I’d be able to convince her to tell me what was going on before it came to that.
Trying to set his mind at ease, I told Rafe, “She said she was from Cleveland. I’ll look into their police database and see what I can find out. ”
Country’s brows furrowed as he asked, “You sure you wanna do that?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Seems like she’s gone to a lot of trouble to keep her identity a secret.
If I had to guess, I’d say there’s probably a good reason why.
” As soon as he saw the expression on my face, he added, “I know it’s your job to protect the club and all, but there’s always the chance that you could bring the trouble to us the second you go poking around. ”
“You might be right.”
“You can’t be serious...You’re good at this shit. You can find out what you need to without anyone being the wiser,” Rafe cocked his eyebrow and continued, “and honestly, I don’t get why you haven’t already done it.”
He was right. It would take some work, but I had the means to look into Aubrey, or whoever the hell she was, without anyone having a fucking clue.
Hell, I’d spent the better half of my life doing just that, but something was holding me back.
I didn’t know how to explain it. Hell, I didn’t understand it myself, but my gut was telling me to hold off. “I’ll get to it.”
“And you need to talk to Lynch and fill him in on the situation. Maybe he’ll have some insight as to what’s going on with her.”
“I will as soon as he comes in for his shift.”
Before I had a chance to say anything more, there was a commotion behind us—one that drew my attention to the table Aubrey had been serving.
Rage engulfed me when I saw that one of them was pawing all over her, and she was doing her best to get out of his reach.
When she stepped away from the table, he took a hold of her arm and yanked her into his lap.
She looked utterly terrified as she tried to pull herself free from his grasp.
It wasn’t the first time a customer had gotten handsy with a waitress.
I knew one of the brothers would handle it, but for reasons I couldn’t begin to explain, I jumped off my stool and charged over to the table.
Aubrey’s eyes were wide with surprise as I leaned down and lifted her from his lap.
As soon as I’d gotten her on her feet, I turned my attention to the asshole who’d grabbed her.
I reached down and clutched a handful of his shirt, twisting it into a knot as I pulled him towards me. “Time for you and your buddies to move on.”
“Why? We’re just having a good time.”
“Too good of a fucking time.” I leaned in closer and growled, “No one, and I mean no one, touches one of my girls. You got that?”
“Yeah, man.” The guy sank back in his chair, and sounding almost sorry, he muttered, “I got it.”
“Good.” I released my hold on him and pointed over to the door. “Now get the hell out.”
“Wait...Do we really gotta go? He didn’t mean nothing by it. He was only messing around,” one of his buddies chimed in. “It’s Hank’s bachelor party, and we let things get out of hand.”
I didn’t immediately answer. I needed a second to collect myself, so I inhaled a deep breath and then looked over to Aubrey to make sure she was okay.
Her face was blood red, and her hands were trembling as she brushed the strands of hair from her face.
It seemed like she was on the brink of tears, and I had to say, I was a little thrown by the fact that she looked so rattled by what had taken place.
This couldn’t have been the only time some guy had gotten too friendly with her, not when she was so fucking hot, but it was clear the encounter had gotten to her—which enraged me even more.
I didn’t want to scare her any further, so I swallowed back my anger as I placed my hand on her arm and asked, “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good.”
“You sure?”
She nodded as she muttered, “Yeah, I’m sure.”
“See! She’s cool with us staying.”
I briefly turned my attention back to the assholes at the table. “I said to get the fuck out!”
The entire crew grumbled and moaned as they got up and made their way out the front door. When I turned back to Aubrey, she was gone. I looked around, and there was no sign of her. Fuck. I headed back over to the guys and asked, “Did you see where she went?”
“Out back.” Rafe motioned his head over to the door. “Marlowe just ran out to check on her.”
“Yeah, you might not have to worry about looking into her after all.” Country cocked his eyebrow as he taunted, “She looked pretty upset. Might not be back...”
I didn’t wait for him to finish his sentence.
Instead, I walked around the table and out the back door.
I’d barely made it to the parking lot when I spotted Marlowe talking with Aubrey.
As I started towards them, I heard Marlowe say, “You don’t have to worry about guys like that.
The brothers won’t let anything happen to you. ”
“But—”
“You’re in good hands here, Aubrey. I wouldn’t be working for them if I thought otherwise.”
“Menace called me one of his girls.”
“Yeah, well...Menace is Menace. He takes his job seriously.”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure I like the idea of being one of ‘his girls.’”