4. Bones #3
“Sure thing.” She gave me a wink, then turned to get my drink. Moments later, she returned, placing the glass down on a napkin as she purred, “Let me know if you need anything else.”
I gave her a quick nod, then turned to face the dance floor.
A popular song came on, and the crowd went wild.
Young and old, gay and straight, black and white, all rushed for the dancefloor.
I, on the other hand, stayed put. I never danced.
I simply sat back and soaked in my surroundings.
There are so many people, all dancing like they don’t have a care in the world.
The flashing strobe lights made each of their movements seem like they’d paused between blinks.
I just sat there, fixated on the mirage of bodies, and I finally was starting to decompress when I saw her.
She was dancing with Lacy and several other club hang arounds, and I’d never seen her look quite so beautiful.
She was wearing a little black dress that hugged her curves in all the right places, and her fiery-red hair cascaded down her delicate shoulders.
I’d always liked watching Elsie, and tonight was no different.
The music seemed to move through her like she was a puppet on a string.
She looked so free, so alive, as she swayed her hips to the rhythm of the music, and I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen her smile the way she was tonight.
It felt good to see her look so happy. I could’ve sat there watching her for hours.
But then, everything went to shit.
She was dancing with the girls, minding her own business, when a guy came up behind her.
He reminded me of Taylor Kitsch with his beach-bum hair and surfer build.
He didn’t come off as a threat until he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. At first, she just smiled and went with it, dancing to the rhythm he set for them, but then, he pulled her a little closer—too close.
Shaking her head, she gave his hand a shove and took a step away from him.
Noting Elsie’s struggle, Lacy stepped up next to her, trying to block the guy from getting close again, but he didn’t take the hint.
He came back over to her, snaked his hand back down around her waist, then pulled her back against his chest. She tried to break free from his hold, but he was too strong.
This wasn’t like the night Savage overstepped.
This guy was a stranger in a crowded bar.
There wasn’t a clubhouse full of bikers there to protect her and make sure the asshole didn’t go too far.
And to make matters worse, she looked like she’d been drinking.
Elsie gave him another shove, and rage surged through me when I saw her say, “Let me go.”
The guy refused, and I was done.
I lunged from my seat and charged towards them.
I kept my eyes trained on Elsie as I plowed through the crowd. When I reached them, I said nothing. I gave no warning. I simply reared back my fist and plowed it into the guy’s jaw. He released his hold on Elsie as he stumbled back and grumbled, “What the fuck!”
“Wyatt!” Elsie gasped. “What are you doing here?”
The asshole who had a hold on Elsie pushed her to the side, then rammed his chest into mine. “What’s your fucking problem, dickhead?”
“She told you to let go! You should’ve listened!”
He studied me for a moment, then looked to his buddy as he scoffed, “Is this guy for real?”
“Let’s bolt, man. These chicks ain’t worth it.”
“Fuck no.” His words were riddled with anger as he said, “This motherfucker isn’t running me off.”
He reached for Elsie once again, tugging her over to his side, and I saw red. “Take your fucking hands off her.”
I grabbed him by the collar, then reared back and punched him. Then I punched him again and again. I would’ve hit him once more if Elsie hadn’t tugged at my arm and urged, “Wyatt! Stop!”
I released his collar, and he immediately fell back, landing on the floor with a thud. No one around seemed to care about the brawl. Instead, they just kept dancing and having a big time. Elsie, on the other hand, looked positively livid. “What the hell are you doing?”
She perched her hands on her hips as she snapped, “You know, I could’ve handled him. I didn’t need you going all Conan on him!”
I couldn’t exactly tell her the truth—that I was crazy about her and hated seeing that asshole’s hands on her, so I tried to think of another plausible excuse.
None came to mind, so I simply stood there and stared back at her, which only seemed to make her madder.
“I don’t get it. What are you even doing here? ”
Again, I had no reasonable response, so I turned and started out of the club. Elsie immediately called out, “Wait! Where are you going?”
I continued walking and was just about to reach the door when I heard Elsie shout, “Wyatt! Stop!”
I turned and found her rushing towards me with a flustered look on her face. As soon as she made her way over to me, she asked, “What are you doing? What was all that?”
“You need to be more careful.”
“Why do you even care?”
“You know why.”
Without saying anything more, I turned and walked out the door.