Chapter 2
June checked the time on her watch, and her eyes widened. Was that really the time? It was pushing close to midnight, not that it was late in Vegas time, but for her, it was after working a long week. “I love you guys, but I should get going,” she said as she started collecting her stuff.
Sue covered her mouth, but June noticed her yawning. “Agreed.”
“You guys are party poopers,” Casey pouted. “It’s Friday night. We should be out having fun.”
“Another time,” June replied, placating her. Casey was pushing drunk and needed to go home and sleep off the booze. Kayla had only one drink hours ago and was her DD.
“You say that, but you won’t. Party pooper,” Casey slurred as she spoke louder.
“Fine, I’m a tired party pooper who has been in a sixty-plus-hour week and wants to sleep for the next eight-plus hours. As should you. Good night.” June came around the table and hugged her friends.
“June,” Casey slurred and gripped her bicep.
“Yeah?”
“Don’t let what that asshole said bother you. You aren’t frigid, and you should never let a man belittle you because of your legs or feel grateful for their attention when they aren’t worth yours. I love everything about you.”
“Thanks, Cas.” June smiled. Drunk Casey was sweet and silly. “Make sure she gets home okay,” Sue whispered in Karla’s ear as she hugged her.
“I will,” Karla promised.
June and Sue walked out the front and stopped at the entrance. “Which way are you?” Sue asked her.
“That way.” June hiked over her shoulder with her thumb. “What about you?”
“The other way.” Sue gave her a worrisome look. “Do you want me to walk with you?”
It was sweet of her to offer but unnecessary.
There was a decent crowd on the street. June didn’t worry about muggers or anything.
It wasn’t like she had anything of value.
She didn’t wear jewelry or have a name-brand bag.
“No, there’s no point in you walking out of your way and having to come back all this way. I’m fine.”
“Alright, I’ll talk to you later.” Sue opened her arms allowing June to step into them. When she pulled away, she could see Sue wanted to say something else but was holding back.
“What?”
“Casey may have no filter when she’s drunk.” June raised an eyebrow. That was like calling a spade a spade. “Okay, she never has a filter, but it’s worse when she’s drunk. However, she was right. You shouldn’t let what that guy said affect you.”
“I don’t know why you guys keep bringing him up. I’ve already forgotten about him. Besides, it’s not like it’s anything I haven’t heard before. I was called frigid even before I lost my legs because I didn’t put out in high school. His words have absolutely no impact on my life.”
“Good.”
“Alright, I’m beat. I’m going to head home. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
June made the trek back to the parking garage. She couldn’t wait to get home and put her feet up. Figurately and literally. After being on her feet all day, she was ready to take her prosthetics off and give her legs a break.
June was a block from the parking garage when she noticed someone leaning against a wall. It was the asshole Troy from earlier. Great.
“Well, well, if it isn’t gimpy. Coming back to apologize and make it up to me?” June ignored him and kept walking. She heard hurried footsteps coming up behind her, then Troy started walking next to her. “You cost me a hundred bucks you know.”
It figured he’d made a bet with his friends to see if she’d put out. “Yeah, well, you shouldn’t make stupid bets like that.” She didn’t feel remotely bad that he’d lost money tonight. Maybe it would teach him a lesson not to make stupid bets.
“What was that, cripple?” Troy gripped her arm and pushed her into an alley they were passing by. June stumbled and had to grip him to keep her balance at the sudden movement. A grimace of pain tore from her mouth as her back was slammed up against the brick wall. Pain gyrated up her spine.
“You shouldn’t make stupid bets,” she said slowly and loudly for him to understand.
It probably wasn’t smart to keep poking him when they were alone and she was defenseless, but now she was irritated—and when that happened, her mouth spoke before her brain could think.
There were always people walking the streets, so she wasn’t completely alone if she screamed for help.
Troy smiled coldly while he kept one hand pinned on her shoulder and pointed in her face with the other.
It was the first time she’d noticed their height difference.
It wasn’t huge, but she was taller than him by at least two inches.
“You know, you got a big mouth. I can think of better things for you to do with it than talk back.”
June balled up her fist and slammed it into the side of his face. Troy’s head whipped to the side. June used the distraction to try to dart past him, but he gripped her shoulder and pinned her back to the wall.
“Oh no, you don’t. I’m not done with you.”
June inhaled a deep breath and screamed at the top of her lungs. There were still plenty of people on the street; someone would hear her and come to her rescue.
“Shut up, you stupid bitch,” Troy hissed, trying to clamp his hand over her mouth. June moved her head around so he couldn’t halt her screams. When he did manage to cover it, she clamped her teeth down on the meat of his hand.
Troy howled in pain and tried to pull his hand free, but she held tight, tasting blood in her mouth. Troy realized he couldn’t pull his hand free, so he pushed her back up against the wall with his free hand, making sure to slam her head into the unforgiving brick.
She released his hand, feeling her head turn foggy. Troy used her confusion to grip her head and slam her head into the brick wall again, leaving her dazed and unsteady on her feet.
Before she could recover, Troy pressed against her shoulders, keeping her pinned to the wall. There was no way to break free from him and kneeing him in the balls was out of the question. The most she could do was kick him in the shin, but he would see that move coming and counter it.
She opened her mouth to scream again, but June caught a flash of silver then felt the press of cold metal against the side of her face before she could let her scream loose.
“That’s a good girl.” Troy smiled menacingly. “Now I’m going to open my pants, and you’re going to swallow what I give you to swallow. Bite me and I’ll break every goddamn tooth in your mouth and take your legs from you.” He chuckled as if he found humor in that kind of humiliation.
June shook with anger. How dare this asshole talk to her like this. She didn’t care if he broke her teeth. There was no way in hell she was putting his nasty little penis in her mouth. And she had no doubt it was as pathetic as his limp handshake.
No wonder he had to force himself on women. The ones he took home no doubt laughed at his sad little package.
June closed her eyes briefly when she felt the knife edge snake across her cheek. As angry as she was, she was also terrified. No one had come to her rescue. They weren’t that far into the alley that people couldn’t see them. The blade was on her right cheek, so anyone passing by would see it.
She really wished she had taken self-defense lessons to put this jerk in his place once and for all. As it was, she didn’t know how she was going to get out of this in one piece. He could cut her or carry through on his threat and knock her teeth out.
Regardless, she was not putting any part of his body into hers. She just needed to figure out what she was going to do to get out of this as unscathed as possible.
“Now drop,” Troy ordered, taking her silence as compliance rather than her plotting all the ways she wished she could hurt him.
Maybe she could pretend to go down and punch him in the dick. The thought had merit. Before she had to worry about how she was going to drop down, Troy was ripped away from her and tossed like a rag doll into the opposite wall.
June stayed rooted on the spot as she watched her rescuer pin Troy to the wall as he had her.
Her rescuer was tall. Taller than her and broad.
From the lights of the street, she could tell he had dark brown hair.
His form seemed familiar, but she didn’t know why, then she heard the sickening sound of bone crunching when her rescuer’s fist slammed into Troy’s face.
June didn’t doubt Troy’s nose was broken.
Troy swung a wild fist that her rescuer easily dodged. Then her rescuer punched Troy in the stomach, and he doubled over trying to catch his breath.
Her rescuer gave Troy a moment to recover. He could have been on the offense and delivered another bone-crunching punch, but he just waited. Even though June couldn’t see his face, she could see his muscles bunched and coiled like a rattlesnake about to strike.
Troy stood up to his full height, which was considerably smaller than her rescuer. The man had to be close to six and a half feet tall. He even made her feel petite, which wasn’t something she often felt. At least not once she had started walking again.
Troy raised his fists in front of his chest like a boxer.
June thought he was crazy to take this guy on.
Her rescuer was bigger and obviously stronger.
He would beat Troy into a pulp. Blood was streaming down from his nose.
The appendage was already swollen. There was no doubt now that it was broken.
Her rescuer just stood there, waiting for Troy to make his move. Troy lunged at him with a battle cry, his fist flying toward her rescuer’s face. In the blink of an eye, her rescuer caught Troy’s fist and twisted it out as he swung under his arm and pinned Troy’s arm behind him.
Troy screamed out in pain and started shaking to get her rescuer to release him.
Her rescuer pushed Troy away toward the opening of the alley.
A few people turned to look in but kept going about their business.
It disgusted her to think of how many had watched her being attacked and hadn’t done anything to help her.
Troy gripped his injured arm as he glared between the two of them. “You’re going to regret this,” he hissed before spinning on his heel, taking off and disappearing into the crowd.
“June, are you okay?”
June’s head whipped from the alley opening to her rescuer. How did he know her name? She squinted, trying to see his face in the darkened space. The man took a step closer, coming into the beam of light. “Rob…” she whispered, then felt everything go dark.