2. Kelsey Beistle
Kelsey Beistle
What had started as a double date turned into abandonment.
Kelsey would strangle Carrie the next time she saw her best friend.
She didn’t care how good the dick was; there was a code—never leave a sister behind.
Yet there she sat, in the middle of a dive bar, opposite a man, Pete, who was all but a stranger to her, listening to a horrendous nineties rock cover band, while her friend got her freak on back home.
Because why wouldn’t Carrie bring a guy back to her apartment an hour after they’d arrived?
Blowing out a breath, Kelsey lifted the pint glass and sipped at the warm beer she hadn’t ordered.
She’d much prefer another cranberry and vodka, like she’d gotten for herself when she’d arrived, but her date hadn’t asked when he ordered the second round.
Now she sat there while he droned on and on about…
something. She hadn’t listened to the beginning of the conversation, the middle, or whatever part they were at now.
Evidently, her participation in this interaction wasn’t required.
Pete appeared perfectly content to pontificate uninterrupted.
As soon as she got an opportunity, she’d excuse herself and get an Uber out of there.
She’d be polite. This guy was scary with his enormous diamond one percent charm dangling from his necklace. She’d been in Oklahoma City her entire life. She knew what that meant. Carrie might not, or if she did, she probably romanticized it.
Her best friend wanted to be the heroine in one of her dark romance novels in the worst way. More than once, Kelsey had to remind her that reality and fiction were polar opposites. It looked like they’d be having another conversation soon.
Kelsey flipped her phone over and glanced at the screen, hoping to see a check-in from Carrie.
Nothing.
She raised her eyebrows. “Oh shit,” she declared, cutting her date off mid-sentence.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
Tapping the screen, she opened an old text conversation. “My co-worker, Tammy, she has Covid,” she lied.
He sighed in obvious disinterest.
“She’s supposed to do a wedding tomorrow,” Kelsey continued.
He arched a brow. “Do a wedding?” he repeated in confusion.
Jesus Christ. Had he listened to anything she said? Clearly, he hadn’t when she placed her own drink order, but he should’ve remembered what Kelsey did for a living.
“Yeah. I’m a makeup artist,” she said while pretending to feverishly return a message. “She’s asking me to cover for her. I could really use the money.” Kelsey reached for her purse and tucked her phone inside it. “It’s an early start. I’ll catch an Uber.”
He shook his head and hopped to his feet.
Oh fuck. Was he going to pretend he was some sort of chivalrous bastard? Both of them knew he wasn’t.
She stepped back, acutely aware that he towered over her. What was he, six-three? At five feet nine inches, Kelsey wasn’t a petite flower. Not to mention, this guy had a good thirty or so pounds on her and seemed to never miss a day at the gym.
She had to tread carefully here.
“No.” She patted his bicep.
Damn. It was hard as a rock. In another life, if he had any semblance of a personality, she might be able to look past that medallion around his neck, but alas, he was a prick.
Head in the game, Kelsey.
“Stay. Enjoy the band. I’m sure Mike and Carrie will be back soon.”
He snorted. “They’re at her apartment.”
How did he know that? Carrie had texted Kelsey. Had Mike, her friend’s boy toy, done the same?
His gravelly voice fit his rugged appearance. The ripped jeans, faded band T-shirt, and bushy beard. This man was the epitome of a badass biker.
She understood the appeal but knew reality. This wasn’t for her.
Running her hand up and down his arm, she nodded. “I’m sorry to cut this short. But I had a good time.”
Kelsey hated lying. The words left a bitter tang on her tongue, but she couldn’t risk offending and pissing off anyone even remotely affiliated with criminal bikers.
He nodded, reached for her hand, and bent his arm. Resting her palm in the crook of his elbow, he smiled. “At least let me walk you out.”
Dammit.
Though it could be worse. He hadn’t offered to drive her home. Of course not. He had a full beer, and the bar was filled with women. Why would he leave?
“Sure.” She forced a smile. Kelsey could endure a few more minutes.
Reaching for the longneck on the table, he brought it to his lips and tilted his head back.
Unimpressed, she watched his throat bob as he chugged the rest of the beer.
Charming.
She fought the urge to roll her eyes. Instead, she shifted her attention to her phone and searched for the rideshare app. The sooner she got out of there, the better.
After he slammed the bottle down on the table and let out a manly belch, he led her toward the door. Thankfully, she didn’t vomit. The unnecessary show of bravado was such a turnoff. Why did men do those things? Did he think his burp would impress her?
Ugh.
This setup couldn’t end fast enough.
Pete wasn’t skilled at navigating a crowd. He plowed through, causing quite a few dirty looks in their direction. He seemed unfazed by the people he bumped into. Kelsey, on the other hand, couldn’t focus on summoning a ride, so she tucked her phone away and mumbled apologies.
Finally, they made it to the door. Bursting through it, Kelsey welcomed the cool evening air on her face. Between the warm bodies, the stage lights, and the alcohol, inside the Knucklehead was balmy as hell. Stepping out into the night was damn refreshing.
The only thing that could make this better would be when she ditched the guy at her side.
“Here.” Pete urged her toward the left of the building. “Let’s get out of the wind.”
Wind? What was he talking about? This was barely a breeze.
He didn’t give her the opportunity to protest. He all but dragged her away from the front of the bar, the man checking IDs at the door, and in the direction of the row of motorcycles. Maybe he would offer her a ride home after all.
Should she accept it?
She’d never been on the back of a bike before. The way Carrie described the experience made it sound as if it was essentially orgasmic. It’d been a while since Kelsey had a good O.
Though she doubted Pete would be the one to deliver in that aspect. He wasn’t exactly attentive.
No. She shouldn’t get on his bike if he asked. Nope. Bad idea. Ditch him as soon as the opportunity presented itself. That was her plan. She’d stick to it.
As they rounded the corner, Kelsey dug her heels in.
Wait a minute.
Pete tugged her along. Her minor protest hadn’t registered with him.
Blaring alarms rang in her head.
They shouldn’t be going away from the light and stepping into the shadows. If she were to summon an Uber, it wouldn’t find her there. They were hidden from prying eyes.
“Wait,” she said. “Where are we going?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he flung her. She nearly tripped as she spun.
Her back slammed into the hard brick exterior of the bar, followed by her head. A flash of stars burst in her vision as the pain throttled through her. A meek squeak slipped past her lips as she sought to regain her balance.
Just as she got her feet beneath her, the weight of Pete’s body pressed against hers. His fingers circled her wrists, trapping her hands on either side of her head. His mouth crushed against hers. The taste of stale cigarettes and beer filled her mouth.
She could vomit. Maybe that would be her best defense. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do that at will.
He wedged his knee between her thighs, pinning her to the wall and silencing her with an unwanted kiss. Her head throbbed, and her pulse raced while he swallowed her screams.
Shaking as the adrenaline coursed through her, she struggled against his hold on her. Wriggling her hips, she attempted to squirm free of him.
Like iron, his grip remained firm. She couldn’t escape. All her self-defense tactics required space between them. He made sure there was none. Pete took away her arms and her legs. She had no means to fight him.
Her heart sank.
She was at his mercy, and if she knew bikers as well as she thought she did, he had none. Kelsey was fucked in the worst way possible. That was, until he pulled back from his mauling.
With hooded eyes, filled with lust, Pete sneered at her. “I can’t wait to find out what you can do with that mouth.”
Her stomach rolled at the thought. However, she didn’t have time to linger in her disgust. Bracing herself, she flung her head forward and butted him as hard as she could.