Chapter Two #2
“Only a little,” I said with a wink. “You mind?”
She shook her head, and her silky hair brushed my hand at her back. “Do you think he does?”
“Yeah. He does look like he’s been suckin’ on a lemon, don’t he?”
She buried her face in my chest and chuckled. With what sounded to me like a happy sigh, she snuggled against me and let me hold her like she belonged to me.
We danced through two songs, maybe three.
I lost count because who really gave a fuck?
I had a beautiful woman in my arms for however long she let me.
I wasn’t going to waste my time making her decide how long to stay like this.
The song ended, and I felt the shift before I saw it.
“Mr. Dumbass” was moving toward us, blonde trailing, her hand on his bicep as she tried to hold him back.
He started his approach with a smile so wide he looked like nothing short of a shark. “Junie,” he said. “Didn’t know you could dance. Or was that all for me?”
She stiffened, and I rubbed the bare skin of her back with my thumb, urging her to stay silent and let me handle the situation.
He didn’t look at me at first, his focus squarely on Juniper.
“You’re full of surprises, you know that?
” he said, looking at her with disgust I didn’t like at all.
“The dress, the boots. Didn’t think you had it in you.
Must be the company, huh?” He smirked at me, pulling the blonde against his side.
I nodded at him. “Evening.”
He made a noise meant to be a laugh. “Hey, man. Didn’t mean to interrupt. Just, Junie and I--”
“Don’t think there’s any ‘Junie and I’ anymore.” I nodded to the woman with him. “Ma’am, if you need a ride home, I got several brothers here I’ll vouch for.” The woman stiffened and looked away but didn’t say anything.
He ignored my comment and plowed on. “Just saying, Junie has a lot of feelings, sometimes more than she knows what to do with.” He grinned at me like we were in on the joke. “She’s a handful. Hope you can handle that. Last guy couldn’t.”
“Oh, I think I can manage,” I said. He didn’t like the way I looked at him, and the woman on his arm didn’t like it either. She adjusted her hold and took a step away, eyes on the ground.
The ex made a move like he wanted to keep talking, but I put my hand on the back of Juniper’s head, shielding her from the man in front of me. I glanced over at Sully and Darby who both met my gaze and started making their way to me. Sully would be my backup. Darby could protect Junie if necessary.
He smiled, all phony warmth. “Junie, you all right? I know you get… overwhelmed.” The pure condescension in his voice made me want to punch the motherfucker in the face. “Listen, if you need a ride home, I can call a car. You don’t need to make a scene to try to get my attention.”
“Don’t recall seeing a scene,” I said. “Just a woman enjoying her birthday.”
He aimed a sidelong glance at Juniper, talking over her like she wasn’t even there.
“I’m just concerned. She gets like this, you know?
Overwhelmed, caught up in the moment, and then it’s messy for everyone involved.
I’m just trying to keep things from getting out of hand.
” He leaned in as if imparting a big fucking secret.
“She has a tendency to latch on to anyone who gives her attention. You should be careful unless you want a permanent roommate.”
“Say all you want,” Juniper spat, shaking in her anger. Close as she was to me, I could feel her trembling. “I wasn’t the one who moved into your apartment and never left. And I don’t remember inviting you to stay the first night either. You just made yourself at home.”
“I don’t think I caught your name.” The bastard ignored Juniper completely. “I’m Brett Calloway, real estate agent to the rich and famous here in Nashville.”
“I couldn’t give a good Goddamn what you’re sellin’, Bretty boy. Ain’t no one here buyin’. That I can guarantee you.”
The blonde on his arm was trying to edge away but Brett held her there, like she was a prop. His eyes cut sideways, checking for an audience. Sully and Darby were in plain view behind him, both casual, but alert. Backup. Even the bartender watched as he polished a glass.
Brett reached for her wrist, probably meant it as gentle, but I blocked him by turning to put my strong side to him and myself more in front of Junie.
I focused my gaze on Brett, gently loosening Junie’s hold on my T-shirt.
I brought her fingers to my lips to kiss as I held his gaze, then took a step toward the bastard.
“Easy, big guy. Just making sure Junie’s OK.”
“Junie,” I said, not looking away from Brett. “You want to leave with this guy?”
“No way in fucking hell I want to leave with him.” Juniper’s voice rang strong from behind me. I felt her hand slide into my back pocket and wanted to puff out my chest.
Bretty boy went all red in the face. “All right, man,” he said. “Whatever. Enjoy.”
The music cut out for a split second, just long enough for me to shout out, “Happy birthday, Juniper!” The bar cheered, and people closed in to wish a perfect stranger a happy birthday.
I grabbed Juniper’s hand before she could get swept away in the crowd of well-wishers.
No one in Throttle would hurt her but I wanted to stay close, unwilling to end my time with her just yet.
The blonde let go of Brett, backing away with a look of profound distaste on her face.
It looked like she’d just realized what kind of man she was holding onto.
She turned to leave and Brett followed her.
Oktober met my gaze across the room, and he and Mia followed the pair outside.
None of us would allow a woman to be hurt in our territory if we were in a position to prevent it.
We included Throttle in our territory even if it was mostly considered neutral.
They’d make sure the woman with Brett had an alternate ride home if she wanted it.
Juniper looked up at me, lips trembling but not with sadness. She started to giggle but tried valiantly to hold it back. Finally, she gave up and sagged against me as she laughed. “Thank you, Inferno,” she said, breathless. “God, thank you so much!”
We hung out the rest of the night. Drinking. Talking. Dancing. I watched as a beautiful, charismatic woman came to life right before my eyes. She laughed and smiled and even let me kiss her again.
By midnight the bar had thinned, the crowd reduced to regulars.
Juniper turned to me with a contented smile.
“I should probably head out.” She nibbled her bottom lip and couldn’t meet my gaze.
The flush in her cheeks said she was either drunk or turned on.
Since she’d only had one beer, I figured it was the latter.
“Want company?” I grinned at her.
Instantly her smile was back, bright as ever. “Not sure I’m up for another performance tonight.”
“No performance necessary,” I said. “Just a ride. We can cruise downtown. Music Row is likely still hoppin’.”
“I think that sounds just about perfect.”
I stood and reached for her hand, helping her to her feet.
We left through the side door to where I parked along the sidewalk.
The temperature had dropped twenty degrees in the last hour.
I shrugged off my jacket and draped it over her shoulders.
It looked better on her than was good for my peace of mind, but I tried not to think too much about the satisfaction I got from seeing her in my jacket.
She didn’t protest the gesture, just cinched it tighter and shot me a shy glance.
“Chivalry isn’t dead,” she said, deadpan.
I snorted. “Just in recovery.”
Once we reached my bike, I picked up the helmet strapped to the back. I didn’t wear it, but I liked to have one in case someone had to ride with me. Which was exactly never, but I was certainly glad to have the damned thing now.
“You ride?” I asked.
She bit her lip. “Brett took me out once. Said I’d get us both killed.”
“He’s an asshole,” I said. “All you have to do is hold on. I’ll do the rest.”
She put her hands on my shoulders and swung a leg over, careful not to flash the whole street. She tied the wrap around her waist so her legs were somewhat covered above her knees. The ride would be cool, but not too bad as long as we went at a reasonable speed.
She settled behind me, arms hesitant at first, then tighter as I rocked the bike upright. “My car --” she started.
I cut her off. “It’s fine across the street. Anything left at Throttle’s still there in the morning. You have my word. Also, Mike, the bartender, will be the first person to point the law in my direction if anything happens to you. The loose community at Throttle will have your back.”
She exhaled, some of the tension bleeding out. Her head pressed into my back. “This is probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but I’m not going to miss out. Just know that if you murder me, I’ll come back and haunt you.”
I chuckled. “Fair enough.” I gunned the engine, let it rumble under us, felt her lock her grip around my waist as she gave a little squeal.
All of a sudden, I felt lighter than I had in months.
Since Noose. Maybe the fix was a beautiful woman with burns of her own, holding on to me like I was something worth holding on to.
“Ready?” I asked.
“No!” she said, but laughed. “Fuck it. Let’s go.” So we did. The night swallowed us up, and for the first time in a long time, I felt the burning ache in my chest fade into the background.