JJ and Armando popped through the garage door as the roll-up door came up for Pablo to drive the Bentley through. Pablo stopped short right before ramming the car into another’s bumper.
“He does know if he scratches my car, he will be fed to the fishes no questions asked, right?” JJ asked Armando.
“Pablo! Que te pasa? Estoy stupido hoy,” Armando shouted. “Sal de aqui before I beat your ass.”
“Lo siento, Armando,” Pablo replied as he walked from the garage.
“That goes for the rest of you as well. Sal, ahora!” Armando demanded.
All of his men ducked their heads and left the building.
“They don’t need to know what they don’t need to know,” Armando explained. “I have a car just for you that is covered in the back. No one has touched the dust cover to see what is underneath it.” Armando led JJ and Lynne over to the covered car. “I picked it up and brought it in during lunch. It’s the one Thomas told me to bring you.”
Armando stripped the car cover away to reveal a candy apple red 1969 Camaro Super Sport.
“There’s my baby!” JJ exclaimed as he ran his hands lightly across the driver's side door. “Will the Bentley be safe here?”
“Yes, of course. But why here? You don’t want me driving your other baby around?” Armando joked.
“No, I just don’t want you dead because you were in my car,” JJ replied.
Armando nodded with a smile. “It will be safe here. I’ve come a long way from the chop shop beginnings. I have state of the art security systems now that don’t involve guns,” Armando laughed.
“Those were the days,” JJ replied. “Thanks again, Armando. I owe you one, man.”
JJ slid a couple of hundreds into Armando’s hand as they shook and hands and hugged.
“You have everything you need? Babies fed? Bills paid? Wife happy?” JJ asked.
“Everything is picture perfect with me, man,” Armando replied as he handed JJ the key to his car.
“Come on, Lynne,” JJ said as he opened his door. “Let’s go.”
“You do realize that car will draw the attention of every motorist on the road, right?” Lynne asked, irritated. “It’s like not switching cars at all.”
“What you fail to realize is once we leave this garage, we head back the way we came and dip down to Oklahoma. So, there won’t be anyone looking for us backtracking our steps, Precious,” JJ replied back sarcastically. “So, unless you want to be some vatos new toy, I suggest you get in the car.”
Lynne walked over to the car, opened the door, and hopped in, slamming the car door shut.
“Next time, leave the hinges,” JJ muttered as he climbed in behind the wheel. “I sear it’s like people don’t respect your door pins wear and tear.”
JJ waved goodbye to Armando as he pulled out of the garage. “You call and let me know if anyone shows up giving you problems, and I will have my guys head this way,” JJ told him as he hit the pavement and headed back to the freeway to hit an exit for Oklahoma.
“How many cars do you have?” Lynne griped.
“Jealous much?’ JJ chuckled.
“You have become the type of guy all people hate. Flashing money around, flashing cars. You’re a joke,” Lynne muttered.
“I am only a joke to you because you can’t afford a lavish lifestyle as I do being stuck in a rundown holler,” JJ retorted. “Now, shut up and enjoy the ride,” he hissed as he cranked the dial on the radio up.
Lynne put her sunglasses on and stared out the window in silence as they headed to Oklahoma.
They had been driving for a few hours in silence, just listening to the songs blaring across the radio, when Lynne spoke up.
“I need to use the bathroom. I am hungry. And I want a drink,” she declared.
“Of course,” JJ muttered as he looked at the clock.
It was just after six, and they were making good time in trying to make up for the lost time.
“There’s a bar not too far from here that I have been to before,” JJ said. “We’ll stop there so you can have your cake and drink it too.”
Five miles later, JJ pulled into a honky-tonk bar with a flashing sign that said Jo’s Hoes, Cakes, and More.
“Classy,” Lynne mumbled in disdain as she climbed out of the car. “Do they have poles here, too?” she asked sarcastically.
“Hey, it’s good eatin’,” JJ chuckled as he walked through the door.
A jukebox set beside the door playing Conway Twitty as balls clanked together on a pool table. JJ tipped his head in the direction of the men as they glanced up from their game, clearly irritated by the distraction of someone walking through the door. Lynne popped in behind JJ, and their eyes salivated, looking her up and down. JJ gritted his teeth but said nothing as Lynne winked at one of them, holding a cue stick.
“Welcome to Jo’s,” a waitress said as she walked up to the two of them. “Would you like to sit at the bar or in a booth?” she asked.
“Bar.” “Booth.” Lynne and JJ replied simultaneously.
JJ groaned. “The bar is fine.”
The waitress nodded. “Follow me.”
She walked them to the bar and settled them in with a menu.
“The bartender takes your order here,” she replied as she scampered off.
“Aw, you sad you couldn’t flirt with her and tip her all your money?” Lynne cooed sarcastically.
JJ didn’t reply as he flipped through his menu, keeping his head ducked behind it.
“What’ll it be?” a woman asked gruffly from behind the bar counter.
“I will have the Cowboy Deluxe with a Baltimore Zoo,” Lynne replied.
The bartender jotted down her order as JJ hid behind his menu, trying not to be noticed. Lynne side-eyed him with a glare.
“And you?” the bartender asked.
“I will have the Clint Eastwood with a side salad and extra order of onion rings with a Coors Light, please and thank you,” he replied.
“Coming right up,” the bartender replied as they handed their menus over to her.
“Why are you acting all funny?” Lynne asked suspiciously.
“Because you wanted to sit at the bar,” JJ grunted as he looked around cautiously.
“What? Did you piss some guy off here that’ll beat your ass if he notices who you are?” Lynne asked.
“Not quite,” JJ mumbled as he saw a long-haired blonde with fishnet stockings and a titty top shirt cut around the corner.
“My oh my, look what the cat dragged in,” she hissed.
JJ sighed. “So, you do still work here,” he murmured.
“You sure do have some balls showing your deadbeat ass back up in my bar,” the blond hissed.
“Who the hell are you?” Lynne asked with a giggle.
The blonde turned to Lynne and glared. “I could ask you the same, you skeezy tramp, but I wouldn’t want to breathe in your stank for too long.”
Lynne jumped to her feet. “Who the hell are you calling a tramp, you white trash whore!” Lynne yelled.
“Now, now,” JJ began until an older man appeared behind the counter. “Hiya, Jo,” JJ stated.
“I thought I told you to never bring your hillbilly ass back ‘round here, JJ,” Jo said as he pointed a shotgun at JJ.
“We just stopped to get some food, is all, Jo. We aren’t bothering anyone. Besides, my quarrel is with your daughter, not with you,” JJ replied.
“Any quarrel with my daughter is my business,” Jo hissed as he cocked his shotgun.
“There wouldn’t have been no quarrel had she not stolen my money,” JJ replied with a grin and shake of his head. “Now, we could do this the civil way or the hillbilly way as you like to put it. You can let me and my friend eat here in peace, or the 5-O can find out why I am not allowed here anymore, and your little princess can spend the night in jail. What’ll it be?” JJ asked, looking from Jo to his daughter.
“Pearl, get your ass back to work,” Jo replied, lowering his shotg
un to his side. “Emma Jean, get these patrons their food and make sure the staff doesn’t try to poison them or spit in it.”
“Thank you, Jo,” JJ replied with a nod.
“I sure hope you’re just passing through this time,” Jo mumbled heatedly. “You stayed too long last time.”
Jo headed to the back of the kitchen, and JJ heard the bar resume its usual chatter. Everyone had stopped and was dead quiet while Jo was there with his shotgun. The bartender brought over their drinks, and JJ downed his as fast as he could while Lynne sipped on hers. Neither of them spoke a word to one another until their food was brought out.
“Thanks, Sue,” JJ said as he was handed his plate.
“I was wondering if you would recognize me or not,” Sue chuckled. “Sorry about all of that but orders were that if I ever saw you again here in the bar, I had to tell Jo.”
“No hard feelings. You’re just doing your job,” JJ replied, smiling.
“How has life been, man?” Sue asked. She looked over at Lynne with a smile. “She your girl?”
JJ smiled while Lynne turned red in the face. “She’s an old friend that I am driving back home. She was hungry and had to pee, and this place has the best damn food around.”
“You damn right we do!” Sue yodeled. “So, what have you been up to these last seven years?”
“I went off to California and got me an education,” JJ replied, emphasizing his accent.
Sue whistled. “An education,” she grinned. “You graduate with honors, boy?”
“Yes, ma’am, I did,” he replied.
“That is my boy!” Sue squealed. “Is that where you met her? Your friend?” she asked.
“No,” JJ replied, glancing quickly at Lynne and back. “She’s from the holler. I am taking her back home after she came to my graduation.”
“Oh,” she replied, looking over at Lynne. “This is her, isn’t it?”
JJ shook his head as if to tell Sue to be quiet.
“What do you mean this is her?” Lynne asked, breaking her silence for the first time since they ordered their food.
“It doesn’t matter now, little lady,” Jo said as he stepped through the door with their plates of food. “That’s all in the past now, isn’t it, JJ?”
“Yes, sir, it is,” JJ nodded as his platter was set down in front of him. “Thank you, sir. This looks mighty good.”
“Ain’t no point in buttering me up now,” Jo humphed.
“Oh, come on, Jo. You know my daddy would be disappointed in you right now,” JJ chuckled.
“Don’t try to weasel your way out of what happened by using your daddy,” Jo glared. “You need to take responsibility for your own actions.”
Jo walked off through the back, and Sue walked to the end of the bar to take an order from a new customer sitting there.
“So, what is all of this about?” Lynne asked as she ate her food.
“It was all a long time ago and don’t mean nothing now,” JJ replied, tension building on each word.
“I thought you said you had only been through Oklahoma once?” Lynne asked.
“It was just once,” JJ replied as he took a bite of his pulled pork sandwich. “I just didn’t say how long that one time was.”
“Well., how long was it?” Lynne asked.
“The night my daddy died, I drove all the way to NOLA that night,” JJ started. “I spent an entire week drinking all of the liquor in the house, puking my guts up, and drinking some more until your daddy made his way down there.”
“My daddy?” Lynne asked, puzzled.
“Yea, Charlie followed me to NOLA. Gave me a good ass kicking, too,” JJ laughed. “And when I was sober, he sent me on my way across the country. He wanted me to take a road trip before school and to clear my mind before I fucked up my whole life. My first stop was this country bar.” JJ looked around and smiled at the memories he was being flooded with. “I spent a few months here. Dated Jo’s daughter. Left in the middle of the night when I caught her stealing my money to pay for her drug addiction. I didn’t wait for explanations. I didn’t wait for the I am sorries. I didn’t want that in my life at all. So, I just packed my shit and headed to school.”
Lynne went silent while she ate her food and quietly stole glances at JJ from the corner of her eye as he, too, ate his food.
“Well, well. Ain’t you a sight for sore eyes,” a voice called out as the owner wrapped her arms around JJ’s neck. “I didn’t think I would ever get a chance to lay my eyes on you again after all that crap went down.”
“Well, Daisy Mae, is that you?” JJ asked, setting his glass down after taking a quick drink. “Aren’t you the cat’s meow these days?”
Daisy gently smacked his shoulder in a flirty, playful manner. “Awe shucks, JJ. You don’t mean that,” she mused. She looked over as Lynne cleared her throat, taking a drink of her drink. “Is this your girl? She’s a minx!” Daisy cheered.
She leaned over in front of JJ and pawed her way across his lap and propped herself up by her elbow on the counter. “What’s your name, sugar?” she asked.
“My name is Lynne,” Lynne replied as she reached her hand out to shake hands.
“Oh, I heard about you,” Daisy said as a devious grin spread across her face. “I heard all about you.”
“I am sure you did, hun,” Lynne replied with a slight roll of her eyes as she returned her attention back to her food.
“I sure did. That attitude and all,” Daisy laughed.
Daisy returned her attention to JJ, where she proceeded to straddle his lap while they talked, laughed, and giggled with one another. Lynne started to become annoyed and excused herself to go to the bathroom. As she walked by the pool tables, one of the guys pinched her ass. Instead of socking him in the mouth, she looked to JJ that was preoccupied, and returned her attention back to this guy. He wasn’t bad looking. He was shirtless with a smooth chest and a nice six-pack. He was wearing some leather pants and military boots. He had medium cut hair that layered right below his ears that were pierced.
“Well, aren’t you just a sexy thing,” Lynne flirted as she walked up to him and ran her finger down from his chest to the top of his pants. She looked to the pool table behind him and grinned, taking his cue stick. “Mind if I knock your balls in pockets?”
“Go right ahead,” he replied. “I have all the time in the world.”
His attention turned to her ass as she leaned over the table with the cue stick. She carefully maneuvered it in between her fingers and then hit the cue ball into a pack of balls in one corner, sending three of them into separate pockets. She stood up and handed him the pool stick back and began to walk to the bathroom where she had been headed, to begin with.
“Where do you think you’re going, darling?” the guy asked as he grabbed her arm. “We have all night to get to know each other.”
“I’m just heading to the restroom…”
“Rex,” he replied.
“I’ll be right back,” Lynne said and winked.
Lynne walked to the restroom, casually glancing back at JJ. She couldn’t even remember the girl’s name that brazenly introduced herself then began pawing at JJ. Even if they aren’t dating now, that shit still got to her. Jealousy was something she never allowed JJ to see flare in her. She got jealous quite a bit over girls in the holler that would do the same thing that floozy was doing with JJ right now. They would climb in his lap, paw at him, kiss his cheeks, flirt outlandishly with him; basically, they would do anything they could to try and provoke a response from him or her. Lynne didn’t even know if JJ realized when women were flirting with him and when they weren’t. He and Lynne had gone three years doing whatever they were doing together. She didn’t even know herself if they were dating just because she didn’t know if he acknowledged that bit between them too.
Lynne sighed as she pushed the door open to the women’s restroom and then walked over to the sink. She turned the water on and splashed some water on her face. She gripped t
he sink with her hands and then banged them fist down onto the porcelain as she stared at her dripping face in the mirror.
“I know that look,” a voice cooed as one of the stalls opened in the bathroom. “That’s the JJ frustrates me look. I know it all too well because that was my face for a month.”
Lynne snatched a paper towel from the dispenser and dabbed the water from her face.
“Don’t try and act like you know me because the simple fact of the matter is, you don’t know me,” Lynne said as she balled the wet paper towel up in her hand and tossed it in the wastebasket as she turned to leave.
“Sure, I do. Why, you’re Miss Lynne Brown. I heard all about you,” Pearl said with a hearty giggle as she applied some lipstick, guiding herself with the mirror.
She put her finger in her mouth and dragged it out to catch all of the excess colorant, then popped her lips together as she put the tube away in her purse she clutched to her side.
“Pearl, is it? I don’t need to hear whatever JJ whispered into your ear about me at night when he was wishing it was me and not you under his bedsheets. Go snort another line,” Lynne said as she motioned to her nose.
Pearl quickly looked back into the mirror and began wiping a white powdery substance from her nostrils. When she returned her glare back to the door, Lynne had already stepped out and was making her way back to her seat at the bar when Rex grabbed her by the wrist when she passed by the pool tables.
“I’ve been waiting for you to come back, little darlin’,” Rex mumbled as he pulled Lynne into his torso and breathed in the scent of her hair deeply.
Lynne’s eyes darted around the room, trying to find JJ, who incidentally was nowhere to be found. Lynne tried to twist her arm free from Rex’s grip when he tightened his hand down on her wrist.
“Let me go,” Lynne hissed through clenched teeth.
“Why, girl? The fun is just getting started,” Rex laughed as he began to drag her over to the pool table. “We have a game to finish playing, don’t we, Pearl?” Rex asked as Pearl slinked up behind them.
“Oh, baby, yes we do,” Pearl cooed as she grabbed Lynne’s jaw with one hand and then tucked Lynne’s hair behind her ear with her other. “It was my understanding you were going to show Rex a good ol’ time when you got back from the John. There ain’t no welching now,” Pearl giggled. “Now, show him a good time,” she hissed as she pushed Lynne’s head away from her and spat in her face.
Them Holler Boys (A Southern Outlaw Series Book 1) Page 16