by Angera Allen
Everyone turns to see Ginger hanging over the ledge with the microphone.
One of the ladies says, “Who gave Snow’s drunk ass the mic?”
Ginger yells, “Get your ass up here Auntie.”
Chapter Thirteen
Everyone starts to move upstairs to see what the commotion is all about, but Quick tells me to hold on. Izzy moves with him standing directly in front of me. I tell her that if she wants to go up, I’ll meet her there, but she just shakes her head letting me know she isn’t going anywhere. Concern is etched across her face, while Quick looks pissed off. I want to know what happened.
He leans forward placing his hands on either side of me pinning me against the bar. I smile slipping my hands up around his neck entwining them.
“Hiye!” I say drunkenly.
Quick smiles, touching our foreheads together. “Hi.”
Okay, something’s seriously wrong. I move my head back trying to see his facial expression. “What’s wrong?”
Nothing. From either of them.
I panic. “Did I do something wrong?”
He lifts me up off the chair placing me onto the bar, spreading my legs, which thank God is empty now because I don’t have any panties on. He moves in between my legs wrapping his large arms around me, hugging me.
I look down to Izzy hoping for some answers, but she just gives me a nod sitting on the stool next to me. Now I’m really freaking out. I’m naked as a baby down there, and he hugs me. I try to think what has happened since Secretary Sam left but come up empty.
Quick pulls away. “I heard everything you told Maze.”
“Oh-kay,” I draw out the word, hoping he will elaborate.
“I heard everything about your husband and what he did to you.”
I think about everything I told Maze. Maybe he’s upset I had a threesome? I don’t understand why he’s upset with me.
“Why are you upset with me? Is it because I had the threesome?”
Quick steps back. “Fuck no! I’m pissed off at the motherfucker for treating you like that and for you to think I would ever be mad at you for some motherfucker touching you.”
Relief washes over me, and I smile. “Oh, thank God. I thought you were mad at me? Don’t get upset. It’s over with, and I’m fine.”
“Are you? Will you be okay when you go back?” Izzy asks next to us.
I don’t say anything because I start to feel like I’m going to be bombarded with questions.
He moves back between my legs. “It’s not over. You still have to go back and deal with that son of a bitch.”
Looking between the two of them I answer, “I’ll be fine. Being away from him and being here with Izzy” —I point to her before looking down to him— “And you. I want a different life.”
“But he’s mean, and you’ve never left him like this before. Are you sure you’ll be able to handle it? I should come back with you. I’m not letting you go this time,” Izzy announces worried.
“You shouldn’t have let her go last time,” Quick grits out.
I look between the two of them when a light goes off in my head.
“You two are fighting because of me?”
Neither one of them reply.
“Look. Both of you need to chillax. I will be fine. Izzy knows now I want out and it will all work out.” I try to calm them both down. I see Izzy smile, but Quick’s still upset. I grab his face with both hands, tilting his head back, and I devour his face with a hard-passionate kiss, wrapping my legs around him.
We hear all the girls screaming, hooting, and hollering from above. I break the kiss and look up to see Mac slinging his shirt around.
“Holy. Shit.” I laugh forgetting everything else.
Izzy laughs. “Let’s talk about this tomorrow. Tonight is about having fun.”
Quick grabs me off the bar carrying me to the stairs. “We have some surprises for you ladies.”
Quick sets me down halfway up the stairs, slipping my dress back down into place. We hold hands and make our way into the party room. All the women are sitting around the stage watching Mac stripping to “Just A Little Bit” by 50 Cent, except his mother who’s dying of laughter back at the bar taking a shot with her husband Bear.
I pull Quick down so I can talk into this ear. “What’s this all about?”
Quick pulls me into his enormously hard body and breathes into my ear. “A few of the guys made some cracks about pole dancing being easy. Some bets were made and obviously lost so since it’s just a few of us here now we thought we would give you ladies a little show of our own.”
Jealousy rushes through me. “Who do you have a bet with?” I start to think about all the women he’s been with, and I get pissed. “Have you slept with every woman here?”
Quick takes a step back looking down at me. I’m sure I look pissed because I’m drunk and don’t give a fuck. He studies me looking pissed himself but smiles. “Is my firecracker jealous?”
I cross my arms and huff out, “You are the biggest male slut here, I’m sure you’ve been with all the single girls.”
Quick spreads his legs wide, so he’s eye level with me, looking me in the eye, he says with a serious tone, “I don’t shit where I eat. I have never been with any of our main girls.”
I snap back, “Main girls? What the fuck does that even mean?”
“It means I don’t fuck around with club girls. I usually get girls from bars or club girls from other clubs but never any of our regular girls. They’re like my sisters. It's just something I don’t like to do. I haven’t had a relationship in over eight years. I fuck 'em and leave ‘em until you. You’re literally the first woman I’ve been with twice or in the same week or hell even month. I don’t do repeats.”
Heart drops. Swoon. But why?
“Why me?”
He leans in giving me a quick kiss. “You’ll see.”
He stands back up pulling me over to a big lounger where Ginger and Izzy sat down.
“I’ll be back.” And he’s gone.
Izzy leans over. “Are you good?”
I smile. “Yeah, just a little drunk and tired.”
She gives me a hug. All the ladies are screaming at Mac pumping his groin up against the pole doing his best impression of a “Magic Mike” scene. When his song ends, Mac stays onstage laughing as he picks the dollar bills up and then I see him… Quick. He jumps on stage, bouncing side to side on the balls of his feet, like he’s warming up for a fight.
Izzy laughs. “Ah, shit. Here we go.”
I look over to the girls. “What?”
“They both love to dance and sing so I’m sure we’re in for a treat.” Izzy laughs looking over at me. “You remember him at the club bouncing all around. He’s fucking crazy.”
We both laugh, turning to see what craziness these two come up with and when the beat hits Quick struts out shifting his shoulders forward, moving side to side going along with the beat. “Shake That” by Eminem featuring Nate Dogg. Quick starts lip syncing Eminem's part, acting just like him when Eminem raps, throwing his arms out. Mac throws his shirt back on circling him, acting like Nate Dogg. We’re up out of the seats, and I’m on my way to the front. Ginger and Izzy right on my tail. All three of us moving to the beat nodding our heads and shoulders with the music.
Mac starts to sing as he sits down using the same chair Izzy did but straddling it. I laugh when he uses the seat talking about how much ass he gets comparing it to a toilet. He stands up air fucking the chair before letting it drop to the ground and grabbing his dick. Everyone’s busting up laughing with these two crazy fuckers.
Quick, who has been circling around Mac, stops and points to me as he raps the song. Quick copies Mac grabbing his package, dancing, telling me to shake my ass. When Shy moves down the stage strutting like a woman shaking his ass, the entire room erupts, everyone is yelling. A few of the men are jumping up and down laughing. He has everyone moving toward the stage up front. There isn’t a person sitting, and we
all move to the music. I laugh thinking of a scene from “8 Mile” when Eminem is rapping to the crowd. Quick has everyone moving to the beat.
Quick grabs Shy like he’s the slut in the song. Shy shakes his ass as Quick grabs him from behind pretending to fuck him. The men act out the song to perfection. Quick moves to stand in front of me hiking his knees up dancing around just like Eminem does bending at the waist.
My heart drops again. This man is killing me. He’s so fucking cute. I dance in front of him. Mac jumps down grabbing a girl, bending her over, smacking her ass. Shy stays onstage strutting around still acting like a woman shaking his ass. Quick jumps down and begins gyrating up behind me until the song ends. The club chants Shy’s name who takes a bow, laughing as he looks down at Ginger.
Ginger’s telling him to get down but Shy looks out to the crowd with a devilish grin when “Down On Me” by Jeremiah featuring 50 Cent, filters through the speakers. Still looking out over the crowd, he points down to Ginger. “I can tell she wants me,” he shouts. We all scream jumping up and down. I don’t even pay attention to Quick who’s still behind me.
Shy dances around singing the song. He takes his shirt off throwing it at Ginger who’s ear to ear grinning. For the love of God, he’s stacked. Jesus Christ, his tattoo on his back is huge. Most of these guys are tatted up but fuck, his is huge. I can’t stop watching him. He gets down on the ground, grinding and doing floor moves like Channing Tatum does in the “Magic Mike” movie. Ginger shakes her head, and when he starts to undo his pants she’s ready to pounce on stage, but Maze holds her back saying no touching the dancers.
Shy stops undoing his pants, lifting a finger to tsk-tsk us before he thrusts his hips a few times before the song ends. All the guys are throwing money on stage. The whole club’s freaking out laughing. My heart is full, and my face hurts from smiling so much. Ginger jumps onto stage and tackles Shy to the floor.
When the next song starts, everyone looks around to see who will be dancing. Quick is still dancing behind me when I hear him say something about Hennessy, and I freeze.
Holy Fuck!
He moves around me, pointing at my smile, and I flush. “Mine” by Bazzi, plays through the speakers. He dry humps the air reminding me of earlier when he took me from behind. Quick keeps circling me singing each word to me. Everyone’s watching as they form a circle around us, but I only have eyes for him. When the chorus hits, he grabs me, twirling me around moving his hands up and down my body.
“Goddamn, Firecracker, I want you so fucking bad. Let’s not waste any more time baby,” he murmurs into my ear while placing my feet on the ground. We start to slow dance as I slip my arms around his neck, his hands gliding up and down my sides as he sings to me.
“This weekend. Ruby, waste this weekend away with me,” he says kissing me.
“Yes,” I answer, kissing him back.
Grabbing my ass, Quick hikes me up, wrapping my legs around his waist, and we’re off again, but this time I know, it will be for the night.
Chapter Fourteen
Waking up in Quick’s arms was the best feeling ever. For once I didn’t wake up feeling down, depressed, stressed, or sad. I just felt at peace and sore. He took me so many ways last night I probably won't be able to walk today, much less dance tonight at the club. Izzy is DJing at Club Spin. I’m so excited for tonight. I’ll get to chat with Luc tonight about the job they want me to interview for, which I’m still in shock about.
Quick moans next to me as I snuggle in closer, running my hands over his bare chest. He was saying some crazy things last night, so I’m nervous to see what he says today when we’re both sober. I leave tomorrow afternoon back to my fuckedup life to sort through my bullshit. I know there’s something between us, but I can’t even think about the what ifs. He’s not going to wait around for me, and I would never ask him to. It could be a year or more before I can actually move here if I move here at all.
God, please let it all work out okay.
Dread starts to wash over me, and I tense up. Quick rubs me, caressing my back up over my shoulder.
“Good morning, I’m glad you didn’t run off.” His voice’s a low rumble waking up.
“Good morning. How can I run when I can barely move,” I teased?
“Hmm. And you will be even more sore once I take you again tonight.” He shifts us, pushing me to my back and he moves between my legs. I open them willingly and wait, but he doesn’t move to take me. Instead, he stares down at me with questioning eyes.
“What?” I ask.
“I feel like we should talk,” he replies hesitantly.
No. No. Please. No. Let’s not ruin my last day.
My eyes must relay what I’m thinking because he leans down, kissing me.
Quick breaks the kiss. “I want you.”
“Take me,” I pant.
“No, I mean I want to see you again. I know you have a shit ton of bullshit to deal with back home, but I want to keep talking to you. Hopefully, keep seeing you.”
For the love of God, yes. I close my eyes. I can’t think that way. This is nice, but it’s not real.
“I can’t do this right now. I’m still married.” I try to get out from under him, but he pins me under him.
“I know that. Believe me, I know, and it kills me you have to go back and deal with that son of a bitch alone.”
“My daughter is there, I have to go back.” Just mentioning her, I get tears in my eyes. I miss her so much.
Quick drops his head. “I know.”
I snap, “Do you? Quick, you have no idea how much I needed this weekend away, but have you thought this through? I have a three-year-old daughter. If I move here, I’ll have her full time. No let’s go party every night and get drunk.’” I try to explain nicely, but it comes out harsh.
“Look, Ruby, all I’m saying is after tomorrow I want to keep pursuing this” —he waves his hands between us— “whatever this is. I just don’t want it to end. Is all I’m trying to say.”
“Why?” I hold my breath waiting for the answer.
“Seriously? I was done when I first saw you at the airport. Then when you mouthed off in the truck, I wanted to know everything about you.” His eyes sparkle with so much emotion that I had to close mine.
“I don’t even know your name. Hell, you don’t even know mine,” I rant out, frustrated. Fighting how I feel because, in reality, this can’t work.
Quick shoots back, “Your name is Ruby Malone. You’re one of the Malone duos. You got married six years ago. Your daughter’s name is Isabella Malone after Izzy,” he replied without hesitation.
Holy shit!
I gasp. “How do you know all of that?”
He closes his eyes, taking a deep breath. “We do a background check on everyone that is close to our members.”
I push him, catching him off guard and sit up. “Is that how Dallas knew about my dancing? What else do you know?”
Quick ran his hands through his hair nervously. “Well, after dropping you off at White Wolfe, I had Dallas do a full search on you. I needed to know more about you. I was hooked. I wanted everything.”
I scoot back to the headboard pulling the sheets over my naked body.
“Okay, that is some stalker shit. You know that, right? I don’t know anything about you. You’ve been playing me from the beginning?” Sounding hurt and sad, I close my eyes.
Why…
“I haven’t been playing you. Fuck, Ruby, I’ve never caught a feeling this hard before. You’ve got me acting like a teenager over here. I haven’t lied to you about anything. I just didn’t tell you about the background check. You can ask anyone, we do a full screen on everyone. I just asked to see it.”
“Again. Quick, why me?” I breathed.
He moves closer sitting on his shins fully naked, showing me all his glorious body. “I don’t know. I’ve been trying to figure that out myself. I just saw you, or actually, that hideous fucking jacket, all this beautiful crazy hair and when I
saw your eyes for the first time, I was hooked. I wanted to throw you over my shoulder that instant and fuck you in my truck. It took everything I had to leave you there. That’s why I came back here and asked to see your file.”
“They had the file on me before I even came here?” Sounding shocked.
“Yes, since all this bullshit over the last year or so we do a background check on anyone that even talks to the Spin girls. That included family, friends, and everyone they knew. We needed to be certain you weren’t being used to get to one of the girls,” he answers honestly.
“I just don’t understand. We’re lifetime friends.”
“Yeah, lifetime friends that haven’t spoken but a few times in the last year and all of a sudden you want to come visit and need help.”
“Jesus, it does sound bad,” I reply, pulling my knees up to my chest. My heart hurts thinking of how bad of a friend I’ve been. “I’ve been a bad friend.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” he demands, moving closer, he touches one of my knees. “That’s what Iz and I were fighting about last night. I was pissed off and confronted her. Asking her why she didn’t try saving you or helping you get away from him. Why she left you with him—”
“I wouldn’t leave him,” I cut him off. “It wasn’t her fault. Everyone tried to warn me, but I didn’t care. I felt important, and the band needed me. They all made me feel special. It wasn’t just Brody. The whole band was—”
“Neither one of you are at fault,” he says interrupting me. “After talking to Izzy and hearing you, I thought about it, and you both were young and did what you thought was best. I see Izzy’s side, but I understand your thinking as well.” He pauses. “The main thing is that you learned from it and you’re getting out of the marriage.”
“My life isn’t all peaches. I had a pretty hard childhood until I moved in with Brody. Brody came from money and took care of me, gave me what I thought was stability but really it was just lies and manipulation. I’m the reason he has a record deal. I got that for them. I took care of everything.”