He set down a huge water pitcher and glasses. This seemed odd behavior for the owner of a bar. Didn’t he make money from them drinking more?
“He’s worried about us passing out, or puking in the toilets,” Isa explained.
“I’m worried about more than just that, but yes, those things too,” Noah told them all. “When you’re drunk, you can make bad decisions.”
That was a good point. Georgina worried at her lip. What was she thinking, getting drunk? Anyone could use her inebriated state to take advantage of her. Or her friends. She had to protect them too.
“Noah is a wise man,” she stated.
He gave her a surprised look then grinned. “There you are, listen to Georgie.”
Hmm, seemed like her nickname was taking off. She liked that.
“Jesus, don’t encourage him!” Cleo told her with a scowl.
“Nobody is going to bother us here,” Kiesha argued. “This is the safest place in the world.”
Noah gave her a firm look. “Nowhere is completely safe.”
Georgina nodded. She knew that all too well. There was nowhere that she could be completely safe. Except in Ed’s arms. Then she’d felt safe. But he was a lying liar pants.
“Drink, ladies. And Cleo is giving you all a ride home, right? There will be no drinking and skating, hear me, Kiesha?”
“You do that one time and it’s all you hear about,” Kiesha muttered.
“Yeah, well, I heard from Jonny Jacks today that you were following his truck along the road, yelling obscenities at him.”
Kiesha’s eyes narrowed. “Jonny Jacks is my sworn enemy. Death to him and all his family. Except for his mother, brothers, cousins, aunts, and uncles. He can kiss my ass.”
Whoa. She really didn’t like Jonny Jacks.
“Just put that ass in Cleo’s car at the end of the night,” Noah said, pointing his finger at them all. “Cleo, you need help, let me know.”
“I got this, O’Ryan,” Cleo stated, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I know you do, darling, but I’m always here to help you.” He grabbed her chin and kissed her. Georgina sighed. That was so sweet.
Cleo was frowning when he left, but Georgina saw her check out his ass.
Definitely true love.
“So, Georgie, tell us, do James’s dance?” Isa asked.
“Certainly not,” she replied primly.
“Wanna dance?” Kiesha asked.
“Absolutely.”
She’d never danced like this before. Stiff, formal dances at her mother’s affairs were nothing like this. This dancing was sweaty and dirty. It was crowded and hot and chaotic. Normally, those were things she avoided like the plague.
But this was so much fun.
Throwing her arms up in the air, she wriggled her ass back and forth, moving to the beat. She’d never realized how amazing she could feel. She wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol, the company, or the dancing, but she’d never felt so alive.
Too bad that by the end of the night all of these wonderful women were going to hate her. They were all so loyal to each other. When they learned what she’d done with Ed . . . she didn’t want to do it. She didn’t want to tell them and ruin this.
But if he wasn’t going to man up, then she would.
“What’s wrong?” Kiesha yelled.
“What?” she screamed back. The dance floor was packed.
“Your face got that serious look. You looked worried. There’s no worrying on the dance floor. Did you know that I was a professional backup dancer for the Vigilantes?”
“Really?” Well, it would explain how she’d had angry, drunk sex with the lead singer.
“Really. Don’t you believe me?”
“Why wouldn’t I believe you?”
A funny look crossed Kiesha’s face then she smiled wide. “We are going to be best friends forever!” Kiesha wrapped her arms around Georgina’s neck.
Sadness filled Georgina. “We can’t be.”
“Why not? Because you’re an FBI agent? I promise I’m not on any wanted lists. Ed had to do a background check on me before I was allowed to work for the sheriff’s department.”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Is it because you live so far away? Because we can call and Skype and I can come visit. Maybe. If I ever get my license. I’ve only failed twenty-two times. Lucky number twenty-three!”
Georgina sniffled. “That’s not it either!”
“Is it because we have nothing in common?”
“Nooo, it’s because I kissed your boyfriend.”
Kiesha froze. This was it. Georgina braced herself to be slapped.
“What? Who? What boyfriend?”
“Your boyfriend. The sheriff. Ed. But I swear, I had no idea he was dating you when I kissed him and if you think about it, this is really his fault. Because he did know he was dating you. But I’m a terrible best friend so get it over with now.”
“What?”
“The slapping.”
Kiesha’s eyes widened. Georgina’s breath was caught in her throat. And then Kiesha shocked her by laughing.
She laughed so hard that tears raced down her cheeks, and she grasped hold of her tummy as though she was in pain.
“Why are you laughing? Don’t you believe me? I did kiss him.”
“I don’t care that you kissed Ed.”
“You don’t? But he’s your boyfriend!”
“Eww, no he isn’t.” Kiesha shuddered. “Take that back. You cannot just put those words out into the universe, you’ll give it ideas.”
“Who?” She was really having trouble following this conversation. Alcohol might not be the friend she thought it was.
“The universe. Telling it that I am with Ed. I mean, that’s really gross. Come here.” Kiesha grabbed hold of her, dragging her off the dance floor to a quieter area.
“Why is that gross?” she asked, feeling like she had to defend Ed.
“Because it’s Ed,” Kiesha said. “He’s like my big brother. My annoying, grouchy, way too overprotective big brother. There is no way that I could ever be with Ed like that!”
She froze. She wasn’t Ed’s girlfriend.
“But the way he acts around you. He leaned over and cupped your chin.”
“Yeah, Ed seems to think that he has some right to tell me what to do. It’s because our mothers are friends. He thinks I need guidance and boundaries. Or was it rules and discipline? I don’t know, I tend to zone out when he’s lecturing. Word of warning, he lectures a lot. Think he likes the sound of his own voice. Or the feeling of being important.”
“So him acting like that around you, it was . . . “
“Like siblings might be. You know, how a big brother might act towards a younger sister he had to take care of.”
“Right.” She had six older brothers, but she didn’t see them much anymore. They were all so busy.
Except, she was the one always turning down their offers to come stay with them, wasn’t she?
“Then you don’t care that I kissed him? I didn’t have to be so scared to tell you?”
“Now, I wouldn’t go that far. I’m not sure I’m down with my best friend and my brother getting together. What if you break up? Where does that leave me? I’d be forced to take sides. I mean, obviously, I’d take your side. Because, you know, he’s got a dick.”
“We’re not . . . I mean, there is nothing . . . “ Well, there was definitely nothing after the way she’d acted today. She groaned. “I thought he was with you. I was kind of . . . rude.”
Kiesha’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I wouldn’t worry, he’ll forgive you as soon as you explain what’s going on.”
“Oh no. Nope. I never intend to see Ed Granger ever again.”
Kiesha just smiled.
5
Ed stood and stretched.
He should have gone home hours ago, but he was one deputy down since Steven was out with t
he flu. He hoped like hell that it didn’t go around the station. That was the last thing he needed.
But now he was ready for a shower and bed.
Jesus, when did he become such an old man? It was barely twelve and he was ready to turn in. As he walked through the main area, Wendy took an incoming call.
“Sheriff’s office, what’s the problem?”
Ed grimaced at her greeting. But Wendy was at least eighty, chain-smoked, and was a law unto herself. Between Kiesha during the day driving him nuts and Wendy at night it was a wonder he wasn’t completely gray.
“Really? A brawl? Got it, I’ll let the sheriff know.” Wendy ended the call.
“A brawl?” he asked tiredly.
“Yep, at the Wishing Well.”
The Wishing Well? That was usually a pretty quiet spot. His heart started to race. “Wait, what night is it?”
“Friday. Trivia Night,” Wendy said with far too much relish.
He groaned. “What are the odds Kiesha and her girls went home early?”
“I’d say slim to none.”
Yeah, that’s what he’d thought. “Send Jace and Jimmy to back me up.”
“Already on it, sheriff. Have fun!”
Fun. Right.
It started out innocently enough.
She and Isa were up on the dance floor doing their own thing. Kiesha had headed to the bathroom, Juliet had disappeared and Cleo was at the bar. Georgina was getting tired, but she didn’t want to leave. To go back to her lonely motel room.
Some guy moved behind Isa, wrapping his strong arm around her waist and grinding up against her. Georgina frowned, pausing. That seemed kind of forward. Maybe Isa knew him, though.
Then Isa suddenly grabbed at his arm, trying to pull it away from her.
“Get off me, Grabby Gary!” Isa’s face went red as she pushed at Gary’s hold on her.
Well, obviously she did know him. But it seemed that she definitely didn’t want him touching her.
Georgina wasn’t going to have that. Gary needed to learn some manners.
“Hey! Let her go!” Georgina grabbed his arm, tugging it away from Isa.
Why wasn’t anyone helping? She glanced around but they’d somehow become surrounded by a group of men.
“Let go of her!” she growled. “Last warning.”
“Fuck off!” Gary snarled at her, shoving her back. “Isa is mine.”
“I’m not yours! You’re an asswipe, Gary!”
“You’re mine, Isa.” He attempted to draw Isa around for a kiss.
Oh, hell no.
Someone bumped into Gary.
“Watch out, Mike!” he snarled.
“Hurry the fuck up, Gary!” Mike snapped back.
But it was all the distraction she needed. She grabbed Isa, pulling her back behind her.
“Hey!” Gary turned and reached for Isa and Georgina grabbed his arm then lowered her shoulder and flipped him over her shoulder. He landed on his back and lay there, still.
Had she actually hurt him? She looked down at her hands. These things might need to be registered as lethal weapons.
“Holy fuck!” Isa stared at her. “How the hell did you do that?”
She opened her mouth but then she saw Isa’s eyes widen. She turned, just as Gary got to his feet and charged towards her with a roar.
Shoot. Never take your gaze off the enemy. She blamed the pink flamingos.
Georgina dived to the side, grabbing Isa. They both fell against some of the other men, knocking them down.
“What the fuck!”
With a gasp, she looked over to see that Gary had crashed into a huge, tattooed man with a long beard.
This wasn’t going to end well.
For Gary.
“I was just . . . that bitch attacked me.” He turned and pointed at Georgina. He stepped back away from Big Beard, his hands out placatingly. “I didn’t mean anything by it, man . . . I . . . “
“Nobody touches Loki without his permission,” the big man rumbled. “Gary Larsen, prepare to die!”
The big guy swung at Gary, punching him so hard that Georgina winced. Gary went down with a thump, out cold. The big man grunted then turned his gaze to her.
Isa grabbed her arm. “Let’s go! Before Loki decides you’re his prize.”
“What?”
Someone yelled something. Then there was an answering roar. Suddenly, a brawl was breaking out around them. Loki actually picked up a man up and threw him. Like he was a bowling ball.
Oh hell.
“Shit! Those are Gary’s friends fighting against Loki’s crew. Come on!” Isa pulled her up and they attempted to push their way through the crowd, which was hard when everyone was trying to move closer to the fight.
There were more noises of fighting. Shoot! That had escalated quickly.
“Loki’s Warriors destroy!” A loud roar broke out over the music and the other yells.
“What is happening?” she cried as someone shoved against her. The person grabbed her before she fell over and then lifted her up onto a table.
“Sorry, darling,” he said before quickly disappearing.
“Isa!” She reached down and grabbed the other woman’s hand, helping her get up onto the table with her.
“Shit! Fuckballs!” Isa stood on the table, peering out into the dance floor.
Well, what had once been a dance floor. Now it looked more like a WWE fight that had gotten out of control.
“Isa, get down before you fall.” She stood to grab the other woman, then froze, watching the brawl with an open mouth.
Holy. Hell.
Another roar sounded and she watched, wide-eyed as Loki stood up. He was missing his shirt, his tattoos on full display and he seemed to stand at least half a head taller than anyone else.
“This is insane! Gary’s goons are so going down. Loki’s Warriors will annihilate them.” Isa raised her fist into the air with a cheer.
What was she talking about? Georgina’s breaths were coming in sharp pants, adrenaline rushed through her. What was happening right now?
“Shouldn’t we do something?” she asked.
“What can we do?” Isa asked, grasping hold of her as someone bumped into the table. “Don’t worry. O’Ryan will take care of things.”
How could one man stop this? She liked Noah, she didn’t want to see him get hurt.
“Isa! Georgie!”
She looked over to see Kiesha trying to push her way through the crowd of onlookers to get to them.
“Kiesha, get somewhere safe!” she yelled at her.
She waved back, but kept making her way forward. Someone grabbed her, lifting her up on the table.
“Thanks, Frank! Isn’t this exciting?” she said as she wrapped her arms around Georgina and Isa’s waists. “There hasn’t been a Trivia Night this exciting since Loki’s Warriors did that strip tease.”
“Good times,” Isa agreed.
A loud bang made Georgina jump with a cry. She might have fallen to her knees if Kiesha wasn’t holding her up. Nausea bubbled in her stomach and her heart raced.
She was safe. She was fine. She needed to keep it together. This wasn’t the time to panic. She had friends to look after.
“Oh, man, O’Ryan already got out the air rifle,” Kiesha said. “Damn, that’s a shame. Things were just getting good.”
Getting good? Nothing about this was good. She placed a hand over her rapidly-beating heart. She needed to calm down.
“W-what?”
Kiesha nodded over to where O’Ryan stood on the top of the bar, a gun in his hands. No, not a gun, an air rifle. No one was firing bullets.
“Hey, you okay?” Isa asked her. “You look kind of pale.”
“Just not feeling great. Too many pink flamingos.” Right, blame it on the alcohol, not the fact that you nearly had a panic attack at the sound of an air rifle.
“The next person who throws a punch is banned for life,” O’Ryan roared into the suddenly quiet crowd.
“What the hell is going on in here!” That yell didn’t come from O’Ryan.
Georgina glanced over towards the doorway and stared into the stern gaze of the sheriff.
Oh. Shit.
Ed stood at the doorway, hands on his hips as he surveyed the fucking carnage inside. What was going on? Sure, he’d answered calls out to the Wishing Well before. There were always going to be idiots who created trouble, especially when alcohol was involved. Then there was that time Loki and his guys decided to do a striptease. That wasn’t something Ed wanted to repeat. He’d seen way more dick that night than he’d ever hoped to see in a lifetime.
But this had nothing on that night.
There were a number of injured people on the dance floor. And Loki had Ronald Pikes in a choke hold, not that he’d be any great loss to society, but shit. The paperwork.
He glanced around, surveying everything. Then his eyes hit on a pair of familiar ones and he froze. She was standing on the top of a table, wearing a conservative white blouse and black pants. Her hair was a mess, though, and her shirt was half-untucked.
He scowled. What the hell was she doing here? He ran his gaze over at the women she was standing with. Kiesha and Isa.
He guessed he’d just answered his own question. Kiesha had a lot to answer for. Thank God the three of them had been nowhere near the fighting. At least he had that to be grateful for.
Because if anyone had touched one of them . . .
“Loki, put Ronald down,” he commanded. “Gary, lower that pool cue right now.” He stepped further into the room. “The rest of you sit down where you are. Now!”
“Got it under control, Ed,” O’Ryan called out. “No need to rush out here.”
“Put that air rifle away, O’Ryan,” Ed ordered. He liked O’Ryan, but the guy tended to take the law into his own hands. He felt someone walk in behind him, and Ed turned to see Jace and Jimmy. Jace looked bored. Jimmy’s eyes were wide. He was Ed’s newest recruit and this was his first bar brawl.
Sheriff Daddy (Montana Daddies Book 10) Page 4