Brad was right. The place was really casual and just my speed. The floors were old worn hardwood, and the dance floor was right smack in the middle of the room and surrounded by tables with little candles burning in the middle. The decor was pretty southern with animal horns and antlers mounted on the wall above the bar.
The bar itself was massive. Three bartenders were working, two men and one woman. All were laughing and chatting with customers sitting at the barstools.
“I’m gonna get us a round,” I called to Macy over the music.
“All right, we’ll get a table,” she said as I left my group and went across the dance floor to the bar.
I sidled between two empty barstools and rested my elbows on the bar as I read the specials menu mounted on the back wall. When the bartender asked for my order, I got four tequila shots and four beers. He poured the shots first and pressed a lime wedge to each rim. Then he topped up four beers, which brimmed over with foam, and I grabbed cash from my back pocket.
Someone pushed my hand down flat on the bar when I went to give the bartender his money. “Hey,” I said, a little annoyed as a stranger reached around and paid for my tab. I looked up, ready to tell him to shove his womanizing head up his ass, and blinked when I found myself staring into a pair of familiar hazel eyes.
“Why hello there, Josephine Hart.” Zachary Flynn grinned.
I blinked under his stare and stood there like a fool, mouth half open, trying to figure out something cute to say. What I said was not cute at all. “I should have worn a dress.”
“Sorry?” Zach asked, eyebrows drawing together as he took his change from the bartender.
“What?” I asked, horrified that I had spoken the thought aloud. “Nothing. Sorry. What the hell are you doing here, Zach?”
Zach leaned sideways to rest his elbow on the bar. Good Lord, he was handsome—even more so than he was in my memories of him that I reflected back on too often than I cared to admit. He also looked different. The lines of his face were sharper, as was his jaw, and that softness he had when he was a teenager was long gone. He was a man now, broad-shouldered and lean. It was easy to see under his jeans and T-shirt that he was in incredible shape.
He also had a rougher look to him. His nose was crooked, and I was sure it hadn’t been the last time I saw him. He’d probably broken it at least once in his time in the service. One shoulder also sat slightly lower than the other, an indication of a previously broken collarbone.
“I’ve been at the San Antonio Air Force Base for the last little bit. I think the question should be what are you doing here? Never thought I’d see you out of Austin.” Zach was looking at me with that same cocky grin I remembered so well from when he used to squash my teenage heart on a daily basis. He was my older brother, Ryan’s, best friend, and four years older than me. He was in his final year when I just entered high school, and he was the sole reason I had shitty grades that year. My adolescent, hormone-ridden body had been completely infatuated with him.
“I’m with the Coast Guard now,” I said, tipping my head in the direction of the ocean like a moron.
His eyebrows crept up toward his hair, which was a lot shorter than it used to be. “Coast Guard, huh? Damn. Guess that’s where all these muscles came from.” He reached out and lightly touched my bare bicep, and I felt my cheeks begin to burn. “How come Ryan never told me you turned into such a badass chick?”
I shrugged. “He didn’t want me doing this. He and Dad wanted me to stay home and take over the bar. But that wasn’t for me.”
Zach nodded knowingly. “I always knew you would surprise everyone.”
I pinched my bottom lip between my teeth to stop myself from giggling. If Brad or Glen saw me acting like such a fangirl, I would never live it down.
“Who are you here with?” Zach asked, as if he could read my mind.
“A few friends from my team. You?”
“Some buddies from my squadron.” Zach peered around, narrowing his eyes like it could help him see in the dim lighting of The Stripe. “Don’t know where they wandered off to. But they’re here. Need help carrying these to your table?”
“Er, yeah.”
Zach called the bartender back and ordered himself a beer before stacking the tequila shots one on top of the other. He pinched the tower of shots together with two glasses of beer and then picked them up in one hand. “Think you can manage those three?”
I took the other three beers for my friends and started walking back to the table Macy had scored for us near the dance floor. The three of them were chatting, their voices loud to compensate for the volume of the music, when Zach and I put the drinks down on the table. All three of them looked up at me. Then their eyes flicked to Zach.
“This is Zach, guys. Zach, this is the team. Macy, Brad, and Glen.” My friends waved at Zach as he took his beer from the table and took a sip. He wiped the foam from his upper lip and nodded a hello to them.
“How do you two know each other?” Brad asked.
“Yeah,” Macy said deviously. “How do you know each other?”
I caught her eye and willed her to shut up. “Zach was my brother’s best friend in high school. We haven’t seen each other in what, eight or so years? Maybe more?”
“Probably closer to ten or twelve,” Zach said. “Somewhere around there.”
Shit, girl. Have you really been daydreaming about a guy you haven’t seen in over a decade on a weekly basis since he left? How embarrassing.
“Have a seat, Zach,” Glen offered, kicking a chair out for Zach.
Zach dropped down into it, and I took the open one beside him. He reached out, grabbed the armrest of my chair, and used it to pull me closer to him. The wooden legs squealed across the floor, but he didn’t seem to care.
“So,” he said. “You never grew out of that whole ‘I’m going to make a difference’ complex you had when you were a kid, hey?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.
“The Coast Guard. Obviously that’s why you joined. Am I wrong?” He asked the question like it was a challenge. He already had me figured out.
“No. You’re not.”
He grinned sheepishly and nodded at the tequila shots on the table. “You lot gonna take those, or what?”
It was all the encouragement Brad and Glen needed. They scooped up their shots, and Macy was quick to follow. I grabbed mine, and the four of us clinked our tiny glasses together before I poured mine down my throat without letting it touch my tongue. Then I sucked on the lime wedge for a minute and dropped it back into the now-empty glass before washing down the shot with a few mouthfuls of beer.
Zach was laughing at me.
“What?” I asked, feeling a smile beginning to tug at the corners of my mouth. His laugh was contagious and heartwarming, and so damn nostalgic.
“Nothing,” he said as he reined in his laughter. His gaze remained on me when he drank from his beer, his hazel eyes peeking over the rim of the glass.
Someone bumped the back of my chair and then grabbed my shoulder to apologize. I looked up into a face with wide-set eyes and a smiling mouth full of big teeth. The man was big—really big—and drunk. He gave my shoulder a squeeze. “Sorry about that, little lady. Can be a bit clumsy sometimes. Been a while since I had any of the stiff stuff, you know?”
“It’s all right,” I said. I turned back to face Zach, and the man kept his hand on my shoulder.
“You know this girl, Flynn?” the big man asked.
Zach’s eyes lifted to look at the man who still had his hand on me. I was getting close to swatting him off. I didn’t like being touched. Especially not by a stranger. Zach sipped his beer and then placed it on the table. “We grew up in the same town.”
“Ah,” the big man said. “Unlucky for you, girlie. Flynn’s a real prick, hey?”
I shrugged my shoulder out of his grip and didn’t bother looking up at him. “He’s a friend, actually. Have a good night.”
The m
an opened his mouth to speak, and Zach got to his feet. He offered me his hand and looked at me expectantly. I took it, and he guided me up beside him. “Excuse us, Ghoul. We were just about to dance.”
Zach led me away from the table and out onto the dance floor. I could feel the man Zach referred to as “Ghoul” watching us as we stepped under the swirling beams of light that illuminated the middle of the bar. Zach pulled me into him, and we began moving in rhythm to the music. His hand fell to my lower back as he took my right hand with his left and lifted it up to a waltz position.
He smelled like pine and sandalwood, and my heart began beating to a quicker rhythm than the beat of the song.
3
Zach
“Who was that guy?” Jo asked as she peered over my shoulder at Ghoul, who was no doubt still staring at her like she was a juicy piece of steak.
“We call him Ghoul,” I said. “He’s not popular on base, but he’s a hell of a good pilot. Not as good as me, of course, but decent nonetheless.”
Jo smiled, and I was rattled by her beauty. “Is anybody as good as you?”
“Are you flirting with me, Josephine Hart?”
She smiled again, and this time, laughter bubbled out of her. It was the sweetest thing I had heard in a very long time, and I found myself in awe of her as I guided her through an effortless waltz routine.
Her eyes were as bright and green as I remembered. I’d always thought she looked like an innocent, doe-eyed teenager when we were younger. Seeing her as a grown woman was a shock but a damn good one. Her face was covered in freckles, especially across her nose and cheeks, and her lips were bright pink and full, tempting me to lean in and kiss her.
But she was Ryan’s sister. And I was his best friend. To think there could be more between us than that was foolish.
Wasn’t it?
The song ended, and Jo tightened her grip on my hand. “Come on,” she said. “I need another drink. So do you.” She didn’t wait for me to answer. Instead, she pulled me through the ever-growing crowd toward the bar, where she spun around and rested a hand on my chest. “What do you want? Let me get this round.”
“I don’t think so. How about you tell me—”
“Nope,” she said, turning back to the bar. She waved the bartender over. “Two—no, make it four tequila shots and two beers, please!”
“Four?” I asked when she looked over her shoulder at me.
Jo nodded and gave me a bright smile that reminded me of sunshine and blue skies. “Yep. Four. Don’t be a baby.”
“A baby?” Grady appeared, jabbing his elbow into my ribs playfully. His cheeks were rosy, and his eyes were heavy. He was already more than a few drinks in, and it showed. “I like her, Flynn. Who is she?”
“She is Jo,” Jo said, extending her hand and shaking Grady’s in introduction. “Zach and I have known each other a long time.”
Grady looked imploringly at me. “Remember that deal we had about the prettiest girl in here? Well, you found her. So…”
“No,” I said sharply, shouldering him away.
“What deal?” Jo asked as she passed me a tequila shot. She handed one to Grady as well, who smelled it and winced.
“No deal, forget about it,” I said.
Grady pounded back his shot, shook his head, and grinned at Jo. “He promised to help me hook up with the prettiest girl in the place.”
“Oh,” Jo mused. “Lucky for her.”
“That’s what I said.” I laughed.
“Here.” Jo handed Grady another shot. “Take this, and walk a lap. All the girls will get prettier. But if they turn you down, you move on to the next, all right?”
“All right.” Grady chuckled. He threw back the shot and grabbed my shoulders. “I like her, brother. She’s one of the good ones. Don’t worry about the deal. She’s off limits. I can see it all over your face.” He pointed his index finger at my face and waved it around in a circle. “That face says ‘stay the fuck away from her.’” Grady chuckled again and burped, then wandered off to prowl the outskirts of the dance floor.
“Sorry about that,” I said to Jo, who had just ordered us two more shots to replace the ones she passed off to Grady.
“Don’t worry. He’s funny. In a sad, pathetic kind of way. Here, drink up.”
We both took our two shots and sucked on our limes. The tang stole the bitterness of the alcohol away. The shot went straight to my head, and I leaned against a barstool to stop myself from swaying as Jo ordered us each another beer.
“Damn, woman,” I muttered. “You can drink like a champ.”
She sipped her fresh beer as I took mine from her. “You haven’t seen anything yet. I’m here to have fun. I haven’t been out in a while, and I plan to make the most of it.”
“Well, on that note, finish that beer. You and I have more dancing to do.”
Jo blushed and lifted her beer to her lips. I found myself staring at her bottom lip, pressed to the glass as she tipped her head back and drained the whole thing. Impressed and determined to match her, I finished mine as well and slammed the glass down on the bar. She followed suit, and then I took her by the hand once more.
The two of us spilled out onto the dance floor. The evening was well underway, and the music was lively and easy to dance to. We danced like idiots, moving around each other the way two drunk teenagers might. Then, as the alcohol worked through our bodies, we drew closer until I had her back in my arms. I spun her away from me and then back in. I dipped her and turned her away from me and was aware of the soft press of her ass in my crotch.
I twirled her away once more, and her strawberry blonde hair fanned out all around her. I admired the length of her long, powerful legs, hugged tightly by her dark jeans. A few inches of stomach showed between her waistband and the hem of her black top. She was all muscle and milky white skin. Sheer beauty.
She laughed with her head thrown back to the ceiling when I pulled her to me once more and let my hands wander down her back to squeeze that firm, perfect round ass of hers. Motivated by the alcohol coursing through me, I leaned in and softly pressed my lips to her neck.
She wrapped her arms around my shoulders, and I felt her fingers begin creeping up the back of my neck and pressing into my hair.
Then someone tapped me on the shoulder and cleared their throat behind me.
I already knew it was Ghoul before I even turned around. He had a bad habit of popping up at the most inopportune moments.
I groaned in frustration, my lips still on Jo’s neck, and gave her ass one more squeeze for good measure. She let her arms fall from my shoulders when I pulled back to look at Ghoul, who was hovering over us like an uninvited nanny.
“Mind if I cut in?” he asked, his eyes only on Jo and the low cut of her crop top.
“I do mind, actually,” I said dryly.
Ghoul’s gaze snapped over to me, and he narrowed his eyes. “I wasn’t asking you, Flynn.” He said my name like he was spitting out a bite of rotten fruit.
If I hadn’t been drunk already, I might have had the self-control to swallow my anger and refrain from insulting him. But I was drunk. And my self-control was weak even when I was sober. “Listen, we all know you’re going back to base alone to rub one out, staring at your own reflection, so just fuck off, will you?”
Jo surprised me by snorting with laughter. Ghoul shot her a dark look and then looked back at me. “Fuck off, Flynn. Everyone knows you’re more in love with yourself than anyone else in the squadron.”
“Yeah, because they’re all in love with me too, you dumb bastard.”
“Gentlemen,” Jo said, stepping between us and placing a hand on both our chests. She pushed us both back a step, giving herself more space. “There’s no need for the pissing contest. I’m perfectly capable of declining the dance on my own. Thank you for the invitation.” She now addressed Ghoul directly. “But Zach and I have known each other for a long time, and I would like to spend the night dancing with him.”
&nbs
p; Her rejection was perfectly polite. It was concise and straightforward and not cruel at all. But Ghoul acted like she had struck him across the face and told him he was ugly. Which he was.
“One dance won’t hurt you, little lady. Come on. Take a walk on the wild side, and show me what you can do with that sexy body of yours.”
I was going to hit him, and then I was going to be in deep shit for hitting him. It didn’t matter. He’d crossed a line, and someone needed to put him in his place. I made to step around Jo, who still had her hand planted firmly in the middle of my chest. As soon as I tried to take a step, she gave me a rough shove. The force behind it surprised me. She managed to push me back about half a step, and then she turned and squared her shoulders to face Ghoul.
The sight was something to behold. Ghoul towered over her, and from where he stood, he missed all the cues in her body language that I soaked in. Her hands were balled into tight fists at her sides. Every muscle in her body was tense, and her feet were spread apart so that they were in line with her broad shoulders. She was a woman I wouldn’t mess with. That was for sure.
“Call me ‘little lady’ again, and I’ll wrap your tie around your throat, you big waste of space,” Jo spat. She stepped in closer to him and craned her neck to stare up at him. She was so close, her breasts nearly touched his chest, and he was going cross-eyed looking down at her. The expression on his face was smug. He still wasn’t taking her seriously.
“I like a woman with a bit of fire,” Ghoul purred.
Jo slammed both her hands into his chest in a magnificent display of power. The blow sent him teetering backward, and he stumbled into a set of table and chairs along the outskirts of the dance floor. He caught himself on the table and straightened, eyes wide in surprise and humiliation.
I hadn’t realized that I had started laughing.
Then Grady was there, and he was laughing up a storm beside me, while pointing an accusing finger at Ghoul, who was just coming to the realization that the table had been covered in half-empty beer glasses. Now he was soaked and embarrassed. I couldn’t see how my night could get any better.
Air Force Hero Page 2