by J. L. Drake
***
“Where the hell did you take me, Min?” I laughed as she took the menu from me and prattled off something to the waiter.
We were in the basement of a clothing store in Venice. There was red velvet wallpaper glued to every inch of the walls, gold chandeliers dangled above us, and round leather tables with matching half cup seats were scattered as far as the stage. I felt like I was stuck on the set of Moulin Rouge where the sinful atmosphere was laced with dark and dirty promises.
“We, my friend,” she removed a glass of champagne from the waiter’s tray and handed it to me, “are having a true girls’ night.” She tapped the delicate rim of her glass to mine. “To finally having a girl around I don’t want to smash in the teeth with a shovel.”
I tossed my head back and laughed. That was possibility the best toast I’d heard in a long time.
“To us.” I took a long sip of the crisp, bubbly drink then relaxed in my seat and pulled out my phone.
Tess: At the Rusty Diamond
Trigger: What the hell is that?
I laughed at his reaction. Minnie questioned my sudden outburst.
“Trigger wants to know where we are.”
“Tell him to Google it.”
We both waited a beat and burst out laughing together. Trigger didn’t Google.
“Give me your phone.”
I hesitated but thought why not. He’d be less apt to kill her than me.
One eyebrow slowly rose as her fingers tapped on the screen. I could only imagine the things she’d write, but before I could ask, the lights flickered out, and a spotlight illuminated a man standing at center stage. He was dressed in a black suit, his hair hung a little shaggy, and there was an intriguing grin on his face.
“Min—?” I began, but he beat me to the punch.
“Ladies and, well, dirty gentlemen,” he flashed a wicked grin, “you all know the drill, and if you don’t, here is a quick rundown.” He swaggered across the stage. “Keep your arms and legs outside your seat at all times. If you need assistance, kindly slap the nearest ass you can find, and if you need to use the restroom, good luck, because I cannot help what may happen to you along the way. Now,” he slapped his hands loudly by his head mic, “are you ready?”
The crowd screamed so loud my ears rang.
“I said, are you ready?”
I shook my head, and Minnie mouthed, “Girls’ night, baby!”
Smoke rose from under our feet, and an under-glow of color engulfed us. Then a roar started from the corner of the room, and a man was slowly lowered from the roof and landed like a panther about five feet from me.
Drums beat to a familiar tune, and it took me a moment to recognize it. The man closest to me pointed in my direction just as a spotlight lit him up. He started to lip sync to “Comin’ to Your City” by Big & Rich.
I grinned at Minnie. She had the best expression on her face, like a kid in a candy shop. She had taken me to a country drag queen show! Holy shit, it was perfect.
My train of thought was interrupted when a man started to come toward me. I closed my eyes. Fuck me. If Trigger showed up, there would be a bloodbath in here. Although I had to say Trigger was surprisingly good with Shantee.
A finger lifted my chin, and by the thick scent of the cocoa butter, I knew it was the dancer.
“Smile, darling!” he yelled over the music with a dramatic wink. I laughed at his totally over the top gorgeous eyelashes.
Three songs went by, and I had never seen so much glitter, feathers, and sequins in my life, and that was saying something. The men were incredible, and I hadn’t laughed so hard in a very long time. Who would have thought this was under Venice?
The song changed to “Fake ID” by Big & Rich, and the place went wild. I looked around, puzzled at what was I missing.
Minnie hopped up on her seat and waved her arms. The guys started pulling people up on stage and dressing them in costumes.
I grabbed my friend and pulled her down into her seat while I signaled for another round of drinks. Oh, my God. This place was beyond fun, but my ass was not about to go on stage. I didn’t dare risk a photo that would set Trigger’s switch off for damn sure.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me!” I yelled, and anger licked at my insides. “He’s impossible!”
“What?”
I leaned over and carefully pointed at the man back by the door.
“No way.” She started to get up, but I stopped her.
“Wait. I have a better idea.”
I hurried toward the stage and grabbed one of the men and whispered my idea to him. I handed him a twenty. He refused it, saying it was “all his pleasure.”
“What did you do?” Minnie shouted, her champagne breath in my face.
“Just get your phone ready.”
I waited for the song to switch, but it took all my power not to look in his direction.
My entire body jumped when I heard the beat. I scrambled to grab my phone as the man dressed like a horse raced toward him.
“Save a Horse” burst through the speakers, and the moment Rail caught sight of the man coming toward him, his horrified expression shot over to me.
I gave a little wave and held up my phone.
Three men circled Rail and rushed him up to the stage. They stuck a brown cowboy hat on him and looped a pair of reins around his waist. He tried everything to fight them, but they were too fast. Clearly, they’d dealt with people like him before.
When the song got to the chorus, the entire place went wild with the words, and guys pretended to ride him.
The look on his face when he locked eyes with me was that of man who was going to spend the rest of his life making sure mine was miserable.
Oh, Matt, this one is for you.
As soon as the song ended, they stripped him of his get-up and made him bow with the rest of them.
Rail pointed at me, but all I could do was laugh so hard tears streamed down my face. Minnie buried her face in her hands, but I could see her shoulders shaking.
“I will never forgive you for that.” He pulled out a chair and downed the rest of both our drinks then grabbed a waiter. “Whiskey on her tab.” He pointed to me.
Five more songs, some bubbles, and a lot more mist, and the show ended. We were finally served dinner, and I was starved.
I was surprised to see a lobster tail smothered in garlic sauce, and scallops paired with baby potatoes.
“You wouldn’t think one of the best seafood chefs around worked here, would you?” Minnie bit into the scallop.
Rail ordered a steak and cringed when the man brought him his food wearing ass-less chaps. The music was turned down, and we were able to talk a little easier.
“I have never wanted to kill so many half naked men in my life.” Rail dumped a half a bottle of A-1 sauce on his meat.
“Serves you right.” Minnie stuck her fork at him. “We don’t need an escort.”
“I wasn’t really sent here.” He madly cut into the overdone cow. “I just got back to the club, and Trigger told me to check in on you. I wasn’t going to stay. You weren’t even supposed to see me.”
“Well,” I lifted my hands dramatically, “that makes it even better, doesn’t it?”
***
Trigger
The cursor flashed over the submit button. I knew it was a bad idea, but what choice did I have? I either said no and this shit storm stayed, or I ended it once and for all.
My phone rang, and I quickly scooped it up.
“Yeah?”
“Boss, there’s someone here who wants to speak to Tess.” Morgan cleared his throat as I leaned forward in my chair. “You got a minute?”
Who the hell was here?
“Yeah.” I hung up and clicked the button. The demons went wild and stirred up my hot blood to a dangerous level. My hands formed into fists. Who the hell would come here looking for Tess?
Blood could be shed, and the reaper might be rewarded tonight. I could
almost taste it. I needed it.
I swung open the door, disappointed to find a medium-sized man dressed in black at my bar, a beer held between battered hands. Hands I recognized had seen a fight or two.
He felt me come up and slowly turned and took a moment to let my appearance sink in. I knew I was big, and I knew I fit the biker look. I’d let my beard grow, my hair was shaved on either side, and the rest hung in a messy, long mohawk that flopped to the right. Tattoos inked my skin, and my past was as evident as his was across my knuckles.
“He’s clear,” Joe chimed in and held up the gun he had taken from him. “Offered it at the door.”
“Got no beef with you, man. Always carry it like my wallet.” He stood and offered me a hand.
Morgan slid over a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. I ignored his hand and folded my arms, not wanting to touch him. The demons were so loud I could barely hear, and I knew he had better have a good explanation why he wanted to see Tess.
“Why do I know you?” I couldn’t place him.
“I, ah…” He stumbled at my coldness. “I live in Vegas and know some friends of Tess’s. I overheard some shit I thought she might want to know about.”
“Like?”
He sank back onto the stool and looked around. “No offense, but I’d rather speak directly to Tess.”
It wasn’t lost on me that he called her Tess and not Tessa. He either did know her, or he’d heard about her recently.
“If you want to talk to Tess, you talk to me first.” Just as the last word came out, Big Joe backed up and let someone in.
“Honey, I’m home!” Minnie called out as she and Tess stumbled into the bar, looking more than half in the bag. Rail was behind them and seemed relieved to be back.
Shit.
“Oh, look, Tess! We have company.” Minnie giggled, and Tess grinned, but it was obvious she tried with her all might not to join in.
“Shh, you’ll make him mad,” Tess whispered loudly. “Although I kinda like Trigger angry. It’s real exciting.” Her expression turned devilish.
“You had fun tonight, Tiger?” Morgan broke through her dirty thoughts to try to make her see our unknown visitor.
“You know what Min and I did?” She pointed. “Railey wouldn’t let us dance, so we came here to get the party started.”
“She’s all yours, man.” Rail raised his hands. “Please don’t ever ask me to check on them again. This one,” he pointed at Tess, “thought it was cute to slip out of the club to make a phone call alone, then went back and did endless shots.”
Tess broke out in a loud laugh. “Three men made Rail their bitch!” Minnie had to hold onto the stool to stop from falling over, she was in such a fit of laugher. “I will never forget his face when they bent him over and rode him with reins.”
Morgan glanced at me and waved over Brick as he came in from out back.
“Hey, ladies, how was—” He stopped when he saw how piss-eyed drunk they were. “Damn, I really missed a fun night, hey?”
“Oh, Matt, you have no idea.” I glanced back to her. I hated that she had used his real name in front of the unknown guy. They had their names for protection and honor, and their old names had no place here in the club. “I have an early birthday gift for you. Or maybe it’s mine. Whatever. We can share.”
“Die. All of you, die.” Rail grabbed a beer from behind the bar. “Who the fuck is this?” He nodded to the guy who was staring at Tess like he was way too friendly with her.
“Brick, take Minnie to bed,” I ordered. He caught my tone and scooped Minnie up and whisked her out of the room. “Morgan, coffee for Tess.”
“Sure thing, boss.”
Tess stood straight and gave me a salute, giggled, and stumbled as she peeled off her coat. I caught her arm before she fell.
“I would love to snap my fingers and have everyone jump to my command.” She finally seemed to notice the guy next to me and dramatically offered her hand. “You look kinda familiar. How are ya?”
His face relaxed, and he broke out in a smile, taking her hand in his a little longer than I would have liked.
“I’m a friend of your mother’s.”
Tess yanked her hand free, and she immediately lost all sense of fun. “My past just keeps comin’ to knock me down, and all I wanted was one night to have a little fun.”
My attention moved to her face, and I saw something flicker across it. What did she mean? And what the hell? The guy never said anything about her mother.
“I’m not here on her behalf. I’m really not. I’m here to warn you about something.”
She glanced at me, her eyes heavy with sadness. Or was it fear? Slowly, she leaned into the side of the bar in front of me and took the coffee Morgan handed her along with three Advil.
“No disrespect, but I really don’t give a shit what happened to those people.”
He nodded but then looked over at me and downed his beer. “Can we talk somewhere private?”
I considered his words and looked around the bar, which was littered with my men and a few random women, then back to Tess.
“This is my family, so my business is their business,” she said.
I felt a sense of pride at her words. My hand slipped around her waist, and I pressed her against my side. She sagged into my hold.
“Okay.” He cleared his throat. “You took a USB from Clark?”
“And if I did?”
“Have you watched it yet?”
“Only a little of it. Why?”
“So, you haven’t gotten to file thirty-three?”
She shook her head.
He purposefully glanced down and then back to her eyes again. It only took her a moment before her entire body went stiff. She pulled herself free of me and stood off to one side, holding his gaze.
“Trigger, could you please get me the USB drive I gave you?”
“Rail, third drawer, left side.”
Rail returned a moment later and handed it to Tess. She tossed it on the floor and jammed the heel of her shoe on it, crushing it into pieces.
“Shit!” Her hand covered her mouth. “How do you know—I mean, is that what you’re here to warn me about, or is there…Jesus!” She grabbed the bar top and looked like she might pass out.
“Tess?” I reached out for her, and she gripped my arm. Her hands were ice. “What is in file thirty-three?”
“Not my place, man.” He shook his head. “I’m here to let you know Clark won’t give up. He’s already headed this way.”
“What? Tell him I destroyed it. I want nothing to do with all that crap. It’s just a stupid stick full of lies. I only took it so he would know how serious I was about being done with him and the whole house.”
“Do you have a copy?”
“No.” She didn’t miss a beat. I knew she had another copy, but I didn’t know where.
“But it’s not just about the USB, Tess. He wants you.”
My blood thickened at the thought of Clark touching what was mine. He had his chance, and she choose the club—she chose me.
“I hate him! I’ve made that very clear. I loved him once. Well, actually, I’m not sure I ever really did. Not the way I love—the club.” She whirled around. “Trigger? Can we borrow your office for a minute, please?”
No. No way in hell.
Her expression stopped me. I gave a nod, and she motioned for him to follow.
“Wait.” She turned to him. “I never got your name.”
He smiled. “Name’s Zay.”
I was pissed with this whole thing, and when the door closed, I turned to face Morgan. He stared at the barrier that separated us from them.
“Something feels off, man.” He turned back to me and started wiping off the counter. “You think Clark is really coming?”
“No fucking clue.”
“And what the hell is file thirty-three?”
I looked down to the broken USB. “Something bad, I assume.”
“I hate that she can
’t have one night of fun.”
“Mmm,” I agreed. I couldn’t help myself. Her phone was face-down on the bar, and I flipped it over and swiped the screen open. I tapped the phone log and saw a couple of Vegas area numbers had repeatedly called her.
Who the hell was that? Just as I went to call the number, a text came through from another number.
Clark: I’m sorry, Gumdrop. I don’t blame you for what happened, and I took care of it. You were upset, that’s all. I can’t go another day without touching you or hearing the sounds you make when you’re turned on. I NEED to see you NOW. I know where you’re staying now. If you won’t come to me, I’ll come to you.
Oh, hell no! So many ways of killing that bastard flashed through my head.
“Dude has texted her three times tonight.” Rail broke through my murderous state. “Look.” He held up his phone and showed me a picture he took of the text messages. “I deleted them so she wouldn’t see them. Look what good that did.” He snickered.
Clark: I need you.
Clark: I’m tired of your damn voicemail! PICK UP, DAMMIT!
Clark: I miss me inside you.
The door to my office opened, and Zay came out, followed by Tess. She looked totally done.
“Sorry for the nature of my visit, Trigger. I meant no disrespect to you or your club. I just needed to warn Tess of what was happening.”
I nodded at him but kept my eyes on Tess as she moved to the bar and leaned against it.
“You seem good here, Tess. I’m glad to see that. I’ll do my best to keep Clark away.”
“Thank you, Zay,” she whispered.
“Take care.”
Big Joe handed him his gun at the door, and he disappeared into the night.
“You okay, Tiger?”
I glanced at her.
“Not even a little.”
I needed to get a look at her copy of that damn USB.
Chapter Fourteen
Tess
My breathing was heavy by the time I got to Trigger’s room. I knew better than to go to my room; he’d only insist. I had no fight left in me.