Figuring I might as well top off my evening with kicking the ass of the balding, thin, yellow stained teeth of a man, I ignored the tightness of my leg and stomped towards him.
In the seconds it took me to reach the man I had decided on a few things, one…this man had no business owning a dog…two, yanking on the dog's leash so hard the dog yelped made me want to put the man in a choke collar and three, I was going to have to call Trevor at the ranch and explain to him why I was going to need bail money…again! It wasn’t like I looked for trouble, I just had a soft spot for animals, especially defenseless ones who didn’t have a choice who owned them. It was a funny thing about dogs, they just loved you. You could be the biggest asshole to them, and they may cower and hide from you, but they still loved you and just wanted you to love them back. That kind of love was a gift, human beings certainly didn’t love that unconditionally! To see this man abusing this puppy made the edges of my vision blur and I clenched my fists for the second time that night.
“You’re a stupid animal, and I should take you to the pound so they put you down,” he shouted as he raised his hand that was holding the dog’s leash and lifted the yelping puppy off the ground so that the poor thing was dangling in the air gasping for breath.
Before he could notice my approach, I swung up behind the dirt bag and kicked the back of his knee and smiled as he buckled to the ground. As the asshat moaned like a baby, I quickly snatched up the poor puppy who was shaking so hard his teeth were clanking together.
“It’s okay baby, it’s okay, that mean man won’t hurt you ever again, all right sweetie?” I promised as I turned away from the evil man and began to pet the little guy who yelped and wailed as he tried to burrow deeper into my chest.
“Listen you little bitch, that is my dog, and you have no right!" Asshat bellowed as he made the mistake of putting his hand on my shoulder.
Now, I know I’m slightly impaired, and my leg was going to start protesting all of the activity very soon, but my father had been in the Navy, and he’d made sure I knew how to handle myself!
I grabbed the hand that gripped my shoulder, spun around while keeping the puppy in the crook of my elbow, pushed forward on his bent wrist and twisted until the man wailed and then lowered himself to his knees in pain.
“First, don’t you ever put your hands on me! Second, you lost all rights to this puppy the moment you tried to choke him with his leash! And lastly, for your information Cocker Spaniels are loyal, intelligent, affectionate, and energetic! He’s young and in a new place with a lot of people and probably got scared, instead of comforting him you abused him for doing what any toddler would do in a strange place, surrounded by a lot of new smells and stimulation…have an accident! Your ugly shoes can be replaced, his life can’t be asshole!” He went to argue, but I pushed my grip on his wrist harder until he squeaked in pain.
“Miss, I’ll take the puppy, I have four Cocker Spaniels at home, and we definitely have room for one more,” A woman in a large white hat and sunglasses said from my left.
I threw asshat’s hand away and stepped back to address the woman in the hat. I watched as she used her phone to pull up photos of her large home and her three happy looking dogs. The dogs were playing with toys, lounging on the sofa and the last picture showed them all running around outside having the time of their lives. I smiled. This puppy would be so much better off with hat lady then he would be with the jerk on the ground.
“Where do you live?” I asked, not sure if sending the puppy home with someone who had flown to Vegas was a good idea, the poor thing already shook up.
The older woman smiled and lifted one wrinkled hand up to let the puppy get her scent. When he felt comfortable, he butted his little head up under her hand and allowed her to pet him.
“I live in Henderson, just the town over,” she answered. I knew where Henderson was, it was where many of the people who worked in Vegas lived. It was a city of green lawns and lovely landscaping, despite being in a desert.
“I’m just out to see a show with my sister, she got called back to the hospital in the middle of it, she’s a cardiologist over at Sunrise Hospital in the west part of town,” she explained as she lovingly patted the little puppy.
Feeling like this was the best answer, since me bringing home a small puppy to a sanctuary of lions, tigers, and bears would be a tad bit nerve wracking, I handed the puppy over to her leash and all.
Right about then, angry suit guy stood up and began to shout about his rights, how the dog was his and how he was going to have me arrested for dog-napping. Seriously? Was dog-napping even a word, much less a crime?
“Geez, what is your problem? You obviously don’t want the dog, you yelled at the dog, tried to choke it and now you want to get all pissy when someone actually wants to have a dog that will love her unconditionally? You need to adjust whatever medication you’re on because it’s obviously not working,” I shouted as I used one hand behind my back to gesture for hat woman to take the dog and bolt. The woman didn’t need to be told twice, so while I stood there listening to suit man list his grievances, she slipped away into the crowd.
“…and I don’t like people touching my things,” he finished, his voice getting to a very whiny pitch as he delivered the only part of his rant that I had actually paid attention to.
“Well then, we have no issues, do we? I didn’t touch any, thing, that belonged to you! What I did do was rescue an animal from your attempt at killing it.” I watched as his aging face blushed beet red all the way from his neck up to the top of his head. Knowing, the crowd we had attracted would eventually include security or police officers, I bowed graciously and said, “Enjoy the rest of your visit! Remember, whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!” I backed away from the livid man and right into a hard stomach. Grimacing, at the fact that there was no way that two people could have the same hard, chiseled chest; I reached behind me and felt the unmistakeable jacket of a very nice suit. Reaching past the coat, I groaned when I felt soft silk underneath my fingertips. I didn’t need to turn around to know that silk shirt was blue, and it belonged to the one man I couldn’t seem to shake no matter what I did. I have to be the only woman in the world trying to ditch the hottest guy she’s ever seen! Yep, that’s me! Back-assward at every turn, I don’t run towards hot, sexy men…I run away from them! The universe was a fickle bitch!
I was so busy being horrified that Matt was literally pressed against my back that I didn’t even see grey-suit guy get up off the ground until he was shaking his finger in my face. No! Do not bite that man’s finger Alison Collins! You will not give into temptation and chomp your teeth down on that ugly, bony finger that he keeps waving in your face.
“You owe me a dog, you meddling bitch!” he screamed his eyes bulging out of his head as his finger continued to wave in front of my face.
I couldn’t take it, it was like a hundred and seventy degrees outside, people were staring at me…again and now I had Matt so close to me that I could feel his…OH MY GOD! That better not be what I think it is pressed up against my ass! Focus Ali! Take care of the finger pointing asshat before dealing with the Magical Ken Doll back there!
“It’s rude to point, sir,” I said with a sweetness to my voice that I didn’t mean.
“Rude? You dare to tell me about what’s rude? Do you have any idea who I am?” he barked, righteous indignation taking over his expression.
See, that was the thing about Vegas. You never knew if you were standing next to a guy in a nice suit who just wanted to get dressed up for a night on the town, chauffeur, or some Casino executive out for a stroll with his new dog that he hates. Yeah, when you pissed off money you could be sure it would always end with, ‘Do you know who I am?’ I was never sure how I was supposed to answer that question. My ex-husband Richard would always use that statement when he didn’t feel people were treating him with the respect that he was convinced he was due. Legend in his own mind, that was Richard, and it looked like I had just
happened to piss off someone that belonged to the same club, fantastic! Next, he was probably going to break out into a monologue of just how important he was in the hopes of making me feel insignificant. What asshat didn’t know was that I had been married to the king of manipulation and from his throne, he had been very skilled at making me feel bad when he was the one being an asshole. I already knew this game and the hell if I was going to let asshat try to toy with me.
“Well, I guess that’s a very leading question, more importantly, you should ask yourself if you’re the person you want to be,” I answered in a friendly tone. Taking advantage of asshat’s confusion I continued, “I tell you what, I’m going to forget about this whole messy scene. But, I want you to take some time and really think about who you are as a person and find out if you can be more than just the stuffy title you’ve been given,” I finished, and the man just stared. I heard a muffled chuckle from behind me and elbowed Matt in the ribs. I was still pissed at him, but I could only deal with one situation at a time.
“I..well..I,” he stammered like he was trying to figure out when the conversation had turned from his advantage.
I placed one hand on his bony shoulder and tried not to grimace as the thought of touching this man made me nauseous. “Listen, it’s not too late, you can be a better man,” I choked out trying not to let the fake sincerity on my face falter.
Matt put his hands on my hips and started walking me backward as asshat just stared at me and then the ground.
I was so impressed me myself, that after we had cleared the crowd, I fist pumped the air and laughed, “Yes! Score one for the Yoda mind trick! Dumb you are.. gray suit,” I giggled doing a horrible Yoda impression. After a moment I was laughing so hard that I had to bend at the waist to catch my breath and wipe the tears that had streaked down my face.
I was so busy laughing that I had forgotten the other asshat that I needed to deal with. I slowly stood back upright and was met with a very formidable looking Matt. His arms were crossed over his chest, his stance told me that he was clearly intent on something, and his lips were so puckered they had turned white. In short, he looked like a sexy Ken doll that had just sucked on a lemon.
Getting my breathing back under control, I opened my mouth to say something, thought the better of it and took off in a run-limp. Unfortunately, this time, I didn’t get very far and just as I reached the doors to the Casino I was swept up and over his hard shoulder like a sack of flour. Screeching in anger, I scrambled to keep my dress from riding up over my thighs, locking my legs together so that my scars wouldn’t be seen even if the dress rode up past my ass.
“Dammit…Matt..Let. Me Go.” I demanded as every step he took rammed his muscled shoulder into my gut making me wonder if I could projectile vomit all over his stupid shoes!
When he ignored me, I started wiggling and almost slipped off his shoulder as I heard the ding of the elevator behind me. Oh no! No way, this was just too much deja-vu! There was no way this arrogant prick was coming up to my room!
“Hey, people! Hello…Kidnap victim here,” I looked around as a man in a hotel uniform stopped in front of me waiting to get on the elevator.
“Hey, call security, this man is taking me against my will! This scary, man who has threatened to slice me into little pieces and wear my skin as a dress!” I pleaded with the young man who pulled out his phone and nodded to me.
Just then Matt turned around to address the young porter, and I smiled. Yeah, explain this asshole!
“Hey Kevin,” Matt said as he greeted the young man. I raised up as far as I could and craned my neck to see the young man pocket his phone, his face going from concern to a sheepish grin. What the hell?
“Oh, hey Matt, I didn’t recognize you. I thought someone was trying to kidnap the lady here,” the man practically gushed like Matt was some sort of superstar.
“Nope, just doing some caveman role playing with one of my clients,” Matt answered smoothly.
Pissed and seeing my only opportunity to get away slipping through my fingers, I protested, “I’m not his client…Hey, he’s taking me against my will…I swear! Call the police…I..OW!” I shrieked as Matt’s large hand smacked my ass, all of which I felt through the thin, silk fabric of my dress! I instantly covered my ass with my hands to ward off any more incoming blows.
“Now pumpkin, you know you have to wait until we get upstairs before you scream for help otherwise people will think you mean it,” he warned, and I could almost hear the bastard smiling.
“I do mean…OW! God Dammit!” I shrieked again as another slap came, despite my hands I still felt the sharp sting and Matt stepped into the elevator.
“Hey, I’ll grab the next one and thanks for the show tickets to La Reve, my wife loved it,” The Porter said as Matt stepped inside the elevator and swung around so I faced the unhelpful little twit. He knew Matt, of course, he did! Matt had given him, and his wife tickets to one of the most expensive shows in Vegas! Ugh, bastard!
“Thanks, Kevin, glad you had a good time, talk to you later,” Matt called as the doors began to close.
“You too, have fun, Miss! Matt will make sure you have a very good time! All of his clients love him!” He shouted as the doors finally slammed shut leaving Matt and me alone on the quick trip to my floor.
Crossing my arms over my chest, I raised up and far as I could with his hold on my thighs. If my leg wasn’t already tightening up, I would have used my self-defense moves and lowered myself to his kidney area and punched, or bit him and used his body to flip myself over and away from him. Unfortunately, my leg was so tight that any hope of running away was a no go. Unless I could crawl faster than he could walk, I was stuck on this neanderthal’s shoulder.
We reached my room, and he turned and bent his legs so I could reach the lock. When I hesitated, he slapped my ass…AGAIN..and I growled.
“You open it, or I take your purse and open it myself while spanking your ass for the trouble,” he hissed. I could hear the barely contained anger in his voice and for some reason it made me shiver. Angry Matt was just as sexy as charming Matt, it appeared or at least my body thought so. However, my mind was more and more convinced that my first assessment of serial killer was correct.
Slamming open the door, Matt shut it with his foot, and I braced myself for his attack. Both alarming and surprising me, he walked past the sofa to the bedroom and without flipping on any lights tossed me onto the bed without a word. Going with my first instinct, I scrambled for the opposite side of the bed and shrieked when I felt his hand wrap around my ankle and slowly drag me back to the center of the bed. Even in the dim light coming through the open drapes of the window, I could tell he was pissed. When he had me in the center of the bed, he released my ankle and began taking off his shoes, then his suit jacket followed. When he started unbuttoning his blue, silk dress shirt, I went into a full blown panic and literally dove off the bed and raced for the bathroom door. Once again, catching me right as I was about to reach my point of safety he grabbed me around the waist like I weighed nothing and stalked back to the bed.
Again, he tossed me in the middle of the large, king size bed with soft, white sheets and before I knew it, his bare chest was hovering above me, his hands grabbed mine and stretched them above my head. With one leg, still fully clothed in his slacks…Thank God, I could feel something large and thick pressed against the inside of my thigh.I knew my dress was riding up dangerously close to where my scars began on my upper thighs and though I tried to squeeze them shut, I found Matt’s leg was in the way.
Panicked, embarrassed and even a little turned on, I refused to look at his face. I was sure I’d either see anger or that look of pity he had given me in the restaurant and neither one sounded like a good time.
After a long, tenuous silence I felt him put both of my wrists in one hand and grab my chin, forcing me to turn toward his gaze. I tried not to look, but the bastard waited me out until I slid a quick glance to his face, once his eyes locked on
mine they refused to let me go.
I waited, holding my breath, waiting for him to either offer pity or to chew me out for embarrassing him at dinner. What I didn’t know was why he was still here.
“You haven’t figured it out by now, Tiger?” he asked as I suddenly realized I had spoken my thoughts out loud.
“No, I haven’t. We don’t get along. You don’t like me, and I certainly don’t like you. Yet, every time I try to end this date you keep coming back. Either you’re really bucking for a tip after all this or you’re some closet masochist. Honestly, I’m really hoping it’s door number one because I can probably cough up a hundred dollars for a tip if it makes you go away…I got no answerer for door number two,” I told him honestly.
In the soft light, I saw his expression soften, and the smile that he gave me was genuine Matt, it was so beautiful that I had to smile back in response. “I do like you, Alison. You're not like other women who try to entice me with lingerie or gifts or by stroking my ego,” he said in a husky voice.
Confused, I asked, “If they’re paying you…that would make you kind of a sure thing. Why would they try to impress someone they had just purchased?” I asked. It had been one of my interview questions because some of the other interviews I had done with other escorts, all of the over the phone and they were women, had mentioned the lengths clients went to in an attempt to look good for them.
“See!” he chuckled still grinning.
Nope, I didn’t see. I didn’t see at all!
“That right there is why I like you. You say what you think Alison and you're not afraid to ask questions! You don’t try and disguise yourself. What you see is what you get!” He explained, happily releasing my wrists. Raising myself so I was sitting with my back against the headboard I tried to gauge if we were messing with me or being serious. I smoothed my dress down where it lay touching just above me knees, and Matt pulled back so he was straddling my hips but bracing his legs on either side of me so I wouldn’t bear his weight. It was evident he was staying close to make sure I didn’t take off again, but I was glad for the small amount of space he had given me while I tried to figure out what was happening.
No Refunds No Exchanges: A Hudson Family Series- Book 4- Matt and Ali Page 8