by Jayne Blue
About an hour into my shift, when the dinner crowd started to pick up, I saw Wendy talking to Aimee in the corner of the bar. She was eyeing me the entire time. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and I knew the two of them were talking about me. To lend even more credence to my suspicion, Aimee looked back at me. Her lips pursed into a humorless line and when she turned back to Wendy, she nodded at her.
Things went from bad to worse after that. Aimee stopped seating tables in my section. At first, I thought maybe some of the regulars had asked for one of the other girls specially. I was still new here so that kind of thing happened. But after the fifth time, I knew it was no coincidence. Every time I tried to catch Aimee’s attention to ask her what the hell, she seemed to make herself scarce.
By ten o’clock, I only had about twenty dollars in my pocket. I saw Aimee with her back to me, standing near the hostess’s station, so I made my move. Tapping her on the shoulder, I turned her to face me.
“Something you want to tell me, Aimee?”
She had a big smile on her face when she made eye contact with me. “You having some trouble, hun?” she asked, playing dumb. “Do you need help with something? I can send a busboy over.”
“No, I don’t need any help. I just need to know why you’re skipping my tables. You’ve been double and triple seating Kirsten and Nikki all night and I’ve had three tables in three hours. Look, I don’t have time to dick around. I know Wendy said something to you. I don’t want drama. Whatever she told you, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”
“Hmm. Well, then you better talk to Wendy about that. As far as your tables, I don’t know what to tell you. You’re still in training.”
“What? Since when? Says who?”
Aimee shrugged. “Not my call. Take it up with Junior.”
“I will.”
“Suit yourself. I saw him head out back a few minutes ago. He’s probably having a cigarette. But hurry back.”
“Why? You obviously have no plans to seat me anyway.”
Aimee plastered another smile on her face and turned to the group of men walking in the front door. I stepped away from her podium and went back to my section. Aimee turned, grabbing a stack of menus. Then she walked the new group straight into Veronica’s section, snubbing me once again.
The hell with it. Fuming, I headed for the back door having no choice but to take this up with Junior myself. The one table I did have was already cashed out. My section was a barren wasteland. I got a sympathetic look from Marcus, one of the busboys. It bolstered me a little to know I had maybe one friend on the floor tonight. Steeling myself for whatever bullshit Junior might dish out, I pushed through the back door and went outside.
The back door opened to an alley between Cups and a cigar shop. A big blue dumpster sat against the left wall lit by a halogen streetlamp. Sure enough, Junior stood with his back to me at the end of the alley where it opened to a short boardwalk next to the water.
I opened my mouth to call out to him, then froze. Junior wasn’t alone. At first, whoever he was talking to stayed hidden in the shadows. Then I heard a familiar voice raise in fear.
“Junior, I’m on your side, man. I swear it,” Cory said.
Junior lifted a fist and pinned Cory to the brick wall. He was almost half a foot shorter than Cory, but Cory didn’t budge, held there by fear rather than brute strength. My heart pounded so loud I was afraid they might hear it. Whatever this was, every instinct in my body told me to hide.
“And those are just words. You can prove whose side you’re on by actions.”
“I will. I swear to God, man. I will.”
“You’re getting cocky, Cory,” Junior said. “You forget who’s in charge.”
“No, no, man. We’re clear on that. I swear it. I’m just trying to look out for you. That’s all. This shit is bad news. I told you what happened to my cousin last year. I mean ... Junior ... if I caught wind of what you’re trying to do, somebody else will. It’s too small a town, and what happened with your old man ...”
“Is that a threat?” Junior stepped back. The dumpster concealed part of his body. I could just see his head and shoulders above it. Cory lifted his arms in surrender. Sweat beaded his brow and the collar of his black t-shirt stretched wide, exposing his clavicle where Junior had bunched it in his fist.
“No, man. Shit. You gotta chill out. This shit is just getting out of hand. I don’t want to be a part of it, okay? You don’t need me.”
Junior’s eyes widened. He dropped his shoulder then landed a hard blow right across Cory’s cheek. Cory’s head bounced against the brick wall and I don’t know how he managed to stay on his feet let alone keep his hands at his sides. A red welt started to form. Growing up with five brothers, I knew that kind of wound would turn deep purple within a few hours.
“Junior, come on. I’m begging you.”
“You’re weak, Cory. I’m disappointed. You’re no use to me if I can’t trust you.”
Cory’s lips quivered. God, he looked like he was about to cry. What the hell did Junior have on him? I wanted to be anywhere else but where I was, but instinct told me this would only get worse if Junior saw me standing there. I weighed my options. The only route of escape was back through the service door into the bar. But the minute I tried to open it, Junior and Cory would either hear the hinges creak, or the sound of raised voices as the crowd inside thickened. How they hadn’t heard me open the door in the first place I couldn’t guess.
“I said you can trust me. No harm, no foul, right? You’ll never hear another word from me about any of it, Junior. On my mother’s life, I swear. But I’m telling you, this is a bad idea. I mean, really bad. You don’t want to poke the bear.”
Whatever Cory meant by that, it incensed Junior. He boxed Cory’s ears, making him stagger to the side. Cory put his hands up to shield his face from the next blow that came, but did nothing else to defend himself. Junior was merciless. The thick, wet sound of Junior’s blows against Cory’s head and body echoed through the alley. I covered my mouth to keep from crying out. Junior looked possessed, delighting in Cory’s muffled cries of agony as he beat the shit out of him.
Cory took it for at least thirty seconds, before he finally sank down out of sight behind the dumpster.
“That’s what I thought you said, you piece of shit,” Junior said, leaning down. I heard him suck back air then spit in Cory’s face. The foghorn of a cargo ship further down the bay went off, startling Junior enough to make him freeze. The hollow clang of a captain’s bell drew Junior’s attention further. It meant the drawbridge on the Azrael bridge was about to go up.
I seized my chance. As bile churned in my throat, I gripped the door handle, praying the sounds from the bay would conceal any noise I made. I didn’t look back as I slipped inside the bar and made my escape.
Chapter 6
Maya
Junior didn’t come back to the bar for a while. Cory didn’t either. A dozen times over the next two hours, I tried to find a way back into the alley to see if Cory was all right. When I was sure no one was watching me, I made my way back out to the alley and went to the other side of the dumpster. Cory was gone. The only sign of what happened here was a small puddle of blood. The smell of it turned my stomach but part of me felt relief. Cory had probably gone home to lick his wounds. I just hoped he hadn’t tried to drive. I jumped when I heard an empty glass bottle hit the ground a few blocks further down. This late at night, you could always count on a drunk or two staggering home from one of the other bars. I hurried back into the bar before I encountered anyone else.
Finally, about twenty minutes before I left for the evening, Junior emerged from his office. He looked cool and calm, but his color seemed ashen. He had his right index finger wrapped in a white bandage and he’d changed his shirt. Other than that, he showed no outward signs that anything was wrong. I caught him staring at me once as I helped Marcus wipe the last of my tables.
I finished my cleanups
, avoiding Wendy, Aimee, and Junior. The sooner I got the hell out of there, the better I was going to feel. The other girls left before me as I finished up in the break room. As I slung my purse over my shoulder and tried to clock out, Junior came up behind me. My heart raced as he put a hand on my shoulder. I jumped.
“Hey, take it easy, baby,” Junior said. Every muscle in my body went rigid. Ice shot through my veins.
“Sorry,” I said, painting on a smile. I turned to him. “I just need to get going.” I clocked out and tried to brush past him toward the door.
“Everything okay with you?” he asked. “You seemed upset earlier in the evening. I saw you talking with Aimee. She said you came looking for me. Is there something wrong?”
“What? Oh. No. Just a little misunderstanding. We’ll work it out.”
Junior’s eyes flashed with dark knowledge. “Well, I hope so. I don’t like disharmony among the wait staff. You girls keep this place going. Don’t think I don’t know that. You’re good, Maya. I’ve been watching you. A little rough around the edges, perhaps. But I think you’re going to do really well here if you can learn to get along.”
“What? I mean, yeah. I’m getting along fine. Promise.”
Junior wore the sleeves of his pale yellow dress shirt rolled up. As I looked closer, I noticed more than the bandage on his finger. Faint red lines crisscrossed his forearms as though someone had tried to scratch him there. Alarm bells clanged in my head and I wanted desperately to get the hell out of there.
“Really,” I tried again. “It’s all good, Junior. I hope you don’t mind, but I need to get going.”
“Hot date?” he asked.
I forced a smile and acted coy. He didn’t try to bar my path as I headed for the door. Instead, his eyes had a slightly dead look as he stared at me.
I made a beeline for the front door. As I stepped into the sweltering night air, I realized I was about to do everything I’d promised Axle I wouldn’t. I was about to walk to the bus stop on my own in the middle of the night dressed in my skimpy Cups uniform. But there was no one in the entire restaurant I felt comfortable walking with at that moment. The only silver lining I could find about the whole night was the fact I didn’t have to go back there for two days.
In just two short days, it was as if my body became tuned to the sound of a Harley’s engine on some cellular level. It woke me up out of a dead sleep. Well, not so much dead. No. In my dreams, I was wrapped in leather and sin. Axle lifted me, his strong hands cupping my ass as I straddled his waist. His rough denim scratched the inside of my thighs as I spread myself wide and lowered my head to kiss him. He tasted like salt and spice and heat. God, the heat. It poured through me as I let him brace me against the wall of my apartment and work those luscious lips of his down and down.
Gordon let out a sharp meow that cut through the fog of my mind. The motorcycle engine in the parking lot revved again and my heart raced. Axle. I woke drenched in sweat and desire, the cotton sheets tangled around my legs. Stumbling, I managed to work my way out of bed and went to the window.
Axle sat on his bike, typing something into his smartphone. He’d parked in the empty spot where my Toyota usually was. Gordon startled me as he brushed against my bare leg.
“Oh, pipe down,” I whispered to him, rubbing his ears. I pulled my own phone off the charger and checked the time. It was almost nine o’clock. I’d overslept. On the lock screen, I had three text notifications from my mother again. Last night, I’d promised her I’d call today though it was the last thing I felt like doing. I tossed the phone on the bed and pulled a clean t-shirt over my tank top and found a pair of denim shorts. Racing to the bathroom, I scrubbed my teeth as quickly as I could and finger-combed my hair. It billowed around me in blonde ringlets from the humidity but for now there was no help for it. Stabbing my feet into a pair of flip-flops, I headed out the door.
Axle straightened in his seat as he saw me come out. The morning sun shone off the chrome of his handlebars. Dismounting, he came toward me taking slow, confident strides.
I ran my fingers under my eyes, hoping I’d done a proper job washing my face last night and that I didn’t have streaks of yesterday’s eyeliner running down. Axle’s sultry half-smile damn near stopped my heart. What was it about this guy that got my juices humming like that?
He reached out and tucked an unruly strand of hair behind my ear. When his fingertips brushed my cheek, my breath hitched.
“Did I wake you up?” His voice had a low, smoky quality. The way his eyes flashed, I wondered if the expression on my face betrayed the dream I’d just had.
“It’s all right,” I said. “It’s late enough. What are you doing here?”
Axle looked toward the blue sky and scratched his chin. “I figured you might need a ride today. Plus, I thought you’d like to know what happened with your car.”
I cleared my throat. “Oh. Right. Thanks. And wow. I didn’t realize you’d have an answer for me so quick.”
“As much as I hate to give him credit for anything, Murray was right. It’s your starter. I’ve got my guys working on it. We need a part, but they should have it running good as new soon enough.”
“Oh my gosh. Thanks. What do I owe you?”
A devilish glint came into Axle’s eyes that set my blood racing all over again. Dammit. I needed to go for a run or do something else sweaty and physical. Soon.
“How’d it go last night?” he asked.
My breath caught. I didn’t have the first clue how to answer him. It had gone terribly. But something made me hold back. Instinct told me the problems with Wendy and Aimee would only get worse unless I figured out a way to handle them myself. Then there was Junior and Cory. A pit formed in my stomach as the vision of Junior’s fist slamming into Cory’s jaw replayed in my mind. He’d taken such sadistic glee out of inflicting pain on Cory. And Cory had just stood there taking it. There was no doubt in my mind Cory could have flattened Junior with one punch. But he didn’t. He was afraid. But of what?
My lips quivered as I debated telling Axle about what I saw. But what could he do about it? Both Junior and Wendy had warned me to stay away from Axle. Axle had warned me to watch out for Junior. On the face of things, I didn’t know who to trust but knew my place in the middle was precarious. Still, as Axle stood before me, a mountain of sexy leather, muscles, and ink, I wanted nothing more than to trust him.
“Maya?” He cocked his head to the side, seeing the turmoil behind my eyes. I put a smile on my face and laid my hand flat against his leather vest.
“Don’t you get hot wearing that?” I’d meant it as an innocent comment, something to change the subject from everything that happened last night. But the minute the words flew out of my mouth, I recognized them for the double entendre they were and my cheeks flushed with heat.
His low laughter skittered over my skin, sending gooseflesh down my arms. Axle took his sunglasses out of the pocket of his vest and slid them on. I saw my face reflected in the mirrored lenses. My mouth formed a surprised “o” and from his vantage point, Axle could pretty much see straight down the vee of my loose-fitting t-shirt.
“You got plans?” he asked.
“What?”
“For breakfast. You gotta eat, right? Come on. I know a little diner just outside of town. Best waffles you’ve ever tasted.”
Axle turned and climbed back on his bike, confident that I wouldn’t say no. I should have. I knew it. Every moment with him emboldened me. I wanted to do things the Maya Ballard of a year ago would never have dreamed of. But oh, I dreamed of them now. A thin sheen of sweat still clung to me from just how vivid a dream I’d had. As he revved that engine again, it worked on me like a tractor beam. My breath coming in quick pants, I climbed on the back and wrapped my arms around him.
My hair flew back as Axle hit the throttle and sped down Vista Drive going west. He took the winding highway along the coast. With emerald-blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico beside us and the wide open road ahead,
I felt freer than I had in years. Maybe ever. Riding with Axle was reckless, exhilarating, and broke every rule I knew. God, it felt so right.
The diner Axle spoke of was a truck stop off the main highway. My heart sank a little as he pulled into a parking spot in the back. Riding with Axle worked on me like a drug. I could forget everything and just focus on the feel of his hard muscles beneath my cheek, the power of the machine he maneuvered as if it were a part of him. And Axle himself. I knew so little about him other than his name and the patch he wore. Still, I felt drawn to him in ways I knew could lead to trouble.
When Axle dismounted, he ran a hand through his unruly dark hair, shaking it out. I couldn’t imagine the wreck mine was. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a hair tie to deal with it.
“Don’t,” Axle said.
“Don’t what?” I asked, my voice muffled as I held the hair tie between my teeth.
Axle reached for me and brought my hands down away from my hair.
“I like it down.”
A tremor of desire went through me at the command in his voice. God, I just knew he’d be like that in the bedroom too. He’d know exactly what he wanted and my body would respond, almost as if he’d trained me. I dropped my hands, letting my wild blonde curls fall around my shoulder. Axle’s eyes glinted, then he turned, holding the door to the restaurant open for me.
The diner was small, just a row of booths along one window and a long counter with round leather stools. Axle picked a booth at the very end of the room and jerked his chin toward the waitress behind the counter. Her face brightened with recognition and she turned to pour two cups of coffee.
