I groaned, “What are you guys going to sing?”
She clapped her hands together and smiled. “Buttons by the Pussy Cat Dolls.”
I shook my head. “Mimi, I don’t know that one. Remember? You were supposed to show me the routine, and you didn’t get a chance.”
Typically when WDMD practiced, they did it at our place. I either helped with choreography or made up the entire routines, so I knew most of the songs they would perform. Mimi frowned and placed her shoulder-length, straight black hair behind her ear. I sighed, knowing that me doing this means a lot to her. I have to admit that, when I do sing with them, I have a ball. I completely escape who I am and become someone I only dream of being.
“Why don’t you guys do that song, and then we all can do a Rihanna song.”
I watched her smile and get excited. “Great idea! I’ll call Tiny to have her buy you an outfit too.”
I rolled my eyes. “Please don’t say we are going to be half-dressed again.”
“Of course not. This is my brother we’re talking about. It’s weird enough I’m dancing for a bunch of horny twenty-somethings. Believe me, I have some dignity.”
I pushed her out of the back room. “Please, girl. You know you love all attention. Male or female, it makes no difference to you.”
She laughed. “You got that right.”
****
The rest of the night grew extremely busy. It’s like everyone on the South Side anticipated our performance. I rarely see this many people in here. I found myself so swamped with drinks and men hitting on me that I didn’t even notice a pair of eyes on me.
What I did notice is the goose bumps that were forming on my arms and the increase of my heart rate. This feeling has happened twice before. So when my eyes searched the crowd in front of me, they met those familiar ice blue eyes and an unbelievable smile.
Suddenly at that moment I heard nothing else as I moved towards him. When I got close, he simply smiled broader, and I couldn’t help but smile too.
I said, which I tell you right now was not my finest moment, “Are you following me?”
See? What did I tell you?
He wasn’t fazed by my fumbling self. He leaned in closer to me so he could be heard over the jukebox blaring some rock song I’ve never heard before.
He said, “If I told you that I was, would you give me your number?”
I blushed and shook my head. He shrugged. “Well, I guess I’ll settle for just a Scotch net. And none of that cheap shit.”
I frowned. “Never,” I said.
Then I smiled and turned from his gaze. Lou kept a stash of expensive Scotch behind the bar, so I reached for that and poured him a glass. I passed the glass to him, and he gave me his card.
“Keep that open for me, angel.”
I nodded and tried not to show how just those simple words and that smile of his was effecting me. I went back to work, trying to concentrate on my patrons and not his eyes that seemed to see right through me. I was glad at first when some blonde started talking to him because it kept the focus off me. But then I started to feel a little jealous.
Really, Max? How the hell can you be jealous over someone that doesn’t belong to you? I asked myself, shaking my head at the notion.
I continued to busy myself, trying not to pay attention to him. But he was making it really hard. Even though everyone in the bar could tell this blonde was throwing herself at him, I kept feeling his eyes on me—undressing me, unhinging me. I saw him motion for me, and I walked over to him again, trying to control myself. But as I got closer to him, my heart started to beat faster…Damn him.
I smiled instinctively, but realized at that moment that the smile he gave me was totally genuine and honest. I felt myself completely relax. I poured him more Scotch.
Noticing that the blonde was gone, I asked, “So are you out by yourself tonight?”
I saw his eyebrows raise with my question, and I immediately realized my implication.
He smiled and said loud enough for me to hear without moving closer to him, “No, I’m waiting on a friend of mine.”
“Oh, so you have a hot date then? Huh?”
Damn, Max. Really?
It’s so unnerving how I’m acting around him. I shook my head slightly, hearing the disapproval pulsing through in my voice. I looked in his eyes and saw them drenched in amusement. Wait! Is he blushing? He looked down at his glass first, as if he was thinking about how to answer me.
He then smiled shyly, and said, “I wouldn’t call it a hot date.”
I nodded. “Oh, I see.” I was actually disappointed.
Take a deep breath, Max. Act natural. You are, after all, in a relationship. It shouldn’t matter if this guy is on a date or not.
“So are you guys going to hit the bars along South Street?”
He laughed and shook his head. “I hope not.”
My eyebrows rose. I asked him as I made someone a drink, “No? Why not? Is the scene too fast for you?”
He laughed and said, “Uh, no actually. I mean… Can I be honest with you?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “The purpose of hopping around bar to bar, in my opinion, is to seek that atmosphere you like. Or maybe it’s to find someone to take home with you. Well, for me…I would be dumb to leave this place, since I have the best of both.”
Now normally I would be offended, especially since he was about to be on a date. I would have normally had a great comeback line for his “take someone home” comment, but I was at a loss. His eyes were searching mine and completely undressing me. I couldn’t do anything but smile.
I finally gathered myself and said, “Your Texan charm is lost on me, country boy.”
He smirked devilishly and said, “Well, shit. I better work on that then, so maybe I can put more than just my charm on you.”
Okay, this guy is definitely having an effect on me. I was speechless. All I could do at that point is move away from him and continue making drinks.
Okay, Max. Get a hold of yourself. This isn’t like you. I coached myself. I mean, I’m supposed to be the clever one here. I shouldn’t be out-matched. I shouldn’t be unnerved by him. I should be in control of this situation. But as I looked down the bar at him, I knew that wasn’t true. Just watching him talking to another bar skank made me even more jealous than before.
I felt Mimi nudge me. I thought she was going to say something about my lack of focus—or, better yet, who my focus was on—but she didn’t. She simply gave me a shot of vodka.
“Just drink this and loosen up.”
I looked at her strangely until I saw Tiny and Lulu walk past the bar and head to the back. I then felt dread creep up in me. Just that fast, I forgot that I was performing. I took the shot. She poured another one, and I took that too. I finally looked over in the Texan’s direction, and I saw he was signaling me. I took a deep breath and headed in his direction. I poured him another Scotch, and he took that opportunity to lean into me. I could have sworn he smelled me.
He said, “Can I ask you something?” Again he didn’t wait for a response. “Was that your boyfriend back at the gym?”
I nodded, unable to find my own voice.
He continued, “So you’re into fighters?”
“Not particularly, but they’re okay. How long have you been fighting?” I asked him, feeling the dread of the reality that here I am a kept woman, so to speak, and I was so affected by another man.
“Well, in two days it will be my first fight.”
My eyes grew wide, and he smiled.
I said, “Holy crap! Are you kidding me? And…um…who are you fighting?”
He shrugged and said, “Uh…I think they call him Choir Boy.”
I laughed and said, while grabbing a bottle of Coors Light to hand to some patron, “They paired you up with Choir Boy. Wow, they seem to think you have no chance in hell.”
“What do you mean by that? You don’t think I could take Choir Boy?”
I shook my head, saying, “I�
��m not saying that at all. I mean, besides the fact that you don’t seem to be the fighting type, I’m saying Choir Boy isn’t at all a saint. He’s a dirty fighter that will do anything—bite, claw, or knee you in the nuts—just to get a jump on you. His main goal is not to win but to mess with you and make you rethink this whole MMA thing.”
He nodded. He was seemingly quite amused with what I said. “Well, thanks for the low-down on him. I’ll be sure to watch my nuts.” He started to laugh as he drank his Scotch.
I shrugged and said, “Well, I’m just trying to look out for you.”
What? I chastised myself.
He smiled and said, “Wow! I have a guardian angel of my very own to look out for me.” He bowed his head to me and said, “Well, thank you, angel. I really appreciate that. I hope you’re there to cheer me on too.” He then reached his hand out to me. “Mason.”
I placed my hand in his tight grip, and we shook. “Max.”
We looked into each other’s eyes. I swear, at that moment I wanted to be nowhere but right there with him.
He smiled and said, “Well, Max, it’s very nice to meet you. I hope you will come to the fight to see how well I handle Choir Boy.”
I smiled back and blushed, as I saw his eyes travel from my lips to my breasts and then all the way down the front of my shirt. I suddenly felt Mimi’s arm around me.
Wearing a wry smile, she said, “Wow, so you’re the Texan she’s been going on about.”
I was completely mortified, especially since I realized he still had my hand. I took my hand back from him, as my eyes grew wide and my mouth fell open. I should have known she would have been lurking around, watching our exchange and putting two and two together.
I couldn’t look at Mason directly in the eye. I just filled up his glass and turned to leave the back of the bar. I knew at that moment that I couldn’t speak to him again in my lifetime.
Chapter 3
Mason
I knew she was completely embarrassed, but I couldn’t say anything to ease her mind. At the time, I was in shock. I couldn’t believe, number one, how beautiful she truly was. Her light brown eyes were a sexy contrast to her chocolate skin. I could smell her perfume, and it was doing a number on me. Yup, that’s right. I inhaled her deeply. Secondly, I was stunned that she was talking about me. I smiled at that and looked in the direction she escaped to, wanting to follow her.
“Don’t worry, big boy. Stick around. It will be well worth it. Trust me.”
The girl with the black hair winked and started filling orders.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would see Max here. I’m supposed to be waiting for Alex and Rachel and whatever girl she picked for me at the bar owned by Lou, and I wanted nothing more than to ditch them and go looking for Max.
I grabbed my phone to text Alex and tell him that I was bailing on him when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him coming towards me. He had this stupid grin on his face, and I started to groan and shake my head. I knew what that look meant. I turned back around and signaled for another bartender to take my order.
I turned back around and noticed Alex leading Rachel to this table that was positioned in the front corner of the bar. Behind Rachel, I saw a blonde woman with long, straight hair lying flat down her back. She wore a blue form-fitting dress that delicately contoured all her curves and accentuated her breasts. She was a very attractive woman, but what turned me off instantly was the way she was frowning at the people around her. Clearly this wasn’t her scene, and I had to wonder who the hell did Rachel think I was?
I ordered two white wines, top shelf of course, and two Coronas. When I turned back around, Alex was walking straight towards me with that stupid grin still on his face.
“So what do I have to look forward to?” I asked him.
“Behold the ice princess,” he said, thumbing behind him. “Oh, you are in for a great night.”
I looked behind him at the table where the two women were seated, and then I looked back at Alex. “She looks as if she might get syphilis if she touches anything.”
“Yup, a real treat!” Alex mumbled.
I told the bartender to leave my tab open and only let Alex charge on my account. He nodded, and after Alex grabbed our bottles, we headed to the table where our dates awaited.
As I walked up to the table, Rachel leaned into my date and pointed to me. At first, her facial expression didn’t change. I mean, it wasn’t like I was dressed to the nines. I had on blue jeans and a black button-up shirt. But when she saw my watch, she started to smile. I smiled back politely, but inwardly I cursed my luck. I looked at Alex and realized why he had that stupid grin on his face. He knew I would have a blood-money sucking woman on my hands.
The titanium Rolex on my wrist was a dead giveaway that I had money. Most people don’t pay attention to my watch. They assume it’s just an average silver watch, since there’s no marking on it. But those that come from money or a privileged lifestyle know exactly what’s being sported on my wrist.
Rachel introduced Amber, my date, to me. As she looked again at my watch and then up to my face, she gave me her best money-grubbing smile and leaned into me. Of course I am polite, or as polite as I can be, and I smiled as I handed her the drink I bought. She grasped the glass, and I pulled out the seat next to her.
We made small talk. I asked her where she was from, what she did for a living, and shit like that. To be honest, I wasn’t paying any attention. I couldn’t tell you what she said. I was being distracted by the frat-type-looking guy next to me talking about his sister and her friends that were going to perform in a minute. One of his friends seemed to just want to bail, but the other guy told them no. He wanted to see the show, and then they could bounce.
I looked up at the stage in front of me where a DJ was setting up, and I wondered if this was for the performance.
“So, Mason. What do you do for a living?”
I turned and found Amber smiling at me. “I’m sorry, darling. What did you just say?”
I let my Texas accent come through strong, and Alex chuckled. Most of the time I don’t let my accent come out. I was trained as a SEAL to fit in no matter where I was, so I had to lose the accent I had for nineteen or so years.
The effect of my accent wasn’t lost on her, as she smiled brightly and asked her question again. I took a sip of my beer and said to her, “I’m a cow-herder back on my daddy’s farm in Texas.”
Alex choked on his beer, and Rachel frowned. I knew Rachel didn’t know what I did for a living, but she must have had some kind of idea since the shock was evident on her face.
Amber was horrible at hiding her disapproval, but she seemed to be overlooking that fact and continued to smile at me. “Oh, that sounds exciting.”
I was about to tell her about the pigs we also have on the farm, when the DJ started talking on the mic. “What’s up, bar rats?!” The DJ yelled unnecessarily into the mic.
Everyone in the bar erupted in acknowledgement with applause, whistles, and screams. I was intrigued for three reasons. One was that the pretty bartender told me to stick around because I wouldn’t regret it, so I couldn’t wait to find out why. Second, I’d been looking over at the bar ever since I moved to the table. I hadn’t seen Max come out from the back, and that was killing me, by the way. And third, this place is obviously waiting for something exciting and entertaining to happen. When I look around, it seems that the men in this place are gathering closer to the stage.
“It’s Friday night, and you know what time it is…Open mic night! We have a treat for you horny degenerates out there. Its ladies night, and we have five groups of women to shake their asses for you tonight. I have to tell you that they are HOT!”
Everyone cheered and hollered. I looked over at my table companions, and they looked intrigued, well except for the debutant sitting next to me. She frowned and looked like she wanted to be any place but here.
The DJ spoke over the uproar, “Alright, you pervs. Calm down.
Before we get this show on the road, I heard there’s a man about to give his soul to the devil. Mikey, where you at, man?”
The guy next to me who talked about the sister stood up, and the other frat boys cheered him. He seemed to be in his mid-twenties, tall with black hair he kept short. He had pale blue eyes and looked oddly like the pretty bartender that made Max blush and leave.
“So, you’re getting married tomorrow, I hear. Well, it seems we have a treat for you and every lusting heterosexual male in this place. So without further ado, put your hands together for WDMD!!”
Most of the men in the bar started whistling and yelping. I became thoroughly intrigued. The lights went down a little, and three women appeared on stage. They were each wearing a men’s white dress shirt, a loose form tie, black skin-tight underwear, and high heels. The DJ started playing a song that I never heard before. One of the women on the stage started singing and looking right at Mikey, who was beaming with excitement.
I instantly recognized the bartender who was standing on the right of the lead singer, and she looked pretty hot too. The other one on stage wasn’t too bad either. The lead singer was light-skinned and short, but had curves and shapely legs that made your mouth water. She wore her hair straight and long, cascading down her back. I saw Alex out of the corner of my eye, and he seemed to be concentrating really hard on the girl.
The other singer out there was a nicely shaped blonde who also wore her hair out but curled. She was taller than both of the women on stage and had a nice, shapely figure as well. As the three sang, I realized that I heard the song before but didn’t know when. All I know is that they kept singing “loosin’ up my buttons, baby,” and they would undo one button at a time during their performance.
They then made it down to the floor and danced in front of the frat boys, and they, as well as the rest of the crowd, ate it up. I have to admit too they were good. They moved their bodies and hips very seductively and in sync, showing just the right amount of skin to keep you guessing and wanting more. They could also sing and harmonize, which sounded great. To me, they sounded better than the group that sang the song in the first place. The three women exposed a portion of a great looking, black laced bra and flat four-packed stomach muscles that probably made every male in here want them. They never removed the shirt, and it stayed buttoned with only one button left.
Ruined: Loving An Alpha Male: BWWM Romance Page 3
