CULVER: A Motorcycle Club Romance Novel (22 page)

“I’m not very good,” I said sheepishly, clutching
my cue to myself.

“Cash!” someone yelled from across the bar. The
stranger looked up in the direction the voice had come from and lifted his hand
in acknowledgement. Before turning to leave, he caught my eye again.

“It’s all about angles. That’s all there is to
pool, teacup,” he said, his low voice seeming to be full of knowledge and
experience. He turned away and made his way across the bar towards a group of
men playing cards at a far table. I watched him walk away, admiring his
purposeful stride and the way everyone in the bar seemed to want his attention.

“Sorry, babe, was he bothering you?” Brian asked,
calling my attention back. He looked ashamed and kind of beaten, even though
nothing had even happened.

“Not at all. He was just giving me advice,” I said,
shaking my head. I took another big gulp of my drink and walked over to Brian,
snaking my arm around his torso and giving him a kiss on the cheek. He beamed
down at me. I glanced towards the direction Cash had gone and saw him looking
at me, studying me, almost like he was targeting me. I shivered slightly.

“Cold?” Brian asked.

“No, no, it’s fine. Take your shot, baby,” I said,
smiling up at him but unable to erase the feeling of the stranger’s eyes on me.

We played a few games of pool, and I drank probably
a few too many whiskey gingers, before Brian asked if I wanted to get some
fresh air. I very much did. No one else had come up to talk to us, and I was
getting bored of pool. We made our way to the door and took a seat on a bench
set up next to some ashtrays.

We were alone, and Brian put his arm around me,
pulling me close. We stayed like that for a moment, then I felt Brian’s hand
creeping down towards my breast. He lowered his face to mine and began kissing
me. It felt good, so I didn’t stop him, even though somewhere in the back of my
mind I felt nervous that someone would come out and see us.

Brian’s hand kept moving down, and I tried to push
it away. Kissing in public was one thing, but I didn’t want anyone coming out
and seeing Brian feeling me up. Brian was persistent, though, and just kept
trying to reach my breasts. Eventually I pulled away from the kiss and looked
at him petulantly.

“We’re not in your bedroom, you know,” I said.

“C’mon, baby, no one is coming out, and you just
look so good. Just a little?” Brian begged. I guess all those whiskey sours
really had gone to my head, because I gave in and leaned back in to kiss him
again. I felt his hand pawing at my breast through my shirt, grabbing at it and
kneading it. It just felt like pressure, like always, so I just let it happen.

Brian had his other hand on my thigh and I felt it
starting to creep up. I put my hand on his to stop it, but he kept going. I
tried to pull back but his grip on me was strong and I couldn’t get far enough
away. His hand was on my panties now, probing, and as much as I tried to squirm
away or push his hand, I couldn’t. I pulled my mouth off his.

“Brian! Really, stop!” I said in a whisper, afraid
to cause a scene.

“Sara, please, just a little bit, I just want to
feel you, baby,” Brian growled, almost menacingly. He was grabbing at my breast
harder now, and his hand was rubbing against my panties quickly.

“No, really, I want to stop now,” I said
pleadingly. He didn’t stop, or let me move away anymore. I looked at his face
and it was set in a determined scowl. “Please, Brian!”

“Sara, you always fucking tell me to stop, it’s not
fair, I’m not even doing anything, just trying to make you feel good!” Brian
snapped at me, then moved even closer to me. He was almost pinning me to the
bench at this point, one hand squeezing my breast and the other hand trying to
push my panties to the side. I could feel his fingers against my pussy and it
kind of hurt, the way he was being so rough.

“STOP!” I cried out, loudly, no longer worried
about making a scene. Brian looked at me and I just saw anger in his eyes.

“Shut up, Sara!” He yelled back. At that moment,
the door to the bar swung open. The stranger from earlier, Cash, was standing
there. Brian and I both jerked our heads around to look at him. He was standing
there, arms crossed, looking down at us with a serious look on his face.

“Trouble out here, teacup?” He said, looking at me.
Brian took his hands off me quickly, spinning around so that we were just
sitting side-by-side again. I was breathing heavily, heart pounding, as I
pulled my skirt down and straightened my shirt.

“No, no trouble, thanks,” I said, looking at my
lap.

“There better not be. We don’t like trouble from
punks like him,” Cash said, shooting daggers at Brian. Brian ran his hands
through his hair, aggravated.

“Leave us alone, dude, this isn’t your business,”
Brian said, slurring his words slightly. I realized Brian was probably drunker
than I’d realized.

“Anything that happens here is my business,” Cash
spat.

“Well, we’re leaving now, okay?” Brian said, still
not looking up at the burly stranger.

“You’re taking her home? I don’t know if I think
that’s such a good idea, asshole,” Cash said. “You gonna just bother her some
more?”

“No, sir, it’s fine, really, it’s nothing,” I said
quickly, not wanting any trouble. I looked up at him, trying to stop whatever
was going on between him and Brian.

“Shut up, Sara, I don’t need you standing up for
me!” Brian said, suddenly enraged. He stood up and faced Cash. “She’ll be fine.
She never has to do anything she doesn’t want to do. Isn’t that right, Sara? We
never, ever do anything you don’t feel like doing, huh?” He was staring at me
at this point, eyes shaking in anger.

“You better sit the fuck back down, little boy, and
talk right to your lady. She ain’t done nothing to you that I can see ‘cept not
let you get your little rocks off,” Cash said, taking a step forward.

“Get in the car, Sara,” Brian said, voice shaking.
I could tell he was as afraid as he was angry. I could also see the way he was
swaying, and realized he wasn’t just drunker than I’d thought; he was very
drunk.

“I don’t know, Brian, you shouldn’t drive right
now,” I said, only concerned with our safety at that point. I didn’t care about
Brian being mad at me, or the way he’d been treating me, I only wanted to know
that we were both going to get home safe.

“Shut up, Sara! Get in the damn car! I’ve had it
with your bullshit tonight, and I’ve had it with this jerk and this stupid bar.
I’m leaving, and you’re coming with me,” Brian barked, grabbing at my arm and
pulling me off the bench.

“Ow! Stop, that hurts!” I cried out. Everything
happened in a flash after that: all of a sudden, Brian was on the ground,
holding his head and yelling, and Cash was standing in front of me with his
arms on his hips.

“Get the fuck out of my bar,” he said through
gritted teeth. Brian scrambled to his feet, still holding his hand over one of
his eyes. When he pulled his hand away, I could see his eye was already
beginning to swell.

“You crazy fuck! You crazy fucking biker trash! You
can’t do this! I’ll sue the hell out of you! Sara, get in the damn car! We’re
going to the fucking cops and having this whole fucking place shut down!” I
started crying, from shock and nerves.

“You wanna kill yourself driving your drunk ass
home, go ahead, but you ain’t putting anyone else’s life in danger. And you
wanna go to the cops? And explain just how you got there after 6 drinks? Go
ahead. See what they got to say ‘bout that.” I realized, as Cash spoke, that
many of the men from the bar had filed out onto the porch and were standing
around, arms crossed, staring at Brian staggering around the parking lot. There
was a moment of silence as Brian swayed and stared at the crowd.

“Fuck it. Sara, you wanna fucking find your own way
home, fine. I’m not dealing with this shit over some goddam virgin prude,”
Brian said, digging his keys out of his pocket and heading to the car. He threw
the door open and stared at me around the group of men.

“I’m not going to the cops, you stupid bitch, you
know where I’m going? You wanna fucking know where I’m going? I’m going to get
some fucking ass. You know your little friend Monica? She’s always up for a
fuck, I’m going to get some pussy ‘cause YOU never give me ANY. I been fucking
all your friends, Sara, so how does that fucking feel, huh? You should just
given it up, you stupid bitch,” he yelled. I was shaking and sobbing at this
point, and the new realization only made it worse. I bawled like a baby.

“Fuck out of here, rich boy,” yelled one of the
men.

“We’ll do you worse than a shiner if you ever come
back,” yelled another.

“I’m gonna find you and kick you ass, and your
father’s ass, and your mother’s ass,” yelled another.

“Get fucked!” yelled another. Brian hit the top of
the car, slammed the door, and sped away from the parking lot, swerving all
across the road. Even despite everything that had happened, my first concern
was his safety. Worrying only made me cry harder. Suddenly, I felt a warm grip
on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Cash looking down at me, hand on my shoulder,
massaging it gently.

“Tux,” he said. One of the men approached. He was a
shorter, younger guy, kind of thin but still strong-looking. His long, dirty
blonde hair was tied up in a ponytail. Cash turned to look at him.

“Follow that little shit. Just make sure he doesn’t
end up in a ditch. We don’t need that kinda problem. Get his address too, just
in case. He’s just a mouth, he won’t do anything, but we should know where he’s
at anyway.”

“Sure, boss. I only had two beers anyway,” said the
younger man. He looked down at me with a sympathetic look on his face. “You
don’t deserve none of that. Kid’s a dick.” I sniffled and nodded. The younger
man walked away and I heard a bike rev up, then saw his taillights as he
disappeared down the road.

“Tux’s right, teacup. You don’t need no one treat
you like that. Come inside, we’ll get you something nice to drink and call you
a cab,” Cash said, still massaging my shoulder. Despite all my raging emotions,
it felt good to have his hand on me. It felt…safe. I stood up, adjusting my
clothes again, and followed Cash into the bar. The horde of men followed us,
then dispersed in the bar, returning to their original positions milling around
the bar and tables.

Cash walked me up to the bar, hand still on my
shoulder, and pulled out a stool. I lifted myself up and grabbed a napkin to
wipe my nose and cheeks. I started to feel very ashamed. After all, I had just
been caught being fondled by my boyfriend, who then tried to start a fight, got
beat up, and left by telling me how he’d been cheating on me. I don’t think I’d
ever been part of such an embarrassing scene in my life. Cash beckoned one of
the bartenders over.

“Give us a hot toddy, Gina,” he said. The bartender,
one of the blonde ones, gave me a long look, shaking her head.

“You got it, boss. Poor thing. Rough night, huh,
sweetie?” She said, reaching out a hand to pat my arm. She left to make the
drink and I was left alone with Cash.

“I’m s-s-s-sorry, I didn’t, I didn’t th-think
anything w-w-w-was wrong and th-then…” I tried to speak, but was still racked
with sobs.

“Oh, don’t apologize. That little shit was looking
for trouble. Him and his little friends been in here before, starting shit with
the ladies and trying to act cool. Nothing makes me happier than getting rid of
a little turd like that. Don’t you worry, you didn’t do anything wrong,
teacup,” Cash said, still massaging my shoulder. I wanted to lean into him and
cry into his shirt. I felt so ashamed, and hurt, by Brian, and this older,
rougher man was…I couldn’t even think it. I just saw there wiping my tears and
looking down at my lap. Cash called to one of the other bartenders.

“Call a cab here, huh?” Cash turned to me again.
“We’ll get you home safe. Don’t worry. What got you thinking you should come
out to a place like this, anyway?” He had that half-smile on his face.

“I-I-I just, B-B-Brian said it would be fun,” I
stammered, suddenly even more ashamed. This man was right. I had no business
being here. I was just a little girl, no idea what she was really doing. Cash
let go of my shoulder and patted me on the back.