Emerald Eyes (13 page)

“He doesn’t have your phone number?”

“You know,” Madison admitted. “I never thought to give it to him. And, come to think about it, he never asked for it.”

Debra Jean shook, laughing lightly. “What’s the matter with you, girl?”

“I don’t know…Stupid comes to mind.”

“Now there you go again. You’re
not
stupid. You simply don’t always think.”

“Isn’t that about the same thing?”

Debra Jean smiled and finished off her beer and handed the empty to Alex as he walked up with Madison’s Margarita. “Refill please?”

“Sure, babe.”

Madison took her money out of her purse and went to hand it to Alex, but he refused it. “On the house this time.”

“You’re sure?”

“Debra Jean’s orders,” he said, smiling at Debra Jean.

“Damn right.”

“Okay. But let me pay for the next one.”

He looked at Debra Jean questioningly. “Your call, babe?”

“All right. If it makes you feel better.”

“It does.” She put her money back in her purse and snapped it shut.

Just then, the band started up. And Debra Jean said it was about time. They were half an hour late again.

Alex came back with her beer and walked off.

The band started off with a lively number, and a young man about Madison’s age, dressed in a red cowboy shirt and tight jeans, walked up and asked her to dance. With an encouraging smile from Debra Jean, Madison accepted. Before the dance was over, a taller man with blond hair but not as husky tapped on the guy’s shoulder and broke in.

Soon as the song was over another one began, and the guy in the cowboy shirt asked her for another dance. This one was slower. Madison had just sat down, but Debra Jean told her that she might as well.

Madison ended up dancing to four songs before finally saying she wanted to finish her drink and declined the next dance to both men.

Debra Jean sat there smiling amusedly. “Gosh…It must be nice to be young and pretty.”

Madison took a sip of her drink and cut her eyes around to her friend. “What are you talking about? You aren’t ugly by any means. And you’ve got that hunk Alex!”

“I know,” she said, smiling up at him proudly as he stepped up to them.

“You’d better appreciate me, woman,” he said, teasing. Then he asked Madison if she wanted a fresh drink, since that one had sat for a while. She told him it was still good, so he went on.

The song ended and another one began. Once more the cowboy approached.

“Here he comes again,” Debra Jean said, looking in the mirror where Madison was also looking.

“I see him.”

“Can I have this one?” he asked.

“Truthfully, I just want to sit for a bit and visit with my friend.”

He looked a little miffed, but said okay and walked away.

Before Madison and Debra Jean could get back to talking again, the tall blond walked up and also asked Madison to dance. She told him too that she just wanted to sit with her friend for a while. They needed to catch up on a few things.

He wasn’t real happy either, but went off and asked a brunette to dance, and she accepted.

“Good!” Madison said. “I really do just want to sit right now.”

Soon as the song was over, the band took a break and someone put money in the old fashioned Juke Box that Alex had paid a lot of money for. The next thing Madison knew, the cowboy was back, grabbing her arm, and practically pulling her off the stool.

“I don’t want to dance now!”

It was apparent he was feeling the effects of too many beers and wasn’t being as nice as before. “I think you’re just playing games with me. I think you really do want to dance.”

“Well you think wrong!”

Debra Jean looked down the bar. Alex was on the far end and didn’t have a clue what was going on. “Leave her alone!”

“Shut up, bitch!”

Madison yanked her arm away then and instinctually slapped his face. “You don’t talk to my friend that way!”

He didn’t hesitate; decked her, sent her flying over the bar. Alex definitely saw and ran to help Madison up, who had her hand on the back of her head. He yelled at the cowboy to get out of his establishment.

“Screw you!” the cowboy yelled back, and just as he did, the tall blond was there and in his face.

The fight was on. They exchanged several blows, and people were jumping up from their tables to get out of the way. The cowboy nailed the blond in the jaw and sent him flying into a table, knocking him out cold. An older man in his forties grabbed the cowboy from behind and they went at it.

“Dammit all to hell!” Alex said. The last thing he wanted was for his club to get a bad reputation. He turned Madison over to Debra Jean, who had come around from the backside of the bar. He got a handful of the cowboy’s collar from behind and yanked him off the older man. And though Alex was big and strong, the cowboy was quick and obviously a good fighter. He managed to swirl around, causing Alex to lose his grip and hit him in the midsection.

Alex fell back winded, but managed to straighten himself and was about to charge in again when the cowboy suddenly let out a yell. Someone had him from behind. Someone with a grip of iron had him by the neck and was pulling him away from Alex.

The cowboy did his best to pry the powerful arm away from his neck, but he couldn’t budge it. His face suddenly took on the look of fear and he whispered hoarsely that he couldn’t breathe.

“If I let you go, you promise to behave?”

“Yes!” he gasped desperately.

“And you’re going to apologize to Alex and everyone else here?”

“Yes…I can’t breathe!”

Devin’s eyes fell on Madison. She had a black eye. “Who’s responsible for the young lady’s injury?”

Alex eyeing Devin uneasily indicated with a nod towards the cowboy.

“Oh…shit…” the cowboy wheezed.

“You’re going to apologize to the lady too.”

“Yes! Yes! Please…I can’t breathe.”

Devin released him then and shoved him forward into a table. Then he spoke to Alex. “He’s all yours. See to it he apologizes to everyone…” he glanced over at Madison. “I’ll be with Madison.” He said, now speaking to the cowboy. “And I’ll know if you apologize to her or not.”

The man shook his head, eagerly wanting to do whatever it took to make Devin happy. He pulled out his wallet first and handed Alex a couple of hundred dollars for the damage, and then he went over to the blond he’d knocked out, but was now reviving and sitting at the bar with a redhead who was giving him sympathy.

Devin went immediately up to Madison. “Are you okay?”

She bobbed her head yes.

He reached out tentatively and gently touched the side of her eye with his fingertips. “Sorry I didn’t get here sooner, my sweet.”

Debra Jean spoke up, “That sonovabitch just hauled off and hit her with his fist! She was just standing up for me. He called me a bitch and she slapped him. That’s when he decked her…I couldn’t believe he did it.”

Though almost chillingly calm, Devin cut his eyes around to the cowboy.

Debra Jean and Madison shared glances.

Devin turned back to them. “He won’t do it again,” he evenly stated. There was a middle-aged gentleman sitting to the right of Madison, but the stool next to him was empty.

Devin politely asked the gentleman if he would mind moving over so he could sit by his girlfriend.

Debra Jean bugged her eyes in a smile at Madison, whose face took on a sudden glow.

The man looked up at Devin. He had witnessed Devin in action, and apparently wasn’t about to give him a hard time. “Sure,” he said. “No problem.” He smiled cordially and scooted over to the next stool.

“Thank you!” Devin sat down by Madison then and reached over and took her hand in his. “I am so sorry, my sweet. I wanted to see you tonight. However, I was detained. Or I would have been by earlier.” He kissed the back of her hand and fixed his eyes on hers.

“Oh?” she said, smiling happily now that he was there. And he had called her his girlfriend!

Just then the cowboy walked up, obviously really leery of Devin, but he smiled uneasily and told Madison he was really sorry. He’d never do that again. Not to any lady. He also apologized to Debra Jean.

Both accepted his apologies.

“Well, guess I’ll leave. Guess I won’t be back here for a while…Alex told me I have to wait six months before I’ll be welcome back.” He gave a nod and walked away.

Devin followed the man with his eyes until he was out the door.

Alex, pretty much having the place back in order, came up and asked Devin if he’d like a drink.

“I’ll take your cold draft beer.”

“Coming up.”

The band had stopped during all the ruckus, but started back up again with a ballad. Devin turned to Madison with a slow smile. “May I have this dance, pretty lady?”

“You two don’t mind me,” Debra Jean said. “I’m gonna sit right here and watch my hunk work his ass off.”

“I heard that!” Alex said, frowning teasingly.

Devin chuckled with mild amusement, and then, leading Madison gently by the arm, escorted her out to the dance floor. With smooth, deliberate movements, he put one arm around her waist, and then took her right hand, and gracefully began to glide her around the floor. “I
was
coming to see you tonight,” he suddenly informed her.

“What?” She realized then that he had known her thoughts.

“But you grew impatient and left.”

“This is awkward,” she admitted. “You’re not…mad at me are you?”

“Mad at you? No, sweetheart. Why should I be mad at you because you want to be with me?” He titled his head to the side, quizzically. “We…exchanged blood last night. Not something I do with everyone. Normally, I just take and don’t give.” He smiled alluringly as he spoke with hypnotic charm.

She realized she gulped.

His eyes sparkled with amusement.

Second by second, she found herself being drawn more and more in to him. “I’m glad you’re not mad at me. It would upset me, if I thought you were.”

He suddenly swung her around and dipped her almost to the floor before she realized what was happening.

Debra Jean saw in the mirror. “Wow! He can dance!”

Alex was right there wiping down the counter. “I saw it too.” Then he took on a strange expression.

“What?”

“There’s something about him, babe. I know he seems a perfect gentleman…”

“What, Alex?” she asked, turning and looking at them.

“I don’t know what it is. Honestly, though, he scares the
hell
outta me.”

She snapped her head around. “Seriously?”

“Yeah. Seriously. Look at him. He’s tall. About my height. Six-four. Slimmer than me, but he is a hell of a lot more powerful. And I’m a pretty strong guy.”

“I know you mentioned it before. So, you still feel the same?”

“Even more so than before. Just tell Madison to be careful. Okay?”

Her brow furrowed. “You really think she could be in danger?”

“I don’t know. Just have this nagging feeling in my gut that just won’t go away.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to her when I get a chance. But it will probably have to be when I go by on my route. He’s not usually around during the day. At least, I’ve never seen him out. Probably at work.”

“I heard he was filthy rich and mostly stays to himself. Madison obviously brought him out of the woodwork.”

“She must have. Before she moved here, I rarely saw him. Only once in a great while.”

“Exactly.”

“Of course, she is his neighbor,” Debra Jean noted. “Probably saw her outside and thought she was attractive. Brought him out of his hermitage.”

The way she said it made Alex chuckle. “Maybe so, babe.”

One of the customers yelled for service and Alex went to take care of him.

Six

Having killed and fed on the goats, the wolf tore through the woods seeking out more prey. He didn’t care what. Just felt like killing. Somewhere in the back of his mind, the face of a pretty blonde human sifted in and out of his thoughts. He couldn’t remember who she was. Just knew he hurt when he thought of her. Anger rose within him, and he ran faster, tearing through briar and bush. Then he got wind of a deer and took off after it. A few minutes later the terrified screams of the hapless animal ripped through the night.

Indian Joe sat up in his bed. The wolf was drawing too close for comfort. Chuck had never come this close to their dwellings before. Tomorrow morning, he’d go to him and have him move his tent further from their lodgings. As for tonight, he knew he would not rest anymore. He looked over in the corner of his room where his hunting rifle sat propped up against the wall. It was loaded with silver bullets. Had been for some time. The old Indian changed the loads every now and then so as not to have them ruined with moisture and fail to work at a possibly critical time. He hoped he’d never have to use it, but tonight, the possibility was becoming a hard reality.

He got out of bed, lit his pipe and sat in his chair by the window, keeping his eyes peeled for anything unusual. There he would stay for the rest of the night.

Devin got up from the stool by Madison and said he’d be right back and quickly disappeared into the Men’s room. Madison looked over at Debra Jean, who was observing her apprehensively.

“Something wrong?”

“No. You’re having a good time. It can wait until later.”

“Does it have to do with Devin?” Madison inquired, as she had the distinct feeling that it did.

“He seems really nice. Still, you don’t know him very well.”

“Didn’t know Chuck well either.”

“I simply hope you’re not making a mistake.”

“I thought you liked him?”

“I do. It’s just…” she stopped and sighed. “Just that it’s so soon after Chuck. I don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

Devin was coming back now.

“Are you sure that’s all?”

“Yeah…sure,” she replied, now smiling cordially at Devin who had arrived and was sitting down.

“Everything okay, ladies?”

“Couldn’t be better,” Debra Jean replied. “And you are one hell of a good dancer.”

“Why thank you,” he answered with a modest smile. He checked his watch. “It’s five minutes of midnight. Ready to go, my sweet?”