Sucker Punched (Resilient Hearts Series Book One 1) (9 page)

“With a shitty attitude like that you’re lucky I didn’t call you a wanker.”

He’s smiles. “Fair enough.” I can’t help it; I smile back. It’s getting harder to stay cross with this infuriating man. It’s also not lost on me I was bordering on being terrified of him a moment ago, but I realize he’s not like Stephen at all. Ethan’s gruff, hot-headed, and sometimes too demanding, but all in all, he’s kind and caring. I’m falling for him no matter how much I try to resist it.

Kiaya’s downing a shot with Roman as we walk into the lounge. “Do you think that’s a good idea?” A worried looking Asher asks.

“Yep!” Kiaya slaps the kitchen counter and gestures to Roman. “Again!” Spotting me she shouts, “Caitlin, get your ass in here, woman. We’re doing shots.”

“Count me in,” I say, walking over and giving her a quick hug. “Are you doing ok?”

With a squeeze to my shoulder and an exaggerated wink, she says, “I will be.”

“Why do I feel this is a bad idea?” Ethan asks, leaning in close to me. His warm breath that skates along my neck sends shivers up my spine.

“Because it is,” says Asher, frowning. I don’t know what his problem is. We’re just trying to forget those guys at the bar, let our hair down, and have a bit of bloody fun. Party pooper.

“Why are you pussies moaning? There are two hot girls who want shots. I say give them shots, lots of shots!” says Roman, wiggling his eyebrows at us. Asher and Ethan moan, but Kiaya and I take a shot from Roman and both shout, “CHEERS.”

“I want to go to Vertex,” I slur after a few more drinks. “Let’s vote.”             

I know Roman and Kiaya will vote with me, so I have already won, and of course they do. This is much to the annoyance of Asher and Ethan, but I don’t care. We’re going to Vertex whether Ethan or Asher like it or not!

ELEVEN

Caitlin             

As we approach Vertex I see a long line that snakes around the corner. I try to join it, but Roman grasps my hand and pulls me into his side.

“Roman,” Ethan warns from behind when Roman wraps his arm around me.

“Shush, brother,” Roman playfully mocks as we approach the bouncer, who shakes all the guys’ hands. Kiaya, well on the road to inebriation, coos when she sees the heavily muscled bouncer covered in tattoos. She sidles up to him and bats her eyelashes while giggling.

“Hi, big boy,” she slurs. Yes, she called him ‘big boy.’

He laughs. “Well, hello there, Miss… What’s your name?”             

“For Christ’s sake, Kiaya,” reprimands Asher, pulling her tightly into his side.

“Got your hands full there, Asher? If you need help, you know where to find me.” Big Boy winks at Kiaya. The comment isn’t lost on her as she giggles and waves back at him.

“Don’t need your kind of help, Lucas.” Asher sounds pissed as he walks Kiaya through the door.

I can’t stop laughing when Asher pulls Kiaya through the doors even though she’s still blowing kisses toward Lucas. We follow behind into the club, which is a really classy place. Two bars run down each side; the color scheme’s black and white. A large dance floor is in the middle of the space, and black leather booths line it. The white tables in the booths are illuminated and look beautiful.

Vertex is filling up, but luckily there are still some empty tables. Asher takes Kiaya to a booth while Roman abruptly stops at a group of ladies who seem more than thrilled to have his attention. Ethan and I head to the bar. He seems unhappy about coming, and his body language is stiff.

“What are you going to drink?” he asks.

“I’m just going to have a Coke. I’ve had enough alcohol for tonight.”

He smiles down at me. “Just a Coke? You’re a cheap date, Caitlin.”

“I don’t remember agreeing to a date,” I abruptly say and regret it instantly.

His smile drops. “Caitlin, it’s just a saying for fuck’s sake. Although, I’d think that after tonight, not to mention our previous fuck session, you’d wouldn’t mind a comment like that. Also, don’t think I haven’t noticed you’ve been avoiding me.”

I choose to ignore the valid point he made that I’ve been avoiding him. “Just because we had sex once doesn’t mean you own me or can get me into bed whenever you want,” I whisper shout, knowing full well I’m being a bitch and he doesn’t deserve my anger.

“Do you really think that’s all this is about? You think I’d put in all this work just to get a piece of ass?” He laughs, but there’s no humor in it; he’s furious. “Someone sure thinks a lot of herself. Tell you what, Caitlin, I’m done trying. Have a nice night.” He leaves me standing there wondering how it got so out of control. I watch as he joins Roman and his groupies.

Well, that’s not how I saw the rest of the night going; I’m not sure what I envisioned, but that most certainly wasn’t it. Beth’s right, I sabotage everything. Wiping away a stray tear, I walk over to Asher and Kiaya’s booth. I didn’t think they knew each other previously, but looking at them now and noticing how Asher has been acting with her, I’m beginning to wonder if I’m missing something. Asher looks angry, while Kiaya looks uncomfortable. I decide to save her.

“Kiaya, I really feel like dancing; do you fancy joining me?” Anything to get my mind off Ethan.

“Yes!” She jumps up, relief etched across her face. She hurries from the booth, locking her arm in mine. “Thanks,” she says as we head towards the dance floor.

I laugh. “No worries. What’s the deal with you two, anyway?”

“With who? Me and Asher?” I nod. “Oh, we slept together once, and now it’s kind of awkward.” To say I’m surprised is an understatement.

“What?” I shout.

She sighs. “It was a long time ago before I met you. I just never thought about mentioning it.”

That’s fair enough; she doesn’t need to tell me about all her conquests. It’s not like Asher has ever come up in our conversations anyway.

“Fair enough. Let’s agree to not talk or even bloody think about those guys tonight. I’ve upset Ethan again. We’re done. His words.” I moan. “I really just really want to dance and have some fun now.”

“Wait, you’ve upset Ethan?” I shoot her a look, and she shuts her mouth, pretending to lock it and throw away the key.

“Ok.” I laugh. “Come on.” I pull her onto the busy dance floor. We dance until my feet ache, but I ignore the pain. I’m having fun and have lost all sense of time. What sucks is that I can’t help but glance over at Ethan every now and again. He’s sitting in a booth with Roman, Asher, and the girls they met at the bar. Roman has his arms draped around two of the girls who sit on either side of him. Then there’s Asher who is sitting next to Ethan. The same Ethan that currently has a blonde on his lap. Hold on a moment. It’s not just any blonde; it’s THE topless blonde. Bloody Nicola! So much for her not meaning anything to him. Every time I glance Ethan’s way, she’s there. That fact alone annoys the hell out of me.

We’ve been at the club all this time, but thanks to my fight with Ethan, I’ve not had anything to drink. Kiaya goes to the toilet; I go to the bar. Out of the two bars, I purposely pick the one furthest from Ethan. I don’t want to see him or his topless girlfriend right now. I was buzzed earlier, but now I’m sobering up, and that’s just fine with me.

The barman hands me my soft drink, and I place it beside me on the bar. My nose twitches when I catch a whiff of stale tobacco and sweat. His body closes in against mine, and I know exactly who it is without looking. I start to tremble as panic clenches, and my body reacts to this nasty predator. Clay whispers in my ear, “Did you miss me, darling?”

I’m frozen. I should head butt him or kick him in the nuts! My mind tells me I should, but my body won’t cooperate. I’m back to being weak and defenseless. I can’t have that.

“Piss off,” I manage to say much more confidently than I feel.

“That’s not a nice way to talk to me, especially when I bought you a drink.” He’s still behind me, and I haven’t looked at him yet.

“My friends are just over there.  Do I need to get them?” I point in the guys’ direction.

He grips the back of my neck tightly, and I feel as if I’m unable to breathe, let alone move. “Remember, you owe me for that drink and for that misunderstanding at the bar, slut. I promise. You will pay up.” Then he’s vanished into thin air, like bloody Houdini.

I stand there, I’m not sure for how long, but it’s probably just a few minutes. I talk to myself, trying to calm the rising fear and get my rapid breathing under control. I take sips of my drink, hoping it will calm me down. Finally, I gain the confidence to turn around and scan the crowd. Clay’s nowhere to be seen, so without even thinking about it, I run over to Ethan’s table. Topless blonde is still on his lap and is now nuzzling his neck. I nearly turn around, but the idea that Clay is in the club and has threatened me spurs me on.

“Ethan,” I say, but there’s no reaction. “Ethan!” I shout. Everyone looks at me, and things become awkward. “Can I talk to you, please?”

“I don’t think so. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of busy right now.” He runs his hand up Nicola’s bare thigh.

“Please,” I stammer.

“He said no. Can’t you take a hint?” says the slut, I mean Nicola. I’m looking at Ethan pleading for his help, but he turns his head away.

“Sorry to have bothered you.” I don’t need to be told twice. I turn and walk away, trying to keep my head held high.  I’m stopped by someone pulling at my wrist. I feel relief because I think Ethan has decided to talk to me after all.

I’m wrong, though, as it’s Roman who stands before me, not Ethan. “You ok, Caitlin? Don’t worry about them; it’s nothing. No need to be jealous.”

“I’m not jealous of them,” I say trying to convince him, and myself, too.

“Of course you’re not.” He laughs, then leaves to take his seat back between his two dates.

Shit, what do I do now? I think about maybe trying Ethan again then suddenly I remember Kiaya. What if Clay has found her? Oh no! I’m so alarmed I can’t even think straight. Kiaya has to be ok. I barrel through the packed dance floor, being pushed and shoved among sweaty bodies. I don’t see her. She’s not in the restroom or by the bar. At this point I should be panicking, but it’s not the case. I’m starting to feel confused, off balance, and woozy. I bang into the wall a couple of times, and the last thing I remember before everything goes dark is the smell of stale tobacco and sweat.

Ethan

I’ve been sitting in this booth for over an hour with Nicola sprawled across my lap. I know it’s not fair to be leading her on, as it will only make her even clingier than she is already. Caitlin got me so fucking pissed off, and as childish as it is for a man in his thirties to behave this way, I wanted to make her jealous. She’s been avoiding me the past few days, and I don’t understand why. When I visited her apartment last night, she was there. I heard movement behind her door.

All the signals are there to say she wants me, but she clams up every time. I wish I knew what is stopping her from opening up fully and keeps her sabotaging any progress we make. When she came over ten minutes ago wanting to talk, I hoped for a moment the jealousy thing started to work. After thinking about it now, she did seem to be more worried than jealous. I can’t seem to get the niggling feeling out of my head that something’s wrong. I decide to find her, much to Nicola’s disgust. Scanning the bar and dance area, I can’t see her anywhere. I do spot Kiaya though.

“Hey, have you seen Caitlin?”

“No, I went to the bathroom, and she went to get a drink. That was twenty minutes ago. I’m starting to get worried.”

“Why don’t you go back to the booth, and I’ll find her.” I promise. “But Kiaya, go there and stay there, I don’t want to be looking for you, too.”

“Ok,” she says. The way she walks shows she’s uncertain and worried. Going towards the bathrooms, I notice Lucas, the bouncer, coming towards me.

“Dude,” Lucas says excitedly. “The girl Roman came in with tonight was just seen being dragged out the fire door over there. It triggered the alarm, so I’m going find her now, but we’ve called the police, too.”

The girl who came in with Roman? It takes a few moments. SHIT! That was Caitlin. MY Caitlin. My heart seizes in my chest. “It’s Caitlin; I’ve been looking for her,” I say, panicked. “I’m coming with you.”

When we get to the door, it’s partially open, and I burst through it first. It leads to an alley behind Vertex that’s filled with rows of dumpsters. At first, I don’t see or hear anything.

“I don’t see them. Do you?” says Lucas, coming up behind me. He’s not good at being stealthy.

“Be quiet,” I snap, holding up my hand to demand silence. Suddenly, I hear it, the sound of cloth ripping. Signaling to Lucas by putting my finger to my lips, I quietly creep along the dumpsters, and Lucas follows suit. Once we get to the end of the row, I see Caitlin’s unmoving body lying on the dirty ground. Please, let her only be unconscious. Her top has been ripped down the front, exposing her bra, and Clay, fumbling with his zipper, stands over her body.

“This will teach you to sic your boyfriend on me, bitch!”

I see red.

In the army, I was trained to always be alert and stay calm in dangerous and difficult situations, but it seems tonight I have failed at both. I didn’t notice she was worried earlier. I just hoped she was jealous, and now I’m far from keeping it together.  I grab Clay in a choke hold, and he writhes and wriggles while struggling to get air. He claws at my arms in a desperate attempt to make me release my hold. It’s pathetic, and I’m not letting go until this fucker is dead.

“Ethan! Ethan, come on, man. Let him go. He’s out cold, and you’re going to kill him,” Lucas says, trying to pull me from Clay.

“That’s what he deserves,” I say through clenched teeth while I tighten my grip.

“That may be true, but Ethan, the police are on the way. Let them deal with this fuckwad. You need to make sure the girl’s ok.”

In my moment of desperation and insanity I became so enraged, and I forgot why I’m out here in the first place.

“Caitlin,” I whisper, dropping Clay to the pavement with a thud. I rush over to her. She has a red blemish on her cheek; he must have hit her. This makes me want to finish him off. Her clothes are torn, plus there are a few scratches on her perfect skin. She’s not conscious but is still breathing. Thank God. He either knocked her out cold or drugged her. Clay starts to awaken, and Lucas warns him not to move.

“What the fuck have you given her?” I shout.

He starts laughing and spits in my direction. I lunge forward, but Lucas grabs me just before my fist connects with Clay’s jaw.

“He’s not worth it.  Get her to the hospital, man. The police are coming, and I’ll make sure he stays put until they do. I’ll tell Roman what’s happened and where you have gone. Go on, now. GO!”

He’s right; I know he is. So I scoop her up and carry her to my truck at the front of the club. She better be okay. I don’t know what I’ll do if she’s not.