Sweet Ride (15 page)

“YOU COCKSUCKING
MOTHERFUCKER!” I yell again at the top of my lungs as I lunge
toward the booth being occupied by Jack and the ho-bag. She looks
sexy in her charcoal gray shift dress with capped sleeves and
knee-level diagonal hem. As if her legs weren’t long enough
already, she’s got on a pair of strappy Jimmy Choo stiletto sandals
that make her legs go on forever. She’s definitely everything I’m
not. This woman screams elegance and class, while I’m crude and
trashy. I really shouldn’t be surprised, but I kind of am.

Out of the corner of my
eye I see Amber jump out of my way and try to say something, but I
just shoot her a look that seems to explain everything. Jack looks up
and starts to smile. SMILE! That fucker’s here with another woman,
and he has the audacity to try and make friendly? I don’t fucking
think so.

“What the fuck do you
think you’re doing?” I spit out at Jack.

“Payton! What a
surprise! I’d like to introd—”

“Fuck you! Don’t
you dare try to introduce me to this floozy,” I yell.

“Payton, honest—”

There’s no way he can
explain his way out of this one.

“Listen here, tramp,”
I say, turning my attention to the whore. “No matter what he says,
I’m not his cousin, his aunt, or even his sister. I’m the girl he
fucked last night, and the girl that sucked his cock earlier today.
I’m his woman … Fuck that. I
WAS
his woman!”

“Listen, Payt—”
Jack tries to interrupt. I turn to him only to see him smirking.

“What do you find so
funny about this whole situation, jackass? You just got caught
red-handed. For some reason I’d think that would be rather
depressing. But funny? You certainly are a piece of work, aren’t
you? You had me fooled. Had me fooled good. I’m sure you have a
great excuse for this. All men do. Once I find the energy to calm the
fuck down, maybe I’ll let you explain it to me. So how about you
call me in a million years because I don’t think that’s going to
happen anytime soon. Assholes!” I scream out.

By now the whole place
is watching us. I always seem to perform better in front of an
audience.

“Babe, you’re going
to feel like a bitch once I do explain,” Jack manages to get out
before I cut him off again.

“We’ll see about
that. I hope you guys get the shits,” I sputter while heading for
the door.

I look back at Amber to
tell her we’re leaving, but she’s already grabbing our purses and
heading for me. I bet none of the diners at the restaurant thought
they’d be getting dinner and a show tonight!

Looking at the
restaurant entrance from my car, I half expect him to come running
out after me, trying to explain. To my disappointment, though, that
doesn’t happen. “Shit! That stupid fucking asshole! I can’t
believe I was so Goddamned gullible and fell for his bullshit again,”
I vent. I’ve got to give it to him, though, because he sure had me
convinced that I was what he wanted. I guess all the years of
pretending to be other people paid off. He’s a fucking pro. I can’t
tell when he’s lying or telling the truth. I tell Amber about
everything that went down with Jack and me.

Amber just sits there
in utter silence letting me release my anger and disappointment. My
head’s pressed against the steering wheel as I try to control my
breathing. Once I’ve calmed down a little she surprises me by
saying, “You want to hang around for a minute. I’ll keep the
hottie with the body busy, while you shank the bitch.” I burst out
laughing at her even as a tightening occurs in my chest.

I put the key in the
ignition, and before I turn it over, glance back at the restaurant
again, hoping Jack will come for me. He still doesn’t. Starting the
car, I put it in drive, pull out of the parking lot, and head to the
nearest grocery store. My mind’s racing as we shop, and I’m
finding it hard to focus on anything. Amber picks out everything,
while I just push the cart around the store. After picking up enough
groceries to last a week, we make our way to the check out.

A shrilling ring comes
from my purse. I reach in and grab my cell. Looking at the display, I
see an unknown number come up. Sighing loudly, because I know it’s
going to be
him
. “Jack,” I answer, trying to keep my
emotions in check as the tightness spreads across my chest again.

“Payton,” he clips
out, sounding more than a little pissed off.
Really, he’s angry
with me? Fuck him!
He starts talking again, but I’m so
unbelievably confused and mad right now I don’t give him the chance
to finish before ending the call. It starts ringing again
immediately, and knowing that it’s Jack, I silence the ringer.

After ten minutes of
waiting in line we finally get our groceries checked out. I look at
the time and tell Amber we’ve got to haul ass because I totally
forgot that I have a short shift tonight. I’m not late, but if we
don’t get a move on I’m going to be. We hustle toward the car,
and in seconds, have the bags stored in the trunk and are pulling out
of the parking lot, heading home.

Once we get home, Amber
offers to put away everything while I get ready for work. I take a
quick shower, style my hair, apply make-up, and throw on a tight
black tank along with my favorite pair of black short shorts. I pick
out my black peep toe heels to wear with my outfit. As I walk out the
front door, I shout out, “See ya” to Amber, and shut it behind
me.

I’m working the main
bar tonight and, like usual, it’s crazy busy. The music’s
booming, people are buzzing, alcohol’s flowing, and I love every
minute of it. A man approaches the bar, taking a seat on one of the
empty bar stools. His wavy, dark brown hair’s worn a bit longer,
falling down his forehead and across his eyes. He makes it so very
obvious, as his gaze slowly wanders over my body and visually
undresses me. I strut over toward him, rest my elbows on the edge of
the bar, and lean forward. Speaking in my seductive purr I ask, “Hey
gorgeous, what can I get you?”

“Only thing I want
tonight is you,” he says. I freeze for a second because a certain
sandy-haired cop said almost the very same thing a few weeks ago.
Stop thinking about him, Payton!
I mentally scold myself.

“Maybe that can be
arranged, but it’ll have to wait until I get off tonight,” I
answer. To my disappointment, I guess I’m reverting back to my old
ways. His eyes twinkle with anticipation.

“You don’t remember
me, do you?” he asks, a sly grin spreading on his face.
Oh shit!
Do I already know this guy?

“Can’t say that I
do,” I admit.

“We were wasted the
night we met. You came back to my apartment, we fucked, and the next
morning when I was showering, you disappeared on me. Does that ring
any bells?”

Unfortunately for me,
bells are ringing like crazy. What’s his name again? Larry, Lional,
Lucas?

“My name’s Liam,”
he answers my unspoken question.
Bingo, it’s Liam.

“Sorry, Liam, no
offense, but I don’t remember a lot of things from that night,” I
tell him.

“Too bad for you
‘cause I remember
everything
about that night. Actually, I’m
so fuckin’ hard right now thinking about it, think you’d come to
the bathroom and give me a blowjob? Relieve some of this pressure,”
he says.

I’m about to tell
Liam that he can go to the bathroom and suck his own dick, but I
don’t get the chance because I hear a chilling voice to the side of
us say, “If you value your dick and want to use it again. I suggest
you back the fuck off. She’s mine!” Liam doesn’t utter another
word—just nods toward Jack, backs up from the bar, and turns to
walk away without looking back at me. Clearly, Jack’s the alpha
male and won the challenge.
Fuck that!
I’m not going to be
so easy.

“What do you want?”
I hiss at him.

“I want a chance to
fucking explain myself!” he bellows.

“It’s pretty
fucking self-explanatory!” I shout back at him. I still have a job
to do, so I turn my back on him and start walking toward the other
end of the bar where I see a group of women waiting. I don’t make
it very far when I feel a hand firmly grip my elbow and tug me from
behind the bar.

“What the fuck? In
case you haven’t noticed, I’ve got a job to do, Jack.”

“Don’t give a fuck.
I’m not leaving until you hear me out.” The hand on my elbow
grips harder and his other hand snakes around my waist. My traitorous
body reacts to his rough touch as I feel my nipples tighten and the
moisture pool between my thighs.
Don’t go there, Payton.
Remember his supermodel girlfriend.
He leads me down the corridor
that’s designated for employees only and houses a couple of small
offices and staffrooms.

When we get to the
first closed door, his hand leaves my waist as he balls it up and
pounds on the door. No one answers, and he turns the knob to find
it’s unlocked. Once he has the door open, he ushers me through and
finally let’s my arm go long enough to flick the lights on, close
the door, and lock it. Then he turns around and glares at me.
Oh
Fuck! He looks sexy as hell when he’s pissed! I’m so screwed!
Stop it, Payton. Stay strong, and whatever you do, don’t let him
convince you that he’s not the lying, cheating bastard that he
actually is.

He starts stalking
toward me in predator mode.

“Step back,” I warn
him, but he keeps advancing on me, smiling. There’s that
motherfucking smile again!

“I’m not joking,
Jack. Step the fuck back!”

“Not until you let me
explain.”

“You can explain
without coming near me. If you don’t stop, you’re not going to
like what happens.” He doesn’t stop. Well, he can’t say I
didn’t warn him.

My fist instinctively
coils and strikes out, but I forgot about his crazy, responsive ninja
reflexes, and in seconds, he’s got my fist in his hand and twists
my arm behind my back. His other arm wraps around my waist pulling my
back toward his rock hard chest. His warm breath blows down my neck
as he softly speaks against my ear, “Payton, what you saw isn’t
what it actually looked like.”

“I’m pretty sure
it’s exactly what it looked like.”

“I’m not fucking
her.”

“I’ve seen you with
her twice now, and I can tell by the way you look at her that she’s
not someone you’re
just
fucking. She means something to
you.”

“Yes, she does,” he
mutters. The pain spears through my heart, and the only thing that
could hurt more would be if he literally reached in and ripped it out
of my chest.

“Well, we’re done
here,” I say, bringing my heel down on his toes. He lets out a loud
“Fuck!” as I struggle, trying to get out of his vise-like hold,
but he doesn’t loosen his grip. Jack turns me and slams my body
against the door, caging me in with his hands on either side of my
head. My body tenses in a state of panic as his hard, muscled body
presses me against the door, giving me no escape route.

“We’re so far from
fucking done!” he roars, his chest and hips pushing against mine.
This does nothing to calm the panic spreading through my whole body.

“Jack. We. Are.
Done,” I repeat with a tremble in my voice. I try to push him away,
but he doesn’t move an inch.

“We’re not, Payton.
I don’t know when you saw me with her before, and I don’t give a
fuck. The girl you saw me with tonight means something to me, but not
in the way your screwed up head thinks. She’s my fucking sister!”

“Your sister? You
honestly expect me to believe that. You might see me as some dumb
blonde that’s only good for a fuck, but I’m not stupid, Jack.”

“I don’t know how
you obtained your skewed way of thought, but I think you’re far
from stupid. Yeah, I love fucking you, but that’s not the only
thing I love about you. You are beyond sexy and gorgeous. You’re
un-fucking-believably beautiful. I love how you tell people what you
think, no matter if it’s the right thing to say or not. I love how
you give to the people you care about. And I absolutely fucking love
your sense of humor. You’re funny as hell and crack me up. There
are so many things about you that I love, but it’d take me an
eternity to list them all. I want
you
and only you, Payton.
I’m telling you right now—that girl is my sister and nothing
more.” He speaks in a low, soothing tone easing the panic coiled in
my stomach. I’m safe with Jack; he won’t hurt me. Well, at least
physically. Emotionally he has the ability to completely annihilate
me.

And correct me if I’m
wrong, but he used the word ‘love’ a lot in that statement. Don’t
get carried away, Payton. He’s not declaring his undying love for
you. He just loves things about you. I’m going to give him the
benefit of the doubt, but he’s got to prove to me that the chick he
was with is his sister.

“I thought you got
called to work?”

“I did, but a guy’s
got to eat. My sister dropped by the station and offered to take me
out for dinner.”

“Your ‘sister,’
right,” I say using my fingers to do air quotes.

“Think I already told
you that,” he says.

“Prove it,” I
challenge.

“What?” He quirks
an eyebrow.

“Prove to me that
she’s your sister.”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Payton, you in
there?” Shit, it’s Juan.

“Um, yeah,” I
answer.

“What the fuck are
you doing back here? I have customers waiting at an empty bar. Get
your sweet ass back to work!” he yells. Jack lets out a growl at
the ‘sweet ass’ comment.

“I should get back
there,” I squeak, suddenly nervous.

“You coming to my
place, or am I at yours tonight?” he asks.

“Neither. I still
don’t trust you. Just give me a bit of time, okay?” I respond,
avoiding eye contact.

“Bella,” he
murmurs, gently guiding my chin up with his fingers. “Look at me,”
he gently commands, his thumb stroking the side of my face. My eyes
slowly look up and lock onto his intense green eyes.