Motherfucker!
“Hey asshole!” I sneer, and they both snap their heads in my direction. “You wanna put your hands on someone, try me.”
“I thought I told you to piss off already? This has nothing to do with you.”
“I guess I don't listen very well.” I step closer dauntingly. “And it has everything to do with me.”
The douchebag lets go of Emily and stares me down. If he wants to go, we’ll go. Then without any warning he lunges at me. In a knee-jerk reaction, I body check him into the side of the truck. He hits hard, the sound of steel crunches from the force. It leaves a dent. The guy just shakes it off then comes at me again. This one is tougher than he looks.
With my heart hammering in my chest, I unload my fist, landing an uppercut square beneath his jaw. I hear his teeth clamp together on contact. Then he drops like a sack of potatoes.How fucking pathetic. One stinkin’ punch? I only get one stinkin’ punch? I guess my assessment was wrong. He isn’t as tough as he looks.
Loser.
I gaze down at the dimwit wearing a dark blue baseball cap and plaid shirt as he groans on the ground, holding his mouth. Adrenaline is coursing through me like an electrical current. I want to pick him up and hit him again, but I don't. I don't touch him. I know if Sean were here, he’d kick him while he was down. Sometimes I wish I had a more sinister side.
But I don’t.
Then Emily does something that takes me completely by surprise. She boots him right in the gut. Sheclearlyhas a sinister side. “You're a fucking asshole!” she spits. “I told you before, and I'll tell you again. Stay the hell away from me!”
I hear Alana gasp behind me as she rushes to Emily’s side. “What happened?”
“Todd happened." Emily sighs, hugging her. "Then Ryan happened." She looks over at me gratefully.
“No biggie.” I try to brush it off with my hand still tingling a little from the punch.
Emily walks past me with Alana on her arm."Biggie,"she asserts.
A few seconds later, Spiro, Kris, and two other bouncers find us. This is turning into a spectacle.
Kris and Adam pick the guy up off the ground and haul him away. No doubt into Spiro’s office to get a few good punches in for themselves.
“Are you okay?" Spiro asks Emily.
“Fine. You need to give this guy a raise.” Emily backhands me on the stomach. "I just need to get drunk."
“You sure that's a good idea?” Alana pulls at Emily's arm.
“It's a spectacular idea,” Emily avows, hauling Alana back toward the club.
“Well, your drinks are on the house,” Spiro informs her as we walk behind the girls.
Emily glances back and bats her eyelashes. Mac may not have a chance with her, but Spiro might.
“So, you're a bartender and a superhero?" Spiro cranes his head, blatantly checking out both their asses. If he wasn't my boss, and Alana was actually my girlfriend, I'd loosen my fist on him too.
“I think superhero is a little too strong of a word.”
“I think it's the perfect word," Emily announces still facing forward. Alana looks back at me with an unreadable expression on her face. And now a thousand worries are cluttering my mind. She's mad. I know she's mad; mad that I said she was spoken for and mad that I ordered her to stay behind. Maybe she's determined I've become too attached and is deciding at this very moment things need to end. The thought rips a hole right through my stomach.
Once we get back inside, Mac and I proceed to pour Emily shot after shot until she can barely stand, and Alana is glaring at all three of us.
I serve her a Coke with a lime, hoping to lighten her mood, but she hardly responds to my tiny gesture. I feel like she's slipping away.
Finally, when the lights flash for last call, Emily is far beyond inebriated. I swear it feels like I've lived three lifetimes in the last eight hours.
“Ryan, I'm going to take her home,” Alana huffs, draping one of Emily's arms over her shoulders. She wobbles slightly in her skyscraper high heels struggling to keep her balance. I’m unraveling from her aloofness. That, mixed with the most annoying remix of Usher’s “Oh My God” is making me want to bang my head against the wall.
“I'll help you.” I hop over the bar and scoop Emily up. She goes limp in my arms. At least she got what she wanted. She is monumentally drunk and is going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning.