Page 23 of Unexpected

“What the hell are you doing with Hazel’s phone?”

He sighed. “Hazel showed up at Murphy’s tonight. I was working in the back bar, so I didn’t see her until just now, and dude, she’s shit-faced. Apparently, she mentioned your name, and one of the bartenders came and grabbed me. I think she’s about ready to go, but there’s no way in hell she’s driving, and I’m not about to put her in an Uber by herself. Think you can come get her? I would bring her, but I’ve got another two hours left in my shift.” My mind could not keep up with the rate at which he was talking as I strained to hear him over the thumping music.

“Umm…yeah, yeah, I’ll be right there.”

“Okay, I’ll see you in a few,” he said before the line disconnected.

Luckily, I was too lazy to change my clothes earlier, so I simply patted Sadie on the head, grabbed my shit and headed out the door. As I walked to my truck parked in the driveway, I glanced over to Hazel’s house. Her jeep was gone, but Michael’s car was still there.

Fuck.I was going to kill the fuckface if something happened to her.I knew it was his fault, whatever had happened.

I sped to the bar, Murphy’s Law or Murphy’s, sometimes, and peeled into the parking lot going much faster than I should have been. But I didn’t want to waste any time going the speed limit.

I found the one empty space near the front and was throwing the door open as I turned off the engine.

I passed beneath the glowing neon sign positioned above the front door, “Expect the Unexpected,” and part of me felt nostalgic while the other half of me wanted to get out as soon as possible.

Inside, the bar was loud and full of people wearing costumes and colorful makeup. Murphy’s Law was a large, older home that the owner, Rhonda, had renovated almost fifteen years before. She’d knocked down several walls and removed the entire second floor to make room for high ceilings. The third floor was only used for storage, and walking into the familiar space, a shiver shifted down my spine.

To call my memories of the place bad was an understatement. Which was unfortunate since, in college and afterward, it was where our group of friends hung out every weekend. It took one night, one stupid fucking night to ruin all the good.

I navigated through the ocean of people and with each face I passed, I double-checked that I hadn’t missed Hazel among them. I waved to Rhonda, who was tucked in a corner dealing with an unruly customer, and she gave me a knowing look that warned me not to fuck around.

One girl grabbed my arm and pushed herself up against me. Her tits were pushed up to her chin in a tight, black corset, and once I noticed her pointy cat ears, I rolled my eyes, pushed her off and moved on.

With cat lady stomping off, I looked up to find Hazel at the other side of the bar laughing with Josh.

She was wearing a tight red top and had that silly halo headband on. She was smiling the biggest, brightest smile I had seen from her, but I could also tell she was fucking hammered.

I pushed the rest of the way through the crowd and plopped down in the barstool next to her.

“She’s all yours, man. I’ve gotta get back to the back bar,” Josh sighed and raised his eyebrows at me as he walked away.

“You’re drunk, Angel.”

“Hi, Luuuke,” the way she said my name was almost a purr, and fuck if I didn’t already love the way my name sounded coming out of her mouth.

“Ready to go?” I asked, but I was just being polite. I was getting her the hell out of this place as soon as possible.My skin was crawling with old memories.

“I—” She didn’t finish her sentence as “Bad Girlfriend”by Theory of a Deadman boomed over the speakers. “Ilovethis song!” she proclaimed and was off the barstool and heading for the dance floor before I even had a chance to comprehend what happened. I battled with what to do: grab her ass and, if necessary, carry her over my shoulder out of the bar or let her have one last dance. I decided on the latter and leaned back in my barstool.

Luckily, she stayed toward the perimeter of the mass of dancing people where I could see her. She found a group of girls all dressed like Harley Quinn and joined them. She whipped her curled, dark-brown hair back and forth as she danced and sang. She was completely free and without a care in the world for at least a moment.

As the chorus began, she moved her hips, rolling them to the beat. Her hands tangled in her hair as she glanced back and smiled at me watching her. Her hips circled and one of the women she was dancing with placed her hands there. The woman tried to move her hips in sync with Hazel but couldn’t quite match the motion.

She looked back at me again, biting her plump lower lip, and if it were any other time, I would be on her in a minute. Hazel looking at me like that made it feel like she was performing her own little seductive dance just for me.

She jumped with the beat and spun as the music crescendoed. As she danced, the smile on her face never faltered, and that was by far the best part. That was until a completely unaware Hazel was approached from behind by a guy that grabbed her waist and spun her to face him. She was small, and he easily whipped her around as she was enveloped in the music.

I didn’t think as I shot off the barstool and got to Hazel and the stupid guy before anything more could happen. I stuck my arm between them and pulled Hazel into me. She was tense and shaking when her back hit my stomach. I rubbed my hand down her arm, keeping the other wrapped around her stomach, as I whispered in her ear, “You’re okay. It’s me.”

She didn’t completely relax as I’d hoped, but her shoulders dropped a little and she acknowledged what I said with a quick nod. She was still drunk, and it was the best I was going to get from her. I slowly counted to ten in my head as the guy tried to protest. Rhonda would ban me forever if I fought in Murphy’s again. And Blakely, who was our friend and the manager, would seriously have my balls along with Josh. But when the guy had to tilt his head up to look me in the eye, he backed off quickly.I was still fuming, but it was easier to walk away when they weren’t also ready to fight.

I tucked Hazel into my side, grabbed her purse from the barstool and hurried us out the door. My mind immediately circled back to the last time I was in the bar—wasted and begging for someone like that douche to make a move. Quickly exiting the bar was what I should have done the first time, too.

Once we hit the cool fall air—several degrees cooler from the cold front—Hazel immediately began to shiver, and I pulled her closer.

I clicked the lock button on her keys and saw the lights flash on her jeep at the end of the row. I tucked her keys back into her purse and opened the passenger door of my truck. She managed to pull herself up and into the truck and plop herself in the seat. I handed her the seat belt and helped her guide it to her left. I leaned around her, and even with the alcohol on her breath and the sweat sticking to her skin, she still smelled sweet. I buckled her and moved out of her space. Her eyes fluttered closed, and she ran her hand down my arm before I was able to pull it away.

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