Page 19 of Lucifer's Hounds

I pull up next to Mindy’s red Jeep in front of the bar. Thank God. I didn’t want to be here alone with Darren for any amount of time.

"It's about time you made it!" Mindy cheers when I get out of the car.

"Holy shit. Is that a '66 Fastback?" Kyle asks, walking over to my car.

"Yes. Yes, it is." I beam with pride as he inspects Betty.

"How did you not notice it in the parking lot of the bar earlier?" Darren asks.

"I didn't pay any attention to it, but holy shit. She's beautiful.”

"Whoa, tiger. Calm down." Mindy pushes him, playfully.

Mindy seems to like Kyle and I can understand why she pushed so hard for this double date.

"What are you smiling about over there?" Darren asks, stepping closer to me.

"It's just nice to see someone who can appreciate my car the way I do," I chime.

We find four seats inside of Daisy’s at the bar. A skinny, petite blonde is behind the bar, dressing in blue jean shorts and a low cut tank top.

"What can I get for you?" she asks.

We all look over the menu and unanimously decide we aren’t very hungry and should just get an appetizer for the table. Before taking the menus, the blonde lingers, staring at Darren as he stares back until he puts his head down and breaks eye contact.There is definitely some recognition here, but neither of them say anything.

Dinner drags and my disinterest in Darren only grows with every minute I spend in his presence. I put on my best bartender face and pretend to be interested when he talks about March Madness, I pretend to be interested when he tells me all of the pussy he can pull, and the biggest lie of the night is when I pretend to be interested in him. Truth is, this guy is a drag and I can’t get my mind off of Cass.

"Where's your head tonight?" Mindy asks when we step outside and are getting ready to leave.

"What do you mean? It's here," I lie.

"No, you're lying, and you know it. Are you still stuck on that mystery biker?" she pries.

"No, I just wasn't enjoying my night. That guy was a total asshole and nothing about him was entertaining. His personality made him an extremely unattractive man."

"I get it, love. If I would have known that he was like that, I would not have set you up with him. For that, I'm sorry.” She has a light in her eyes that takes away my frustration. “But thank you so much. I got to hang out with Kyle and get to know him. He was great and we have plans to meet up again tomorrow night," Mindy says, giddy as ever. Mindy doesn’t ever smile like that.

The look in Mindy's eyes makes this terrible night worth it. "I'm happy for you, love.”

We hug and part ways. It’s late, or early and I need to sleep.

My eyes involuntarily roll when Darren walks up next to me.

“So, your place or mine?” he asks, wrapping his arm around my lower back. At first, I thought he was joking, but his firm grip on me and the fact that he’s trying to shove his tongue down my throat tells a different story.

I press both hands to the center of his chest and glare at him.

“Let. Go. Of me. Now.” I say, through gritted teeth.

“What? You mean to tell me I gotta respect you after I just took you out on a date?”

“No, you have to respect me because I fucking deserve it. Now get the fuck off of me,” I shove him as hard as I can. He trips over a parking block and falls flat on his ass. I slam the door of my car and leave, never looking back.

Once I make it home and calm down, I take out my tips from the night. I count the money and gasp. Holy shit. I made almost two hundred dollars. At this rate, I’ll have at least one month’s rent in a few days if it continues to go this way.

The thought of actually being able to keep my independence eases my mind as I crawl in bed. Smiling, I play the night Cass and I met in my mind. Our playful banter. Shooting pool. His infectious smile as he shot the eight ball. His smile always the last thing that plays through my head before sleep takes me.

Chapter Four

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