Page 7 of King
“I don’t want a drink, Amelia.”
I want a room so I can take a shower and go to sleep. Maybe when I wake up all this will be a dream. Dream isn’t the right word for this crazy situation I find myself in. Maybe when I wake up all this will be just a nightmare I can shake off and move on with my life.
We slide onto the barstools. They aren’t the most comfortable. The bases are worn, the yellow stuffing showing through the black synthetic leather. And the metal backs are digging into my skin, but hey, I’m alive. At least for now, I’m alive. A little discomfort is okay. Hopefully, the Feds will hurry up and do what the hell they have to do, then we won’t be here too long. And I can get back to my life in Vegas.
A young guy with dirty blonde hair, a shy smile that makes him look even younger than he probably is with the prettiest crystal blue eyes I’ve ever seen on anyone, stands behind the bar. His black leather vest hides most of his frame, but from what I can see he has a swimmer’s build. Tall and lean. While I know I’ve never seen him before he looks very familiar.
“Do all these guys look like freaking models,” I whisper, leaning over to Amelia who hasn’t taken her eyes off the bartender since we sat down.
“Pretty much. He looks like Alexander Daniels, don’t you think?”
“The actor?”
She nods. Maybe that’s why he looks so familiar.
With his hand, he swipes the hair flopping in his face away from his eyes then plants his forearms on the wooden bar in front of us with that beautiful smile on full display.
“Haven’t seen you two around here before.”
His voice is deeper than I expect. It adds a few years to his appearance.
“Because we aren’t from around here,” Amelia Grace says. “Has anyone ever told you that you look like the actor, Alexander Daniels?”
He smiles. “Well, I’m David.,” he says ignoring her last question. “The brothers call me Switchfoot. What can I get you, beautiful ladies?”
“Hot and respectful,” Amelia Grace says with a flirtatious smile across her face. “I like it, Prospect.”
A red flush stains his cheeks and Amelia bats her eyes, while I roll mine. While she’s the biggest flirt I’ve ever met and can have this man or any man eating out of the palm of her hand, she never takes it past innocent flirting. She’s never said why but I believe she’s still hung up on her ex-fiancé, who left her after she lost their baby. She doesn’t talk about that time often, but I believe staying single has been a way of punishing herself for the past.
“We’ll have two beers, baby,” she says. “In the bottle.”
“Make that a bottle of water for me,” I interject.
There’s no way in hell I’m drinking anything other than water around all these men. I tamed my wild ass when Matteo and I became exclusive, but I’m a free woman now and with all these gorgeous bikers surrounding us, that does not bode well for me and my self-imposed celibacy. I need to be able to reason and talk myself out of spreading my legs for one of them. Maybe two. And being drunk will not allow me to make that decision.
David sits a bottle of water in front of me, then pops the cap on Amelia’s bottle of beer, and places it in front of her.
“Thank you,” I say.
“No problem, gorgeous.”
He winks and we watch him until he disappears into a room behind the bar.
“Now I’d like to ride that,” Amelia Grace says, her eyes remaining on where the man disappeared.
“You need to.” I nudge her, getting her attention. “I’m sure he’d be up for it. Probably any one of these guys would.”
“Cheers, bitch!” she shouts over the music, lifting her bottle towards me, ignoring my comment.
I laugh and touch my water with her bottle of beer, then we both take deep, long sips. There’s no use dwelling on Amelia Grace and her love life. She’ll talk a big game, but she’s not going to make a move. Even though I wish she would. She’s a wonderful person, and loyal to a fault. Anybody would be lucky to have her in their life just like me.
“How long do you think we’ll be here?” I ask, before taking another sip of water.
I have a novel to finish, and I do my best stories when at home in my bed. Now that I’m on the run from Matteo, home’s no longer an option. I’ll have to start over completely, again. Hopefully, I won’t have to leave Vegas. I happen to love the life I made there.
She sighs. “My asshole brother wouldn’t tell me.” She takes a swig of beer, then twists around on the stool and looks out at the crowd along with me. “I know it’ll be at least until Alonzo’s caught.”
I groan. “Why the hell did I get mixed up with Matteo?”
