Even if she did, I’m not letting her leave with him. Not her. Not with a guy like him.
Instead, I shift my left foot forward while covering Meghan with my body. “You need to leave, asshole. The no-touching policy extends to when we’re closed too. So get in your car and take a fucking hike.”
Blondie pushes off the car, facing me fully, and I do a quick assessment. He’s big, at least six feet, but I’ve got a few inches on him, and though he looks muscled, it’s in a gym rat way. Not the look of someone who’s surprisingly strong because of real manual labor.
Most importantly, he doesn’t have that air of ‘I’ll fuck you up.’ He seems on the verge of drunk and a bit prissy, like he’s used to getting his way.
Well, not tonight. Instead, Blondie talks about Meghan like she’s not even here, and as she almost shivers behind me, I know that if a line needs to be crossed, I’m going to cross it. “We’re partying tonight. She told me to wait for her.”
“No,” I declare, bringing my right hand slightly up while tilting my hips to protect against a bitch move kick to the balls. “Leave now.”
I see the fire flash in Blondie’s eyes as he steps closer, and Meghan steps forward a bit too, leaning around me and setting me on edge because she’s too close to this jerk.
“I can’t,” she says sweetly, trying to de-escalate things before I put this asshole on the ground right here in the parking lot. “I’ve got early school tomorrow, remember? Sorry, baby.”
I tense just a little as I hear the code word all the girls have for trouble. They’ll call patrons just about anything—honey, daddy, sugar, sweetie—but the rule at Petals is that ‘baby’ is the safe word that’ll get security on a patron like white on rice.
I already knew he was full of shit, but Meghan just let me know for certain. I shift a little more, knowing that the beating is about to commence. I just have to make sure Meg’s safely out of the way before I start.
Blondie’s either too drunk, or probably too stupid, to notice. “C’mon, baby. Just a quickie. We don’t even have to leave. I’ve got some goodies in my car so we can party right here. Big Guy won’t mind, right? I can slip him a few bills.”
He reaches for Meghan’s wrist and it’s automatic from there. In a move that’s so fast that most people don’t even realize what’s happening, I deflect his hand, directing it down and back while grabbing his wrist in a sweeping motion as I twist it up behind his back. In less than half a second, he’s fully hammer locked, and in the next half second, he’s pivoted away from Meg and toward his own car.
I slam him face down on the hood, lifting his wrist while twisting his hand to maximize the controlling pressure on his shoulder, finding that edge where the pain is balancing on the razor’s edge right before his arm dislocates. “She said no, asshole.”
Blondie yells out in alarm, struggling from pure instinct. “Hey! Hey! Ow! Fuck, man.”
I press him into his hood some more, using my booted foot to kick his legs out from under him, holding him in place easily even as he struggles.
“Meghan?” I chance a quick glance behind me to see she’s frozen, her face a mask of shock. I raise my voice a bit, knowing she needs a bit of command. “Meghan.”
She shakes her head, her vision clearing as her eyes meet mine, wider than usual behind her frames. “Yeah . . . yeah?”
My voice is clipped, all business. Right now, I don’t have time for emotions. “Get his wallet out of his pocket. Read his license for me.”
She’s shaking but does as I order, coming close and with delicate fingers, reaching into Blondie’s back pocket and withdrawing a brown leather wallet.
“What the fuck, dude? You’re robbing me now? I just wanted to talk to her.”
He has another burst of energy and thrashes underneath me, making Meghan jump back. I grab his neck with my free hand, thumping him head first into his hood, not hard enough that he can’t drive out of here . . . yet. “Shut up, asshole. Meg?”
She opens the wallet, finding his license inside, and starts to read out loud. “Miles Jacobson, 3654 Sidewinder Trail. He lives here in East Robinsville.”
I nod, giving her a professional smile. “Good girl. Now put it back, carefully. And Miles, if you so much as fucking move, I’m going to break your arm.”
I emphasize my point with a little yank on his shoulder, encouraging him to be still while Meg puts his wallet back.
Waiting until Meghan’s stepped back and is safe, I yank him off the car to growl in his ear. “Miles Jacobson of 3654 Sidewinder Trail, you are banned from Petals from Heaven. If I ever see you even close to this block again, I’ll take special care of you. It won’t be over quickly, and you will not enjoy it, I promise you.”