Impulse (Billionaire Secrets 5)

He sat back down at the table and continued to throw back drinks. I nursed my third beer, trying to pace myself and not overdo it. But Andy seemed to be the very definition. He was hollering across the bar for more beers, and slapping waitresses on their asses. Even though he had someone else at home. She was probably sitting there waiting for him, the poor thing. I wanted to punch Andy in his fucking face. What the hell was this guy doing anyway? Harassing the waitresses and pulling this shit was bad enough, but doing it with a girl at home was pathetic.

That was what this town did to people. It turned them into carcasses of their former youth. It sucked the life out of them and replaced it with a putrid, ill-fitted definition of sub-par.

“Oh, that ass bounced nicely,” Andy said. “Hey, sweet cheeks! I got a friend over here you’re gonna wanna talk to.”

“No thanks, I’m good,” I said.

“Oh come on. The pussy in here’s actually decent.”

“About that girlfriend?”

“It’s not like she gives it up. Not for want of me trying, though. Crazy bitch always has ‘no’ on the tip of her tongue and is quick to grab a baseball bat to make sure I heard. Believe that shit?”

My hand was gripping my beer bottle so hard I thought it was going to burst.

This was who Andy had turned into.

My fucking father.

He tried wrangling some girls over to our table, but I stood up. Andy watched me and tried to mimic my movements, but stumbled the second his feet hit the damn floor. He went toppling into another waitress before he tried grabbing her ass, and she slapped him right across the face.

The look in his eye made me shiver. I knew that look.

It was the look I got from my father before he pulled his fist back.

“I need to go get some sleep,” I said.

“I’ll look ya up soon,” Andy said.

“Don’t bother,” I said, underneath my breath.

I went up to the bar and apologized profusely for his behavior. Then I settled my tab as well as his. They needed to cut him off, but I knew a bar like this would never refuse service. So settling his tab to close it out was all I could do. I also knew Andy would stay good to his word of looking me up, and I didn’t like that at all. The last thing I wanted was somebody around that reminded me of the shitty memories I had of this town. Especially when it came to my father.

I tipped the waitress well, trying to hide it from everyone else before I made my way out into the street.

Anton’s house was walking distance from downtown. At least, it was walking distance for me. Four miles wasn’t anything I’d turn down. It was a leisurely stroll in my world. I was tired though, and a little tipsy. Ready to fall asleep and put all of this behind me. I leaned against fence posts for a minute when I needed to, then took a few deep breaths and kept plugging on. Andy’s face kept flashing through my mind, substituted intermittently with that of my father. I could hear his voice morphing into my dad’s. Seeking the solace of the home that had sheltered me in my youth, I started jogging, stumbling along the side of the road until I finally got to Anton’s.

Once inside, I headed straight for my room and almost immediately fell asleep.

Chapter 4

Michelle

“Andy, what the fuck? Are you k—get off me!”

“Come here, you stingy bitch.”

“No! What are—you’re drunk.”

I put my hand on his face to shove him away, but he grabbed it and twisted it around my back. He pinned me to the wall and licked up the nape of my neck with that disgusting tongue of his. I cringed, as tears welled in my eyes.

“I’m not taking no for an answer tonight.”

“Andy, fucking cut this shit—ow! You’re hurting me!”

“Stop it, Michelle.”

“No! You stop it!”