“Yeah, yeah. I’m coming!” I yell, not letting my eyes go anywhere near Bash even though I can feel his stare on me.
Picking up a tray loaded with as many beers as it will hold, I head for the Originals’ booth. As I weave my way through the tables, I pass the table where the trust fund princesses sit with two bikers that aren’t their boyfriends. Girlfriends are not allowed at the Originals’ booth. Fuck, no female is allowed back there except for me and maybe two others.
“Look, Cassandra, it’s the sheep that lives next door to Matt,” the blonde with the mud brown roots comments as I pass. “I didn’t know she worked here.”
I would have kept on walking if that slut called me anything else. I’m pretty agreeable and take most name-calling with a grain of salt and a grin on my face. Sheep are club whores and I sure as fuck am not anyone’s sheep. I balance the tray with one hand and lift one of the open bottles. Turning around, I stop behind the princess that dared to call me a bitch.
The entire bar grows quiet as I turn the bottle upside down and let the beer flow over the blonde’s hair. “Call me a sheep again. See how bloody you leave here,” I dare her.
Princess shrieks as she and her friend stand. Two pairs of fake eyelashes glare at me as the blonde takes a threatening step toward me. No one else in the bar moves; they don’t even breathe, waiting to see what happens.
“You stupid skank!” Blonde princess screams at me. “How dare you …”
“Fuck, someone save the beers,” Uncle Jack urges.
Still balancing the full tray in one hand, I step forward closing the last of the space between me and this over-privileged slut. “You want to play on the wild side, sweetness? You think you can cross the tracks and look down that perfect new nose of yours and leave unscathed? Think Matt or Tanner will save your ass?” I inch closer and closer to the blonde.
Some of the anger seems to fade as the blonde realizes she’s in over her head, but her pride won’t let her back down from me. “What are you going to do … sheep?”
“Fuck …” someone, pr
obably one of my brothers, mutters behind me.
“Matt, you want to step in and save your girl before she’s being scraped off the floor?” Uncle Chaz’s voice is laced with amusement.
“Nah. Stupid cunt was boring me to tears anyway, Uncle Chaz.” Matt Reid sounds bored. “Besides, I don’t want that around Rave anyway.”
The conversation completely flies over my head, all my attention focused on keeping my tray of beers steady as I punch the princess. I feel the crunch of bone under my fist as my knuckles connected with that brand new nose. Blood gushes from her nostrils almost instantly, and the princess screams in pain.
“You fucking bitch!” her friend yells, rushing toward her to help her. “You stupid fucking bitch! Steph, are you okay?”
“Told you they were stupid …” Tanner, Matt’s brother, chuckles.
“Seriously, boys,” Uncle Jack urges, “save the beers.”
The tray was pulled from my hand, but I don’t even notice as I narrow my angry eyes on the other fake girl, who’s alternating between calling me a stupid skank-ass-bitch and consoling her friend. I let her get a few more “bitch” comments in before I grab her by the back of the head and throw her on the ground. I straddle her little waist as I punch her in the face once, twice. “I’m not a fucking sheep! You hear me? I. Am. Not. A. Fucking. SHEEP!”
Strong arms lift me into the air surprising me so much that I don’t even struggle. Then I feel the heat of the man’s chest through my shirt. I claw at the hand wrapped around my waist, fighting like a wild cat to free myself from Bash’s hold.
“Easy. Easy,” Bash soothes in his deep, rough voice. “You made your point.” The hand tightens around my waist, making my attempt to get free look feeble and pathetic. “You. Take these … lovely ladies … home,” he commands to the closest man to him, “unharmed.”
Ethan, the man next to Bash, and his friend pick up the two princesses, both sobbing. As soon as the door is closed behind them, the bar patrons turn back to whatever conversation they had been having before the catfight took place, acting like nothing happened.
The hand around my waist squeezes and lingers for another moment before I’m released. I don’t even turn to face Bash, still too angry, still too raw. I cradle my aching fist in my left hand and walk calmly toward the Originals’ booth.
Hawk had saved the beers and is now passing them out to the table. I stop beside my second oldest brother. “I’ve got this. Thanks.” He shrugs and takes his seat as I place a beer in front of Uncle George, putting the last one in front of Uncle Jack. “I’ll get a few more.” Noticing that Tanner and Matt still don’t have a beer, I shoot them a sweet smile. “You two have such great taste in women.”
Matt shrugs, his dark hair falling into his face before he pushes it back. “They were fun for a few days. The blonde one … Fuck, Tan what was her name again? Anyway, her daddy is good friends with the assistant district attorney. Thought it would be amusing to see what kind of shit hit the fan when Daddy Dearest found out that his baby girl was fucking Matt Reid …”
“Watch your mouth, Matt.” Bash tells his cousin in a cold voice as he takes his seat beside of Uncle Jack.
Matt rolls his blue eyes at the older man. “What? She just cussed this place down. It’s not like it’s something she hasn’t heard before, coz.”
Bash’s silver-blue eyes narrow on him. “I don’t care what she did. You don’t speak to her like that. Ever.”
It’s my turn to roll my eyes. “I’ll get the beers.”
“Raider can get the beers,” Bash says. “You sit down. You’ve been working your ass off.”