Fiction: A Stranger In A Bar part 6
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Title: A Stranger In A Bar
Chapter 6
//\\
He stood tall in the doorway. It felt like the air was being sucked out of the room as he looked at her. His gray eyes never leaving hers. She licked her lips unconsciously. The pounding of her heart increased until she thought she was going to have a heart attack. Shayne moved toward her. His body looked strong and sexy in a pair of dirty, saw-dust covered blue jeans that hugged his long legs and hips, an off-white sweater, a black leather jacket and a knit cap finished off Shayne’s look. Ashlee was conscious of the heat filling her body the closer he got to Daisy and hers table.
It took a full minute for her to register that he wasn’t alone. She shook her head trying to break the trance she found herself in. Looking back up at Shayne, she saw him smirking at her. Her reaction to him obviously wasn’t lost on him at all. Ashlee shifted in her seat. Annoyed with herself and a little embarrassed that he knew she was staring at him. Dylan kissed Daisy cheek and the men pulled up chairs to sit at their table.
Shayne pulled his chair uncomfortably close to Ashlee. She felt her insides start to shake as his arm brushed hers when he moved his seat closer to the table. Her hand curled tightly around her water and she took a deep sip from the straw. Her throat felt like sand paper. Belatedly, she realized the three were having a conversation. Words and sentences were being said all around her, but her brain was buzzing too much with want and embarrassment to take anything in.
She needed to get away from him for a second so that she could get her wits back. Placing her drink back on the table she looked at Daisy and Dylan across from her. She intentionally avoided Shayne or she tried to anyway. His presence was hard to ignore. Heat radiated off of him in giant waves. Ashlee closed her eyes. This was ridiculous. They’ve been close before, why was she reacting to him like this now? She bit her lip.
Some of the thoughts that consumed her mind the past couple days have been about the two of them making love. Right before she went to sleep, she wondered what it would be like. Would he be as gentle and slow as Coop was? Would he take his time, gradually building the need inside of her, like Coop always had or would he be a little rough? Would Shayne burn her alive with fire until there was nothing left but ashes? She swallowed hard. She could picture him both ways. In the hotel room, when he flipped her over, pressing her into the bed, Ashlee could see him being rough. His hands tightening around her wrists holding her in place while he drove her crazy… oh yeah, she could picture that just fine.
Ashlee took another sip of her ice cold water. She really shouldn’t be thinking about this while he was sitting so close and in Coop’s family’s restaurant. That thought pulled her out of the fog. Shame filled her, overtaking the want easily. Blood drained from her face. “Excuse me,” she tossed her napkin on her plate, the others nodded to her, except for Shayne. She felt his eyes on her as she got up and walked toward the ladies room.
She pushed the restroom door open and stood at the sink. The mirror on the wall reflected her image back. She felt sick and dirty. For some reason thinking about Shayne right now while sitting in Company made her feel like she was cheating on Coop. Ashlee knew that was ludicrous, but she couldn’t stop the feeling from invading her mind. A part of her had always thought that this place was sacred. It was part of the reason that she never brought a date to Company.
This is where she really fell in love with Coop. This is where she found, not only a friend, but a soul mate. She placed her hands on either side of the sink and dropped her head, inhaling deeply. Company might be just a place to everyone else, including Coop, but to her… to her it’s where she found a home and a family. Ashlee looked up and noticed tears start to fall from her eyes. ‘God, not again,’ she wiped them roughly from her face. ‘When will I stop crying over something that I brought on myself? Ashlee, you fool, you broke up with Coop. You did that. Everything that has happened and is happening is because of you.’
Her pep talk only made the tears slide down her cheeks faster. She placed her back against the wall, sliding down the tile to the floor. She pulled her legs up to her chest and let the tears come. There was no stopping them once they started and really she didn’t feel like fighting a losing battle. Ashlee didn’t know how long she stayed on the floor, but her butt felt numb and cold, her eyes felt dry and her stomach was tied in knots when a knock came at the door.
“Ashlee,” Daisy called. “Are you okay? Can I come in?”
Two questions and Ashlee wanted to say no to both. She pushed her body from the floor and opened the door. Daisy looked at her then walked into the room. Her friend hopped on the counter next to the sink and waited, Ashlee just wasn’t sure for what. She avoided Daisy’s eyes, suddenly wishing for the self-centered friend back. This woman sitting before her actually wanted Ashlee to tell her what was going on inside of her. A bitter taste filled her throat; she wished she knew what was going on too.
“Okay,” Daisy swung her legs back and forth like a child would. “You haven’t said a single word, well except for excuse me, since Shayne and my dad got here. Now I know that my dad doesn’t cause you to go non-verbal, so I’m leaning toward Shayne. Which would make sense considering you were asking about him before he walked in the door,” Daisy’s eyes turned on her and her head tilted. “Are you going to deny that?”
“Shayne isn’t the reason I’m in the bathroom right now,” Ashlee dodged the questions that her friend had asked and went straight for the one that was left unasked. “I just felt sick and needed to get away from the table.”
Daisy nodded, “I know. You were fine and then you went as white as your scarf.” Ashlee played with the ends of her scarf. “If I was to place a bet,” she hopped from the counter. “I would say that Coop caused that extreme reaction. The question is why?” Ashlee had no intention of answering that question and she was sure Daisy knew that. The answer was too pathetic. “Shayne’s barely touched his food since you left the table.”
“Why are you telling me that,” Ashlee asked with narrowed eyes. Goodness was she that obvious in her attraction to him? Daisy smirked. Ashlee narrowed her eyes further. Her smirk reminded her of Shayne’s. “What?”
“You have a thing for my uncles,” Daisy joked. Ashlee rolled her eyes. Yeah, she was obvious. “I mean I can understand. I come from a pool of good looking people. Bill, Dylan, Coop…” she grinned, “Shayne. You really want to be Auntie Ashlee, don’t you?”
Ashlee laughed, that old conversation between them coming back to her. It felt so long ago that she thought Coop could never like her. It was hard to believe it was only just over a year ago. So much has changed since then. “That’s only because,” she said, bringing her mind back to the present. “You are related to everyone. I can’t turn in this town without running into another one of your uncles.”
Daisy shrugged. “At least we’re a sexy bunch.” Ashlee laughed, the remaining sadness leaving her completely. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” She nodded and followed her best friend out of the bathroom.
Shayne was still sitting at their table when they walked back to the dining room. Ashlee took a deep breath. He stood up as she got closer. “Are you feeling okay?”
A blush crawled up her neck and she nodded. “Yeah,” she whispered. “I’m better now.” He touched her cheek with the back of his fingers. This was the gentle lover she knew he could be. The moment turned into an eternity while she stared into his eyes. The front door opened and she turned to see who was coming in. Shayne’s hand dropped from her cheek as she moved. The spell shattered.
“I’ll get some burgers and we’ll leave,” Coop told Beth. Her hand was in his, her body at his side. Ashlee swallowed hard, feeling the sickness start building again. She felt cold. Coop looked up and saw her. She couldn’t stop staring at their hands. Coop dropped Beth’s hand. From somewhere behind her, she felt a warm arm wrap around her.
“I need to get out of here,” she said to whoever was behind her.
//\\
“Okay,” Shayne whispered to her. He could see a tide filled her eyes. Her body felt incredibly tense next to his. He pressed his hand into her back, helping her move. She felt as stiff as the board he hammered this morning and he could tell her heart was breaking. She averted her eyes from Coop and Beth when she passed them. Outside the wind was blowing harsh cold air, but he didn’t think she even noticed. She walked away from him and Ashlee leaned against the wall of the building, trying to get the shaking under control. Her purse strap fell from her shoulder; she pushed it back up absentmindedly. “So that’s how he is trying to get over you.”
“He already is over me,” her voice was thick, pain laced her words. “He’s been with her in secret for months, but now…” she shrugged then wrapped her arms around her. “It isn’t a secret anymore. He isn’t even bothered by Alan breathing down his neck.”
Shayne turned her so that she was facing him. “I don’t think he is over you at all,” he caressed her soft cheek. “Beth isn’t woman enough to make him forget about you for long.” Tears welled up in her eyes. Her blue orbs begging him for that to be true, she desperately wanted to believe him. “I’m sorry that I pushed you the other day. I didn’t realize the situation.”
“It’s my fault,” she looked over his shoulder and through the window of Company. “I broke up with him, because…” she laughed through the misery. “I don’t even know why anymore. Beth is just picking up the pieces I broke.”
Shayne wanted to break this unhappiness in her. He hated how lost she looked. He wanted his firecracker back. “Maybe you broke up with him because you can’t stay out of jail,” he said innocently. Ashlee’s eyes shot back to his. The shock of his words made her eyes widen. The sadness started to fade away, her shoulders started to relax under his touch. “I mean juvie, prison, election fraud,” he let out a whistle. “You are a bad girl.”
She grinned then started laughing. The sound made his stomach clench in a pleasant way. He loved how her whole face lit up when she laughed. It was soothing to his soul and he decided right then and there he was going to make her laugh more. “I see you’ve been researching me,” Ashlee shook her head. “I knew it wouldn’t take you long to find stuff out about me. I’m becoming infamous in this town.”
“I think your past makes you more interesting,” he stepped closer to her, dropping his head a fraction of an inch. Their noses were almost touching. “Pure angels are great, but an angel with an edge is very sexy.” Her cheeks turned bright red and she bit her bottom lip hard. He watched her teeth nearly break the skin.
Ashlee took his hand and pulled him away from Company. “Come with me,” she turned pulling him behind her. He followed her, completely confused. She walked to her car and threw him the keys. “Drive where I tell you to go.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Shayne said with a laugh. She directed him through town. He saw the buildings change from the business district to more residential. Ashlee pointed to an apartment building in the distance.
“Turn in here,” Ashlee’s voice shook slightly.
Shayne looked at her out of the corner of his eye. A thought curled in his mind, gaining in strength. He pulled into the parking spot Ashlee told him to and pushed the gear into park. “Okay,” he turned toward her. “What are we doing here?”
“You’ll think I’m crazy,” she sighed.
“Well,” he grinned at her when Ashlee turned her head toward him. “I’m already coming to that conclusion, so…” She punched his shoulder and he laughed. “Seriously though, what is going on in that head of yours, Miss Wolfe? What do you think is so crazy?”
She bit her lip and then turned to face him head on. “I wanted to kiss you again,” she held up her hand when he opened his mouth to say something. “Please wait until I finish.” Ashlee took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Company is the place I really got to know Coop in. Our first real connection was formed there and for some stupid reason, I can’t bring myself to kiss another guy there right now.” She picked at the material of her black pants. “It feels like I’m treading on sacred ground. I know that Coop doesn’t feel that way, but…” she shrugged. “You can make fun of me now.”
He smiled softly at her, reaching over to cup her cheek. He forced her eyes back to his. “You are crazy,” he pressed a finger to her frowning lips. “But I understand. You aren’t ready to put that part of your past completely behind you. I’m not going to make fun of you for that.”
Ashlee smiled and leaned over to kiss him. He met her half way. He took his gloves off so that he could feel her hair slide through his fingers. She held his cheeks firmly in her hands, taking control of the kiss. He groaned deep in his throat and took control back. He pressed one of his hands against her back, pulling her further across the middle of the car. His lungs started to burn from lack of air, but he didn’t want to break the kiss. Shayne wanted to stay locked in her arms where nothing felt completely wrong.
He pulled back and kissed her forehead, “We are going to die of hypothermia.” She started laughing and pulled back further.
“We could go up to my room,” she bit her lip. “I know that I’m not ready for much right now, but,” she traced the line of his neck. “Shayne I don’t know what is happening between us. I don’t understand it. I don’t know you and you seem to want to keep it that way.” He opened his mouth; she placed a finger against his lips and shook her head. “Don’t talk, just listen.” Shayne nodded. “I don’t understand this, but I want to. I want to see where this takes us. I think…I think I need to.”
“I can’t promise anything Ashlee,” he whispered to her. “I don’t have much to give you and what I do have is not worth a whole lot.”
“I’m not asking for anything,” she replied. “I’m not exactly completely whole either right now. I just want to feel and I feel with you.”
Shayne inhaled deeply. He knew what she meant. She did the same for him. Ashlee was able to stop the surge of nothing that seemed to want to swallow him up. He held her chin in his hand and pulled her forward. The kiss was soft and slow, but still had that burning passion behind it. He pulled back reluctantly, “Let’s find out what’s going on.”
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