“No,” Tate replied.
“Oh,” I said then turned to Hayley, “We don’t do sissy-ass drinks here. Will you drink vodka straight?”
She blinked up at me then she blinked up at Tate, what she didn’t do was answer.
“Maybe we’ll start you with a diet pop,” I suggested.
“I… you…” she struggled then said, “why do you owe me a drink?”
I leaned back, crossed my arms on my chest and grinned. “To thank you because you freed me from Brad.”
“What?” she whispered.
“You freed me from Brad so I could get out of that hellhole of a life and that cesspit that was Horizon Summit and find Carnal and Tate.” I uncrossed an arm and motioned to Tate, leaning forward and informing her conspiratorially, “He’s my old man.”
“Your old man?” she asked.
“Biker slang for he’s my um… man,” I explained. “We’re together.”
Her eyes went back to Tate and she observed, “He isn’t much like Brad.”
“Thank f**k,” Tate muttered and I swallowed a giggle.
Then I asked, “Tate, honey, would you get Hayley here a diet and I’ll go serve those Buds.” I looked back at Hayley. “I have to serve a few beers. Be right back.”
Tate popped the caps of three Buds, I rushed them to the customers, they paid, tipped big and then I rushed back to see that Tate had served Hayley a diet and was leaning with his h*ps against the back of the bar, arms crossed on his chest, watching me. I also saw that Jim-Billy, Nadine, Steg and Wings had moved down to stools closer to Hayley and she was eyeing them and Tate uncertainly.
I slid on a stool beside her and asked, “So, what’re you doing here?”
She looked at me. “I… erm…”
“Yeah?” I prompted.
“I heard Brad’s here,” she answered quickly. “Hasn’t he been in?”
At her words, Tate pushed away from the back of the bar and got close, saying in an unhappy growl, “You are f**kin’ shittin’ me.”
Hayley swallowed as she stared up at Tate then she looked at Jim-Billy, Nadine, Steg and Wings then her head turned so swiftly to me I was certain she had to have wrenched her neck.
“They say he’s in town. He wants you back. So much, he won’t take me back,” she said quietly, like this was unfathomable, like someone was trying to convince her the sky was fuchsia.
“Take you back?” I asked.
“Nathan left me,” she whispered.
“Went back to his wife you mean,” I suggested and she swallowed again which I decided to take as an affirmative.
“Ace,” Tate called and I looked at him. “Tell this one,” he jerked his head to Hayley, “to call that f**kwad and tell him, he doesn’t want to know what assault actually is, I don’t see his ass in my bar.”
I nodded, looked at Hayley and advised soberly, “You should do that, call Brad.”
Hayley’s eyes were wide. “You mean he’d assault Brad?”
“Probably,” I replied. “Actually, I’m not sure but I wouldn’t test him.”
She stared up at Tate then nodded and opened her purse.
“You…” she muttered as she dug through her purse. “You…” She pulled out her phone and then looked at me, her phone in her hand, her eyes moved to my lap and back up. “You fell apart when Brad left.”
“Tate put me back together.” I leaned into an elbow on the bar and looked at Tate. “Didn’t you, baby?”
I could tell with just a glance Tate wasn’t having near as much fun as me.
I knew this for certain when he ordered, “Get her to call him.”
“All right, Captain, calm down,” I muttered and then to Hayley I said, “You better hurry up and call him.”
“Hayley?” I heard Brad call, my eyes went beyond her as she twisted on her stool to look and we saw Brad in another golf shirt, a pair of chinos and his eyes were glued to Hayley. “What the f**k are you doing here?”
“Out,” Tate growled and Brad’s eyes flicked to him but he still walked to Hayley and me.
“I asked, what the f**k are you doing here?” he asked Hayley.
She stared up at him, her fear gone, her face getting hard and she stated, “You said you wanted her back and I couldn’t believe it. I heard you were on your way up here and I had to come see for myself and I still don’t believe it.” She leaned forward and finished with, “You can’t honestly want her. She’s a waitress!”
Well, there you go. Nothing had changed with Hayley.
“And you can’t honestly believe you could f**k around on me and think I’d want you,” Brad shot back.
Hmm. It appeared something had changed with Brad.
I settled back to watch the show as Hayley crossed her arms on her chest and snapped, “You told me you loved me and always would.”
I leaned in and shared, “He said that to me too.”
Jim-Billy guffawed. Brad glared at Jim-Billy. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Tate move and I turned to him.
“Don’t, honey, please?” I asked. “This is fun.”
Tate stopped moving, stared at me a second, his eyes roaming my face, then he muttered, “You get five minutes of fun, Ace, then you get both their asses out of here.”
Hayley was focused, Tate and my exchange was lost on her, she got up from her stool and repeated to Brad, “You told me you loved me and always would.”
Brad ignored Hayley and looked at me, he did a top to toe and back again then his gaze moved to Tate.
“I’m here to tell you I’m suing you,” he announced.
Jim-Billy, Nadine, Steg, Wing and my eyes moved to Tate.
Tate stared at Brad then he said, “Come again?”
“I’m suing you,” Brad repeated.
“For what?” Tate asked.
“Alienation of affection,” Brad answered.
Without hesitation, Tate threw his head back and burst out laughing.
Then he looked at me and remarked, “You’re right, babe, this is fun.”
Ignoring Tate’s comment, Brad declared, “You stole my wife.”
Tate looked back at Brad. “Yeah, bud, I did.”
Brad pointed at Tate and his voice was raised when he proclaimed, “See? You admit it.” He threw his arm out. “I have witnesses.”
“Not that any judge’ll hear your case, seein’ as Lauren divorced your ass before I alienated her affection, but you manage it, I’ll pay the fine. In the meantime, I’ll keep alienating her affection. You should know, and feel free to share it with your lawyers,” Tate continued magnanimously, “schedule’s comin’ out mornin’ and night. Usually, in the mornin’, she sucks me off or I make her come in the shower. Night, man… shit, that’s even better. Definitely worth the fine.”