Page 6 of Malice and Surrender
“Go,” I yelled above the music, and hands struck out like a bunch of vipers and snatched the glasses off the long bar. I wiggled backward and pointed to Avro and then the bar. “Dance, dance, dance,” I chanted and got the crowd involved as my face was plastered on the massive screen, flashing the word ‘dance’ in neon colors.
Avro lived to dance, so this was never really a punishment. If he could, he would be on a stage somewhere full-time and not here slinging drinks with me. With a nifty maneuver, he leaped up on the top of the bar and swayed his ass back and forth, sending the women into a wild frenzy.
The guy was so smokin’ hot that you’d burn your hand just touching him. Not a part of his body wasn’t cut and ripped to perfection. He always wore contacts that stood out against the color of his hair, and he had the best smile. It was warm and friendly but also said, ‘I would strip you naked and lick your body in all the right places.’
He was the kind of hot that made straight men in the crowd second-guess their sexuality. I’d seen more than one man who’d come in with a woman have to adjust themselves. Avro slowly peeled his T-shirt off and put it between his legs like he was riding it. A woman in the front screamed and collapsed as Avro winked at her.
I nodded to the bouncer and pointed to the woman on the floor. Not that anyone paid attention while Avro was on the bar. He ran and slid only to end up on his stomach, and even though I’d seen him practice this and knew what was coming, I couldn’t peel my eyes away from the Magic Mike move. He looked like he was fucking the bar as he easily held himself up for all to see his hips working.
Yup, definitely the best job in the world.
It was three in the morning before the bouncers managed to get the last stragglers out of the bar and lock the doors.
“Is it just me, or are the crowds getting more insane?” Avro said as he thumbed through the wad of cash he made. “Fuck, five grand! Damn, at this rate, I might be able to afford that place I was telling you about.”
“Only you make that kind of cash. That little move…” I thrust my hips like I was fucking the side of the bar and made him laugh. “Does them in every time.”
“True, but you could make this too if you showed them a little more. You know, maybe put a cute bra-type top on under your tank so you could take it off.”
Grabbing a towel and the cleaner, I squirted the sanitizer all over the bar and turned my back on Avro. He had no idea why I wouldn’t want to do that, and I had no intention of letting him find out. Some scars were better left hidden.
“Just not my thing, but I’m happy for you, Avro. You’re fucking good at this, even if it wasn’t what you set out to do.” I shot him a smile.
“Thanks. Oh, I had a few ideas for some new moves. They are a little trickier than what we normally do, but I know we can do it, and the crowd will love it.”
I shrugged as I kept moving so we could get out of here. “Sure, you know I’m always open to learning new routines.”
We chatted happily until our portion of the cleanup was completed. Then we changed out of the clothes soaked in alcohol, and only God knew what else. Pulling the hood up on my sweatshirt, I searched through my backpack and pulled out my cell. I had a dozen missed calls. Putting the pack on, I followed Avro out the door and unlocked my phone.
“You want a ride home?” Avro offered. “I promise no drive-thru, no detours, and I’ll only take the route you say. You can even keep the window down,” he teased.
I smiled, embarrassed that he knew me so well that he was already prepared for me to refuse the offer. I’d gotten many rides from him when we finished late at night, but I always had to talk myself into it. It was stupid, and I hated the fear that crept up simply because I was trapped in a small space with a man.
“That would be great. I hate walking home this late,” I said.
The simple black sedan with blacked-out windows was nice but totally opposite to his personality. Avro was always over the top with everything. It made me wonder what his home looked like. Even though we’d worked together awhile now, I’d never once seen his place; and it wasn’t for lack of trying on his part.
I didn’t know if he was interested in me or used the friend hangout excuse to get me alone. Just the thought of going over to his place sent fear racing through my body and choked off my air supply. It was horrible that one incident ten years ago still had me terrified to be alone with a man, but it was the truth. Kaivan had been my best friend, and I thought I knew him. Not in a million years would I have ever thought he would hurt me, but he did.
Avro put on the radio and described what he wanted to do for the new routine. It was so normal and so us that I relaxed. In a blink, he pulled up to the front of my shoebox.
Hopping out, I leaned on the open window. “Thanks, and I love those ideas. Wanna arrive an hour early tomorrow, and we can practice?”
“Fuck yes.” He held out his fist for me to bump, making me laugh. “I’m not leaving until you’re inside safely,” he said.
He was probably a great guy. It wasn’t like I thought all men were evil or anything. I just didn’t know which ones were, and I didn’t trust my instincts to tell me when I was in danger.
Waving to Avro, I closed the door and locked it before making my way into the kitchen and sitting down to listen to the messages on my cell.
“Raine Eastman, I’m social worker Harvey Johnson. Can you give me a call when you get this message?” I jotted down the phone number, confused about why he had called me. I hadn’t spoken to a social worker in many years.
I hit the button to go to the second message. “Hi there, Raine. This is Harvey calling again. This is not news I wanted to leave in a message, but I feel you should be aware that Kaivan McMillan was released today. If you need anything, please call me at…”
I didn’t hear anything else left in the message as the phone fell from my shaking hands. Jumping up, I ran to the cupboard and grabbed the bottle of anxiety meds that I’d managed to stop taking.
“Oh, no,” I cried out as the stubborn lid flew off the pills and the bottle dropped from my shaking hands.
Dropping to the floor, I curled up in the corner by the sink and pulled my knees to my chest. “No, this can’t be happening. No.”
