Chapter Six
Jake
I finished up the books and dues before locking them in the safe. It was a week from Halloween and things were going smooth. Halloween was one of those nights that, in the Flaming Dragons, could either mean a lot of fun or a party that crashed and burned. There was no middle of the road. Fortunately, I had made an excuse and would be “out of town.” I would be on a date with Dana. Part of me hated having to keep it hidden, but part of me agreed with Dana. It made it even more exciting to sneak around. Not that our time together needed any help being exciting. She still turned me on every time I got near her. I had noticed not many women even got my attention these days, although I pretended for appearance’s sake. Things were more complicated, but I could handle that when a night with Dana was on the other end of the complications. She seemed to agree.
“Hey Jackhammer, what’s the news?” Little Lisa asked as I came out of the office. She was the resident barmaid.
“All clean and serene, Little. How’re they hangin’?” She looked down at her blouse bulging over her large breasts.
“Thanks to my bra, not low at all. Want a beer?”
I had the rest of the day off so why not, I thought. She poured one before I could answer. Lisa was like that. She always seemed to know what her customers wanted. It made for a good barmaid. Of course, she talked to anyone about anything so she didn’t pass the bartender test the way Tina at Rocky’s did.
“Thanks, Little. Where’s Crazy? I haven’t seen her around for a few days.”
Lisa frowned and shook her head. “Don’t know. She ran off with that Kelly chick Mack was so hot after. She can come back or not, for all I care,” Lisa said and I sighed. Crazy is as Crazy does, I told myself. It was the phrase everyone used for Crazy Mary.
“Sorry about that. It’ll work out, and she will come around. Who wouldn’t? Look at you,” I tried to cheer her up. Lisa turned and looked in the mirror behind the bar. Tight blouse and jeans looked sexy on her shorter curvy frame. She fluffed her hair and turned around with a smile.
“You’re right. I’ll make her pay for running off like that. It could be fun,” she said and poured some brandy into her coffee and put a finger to her lips to indicate, “don’t tell anyone.” I smiled and agreed. Everyone knew she had something in her coffee more than ground beans. I took a gulp of beer and sighed, more relaxed now.
“That’s the spirit, Little. Give her hell, it will be fun for the rest of us to watch, too,” I added and got the laugh I expected.
“I bet. Except I hear you ain’t gonna be here for Halloween. Got another hunt on your hands,” she said with a smirk.
“Sort of. Every time I get close with a lady, being in the club kinda sours them on it. It should be a fun trip whether it works out or not. I was at last year’s Halloween Carnage. That should last me,” I told her and she laughed but nodded. It had been a lot of fun, but the cost in damages had been high.
“Good point. Here is a solution to your dating problem. Date a club chick. We already know what’s what. No mess, no fuss, no problem,” she said and took another drink from her cup.
“No mess, no fuss? Mack is pissed about Kelly running off, you’re pissed about Crazy taking a walk and both of those ladies disappearing together. How is that no mess, no fuss?” I asked and that really got her laughing. I sipped my beer and she slowed her giggles down. Her laugh wasn’t as crazy as Mary’s, but nowhere near as nice as Dana’s.
“Alright, ya got me there. Besides, you get a few dates out of ‘em, so I figure you’re getting your rocks off. At least, you got that,” she said. I had to agree. I did have that, except it was the same woman, not the different ones I had been hinting at.
“Don’t worry, Little, I’ll find someone and until then, I’ll have fun. So how wild is it going to get at the party. I pulled the funds for the party favors that Mack asked for. He wouldn’t say what exactly he was getting with it,” I said. Lisa grinned wickedly.
“Ah, baby, you sure you want to know?” She lit a cigarette.
“Sure, why not?”
“Well, we need some party favors,” she deliberately sniffed and tapped her nose. Then she mimed smoking a joint. “Not to mention we are getting some dancers in costumes, decorations for the club. You know, usual stuff.” By the sparkle in her eye, she was holding something back. I decided I really didn’t want to know the rest. I would rather hear about it the day after and be surprised, not to mention I couldn’t be blamed if things went south.
“So, what’s up with Mack, anyway? He’s being an ass lately, I mean, more than normal.” Little grimaced.
“He is still a little pissed you kicked his ass with one punch at the end of the summer. Since he was the instigator, he can’t complain, but he still does.”
“So that’s it? Jesus, he was wasted and grabbed me. What was I supposed to do?” I wondered aloud.
“Just what you did. I wish I could have seen it. If he could keep his woman interested instead of passing out on her, I wouldn’t have had to watch Crazy take off with her. Dumb ass,” she said and blew out smoke. “He may be up to something, so keeping your eyes open may not be a bad idea. I heard Hammer talking with him about it the other day. He has noticed, too, and you know that won’t end well if he doesn’t get his shit together. Hell, he knows it,” she finished and stubbed out her smoke.
“He should. Hammer doesn’t sugarcoat anything. I’ll let him handle it, but I will keep my eyes open. He better not try anything with me, if he thought the broken nose was bad, I’ll show him something worse.”
“Good. He’ll have it coming. In fact, if it goes that far pop the little shit one for me,” she said. I laughed and told her I would.
“Want a sandwich, Lisa? I am going to go make one for myself,” I said and headed back with her order.
***
Later that night, after dinner, I was sitting at a small table watching the other members eat, drink and have a good time. I liked to watch it because it was a reminder that despite the occasional butting of heads, we were a family. I wondered if Dana would ever be a part of the family and almost shook my head. That would be complicated.
“So, buddy, what’s up with you missing the Halloween bash?” A voice said and as I turned my head Mack sat down across from me. He didn’t appear drunk yet and was smiling. His freshly shaven face and brown hair were clean.
“Looking for a personal prospect, you know how it is. Besides, like I told Little, I was here for the mayhem last year,” I pointed out and he chuckled.
“That was good. This year might top it, though. How come it is taking you so long to find a honey? Looks like it should be a piece of cake for you. I thought women liked little guys,” he said. I let that comment pass.
“I am just wanting to window shop, you know. Besides, you kicked Kelly to the curb,” I said. I knew she had left him, but figured being nice might get him off my back.
“Yeah, she was worthless. Maybe you got a point. You just don’t seem like a player, boy. Do you have a little filly holed up someplace? You can tell me,” he said and I mentally snorted in disgust. Telling him would be worse than telling Lisa. The whole fragging town would know about it in less than ten minutes. Instead I laughed.
“That would be a neat trick huh? That’s funny, Mack, I haven’t had a laugh like that in a while,” I said, still laughing. It had been partially authentic, too, since the idea of telling this guy anything important about my life was laughable. He laughed, too, but I could see in his eyes he wasn’t convinced. Great, I thought, the guy already is pissed at me, now he thinks I am lying about a girl. Which I was, of course.
“Well, have it your way, man, but you are going to miss a great shindig!” he said, getting up and going to the bar. I watched him go and get a beer and a shot. A couple of the others in the club glanced over to Mack. Once Mack started the hard stuff, you knew it was countdown to some sort of trouble. I kept an eye on him. By the third shot and second beer I decided it was time to go before Mack got in a fight with someone. If I was still there it would probably be me considering the way he would glance over. I left when he was in the head. I wasn’t scared of the guy, I just didn’t want to waste the energy.
***
“Hey, Dana Doll,” I asked over the phone. “How was your day?”
“Not bad, baby. Long day at the office. This desk job is getting old. Fortunately, it pays well so, ya know,” she said and giggled. I loved the sound of her laugh and could picture her blushing like she always did when she giggled. I had a picture in my mind that always came with talking to her over the phone. Lying back on her couch, twirling her hair with one finger while talking.
“I hear ya. My job is slowing down now. A seasonal thing. For some reason people don’t buy a lot of furniture this time of year. It picks up after New Year’s, so the time off is nice,” I admitted.
“Yeah, I guess people don’t want to find a kitchen table under their tree,” she said. “Once everyone is salivating over their tax returns they go out and buy the bigger ticket items. I heard from my boss that once people start finding out how much money they are getting back on taxes they rush out and buy it on credit. That way they pay it off with the refund and it boosts their credit.”
“I bet you are going to be busting some serious ass come January?” I said, realizing as an accountant, that was her busy time of the year.
“Oh, yeah. I think I will be needing a back rub or two. Maybe we could practice that soon,” she said and I enjoyed the purr in her voice. It reminded me of previous times and I smiled.
“Anytime, darlin’. I will rub wherever you want me to on you,” I said. I couldn’t stop that growl in my voice. Damn she got me going so effortlessly.
“I can think of a few places,” she said. “Do you think we can get together before Halloween? I am missing you, Jake.”
“I am missing you, too. I don’t see why not. I would love to see you,” I told her, thinking of when we could get together, actually where was the key point.
“I got a note on my door from the Tom McCreety guy from the Wild Wolves. I told him I’m not interested, but he is being persistent. I may have to ask Mitch to get him to back off,” she said. I wanted to take care of the guy myself, but that wasn’t possible if our dating had to be a secret. At least, her brother would shut things down, I was sure.
“So, your place is out of the question. Hmm, you can come over to my place if you want. It has been over a month since the last time. Even if one of my colleagues from my club comes by, they don’t know who you are. They might just think you are someone I picked up,” I said and as soon as I did I realized it was probably not the best way of putting it. “Not that I would ever treat you that way, it is just…” I trailed off and she chuckled.
“I get it, Jake. That might work. Or we can road-test the motel. We really should know how good it is before we go there for Halloween,” she said. I felt my eyebrows go up followed by a smile.
“That is a fantastic idea. I guess I know who has the brains in this outfit. How about tomorrow night, if we can get a reservation?”
“That sounds good. Tomorrow night, then.“
“Cool, thanks babe,” I said. I had an old-fashioned streak that made me want to pay for everything and handle everything. Dana was an independent woman who could easily take care of herself, and it was part of the attraction, I knew. I told myself firmly to get used to it.
“Anytime, Jake. I was thinking too, we can stop by Rocky’s. I mean, if we are two people sitting at a bar no one would get an idea. Tina won’t say anything, you know that,” she said, and she was right.
“Good point. I guess my paranoia is getting a bit too strong. That’s another clever idea. We should set up a few nights a week to have dinner and a beer. At least we will be seeing each other.”
“So now we have plans,” she tittered. “I see this as a good thing. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow night. Should we meet at the hotel, or that restaurant down the street? That looked good and Lowtown has crappy Italian food.”
I laughed. We just made plans for the next night like kids sneaking out. There was excitement in her voice. Since it was getting late I decided to call it a night while I was ahead. My dreams were of Dana in one form of undress or another. In all of them, she looked amazing.