Chapter Thirty-Five
Ashley
The bar was increasingly packed, but that wasn’t such a bad thing for me. Having become a regular at the majority of these bars, I was let in without much fuss and since I was looking for something or someone to take my mind off of my dickhead of a stepbrother, I wasn’t so unhappy with the amount of people surrounding me.
I waded through the crowd toward the bartender, before I ordered a drink and began to sip it slowly as I walked through the mass of people.
I had to say that I looked hot tonight and the fact that I didn’t have anyone holding me back made the situation even better.
There was a part of me that felt free. Tonight, not only was I free from Tyler’s watchful eye, but I was also free from the messed up relationship that I had with the entirety of my family.
Life did not happen. Tonight, I was embracing the idea that I controlled my destiny. Not only would I be able to enjoy myself, but if I wanted something, I was going to do whatever I could to make that wish come true.
It had taken me a week and in all fairness, I was also taking a page right out of Tyler’s book by making myself proud, instead of working to make someone else happy for me. But I truly felt that it was going to work.
I was confident and I looked great! What could go wrong?
Once I found a spot in the club that wasn’t completely overflowing, I grabbed a high-top table and sat down. I knew that being by myself was something that would attract attention from the men who were seeking out a woman for the evening, but that was kind of what I wanted.
There was a part of me that wanted to show Tyler that he didn’t have anything on me. I wanted to be my own woman and what I chose to do, or tell anyone that I did, would remain my secret.
I wasn’t looking to get laid, but if I happened to find a nice gentleman and things escalated, I certainly wasn’t against a one night stand; if only to show Tyler what kind a woman I really could be.
I was surprised, however, that it didn’t take long at all for a man to come up and sit down next to me.
The man looked nothing like Tyler, but had his own interesting allure. I immediately picked up on the bad boy vibe, but since he was attractive — nicely dressed and seemed nice — I didn’t really pay much mind to my instincts.
However, he did look like he had been in a fight rather recently. His nose looked almost like it was broken and either eye appeared to have bruises. I thought that was a bit strange, but I wasn’t about to make a big deal out of it. I figured that it wasn’t my business anyway.
“Hey, you’re…Ashley, right?” the man said smoothly as he slid into the seat.
“Yes.” I smiled back at him, but shot a suspicious look in his direction. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”
“You know Tyler, right? I’ve seen you two at the gym together.”
“Yeah, I do,” I answered, wondering what this could be about. Go figure, I thought, trying not to roll my eyes. The first man who seeks me out knows that I have a connection to Tyler. Still, I was hopeful that this was where his knowledge of me and Tyler ended, although I knew that I couldn’t be so sure. His questioning made me a little bit leery.
He slid closer to me and answered, “So…I have a question for you.”
“Yes?” I asked, trying to be diplomatic over the whole thing.
“If I were to buy you a drink, would Tyler be okay with that?”
I beamed, happy that he wasn’t here on behalf of Tyler, or at least I didn’t think so. Besides, if he were, I was going to make it very clear about where I stood. So, I made it a point to smile in an alluring fashion before I looked over at him and answered, “Let’s just say that I couldn’t give a shit what Tyler thinks.”
He laughed before he said, “I heard that you were his.”
“You couldn’t be more wrong,” I answered and then after a pause, I glanced around before looking straight back at him and asking, “So, how about that drink?”
The man smiled at me and moved away toward the bar and as I watched him, another man caught my eye. Immediately, I was aggravated.
I wondered why he would be here, when all I wanted was some peace, and quickly concluded that he must be following me.
“Hey…” He said before smiling in a strange fashion.
Is he jealous? I couldn’t help but wonder. I hope so.
“Hi,” I answered stiffly.
Tyler leaned heavily against the table before he answered, “So, what are you doing here?”
“Minding my own business, which is something that I wish you could do for one night,” I spat harshly. “Are you following me?”
At this, he glared at me and answered, “What? No! Shit. I just happened to go to a club. Is that a crime?”
I looked over at him with a careful stare before I answered, “Well…No. I guess it isn’t…So, you’re just here?”
“In the flesh,” he answered, spreading his massively attractive arms out as he stepped away from the table slightly, as though to illustrate his presence further.
“Um…okay.”
“Do you want a drink?” He motioned to my empty glass.
I shook my head. “No. That’s okay.”
Before I could explain that I already had someone getting me a drink, as though right on cue, the man returned and slid past Tyler, making it clear that he was with me. Since they knew one another, I thought that was slightly strange.
“Hey sweetheart,” he answered in a sly tone that was different from the one he had used with me before. I didn’t like the way his eyes slid between me and Tyler. Suddenly, there was a sense of awkwardness between the three of us, growing stronger.
I wanted to make Tyler jealous, but this seemed to be something else entirely.
“Is he bothering you?” the man asked.
“Him?” Tyler snarled at me.
I looked between them and couldn’t tell what was going on. “I thought you two knew one another.”
“Yeah, I guess you could say that. He’s a squirmy little piece of shit,” Tyler answered heatedly, looking pugnaciously at the man.
“Aww, would you look at that,” the man teased in a mean fashion, which made me automatically dislike him. “I guess Tyler minds a little more than you thought he would.”
“Yeah, I do fucking mind. Get away from her,” Tyler answered, staring at the man with a hard look in his eye.
“What is the matter with you? Don’t like a little friendly competition? Can’t take it? Do you feel out of your league?” The man continued to press Tyler, who just grew angrier.
I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I suddenly realized that it was not about me at all. The man didn’t like me, or if he did, that wasn’t his prime reason for buying me a drink. It was all about Tyler. For some reason, this man made it clear that he needed to get back at Tyler for something. However, if he thought that I was the way to do it, he couldn’t have been more wrong.
As angry as I was with Tyler, I wasn’t going to go with a random guy just to spite him; at least, not like this.
The man looked over at me and said smoothly, “Come on, Ashley. Let’s get out of here.” He smiled at me, but I pulled away.
“No thank you,” I said politely and began to walk away from them both, feeling far more nervous than I tried to let on.
However, just as I turned away, I felt the man’s hand curb around my arm and pull me back. “Come on, Sweetheart. Finish your drink, at least.”
“No!” I insisted and moved to pull my arm out of his grasp, but he just clamped onto me tighter.
“Let go of her, now!” Tyler boomed, his eyes aglow with fury.
“You stay out of this,” the man answered, but barely got the statement out of his mouth before Tyler balled up his fist and punched the man so hard that he instantly fell to the ground.
As he fell, Tyler grabbed me and effortlessly put me behind him, before he pulled the man up by his collar until his feet could no longer touch the ground.
“I swear to God, if I ever hear that you even looked in Ashley’s direction, I will hunt you down and kill you, you fucking piece of shit. Leave her alone! I won’t ask you again.”
At that, he threw the man back, toppling over the table. This caused a slight disturbance from the rest of the people in the bar, but most didn’t even notice.
As I looked at Tyler, who simply turned around and walked out of the bar, I couldn’t help but think about how impressive and attractive he was to me at that very moment. I could barely stand the feelings of allure that were welling up inside of me.
I followed him closely, now slightly fearful of what the man might do once he untangled himself from the table and chairs that he was thrown into.
Once we got outside and onto the street, I moved next to Tyler and grasped his arm.
“Are you okay?” he demanded, in something of an angry tone.
“Yes,” I answered, lowering my eyes to the ground, slightly ashamed of what I had almost done. “I’m sorry.”
“Whatever,” he answered quickly. “I don’t give a shit that you’re moving on, but at least do me a favor and pick men who aren’t just trying to specifically steal you away from me. It’s degrading to you and pisses me the fuck off.”
“I didn’t know,” I answered. “He just came up to me, and we were talking…He bought me a drink. Who was that guy anyway?”
“Some asshole I beat the shit out of at the gym a little while ago.” Before I could say anything, he explained, “He called me out. He challenged me. I warned him. I won.”
Putting it together, I answered, “So, he thought he could come in there and…Oh…Sorry.”
He shrugged. “You didn’t know and you’re a free woman. You can fuck whoever you like, but if I see them, I might kill them. Just keep that in mind.” He smiled at this, but in his eye, I could still see a flame of passion and anger ignited.
“I’m sorry,” I said again, feeling terrible for what had happened.
“Stop fucking apologizing,” he demanded and then he shrugged. “Go enjoy the rest of your night. If you need me, call me, okay?”
I nodded and watched as he turned his back on me and quickened his step, as though he was serious about leaving me alone.
I knew that I couldn’t have that and so, before I could overthink what I was about to do, I called, “Tyler?”
He turned around and as he did, I ran up to him, threw my arms around his neck, took his mouth unto my own and kissed him passionately.