Chapter 18

LACEY

The beauty of a town like Ivory was that it was easy to get lost in. The number of bars and taverns and pubs that lined the streets made you wonder if the city had a drinking problem. Either that or there was just nothing else to do. Right now, there wasn’t any other place I’d rather be than in the dingy bar I’d stumbled into.

“You know… You didn’t have to come all this way to say hello.”

“Hey. You’re my friend. When you told me you were down in the dumps, I had every reason to come down. Here.”

She pushed the drink toward me. A shot of whiskey had never looked so inviting. I sighed, knowing that it would be the only way to help me get my mind off of things.

I swallowed it down and the sting of the alcohol made me grimace. It did make me forget about everything. But only for just a few seconds. With my friend sitting in front of me, it didn’t matter.

“So… What’s on your mind?”

Madeline raised her eyebrows. Even though I knew she had a natural curiosity about what the hell was going on I knew she cared about me just the same. I’d known her long enough that I could trust to tell her anything.

“What do you think of Ivory?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug, looking around the bar. “I’ve only been here for a few hours.”

“That’s more than enough to get an idea of this town. Hell, just from the road here you can tell how different it is from the city.”

“Right. Well, it’s different. That’s one way of putting it. It’s kinda nice, too. No traffic on the roads. No smog. No buildings. No assholes walking up and down the streets leering at me.”

“You just haven’t been to the right neighborhoods around here.”

“Maybe. But Ivory seems like the small town I figured it would be. It’s… It’s just different.”

“Yeah…”

I fiddled with the empty shot glass between my fingertips, lost in my thoughts.

Madeline and I sat in a corner booth of the bar where mostly everybody was minding their own business. There were some bikers drinking, being loud and obnoxious like I’d seen too many times before already but they didn’t bother me.

“That’s something you don’t see every day in the city,” she said.

“What?”

“Those guys.”

“Motorcycle clubs are a thing in this town. Just something you need to get used to.”

“Motorcycle clubs. Bikers. Whatever they are. There are people you need to look out for wherever you are. I’d say that’s more true of the city than anything else.”

“No kidding…”

Madeline twisted her lips, her eyebrows raised. I already knew what she was thinking.

“You gonna tell me what’s going on with you?” she said. “I wouldn’t have come out here just to see you down in the dumps if it wasn’t important.”

“How’d you know it’s important?”

“Lacey. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met. I know what kind of woman you are. I know what you’re capable of. It takes a lot to get you down like this. Something is wrong. Tell me.”

I sighed a deep breath and finally gave her the details.

“I met a guy—”

“Oh, geez. You met a guy and you already got your heart broken. What did I tell you about hooking-up, Lacey? You’re supposed to love ‘em and leave ‘em. You’re not supposed to take ‘em with you. You do that, you’ll never be able to put ‘em down.”

I chuckled softly at Madeline’s suggestion.

“You’re always so cynical about guys,” I said. “Does it ever get old?”

“I’m not cynical. It’s just the truth. Men are pigs. Men are dogs. Men are playing a game and make their own rules.”

“So, what should I do? Not play?”

“No… You can play the same game. Play by your own rules. Make your own terms. That’s how you avoid situations… like this, whatever it is.”

“You have a point. But I don’t think that would help me in this case. This guy… He’s a little different.”

“Lay it on me.”

“Where do I start?”

“You can start with his name.”

“Ezra Grant.”

“Ezra… Grant…”

Madeline pulled her phone out and started working her thumbs away.

“What… What are you doing?” I said.

“I’m looking him up.”

“Why are you doing that?”

“Because I’m trying to figure out who this asshole is.”

“I don’t think you’re going to get much information on him.”

“I’ve got something. His name is listed here. Something to do with realty or real estate. Property management or something.”

“Yeah, that’s him.”

“No pictures. He hot?”

Madeline arched an eyebrow at me. The way she stared made me burst into laughter. She didn’t even bother trying to hide whatever lascivious thoughts were swirling around in her head.

“Madeline—”

“Oh, he must be real hot if you can’t even admit it.”

“He’s got a certain… charm about him. I’ll tell you that much.”

“He has to. You’ve raised your standards over the years, as any woman should. It’s a shame about the good-looking ones. There’s always something wrong with them. This Ezra guy. What’s his deal?”

“He was a drug dealer.”

Madeline slowly lowered her phone down. She knew why it was such a big deal to me.

“You’re joking, right?” she asked.

I shook my head.

“Geez, Lacey. I’m sorry. You have the worst kind of luck. You’re new in town and you meet some hot guy and he turns out to be a drug dealer.”

“Well, he’s not exactly a drug dealer.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Ezra… Ezra said he worked for a guy. Said he had some work for him. Ezra said he had no idea what it was until after he agreed to do it.”

“That’s a good story…”

“He said that he took his money and went into real estate. Just like it says on your phone there. Now he’s telling me he came to Ivory because he wants a fresh start. He says he’s going to open up a legitimate business.”

“And you believe him?”

Madeline was always smiling and carefree about everything. Now that she wasn’t smiling, I knew she was serious.

“Lacey, after everything you’ve been through, you can’t—”

“You think I don’t know that? Dammit, Maddie. I know that. I’ve been telling myself that every second ever since I found out.”

“You know you have to get away from this guy.”

“I know.”

I leaned back in my seat and sighed. I looked down at the tattoo on my arm, reminding me how obvious the answer was. There was no way I could be around a man like Ezra.

But even though the choice was so obvious and simple, I was still stopping myself. I wasn’t doing a very good job of hiding my hesitation.

“Lacey… What are you doing?”

“I was just thinking. Maybe he’s telling the truth.”

“Are you serious? You’re really gonna take his word.”

“What if he is telling the truth? I’m the last person who should be talking about denying someone a second chance.”

“You’re also the first person who knows what it’s like to be hanging around people like Ezra.”

“Ezra’s not like… He’s not like them…”

“Just tell me this. Do you really believe that? Or are you just trying to convince yourself because you think he’s hot?”

“I’m not doing it because he’s hot.”

“Are you sure? Would you even be giving this a second thought if Ezra wasn’t attractive?”

I looked away from Madeline. She was doing what she was supposed to be doing, trying to convince me to think with my head instead of the desire Ezra brought out of me. I could still remember vividly the details of the last time I spent with Ezra. It was more satisfying than any other man I’d ever been with.

“No,” I said as I shook my head. “There’s something else about him.”

“What?”

“I… I don’t know. It’s just… You ever have a gut feeling before? You ever look into someone’s eyes and see more than whatever it is you’re looking at? There’s something more to him.”

“Which is?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? Lacey—”

“You saw it for yourself. He made himself through real estate. He made a mistake but corrected it. I made a mistake, too. We all make mistakes.”

Madeline leaned back in her seat and sighed. Her shot of whiskey was empty but she smacked her lips like she wanted another drink.

“I can’t make any decision for you,” she said. “You know I only want what’s best for you.”

“Of course.”

“I don’t know this guy. You know him better than I do. I just want you to be careful. Maybe… Maybe you just need another cock inside of you to clear your thoughts.”

“What?” I exclaimed.

“I’ve been there before. You meet a guy and he fucks your brains out and all of a sudden you’re head over heels for him. I found a trick for that.”

“Which is?”

“Get another guy to fuck your brains out. Then you can move on.”

“Maddie—”

Madeline jumped up out of her seat before I could do anything. I laughed softly to myself and shook my head while she did her thing. She made her way around the bar before finally finding a man leaning up against the wall. I watched her talk to him. Even though I couldn’t hear what she was saying, the both of them were looking back in my direction. From across the room, the biker smirked at me.

Oh, God…

I turned my head away just as they started heading in my direction.

“Lacey,” Madeline said. “I want you to meet my new friend, Ron. Say hello, Ron.”

“Hey, Lacey.”

I slowly turned my head back and saw the biker standing right before me. Dusty leather vest. Dirty blue jeans and even dirtier black boots. He had his thumbs in his pockets as he smiled at me. His beard was thick and his head was shaved. He wasn’t completely repulsive but he didn’t interest me either.

“Come on, Ron,” Madeline said. “Why don’t you keep my friend some company while I go get us some drinks?”

“Maddie! Wait!”

Madeline winked at me as she backed away toward the bar. I sighed again as Ron took her place.

“So, Lacey. I heard you’re new in town.”

“New in town but I’ve been around.”

“That’s funny. You know, I just happen to be a part of the Ivory Welcoming Committee.”

“The Ivory Welcoming Committee?”

“Sure! We show new folks around town. Let ‘em take in all the sights and sounds. Plenty of places to discover in this city. I can take you for a ride whenever you want.”

Ron smiled at me with a confidence that was admirable. I almost didn’t want to tell him what I was thinking. Almost.

“Ron… Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“That line about the Ivory Welcoming Committee… Does that ever work?”

“What are you talking about—”

“I mean, has that ever worked… on anybody.”

“I’ll have you know. I learned from a good friend of mine…”

I stopped listening to Ron when I turned and looked toward the side of the bar. I wouldn’t have thought much about more bikers coming inside of the place but I immediately recognize them as soon as they stepped in.

Shit…

It was the same punks who Ezra confronted at the restaurant that one night. There was no mistaking it.

It wasn’t a coincidence that they just happened to be in the same bar that I was in. Not with how many places there were to drink in Ivory.

“…He told me about all of the women he was able to screw just by showing ‘em around—”

“Listen, Ron,” I said as I jumped out of my seat. “I’m sure you’re a swell guy. But I’ve gotta go. I’m… I’m having an emergency.”

The group of bikers who walked in started looking around. It was crowded enough in the bar that it would take them some time to find me but I couldn’t hide here forever.

I walked up to Madeline without drawing too much attention to myself.

“Maddie,” I whispered. “We have to get out of here.”

“What? He can’t be that bad. There’s still plenty of other guys—”

“Maddie. We need to get out of here. Now.”

I widened my eyes at her to emphasize my point. She figured it out quickly enough.

“Okay, okay,” she said. “Just let me pay my tab.”

She turned back toward the bar. I stood nervously next to her, trying not to stare as the gang kept scanning the place.

“Maddie,” I whispered. “Hurry up—”

Before I could finish, one of the bikers from the group spotted me. He talked to the others and they immediately started heading in my direction.

Shit.

“Well, well,” the lead biker said. “Thought I’d find you here.”

“What the fuck do you want from me?” I said.

“I’ve got some business to discuss with you.”

“I don’t have anything to talk to you about. Come on, Madeline. Let’s go.”

I tugged on my friend’s arm but the biker blocked my path.

“You’re not going anywhere—”

The front doors to the bar boomed open. Everybody in the place turned toward the entrance as another group walked in.

“Ezra?”

It was him along with the bikers who helped him last night. And not a single one of them looked happy.

I swallowed anxiously.

“Lacey,” Madeline whispered. “What the hell is happening?”

I sighed a deep breath through my nose before I responded.

“I don’t know. But it’s not going to be pretty.”