Rachel had booked them a cab so they stood on the outskirts of their campus waiting in the dark. Rachel lit a cigarette and offered it to Lizzie, but she politely declined. Even though it wasn’t cold, she was so nervous her arms were bumpy and she shivered.
“You’ve got me now, so tell me where we’re going. Come on.” Lizzie said before swigging vodka from Rachel’s hipflask.
“Okay,” Rachel exhaled, “But promise me you won’t freak out.”
“I’m not promising anything.”
Rachel rolled her eyes and pouted at her.
“Okay, I promise,” Lizzie said, even though she had her fingers crossed behind her back.
“I met this guy a couple of weeks ago,” Rachel began, “And I didn’t tell you about him because I didn’t want you to lecture me and try to put me off.”
“Well, he already sounds awesome,” Lizzie said sarcastically. She took another swig; she was clearly going to need it. She hadn’t drunk for months and she had never been much of a fan of it, anyway. The vodka made her wince, and she had to swallow it so quickly it wasn’t enjoyable in the slightest.
“Well, we’re going to his clubhouse,” Rachel said, almost under her breath.
“His what?” Lizzie squeaked.
“Clubhouse… he’s in a bike club,” Rachel sucked on the cigarette and smiled. “And tonight they’ve initiated a few new members and they have this sort of party afterwards… I got an invite because of him and I said I’d bring a friend.”
“A bike club? What I think you mean is a gang!” Lizzie said in disbelief. If she had been nervous before this information, she was now on the verge of passing out.
“You make it sound so sinister,” Rachel brushed it off.
“It is!” Lizzie stamped her foot, “I can’t believe you’re taking me somewhere like that where there will be illegal things going on!”
“Shh,” Rachel hissed as she looked around behind them, “Stop being so precious, it’s nothing like that. This guy is really great… I like him… A lot.”
Lizzie looked at her friend, and although she wanted to smack her in the face to knock some sense into her, she could also tell she was being genuine.
“Just please come with me, and let me see him… if there’s anything weird going on, we can leave, I promise,” Rachel pleaded.
Lizzie looked up the road and saw the shine of car lights approaching. She turned back to Rachel and guilt hit her as soon as she saw how miserable she looked.
“Okay,” she said reluctantly, “I’ll come with you… But don’t leave me alone and don’t let any of them talk to me… And I want to leave after an hour, okay?”
“Yes!” Rachel did a little air jump and kissed Lizzie on the cheek, “Yes, of course, anything you want.”
She was beaming, and as the cab slowed to a halt in front of them, Rachel threw open the door and gestured for Lizzie to climb in.
As she closed the door behind them and the car started on down the road, Rachel turned to her and hugged her.
“We’re going to have so much fun,” she smiled through the dark, “I can’t wait for you to meet him.”
Lizzie smiled back and exhaled. The vodka was going to have to start working and fast… Her heart began to pound in her chest. She had never been this nervous before.
It’s just a party, she told herself, forget all about what Rachel said about it being an initiation… It’s just a party with some new people. Relax.
***
As the cab pulled up outside the bar, Rachel clapped her hands together and popped a mint in her mouth.
“How did you meet this guy?” Lizzie said as she looked up at the wooden exterior and the neon sign above the door. There were rows and rows of Harleys out front and some men sat on them smoking, while others were parked up and without a rider.
“I came looking,” Rachel wiggled her eyebrows and opened the door.
Rachel had always been a little on the wild side, but even this surprised Lizzie. It must have been a phase. She had probably been watching a show that portrayed bikers as sexy and rugged and got all swept up in the moment. Lizzie reminded herself to just keep some perspective and not to worry too much about what they were about to step into.
“Well, come on,” Rachel said, “Let’s go.”
She took hold of Lizzie’s hand as they walked towards the front door. She could hear the blare of heavy rock music and the cheering of men. It was packed inside and there was a haze of mist on the windows, condensation from all the sweat and breath in there. Lizzie looked back over her shoulder as the cab pulled away. She was stuck now. There was no hailing another one as the clubhouse was in the middle of nowhere. Some of the bikers smiled at them and cat-called as they opened the front door and went inside.
“Oh, god,” Lizzie whispered to Rachel.
“It’s fine,” Rachel replied, “Just relax!”
She led her through the crowd of men in leather and women in barely anything and jumped up onto a stool. She pulled one along for Lizzie to sit on and she slowly and clumsily climbed onto it. She pulled at the hem of her dress to try and make it longer and instantly regretted wearing it. Even though she looked amazing, the wandering eyes of all of the men were making her feel self-conscious.
“What can I get you?” the barman called over to them.
Rachel ordered them two beers and lit herself another cigarette. The air was heavy with smoke and the strong scent of ripe sweat and alcohol.
“A lot of these men look older,” Lizzie whispered to Rachel.
“Yeah, well, some of these men probably started this gang,” Rachel raised her eyebrows, “My guy is twenty-eight and drop-dead gorgeous. Just wait until you see him.”
“How long has he been a member?” Lizzie asked.
“I don’t know,” Rachel admitted. “I think maybe he got his patch tonight...”
“So he’s a newbie,” Lizzie teased. Even though she knew nothing about gangs… or bikes… she knew that being the new addition wasn’t exactly something to brag about.
“Shut up,” Rachel pouted as she collected the beers from the barman and slid one down the countertop to Lizzie.
“Well, I can’t wait to meet him, anyway,” she said as she looked around. It was basically what she had expected, but not as frightening. And she was pleasantly surprised that Rachel was right about the men. The ones that were young enough to be of interest certainly had something raw and sexy about them.
Her eyes wandered around the room and almost instantly she found herself looking up at a guy across the bar. He was tan, had shaggy blonde hair and was clad in a heavy leather jacket which was open and bared the top of his rock-solid chest. He looked up and his eyes met hers. Lizzie felt her heart jump in shock as he locked her gaze. There was something about his eyes and the way they were drawing her in. They were a deep hazel and completely consuming. She almost forgot to breathe.
“Are you okay?” Rachel asked.
Lizzie jumped again and looked at Rachel. “Yes,” she panted, “I’m fine.”
She quickly looked back up, but he was gone. She looked behind her and tried to crane her neck to the other side of the bar, but he was nowhere in sight.
Her heart sank.
She swigged her beer. Maybe it wasn’t going to be such a bad night after all.