Roughing, page 9
This Briggs was different, still surly at times, still noncommunicative, but I’d give him points for trying to be better in subtle ways he probably didn’t think anyone noticed. He’d been kind to Heidi last night. I’d seen a softer, gentler side of him when he’d taken such care not to scare her.
This slight shift in Briggs’s attitude had me daring to reconsider who he was to me, but I wasn’t ready to trust him enough to go there yet.
Chapter Eleven
Scream in the Dark
~~Briggs~~
Michella looked good enough to eat.
As much as I loved my bacon burgers, I’d much rather feast on her any day of the week. Only we were currently in the friend zone.
One thing I did know. I’d do almost anything she wanted to be around her, and that was fucking pathetic. I kept expecting this obsession with Michella to eventually pass, but it didn’t. I hadn’t looked at other women since I met her. She was a tough act to follow, especially in bed, and no one else came close.
Unfortunately, she wanted me to open up more. I wasn’t that kind of guy. I kept my feelings bottled inside and my cards close to my chest. I didn’t gush about my feelings or shit like that. I’d been closemouthed before my grandfather and sister had died. That was who I was.
She’d invited me for a drink tonight, but I’d be smart not to read too much into it. Michella struggled to hold something in. She’d been literally bouncing off the walls these past few minutes.
“Is something going on?” I caught her quick glance of surprise at my question. I didn’t talk about my feelings and rarely asked others about theirs.
“I have great news.” Michella bubbled over with excitement. She drummed her fingers on the table and tapped one foot on the rung of the bar chair.
“What?” I leaned forward and wrapped both hands around my beer, drinking in her beautiful face, currently animated with excitement. Her big sparkling brown eyes always made my body react, and tonight was no exception. As hard as I tried to resist, I wanted her. Other than hockey, she occupied my thoughts too much for someone who’s only supposed to be a friend. Of course, that was her idea, not mine.
“My agency has been hired to investigate Pria Evans’s disappearance, and Carla wants my help.”
“That’s wonderful.” I was genuinely happy for Michella. “Pria, is she the one that was last seen in this bar?”
“Yes, she is. They’ve never found her body, but it’s suspected she’s a victim of the Rose City Killer.” Thinking of Pria sobered her somewhat.
“Are you sure that’s safe?” My stomach clenched with worry. Investigating the victim of a serial killer could be dangerous, especially when one of the persons of interest happened to be her stalker.
A brief frown clouded her expression. “Is anything ever safe? Is walking down the street safe? Or driving my car on I-5? Or being around you?”
“I’m safe.”
“You’re not, Briggs, and we both know it.”
“I’d never do anything to you that you didn’t want me to do.”
“It’s what I want you to do that worries me.”
I sat back and studied her. Trying to formulate a response in my mind and having none. She’d admitted wrestling with the same problems I was when it came to our short-lived friendship. My wicked, selfish side was overjoyed that she was battling her sexual attraction to me.
She stared pointedly into my eyes as if expecting me to say something. I didn’t.
“Briggs, I can’t, not right now.”
Before I had a chance to ask for clarification, Trent and Jarrett, two of my teammates, sauntered to our table. They nodded at me.
“How are you, Michella?” Trent asked, and jealousy burned in my chest, even though I admitted to the ridiculousness of such an emotion. Trent was only being friendly. Yeah, right.
“I’m great.”
I glowered, not happy these two had interrupted a serious conversation and appeared to be oblivious or, worse, they got perverse pleasure out of it.
“Any good dirt tonight? What’re the specials? Is Boston winning? I’m rooting for them against my old team. I guess I’m still holding a grudge over them not protecting me in the expansion draft.” Jarrett talked a mile a minute. The kid never fucking shut up. I shot him a cutting glare, but he didn’t even notice. His mouth might be moving, but I no longer heard anything he said. I tuned him out.
He continued to jabber to no one in particular. Michella caught my eye with a raised brow, and I nodded in agreement.
“Is Leila here?” Jarrett scanned the room.
No one said a thing. We hadn’t expected him to give us time to respond. Silence loomed around the table for several seconds before Michella broke the quiet.
“She’s bartending.” She pointed toward the empty bar. Leila came out of the back room as if on cue.
Jarrett’s gaze followed her. “I’ll be back.” He didn’t wait for an answer but walked toward Leila and straddled a stool at the counter.
“He’s had a crush on her for a while.” Trent grinned. “I don’t get the impression she’s all that interested.”
Michella shrugged. “No clue. I don’t know Leila well.”
“Hey, how is everyone?” Desmond stopped by the table. I sighed; so much for having Michella to myself. I let out an exasperated sigh, but no one paid any attention.
“You managed to get away from the Uni for one night?” Michella’s welcoming smile lit up her entire face. I wanted her to smile at me like that. Again that green monster churned my stomach.
“Aspen and Everly are handling things, so I have a rare night off.” He waved at someone across the room. “Later. I see some friends over there.” He left us and walked to the bar, where he joined a few of the regulars he appeared to know.
“Heidi’s working here?” Trent’s gaze laser-focused over my shoulder. Heidi stood behind the bar, looking about as lost as anyone could, while Leila hustled between the bar and the tables.
“She is.”
This entire Heidi thing bothered me. First of all, she’d obviously gotten in some kind of trouble, disappeared for a month or more, and returned in bad shape. Only she wasn’t talking, and I didn’t appreciate the secrecy. Her line of work invited trouble, and I hated to see Michella caught up in it.
“It was nice chatting with you guys.” Trent deserted us for Heidi. My grouchy self bit back a smart reply. He’d talked to Michella and avoided any direct contact with me.
“Don’t hurry back,” I grumbled, but he gave no indication he heard me.
“Don’t be rude, Briggs. That’s why you’re in this trouble with the team.”
“Rude? Me?” I pointed at my chest to accentuate my question that didn’t need an answer. “They were just as rude. They interrupted us and barely spoke to me.”
“They were only being friendly, which you should appreciate that they’re still giving you a chance.”
“He didn’t hear me.” I dipped my chin and slumped in my chair, crossing my arms over my chest. She was right, which I hated to admit.
“What if he did?” Her eyes flashed fire as she met my gaze, scaling my walls to uncover the guy underneath. I hated anyone seeing that guy, but Michella had seen him more than most. She’d never mentioned witnessing my vulnerable side, but she knew it lurked in my shadows. I slammed down the shutters and averted my eyes.
I decided to take the heat off me and put it on her. “What do you really know about Heidi? Maybe she’s a secret drug addict or will rob you blind.”
“She isn’t. Aspen and Leila are her best friends. They’d have said something.”
“And then there’s your job. Helping to investigate the suspected victim of a serial killer is dangerous.”
“Are we going to hash this out again?”
“We could.” In the past, I purposely prodded her because angry sex was hot as fuck, and so was the makeup sex. This time, my ulterior motive wasn’t sexually motivated. I was genuinely worried about her.
“What I do is my business, not yours. Take your caveman mentality and shove it up your—”
“Hi, guys,” said Heidi. For the first time tonight, I was grateful for an interruption. “Can I get you another round?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Your food should be up any moment.”
“We’re not in a hurry,” Michella said with a kind smile.
Heidi nodded and returned to the bar. I watched briefly while Leila showed her how to mix drinks. I noted my teammates were intent on both women. Whatever worked for them.
“So where am I supposed to shove my caveman mentality?” I rarely teased but had the urge to lighten our mood.
“You know where.” She gave my shin a kick under the table, and I yelped, not because it hurt but because she’d surprised me. Her self-satisfied smirk didn’t piss me off; instead, it got me hot. Everything Michella did made me burn all over.
We exchanged glares, but I wasn’t worried. We were a bit like oil and water when we were together, but our conflicts made things interesting. I saw the heat in her eyes. She was aroused, too.
“Are you going to strip me naked and help me put my caveman where it needs to go?” I grinned wickedly, knowing I’d get a rise out of her.
“I’m going to—” She stopped dead midsentence as she stared over my shoulder at something or someone. Her face paled, and she hugged herself as if to protect herself from harm. Gone was my sassy Michella, who loved to trade barbs and never held back what she really wanted to say. Her eyes grew big with what I could only describe as fright. She leaned forward with one hand on the table as if on the verge of bolting.
“Michella.” I touched her arm, alarmed by her sudden transformation. She shook my hand off her.
Swiveling in my chair, I saw the object of her fear and went into full protective mode.
“I’ll get rid of the fucker.” I started to stand, but Michella placed a restraining hand on my arm.
“Briggs, no. Last time you tangled with him, you were suspended. Don’t do it again.”
“He has a restraining order,” I growled. “He needs to leave.”
“He did. I didn’t follow through, and it was only temporary. He hasn’t been bothering me.”
“He is now, and someone’s been harassing you at your work.”
“We don’t know why he came in here.” I noted she didn’t mention the incidents with the prowler.
“I do,” I said as Gordon and I locked eyes. His gaze was smugly menacing, as if he believed he had the upper hand and the situation was in his control.
Gordon walked past our table and didn’t look our way. Michella held my arm as if expecting me to jump to my feet and shove this guy against the bar. Not a bad idea now that I thought of it.
“That asshole is here to harass you.”
“He comes often enough, according to Leila.”
“Looking for you?”
“He doesn’t ask about me. Briggs, he’s not going to run me out of here. I don’t like him here any more than you do.” She said the last sentence so quietly I wasn’t sure I’d heard her correctly, but one look at her beautiful face, and I knew I had.
I ran through several possible comebacks in my head, but none of them worked, so I said nothing.
Gordon sat down at the bar and snapped his fingers at Heidi. “Rum and Coke and make it quick.”
Heidi stared up at him, her eyes wide with fear. She knew who this asshole was, and she was scared of him. I glanced at Michella.
“Are you sure I can’t thump him?”
“Just wait.”
“Fucking hurry up,” Gordon growled with impatience.
Carrying a tray of dirty dishes, Leila hustled back to the bar. Her eyes blazed with anger as she shook a finger in his face. “You need to leave.”
He snorted and shook his head. “Rum and Coke. Now.”
Leila gritted her teeth and turned to Heidi. “Why don’t you bus some tables?”
“Good job for her. She’s not useful for much else unless she’s working on her back.” I caught the stricken expression on Heidi’s face, but to her credit, she continued with her job and didn’t acknowledge him. I had no such problem confronting the asshole. I was halfway out of my chair when everything happened so fast all I could do was watch.
Trent whipped around and hauled Gordon off his stool. Holding him by the collar, he backed him into the bar counter and glared down at him.
“Listen, you asshole. If I ever hear you being rude to the staff again, I’ll give you something to really complain about. I’d hate to see that pretty face of yours messed up and all your teeth busted out.”
I gaped at Trent and wondered where this guy had come from. Trent wasn’t a fighter on the ice; he was a smooth skater with superior puck-handling skills, but he left the intimidation to other team members. It wasn’t his jam.
“Damn,” Michella said next to me.
“No shit,” I agreed. “I didn’t see that coming.” Jarrett appeared by Trent’s side for backup, and I was itching to join them.
“Me neither, but he does seem to have a thing for Heidi.”
“Really?” I snapped my head around to look at her. She was dead serious. I’d suspected something the other night at the Uni, but I’d dismissed my suspicions. Turns out I wasn’t as clueless as I thought I was.
“Don’t look so shocked. She’s cute and kind and smart. Are you questioning his interest in her because she worked as an escort?” Michella had her hackles up, and I’d be smart to proceed with caution.
She had me there. I was judging Heidi based on her previous profession. “I guess so.”
“At least you’re honest.”
“I’m a work in progress, but I’m trying.” Our eyes met, and a silent message of approval passed from her to me. I was getting somewhere.
“How about I show you where the door is?” Trent bellowed, catching the attention of everyone in the bar. I spun back around and was halfway out of my chair when Michella grabbed my arm.
“Sit down. They don’t need you, and you don’t need any more trouble with that asshole.” I slumped into my chair, but I wasn’t happy about being relegated to the bleacher seats when a fight was on the horizon.
“I can leave on my own. I don’t need this shit. Plenty of other bars on this street.” Gordon pulled Trent’s hand off his collar and stalked toward the door. Trent and Jarrett followed him. Desmond brought up the rear.
“I’m leaving anyway. I’ll make sure he’s gone.” Desmond dogged Gordon out the door.
“Thanks, man,” Trent said, turning back toward the bar.
* * *
Trent and Jarrett reluctantly left a half hour later after I promised I’d see Heidi home safely and Leila to her car.
The bar closed at ten on Monday nights, and I nursed a beer as Heidi and Leila closed up. Once everyone was done, we exited the back door. Leila headed for her car. An ear-splitting scream of terror reverberated down the narrow alley. Every one of us froze. Heidi was poised for flight while I was ready for a fight.
“What the fuck?” I roared and spun in a slow circle in an attempt to identify where the sound had come from. We waited for several seconds and didn’t hear anything further.
“Get back in the bar and don’t come out until I tell you it’s safe. Lock the door.”
Michella grabbed my hand. “Briggs, you could be getting into a situation you can’t control. You’re not armed.”
I nodded grimly. “Someone needs help. I can’t ignore that.”
“Should we call 9-1-1?” Leila asked. Heidi said nothing, just hugged herself.
“Not yet.” The scream may have been nothing more than a teenage prank, but deep down, I knew it wasn’t that simple, not after what I’d heard.
I sprinted down the alley and onto the main street, looking left and right. The sound had echoed off the brick walls of the buildings, making it almost impossible to judge the origin.
Desmond emerged from around the corner. His eyes glinted with fear, and his breathing came in erratic gasps. He skittered down the alley while looking over his shoulder and stumbled to a stop a few steps in front of me. I guessed he’d heard that bone-chilling cry just as I had.
“Did you hear that?” I asked the obvious.
“I did. I can’t find her.” His tone reeked of desperation, and his gaze darted about the alley.
“Let’s go,” I said, already breaking into a jog. Desmond caught up with me. We scoured the blocks and alleys near the bar and opened every dumpster. We didn’t find a woman in distress or any signs of anything amiss, no purse on the ground or dropped cell phone, nothing to indicate a struggle.
“I guess it was nothing,” Desmond said, still surveying the surrounding area nervously.
“It didn’t sound like nothing.”
Desmond shrugged. “Everyone’s spooked since this is the serial killer’s hunting grounds.”
“I know.” I hated giving up, but we had nothing to go on. I held out a hand. “Thanks for helping.”
“Not a problem. By the way, I watched Gordon leave,” Desmond said.
“He could’ve come back.”
“He could’ve.”
“Should we call the police?” I was mistrustful of the police. I probably got that from my parents and my negative experiences with cops over the past few years.
“There’s really nothing to report. We didn’t find anything.”
“Well, thanks again.”
We said our goodbyes, and I did an about-face toward the alley just as Leila, Michella, and Heidi turned the corner and came toward me.
“Didn’t I ask you guys to wait in the bar?” I didn’t disguise my anger.
“We did for a while, but we were worried about you.”
“I can handle myself.”
Michella rolled her eyes. “Sure, Superman, you stop bullets with your palm to prevent someone from shooting you.”
I ground my teeth to stop myself from saying what I really wanted to say. Michella and I held each other’s gazes like two gunslingers sizing each other up. Damn, she was hot when she looked fierce like that.
