Austin - Piper Stone Page 0,40

same as the one located at the street. However, an agency wasn’t handling the sale. I grabbed my phone, thankful there were a few bars denoting reception and dialed.

The gruff voice answering confirmed my belief.

“Yeah, I’m interested in the house on Castle Rock Road. What can you tell me about it?”

The laugh I heard was followed by a series of rough coughs. When he finally answered me, going into detail about everything that was wrong with the property, I remained quiet. I couldn’t tell if the person actually wanted to sell the place or not.

“How much is it?” I finally interrupted him. When he told me the price, I took another look at the dilapidated front. “I’ll take it. Oh, and I’m paying cash.”

Raunchy Ride.

The joint certainly wasn’t the place I remembered. As I pulled into the parking lot, I allowed the engine to idle as I studied the façade. And the number of vehicles in the parking lot. While the neon sign was similar to the one used in the past, the bright neon lights were now in blue instead of a garish pink. The music? Well, it was still country, blaring from outside speakers, likely drawing in the crowds that were obviously inside. Live music and from what I could tell, the musicians were damn good. Hell, it was only a little before ten at night. I could only imagine what the place would be like at closing time.

I was lucky to find a parking spot in the rear of the building and pulled in, taking my time getting off the bike, securing my helmet. There was a heavy chill in the air, the new jacket I’d purchased necessary for the open air ride. I’d spent the day dealing with paperwork, managing to work a deal with the owner of the house in order to allow me to take immediate possession. It was worth the extra cash, although the house was in worse shape inside than I’d expected. While it wasn’t livable, the place was all mine.

There was hesitation in my steps as I walked toward the entrance, forced to stand in line with rugged cowboys and the babes clinging to their arms. Everyone was in a good mood. While there was no entrance fee, the bouncers glared at me like I was some kind of monster prepared to shoot up the bar.

“Is Scorpion here?” I barked, keeping my tone the deepest baritone in my repertoire.

“Who’s asking?” the asshole bouncer asked.

I shifted closer, standing at least three inches taller than the prick. “A man who could snap your neck in thirty seconds.”

His nostrils flared, his eyes boring into mine, but he must have figured it was best not to fuck with me. He nodded down the short hallway into the bar. “He’s with some guys at a table in the back, right hand side.”

I started to move around him. When he was stupid enough to grab my arm, I lowered my head slowly, staring at his hand. It had been a long time since I’d broken a number of fingers. The mood I was in could make it my first order of business tonight.

“If you cause any shit, your ass is on the street. You feel me, bro?”

Laughing, I grabbed his hand, bending back his fingers. “Oh, I feel you. Asshole.”

He made a pained wheezing sound before taking a decided step back, acquiescing to my control. I waited a full five seconds before letting him go, shooting the other jerk who acted as if he was prepared to make a go for his hidden weapon a nasty look. Fortunately, he backed down as well.

I took long strides into the bar, taking a few seconds to enjoy the band. They were damn decent. As I scanned the bar, I couldn’t help but notice an entirely different atmosphere than years gone by. While the place wasn’t polished, it certainly wasn’t the shithole I remembered. Scorpion had done a damn good job. I pushed through the crowd, admiring not only the well-lit bar, but the cocktail waitresses, every one of them gorgeous as fuck.

But no one was as beautiful as Franny.

Shit. There I went again, allowing her to crowd into my thoughts. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t do that, but as with everything else lately, I’d failed miserably. There were televisions positioned in several corners of the room, and lo and behold, the mechanical bull had survived after all these years. For some reason, the sight of it gave me a