Bouncer by Kim Jones Page 0,11
I take my time getting to ten, and when I do, I meet his angry gaze and hold up both my middle fingers.
He takes a breath. “Girl…I’m about to lose my shit.”
The door opens and North pokes his head out. “Everything okay out here?”
“No!” we both shout in unison. But I’m a fast speaker, so I blurt my side first. “He’s been a dick to me ever since we met. And I’ve done nothing but be nice.”
“Bull-fucking-shit!” He points his finger at me and rises on his toes. The malice in his tone is quite clear. And his body is shaking with anger.
I roll my eyes. “Oh, stop with your fucking temper tantrum. You look like a three-year-old.”
He chews on his lip. Closes his eyes. Takes some deep breaths. I’d bet anything he was counting in his head. Probably some shit a therapist told him to do when he got too angry.
When he opens his eyes, I take a step back.
Maybe I should be a little scared….
“You know what?” He shakes his head and shoves his hands in his pockets. “I’m not fucking doing this.” His voice is calm now. And ten times scarier than his mad voice. “I want her gone. Now. I’ll be in the chapel.” He steps through the door without a second glance at me.
“Well…that was rude.”
North cuts his eyes at me and I swallow back my other smartass comment. “Sly told you to stay away from him, did he not?”
I nod. “Yes.”
“Then why are you out here?”
“Because he drug me out here. I was sitting on the barstool minding my own business. He kept staring. So I stared back.”
“And?”
I drop my head and twist the toe of my shoe into the grass. “And I may or may not have shouted at him across the room. And flipped him off…twice.”
“Goddammit, Apple.”
“I’m sorry! But he’s so mean to me.”
North holds his hand up. “Shut up. Just…shut the fuck up. Take the rest of the week off. Sly will get up with you Friday. We’ll sort this out then.”
“But I didn’t do anything wrong,” I whine. My head feels a little woozy and I have to focus my eyes to keep from spinning.
“I like you, Apple. We all do. You get away with a lot of shit around here because we know you don’t mean any harm. But he doesn’t know that. You disrespected him. And he doesn’t do well with that.”
I blink back tears. “Are you…firing me?”
“What? No. Just stay out of sight until he’s gone. Okay?”
I’d nod in agreement, but I might vomit. “Yeah. Okay.”
“Want me to call you a cab?”
“No. I’ve got it.”
North seems unsure, but eventually he nods. “We’ll be in the chapel, so you can wait inside until your ride shows up. It’s fucking freezing out here.” He shivers and moves his hand to my back to escort me in.
“I’m gonna stay out here. Just until my ride gets here,” I add on a rush. “Might help me sober up a bit.”
“Fine.” He points his finger at me. “Be good. I’ll see you next week.”
He disappears inside and I fall back against the door, shame already filtering through my alcohol barrier.
Well, dumbass. You really did it this time.
Seven
BOUNCER
“What the fuck do you mean you don’t have a background check on her?” I’m out of my seat. Banging my fist on the table. Fucking livid that my brothers don’t have the basic information to do the recon I need.
“That’s my bad, brother,” Chaos says, speaking up and taking the blame like any good president would. “Didn’t figure we needed one. She’s no threat. And there’s not shit going on here anyway.”
“She’s weird, but she’s good for the house,” Jinx chimes in. “She doesn’t try to fuck anybody. And she’s not the type any of us want to fuck, either.” I notice Bash nod his head in agreement. North is the next to speak on her behalf.
“I think she’s funny. Last week she told one of the hang-arounds that if he shaved the bottom of his feet his pubes would fall out.”
They all laugh.
I grow more pissed by the second.
“I don’t like fucking germs.” I turn to Sly and he stares back at me, unfazed by my anger. “She keeps this place clean. Never missed a day of work. Never bitched about the mess. She drinks a lot, but who around here doesn’t?”
I close my eyes and take a breath in an attempt to check my anger. “Does anybody know anything about this girl? Other