Rome: A Marked Men Novel (19 page)

love our kids. You’ve got a lot of stuff going on in your life right now, Rome. Don’t let the things and

people that have always been there slip away.”

I just stared at him because I didn’t know what to say to that. I liked Brite a lot, looked up to him, was

starting to really view him as a mentor, but I didn’t need him trying to fix every aspect of my life. I was

going to turn the engine on and take off but he put a hand on my shoulder to stop me.

“I’ve got some stuff going on over the next few weeks, and I would appreciate it if you kept an eye on

the bar and the guys while I’m in and out. I can pay you for it.”

“I don’t know anything about bartending, Brite.”

“I said keep an eye on it, not mix drinks. Darcy can tend bar, or you can find someone to help you out

until the end of the month. Granted the tips aren’t anything to write home about right now, but you’re

getting the place cleaned up real nice so that might change in the near future.”

“So what exactly do you want me to keep an eye on?”

“The crowd in the evening. The regulars. Make sure the guys aren’t going off the rails. Make sure

everyone acts right and gets home safe. I appreciate all the work you’ve put into the place, and I figure

you’re not in any hurry to see it all messed up. I’ll ask Darce to show you how I do the cash out at the end

of the night and how to drop the deposit.”

“I guess I can manage all of that. Just for a couple weeks?”

I thought I saw him grin at me but with all that facial hair it was kind of hard to tell.

“For now. Don’t write your folks off forever, son. They need you just as much as you need them.”

I wondered if that was true. They used to need me to keep Rule in line and act as a buffer, then they

needed me to hold it all together when everyone vanished into a cloud of grief. Now I didn’t really know

how I fit into the fold other than as the troubled oldest son, and that was a big part of what made it so much

easier for me to stay away.

I started the Harley and pulled out of the lot. It only took ten minutes to make it to Capitol Hill. I usually

just left the bike or the truck at the apartment and walked to the shop since parking in the area sucked. Plus

I refused to ride in that little neon clown car Cora drove, so we usually had to do some switching off on

how we got from one house to another. I pushed open the door and walked up to the counter. She wasn’t

behind it, which was unusual, but my brother was leaning against the desk talking to Rowdy.

“Hey.”

He tilted his chin up in greeting and motioned toward the closed door that was off to one side of the

shop.

“She has a late client. She’s probably gonna be a few. You wanna go get something to eat when she’s

done?”

“I ate at the bar. Speaking of which, do you know anyone that knows how to bartend that can help me

out for a few days? Brite asked me to keep an eye on the place for the next few weeks and I don’t know a

thing about bartending.”

“You know how to drink vodka like it’s water.”

I popped him in the shoulder. “I remember more than a few nights where Crown Royal made you its

bitch, so let’s not point fingers.”

Rowdy chuckled and made his way over to join us. I really wanted to dislike the guy. I didn’t like that

he was so familiar with Cora, that the two of them had such an easy camaraderie, but he made it hard. He

was just an easygoing and totally affable guy. Plus his quirky sense of humor made him entertaining as hell

to hang around.

“Talk to Jet. He knows more people in this town than all of the rest of us combined. I bet he knows

someone that can help you.”

That was a good idea, but Jet was gone more than he was home anymore, and when he was around he

was usually wrapped up in Ayden. I didn’t envy them trying to juggle a new marriage and so much time

apart, but they looked happy and it seemed to be working just fine for them.

“I’ll do that.” I turned to look at the door as a guy came out followed by Cora. Her hair was flipped up

into a fancy curl at the front of her head today and she had on a short orange skirt. Her top was bright

purple and she had on black combat boots that laced up to her knees. She smiled at me when she saw me

leaning next to Rule and I caught the way the turquoise eye brightened just as the brown one darkened. She

was like a kaleidoscope of color and emotion, and whenever I looked at her, I never knew what was going

to be reflected back at me.

The guy leading the way out of the room looked at me then back at her as she took her seat back behind

the desk.

“Remember, be careful with it. They take a long time to heal.”

He nodded and forked over an amount of money that was surprising and gave her one last look. She

just smiled sweetly and looked up at me.

“You ready to go?”

I shrugged as she started to do the cash out for the end of the day.

“What part of that guy’s body did you just shove a needle through?”

She lifted her pale eyebrows at me, and I elbowed Rule in the side when he asked, “Do you really want

to know the answer to that?”

I made a face. “Seriously?”

It was her turn to shrug. “Don’t knock it until you try it, big guy.”

The idea of having anything sharp and pointy down there made me break out in hives. No thank you, I

would keep my junk metal-free. Not that I didn’t like her sweet little hoop that was attached to all my

favorite parts of her, it was hot as hell, but I didn’t need a door knocker hanging from my dick.

“I’ll pass, thanks.”

She paused in her counting to smirk up at me, and I wanted to kiss it off her face. “That’s okay, little

brother has enough down there for you and everybody else in the room.”

Rule burst into laughter and Rowdy chuckled, probably because the idea of Cora with her hands on

anything in Rule’s pants made me scowl at both of them.

“I could have lived forever without knowing that.”

She laughed and got up to make her way around the desk. She threw her arm across my shoulders and

kissed my temple where the end of my scar hooked down by my eye.

“Don’t worry, his was business, yours is all pleasure. Let’s get out of here.”

I followed her and the guys out so she could lock the door. The boys were gonna head to the Goal Line

and grab a beer and some wings. I wanted to get Cora someplace alone and horizontal so I could make her

forget she had ever been up close and personal with any part of my brother’s anatomy. She wanted to

spend the night at her place even though mine was closer because she had breakfast plans with Shaw and

Ayden in the morning, so I told her I would just meet her there after I went and picked up the truck. It was

kind of an even trade-off because my place was closer to the shop and hers was closer to the bar. My place

generally had less people in it, but I liked Ayden and Jet, and Asa was a character. Plus her bed was

awesome, even if it was covered in pink.

Cora was in the kitchen when I walked in the front door. She was puttering around making something

for dinner and talking on her cell phone. I didn’t want to interrupt, so I plopped down on the couch and

looked up as Asa came into the room. The walking cast was off of his foot, but he was still moving pretty

slowly.

“You get that off today?”

He sank gingerly into the recliner across the room.

“Yesterday. It feels like it’s going to fall off.”

“I had one when I got blown up last year, but mine wasn’t as bad. My shoulder took the brunt of it.”

“It blows.”

I was going to tell him that maybe he should avoid situations where he pissed off a bunch of bikers but

that seemed kind of hypocritical, so I just asked him if he knew when Jet was going to be back in town. He

shook his head and bent down to rub his shinbone.

“No clue. I think he mentioned that he was coming back for a week and then he wanted Ayd to come

with him to L.A. for a week after her summer classes were done.”

“I need to find someone to help me keep an eye on the bar I’ve been fixing up, I thought he might

know someone.”

Those gold-colored eyes glinted at me from across the room.

“I can do it.”

I tilted my head to look at him. “Really?”

“Yeah, why not? I’m sick of being cooped up in the house. Ayd is on my case about everything under

the sun and I could seriously do with some … companionship, if you know what I mean.”

I totally did but I wasn’t sure the Bar was the kind of place he would find it.

“Have you ever bartended before?”

Asa laughed a little. “There isn’t much I haven’t done before. All you have to do is stand behind the bar

and talk to people. Trust me, I can talk to anyone.”

I thought it was probably a bit more complicated than all of that, but if he was willing to help me out,

why not?

“Cool. It isn’t like some high-end, swanky bar where you’re going to be pulling tail and rolling in

money.”

“Rome, I just need to get out of this house before my sister and I kill each other. She’s still working on

forgiving me and frankly I’m sick of my own company. It’ll give me something to do, until I figure out

where I’m going and what I’m doing from here on out.”

That all rang just a few shades too familiar, so even though I didn’t really know Asa from Adam, I was

willing to take the help. Cora wrapped her arms around my neck from behind the couch and put her cheek

next to mine.

“What’s on the agenda for the night, big guy?”

She and I and a whole lot less clothing were what was on my agenda, but I wasn’t going to say that in

front of Asa. Good thing great minds think alike because it didn’t take much more than a look and the

brush of some fingers across the top of her bare leg to get my plans for the night across to her. Seriously,

having this girl in my life made everything else I was dealing with seem so much less important. My folks,

my future, the bar … all of it took a backseat to the way those two-toned eyes flashed and sparkled at me.

It only took until the next weekend for things to go to hell.

I wasn’t able to spend as much time with Cora because I was at the bar until closing. It might not be a

crazy-busy place but I had no clue how much went into keeping the natives from getting restless and tearing

the walls down. I was surprised at how much I actually liked it, though. I liked the ebb and flow of the

business, the interaction with the customers, the interaction with the liquor reps and the sales guys. I felt

like I was actually working for the first time since I got back home. I missed my girl, but she was a champ

about it, and I think maybe I needed some breathing room, because the more days that went by that she

didn’t have her monthly visitor, the more anxious and keyed up she seemed to be. She must have blabbed

to the girls because there was no escaping the narrow-eyed looks I was getting from Ayden every time we

bumped into each other, or from Shaw whenever I spent time with her and Rule.

I was also surprised at what a natural Asa was behind the bar. The guy was a born bullshitter, and by

the end of the night, from even just a handful of regulars and jaded barflies, he made more in tips than I

had ever seen Brite or anyone else take home. He was an all-right bartender, but his gift of gab and plethora

of charm made up for it in spades. I even noticed an increase in the younger, female clientele in the few

days he had taken up his spot back there. I figured maybe I could talk Brite into keeping him around when

he got back.

On Saturday night I left as early as I could and put Asa in charge of shutting the place down. Jet had

pulled me aside a few days after mentioning that we were going to be working at the bar together in order

to give me a little of Asa’s background. He warned me that essentially he was a good guy, but not to let all

that Southern charm fool me. Jet said to watch my back and not to trust Asa as far as I could throw him. I

always heeded warnings when they came from people I trusted, but so far Asa had been nothing but an

awesome partner in crime and I missed spending time with Cora. Leaving him in charge for a night was a

risk I was willing to take.

When I got to the house she was asleep on the couch. Jet and Ayden were gone for the night, so I

scooped her up and took her in her room to put her to bed. She woke up when I was pulling her swirly

hot-pink sundress off over her head. She blinked those wicked-colored eyes at me and tried to focus.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

She yawned and stretched her arms up over her head. The one with all the brightly inked flowers on it

curled around my neck on the way down.

“I’m exhausted.”

I let her tug me down so I could kiss her on her waiting mouth.

“Long day at work?”

She shook her head and ran her fingers over the short hair on the back of my head.

“No. Just sleepy all day. I was going to stay awake and wait up for you but I couldn’t keep my eyes

open.”

I kissed her again and she put her hands under the hem of my T-shirt.