Beautiful Oblivion

CHAPTER SIX

THE BOTTLE CRASHED TO THE FLOOR, AND BOTH HANK and Raegan stared down at the broken shards and splattered liquid.

“Coors Light!”

“Vegas Bomb!”

“Fuck!” I said, bending down to pick it up.

“I got it,” Gruber said, hurrying behind the bar to clean up my mess.

Week two of my new job, and it was already beginning to wear on me. Going straight from class to Skin Deep wasn’t difficult Mondays or Tuesdays, but Wednesday through Sunday kicked my ass. Trying to keep up with studying and papers after a shift that lasted until after 2:00 AM, and then waking up for a 9:00 AM class was grueling.

“You all right?” Hank said into my ear. “That’s the first time you’ve dropped a bottle since you learned to flip ’em.”

“I’m fine,” I said, wiping my wet hands on the towel that was tucked into my back pocket.

“I said Coors Light!”

“Wait a goddamn minute!” Raegan yelled at the impatient jerk standing among forty other impatient jerks at my station. “I still don’t understand why you’re doing this for Coby,” she said, a residual frown still on her face.

“It’s just easier.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s called enabling. Why would he straighten up, Cami? He has you to bail him out after a two-minute guilt trip.”

“He’s a stupid kid, Ray. He’s allowed to screw up,” I said, stepping over Gruber to get to the Blue Curaçao.

“He’s your younger brother. He shouldn’t be a bigger fuckup than you.”

“Everything isn’t always the way it’s supposed to be.”

“Blue Moon!”

“Blind Pig!”

“You got Zombie Dust on tap?”

I shook my head. “Only in October.”

“What kind of bar is this? That’s one of the top ten beers ever made! You should have it year-round!”

I rolled my eyes. Thursday night was coin beer night, and always packed. The dance floor was shoulder to shoulder, and the bar was three rows deep of drink calling and doubled as a prime spot for what Hank affectionately called the Meat Market, and it wasn’t even eleven o’clock, when the rush would start.

“West corner!” Hank called.

“Got it!” Kody said, pushing through the crowd to get to a writhing mob.

The patrons were always more violent for two or three days after a fight. They’d watch Travis Maddox maul some guy without mercy, and then everyone at that fight walked away thinking they were equally invincible.

Raegan smiled, pausing for a few seconds to watch Kody work. “Damn, he’s hot.”

“Work, bitch,” I said, shaking the hell out of a New Orleans Fizz until my arms burned.

Raegan groaned, lined up five shot glasses, pulled the stack of napkins to the lower shelf, and then tipped a bottle of Chartreuse upside down. She overpoured the shot glasses, and then ran a thin line across a clean section of the bar. She flipped a lighter, and fire erupted.

The group closest to the bar leaned back, away from the flames crawling across the wooden plank in front of them, and then cheered.

“Back the fuck up!” Raegan yelled as the fire burned itself out after thirty seconds.

“Nice!” Trenton said, standing in front of me with his arms crossed.

“Stay away from the west corner,” I said, nodding to the red sea of swinging idiots parted by Kody and Gruber.

Trenton turned, and then shook his head. “Don’t tell me what to do.”

“Then get the hell away from my bar,” I said with a smirk.

“Feisty,” Trenton said, shrugging a few times.

“Bud Light!”

“Margarita, please!”

“Hey, sexy,” a familiar voice said.

“Hey, Baker,” I said with a smile. He’d been slipping twenties into my tip jar for over a year.

Trenton frowned. “You’re missing your shirt,” he said.

I looked down at my leather vest. Yes, my tits were out to play, but I worked at a bar, not a day care. “Are you saying you don’t approve of my attire?” Trenton began to speak, but I put my finger against his lips. “Aw, that’s cute. You thought I was really asking.”

Trenton kissed my finger, and I pulled back my hand.

Raegan slid a shot to Trenton, and winked at him. He winked back, lifted his glass to her, and then walked across the dance floor to the pool tables, not ten feet from the fight Kody and Gruber were still struggling with. Trenton watched for a few more seconds, shot the complimentary whiskey from Raegan, and then walked to the middle of the mob. Like a drop of oil in a bowl of water, the squabbling group backed away.

Trenton said a few words, and Kody and Gruber escorted two of the guys toward the exit.

“I should offer him a job,” Hank said, watching the scene from behind me.

“He wouldn’t take it,” I said, mixing another drink. Unlike his little brother, I could tell that Trenton would rather not fight. He just wasn’t afraid to, and like the other Maddox boys, it was ingrained in him as a default option for solving a problem.

Every few minutes for almost an hour, I found myself scanning the room for that buzzed brown hair and white T-shirt. The short sleeves fit snug around his biceps and broad chest, and I inwardly cringed for noticing. Trenton had always stood out to me, but I’d never tried to get to know him well enough to figure out why. He’d obviously stood out to a lot of females, and the thought of waiting in line didn’t appeal to me, but I still noticed. It was hard not to.

Trenton leaned over to take the winning shot at one of the pool tables, his white hat turned backward. Clearly one of his favorites, the dingy white still made his leftover tan from summer look even darker.

“Holy cow balls! There’s already been two fights at the entrance!” Blia said, her eyes wide. “Need a break?”

I nodded, taking payment for the last cocktail I’d made.

“Don’t be long. This place is five seconds away from blowing up.”

I winked. “I’m just going to pee, smoke, and I’ll be right back.”

“Don’t ever quit us,” Blia said, already starting a drink order. “I’ve decided that I’m not ready for the east bar, yet.”

“Don’t worry. Hank would have to fire me first.”

Hank threw a wadded-up napkin at my face. “You don’t have to worry about that, killer.”

I playfully punched his arm, and then made a beeline for the employees’ bathroom. Once inside the stall, I shimmied my panties down to my knees and sat, the bass of the music outside keeping a muffled but steady beat. The thin walls vibrated, and I envisioned my bones doing the same.

After checking my phone, I set it on top of the gray plastic toilet paper container. Still nothing from T.J., but I was the last person to text. I wasn’t going to be the kind of girl who begged for attention.

“You ’bout done?” Trenton said from the other side of the stall.

My entire body tensed. “What the hell are you doing in here? This is the girls’ bathroom, Stalker Texas Ranger.”

“Did you just insinuate I’m comparable to Chuck Norris? Because I’ll take that.”

“Get out!”

“Calm down. I can’t see you.”

I flushed the toilet, and then pushed open the stall door so hard it slammed against the sink counter. After washing my hands, and pulling out a couple of paper towels, I made sure to glare at Trenton.

“Glad to see employees really do what the sign says. I’ve always wondered.”

I left him alone in the bathroom, and headed out the employee entrance door.

The moment I stepped outside the chill cooled the bare parts of my skin. Cars were still pulling in and parking haphazardly on the grass on the far side of the lot. Car doors were slamming, and friends and couples were walking to the entrance, slowed by a long line of college students waiting for others to leave so they could get in.

Trenton stood next to me, pulled out a cigarette and lit it, and then lit mine. “You should really quit,” he said. “Nasty habit. Not attractive for a girl.”

I craned my neck at him.

“What? I’m not trying to be pretty. I’m not a girl.”

“I don’t like you.”

“Yeah, you do.”

“I’m not trying to be pretty, either.”

“You’re failing.”

I peeked over at him, trying my hardest not to feel flattered. A warm feeling pooled in my chest, and then began to spread, making it all the way down to my fingers and toes. He had the best worst effect on me. As if everything I was—and wasn’t—was desirable. I didn’t even have to try. Trenton’s unrepentant appreciation for everything he knew about me was addictive. I found myself wanting more, but I wasn’t sure if it was the way he made me feel that I liked so much, or the familiar feeling. This was like my first three months with T.J. The warmth I’d felt a second before faded, and I began to shiver.

“I’d offer you my jacket, but I didn’t bring one,” Trenton said. “I have these, though.” He held his arms a bit away from his body, palms up.

I shrugged. “I’m fine. How was the last few hours of work tonight?”

He crossed his arms across his chest. “You’re doing too good of a job. Hazel was bitching that you weren’t there, and then Calvin started in, too.”

“Did you at least take up for me?”

“What did you want me to say? Shut the fuck up, Hazel! She’s a terrible worker and I don’t want her here!”

“A real friend would have.”

Trenton shook his head. “You make no fucking sense. But I think I like it.”

“Thanks, I think.” I pinched the cherry off my cigarette and stepped on it. “Back to work.”

“Always,” Trenton said, following me back inside.

Blia returned to the front kiosk, and then Jorie came up to relieve Raegan. Trenton was working on his fourth bottle of beer by the time Raegan returned, and he seemed more irritated after every drink I made.

“You okay?” I asked over the music.

He nodded but didn’t stop staring at his intertwined fingers resting on the bar. I noticed for the first time that his T-shirt featured two pale bluebirds, above the words DO YOU SWALLOW? His many tattoos complemented the shirt and distressed jeans, but the pink, white, and purple plastic bracelet didn’t.

I touched the plastic with my index finger. “Olive?”

He turned his wrist a bit. “Yep.” Even the mention of his best friend didn’t cheer him up.

“What’s up, Trenton? You’re acting weird.”

“He’s here.”

“Who’s here?” I said, squinting while I shook another cocktail.

“The preppy douche bag I tossed out of Skin Deep.”

I glanced around, and there he was, just a few feet down from Trenton’s left, flanked by Jeremy and Kylie. She was in another short dress, only this one was gold and a lot tighter. “Just ignore him. We’re having a good time tonight.”

“We are? I’m sitting here by myself,” he snapped.

Clay smiled at me, but I looked down, hoping not to encourage any snide comments from him that would set Trenton off. No such luck.

“Look, Jeremy! It’s the bitchy secretary!” Clay said. He was drunker than he was in the tattoo parlor.

I looked for Kody, but didn’t see him. He was likely at the entrance, where the fights had been breaking out. Gruber was on the west wall, where scuffles were also known to occur. Tuffy was on break, so Hank was probably at the entrance checking IDs and taking money.

Clay still hadn’t seen Trenton, but Kylie had. She had one arm around Clay’s back, and one hand on his stomach, the tip of her ring finger tucked into the waist of his jeans. Even though she was draped against Clay, she kept her eyes on Trenton, waiting for him to notice her.

“I’ll take a bottle of Bud, Bitchy! And you’re not getting a tip, because you kicked me out the other night.”

“Want me to do it again?” I asked.

“I can take you into a dark alley and bend you over,” he said, weaving.

Trenton tensed, and I put my hand on his. “He’s plastered. Give me a sec and I’ll have Kody escort him out.”

Trenton didn’t look up at me, he just nodded, his knuckles white.

“I’m not in the mood for your shit tonight. Go order from the kiosk.”

“Beer me, bitch!” Clay said, just before he noticed whose hands I was holding.

Trenton left his seat, barreling through a few people.

“Trent, no! Goddammit!” I jumped over the bar, but not before Trenton got a couple of punches in. Clay was already on the ground, bleeding. I fell on my knees and covered my head, covering Clay with my body at the same time.

Jorie screamed over the music. “Cami, no!”

When nothing happened, I looked up, seeing Trenton standing over us, his fist shaking and high in the air. Kylie was standing next to Trenton, looking down on us. She was simply spectating, not the least bit concerned about Clay.

Kody and Raegan were standing next to me when I stood up, and Kody helped Clay to his feet. Jorie pointed to Clay, and Kody took him by the arm.

“All right. Let’s go,” Kody said.

Clay yanked his arm from Kody’s grasp and wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve.

“You want to go again, sunshine?” Trenton asked.

“Fuck you,” Clay said, spitting blood on the floor. “Let’s go, Kylie.”

Trenton pulled Kylie against his side and pointed at her. “Is this your girl?”

“What about it?” Clay asked.

Trenton grabbed Kylie and leaned her back, planting an open kiss on her mouth. She kissed him back, and for a few seconds they were both more than enthusiastic. Trenton slid his hand down her side and then cupped her ass with one hand, keeping her neck in the crook of his other arm.

My stomach dropped, and just like everyone else, I froze until Trenton stood her upright and gently pushed her toward Clay.

Clay made a face, but he didn’t react. Kylie was more than pleased, and turned to give Trenton one last flirtatious glance while Clay dragged her by the hand toward the entrance. Kody followed them out, but not before making a what the fuck face to Raegan, and then to me.

It wasn’t until then that I realized every muscle in my body was tense.

I approached Trenton and pointed at his chest. “You pull that shit again, and I’ll have you thrown out of here.”

One side of Trenton’s mouth turned up. “The punching, or the kissing?”

“Is your ass jealous of the amount of shit that comes out of your mouth?” I said, walking around the bar.

“I’ve already heard that one!” Trenton called back. He grabbed his beer off the bar, and then strolled over to the pool tables like nothing happened.

“Not to piss all over your parade, sister, but you look angry,” Raegan said.

I began washing mugs like I hated them, because in that moment, I hated everything. “I couldn’t stand him in high school, and I can’t stand him now.”

“You’ve been hanging out with him a lot for someone you can’t stand.”

“I thought he’d changed, but apparently not.”

“Apparently not,” Raegan deadpanned, popping the top on three beer bottles, one after another.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up,” I chanted, trying to drown out her words. I didn’t want him, anyway. What did it matter to me if he was a man whore who stuck his tongue down someone’s throat just to piss off her boyfriend?

The fast pace behind the bar continued, but fortunately the fights died down just before last call. It was always a huge pain in the ass trying to get out of there when the whole place broke out into a brawl at closing time. The lights came on, and the crowd dispersed. For once, Kody and Gruber didn’t have to go into asshole mode to get the stragglers out. Instead, they politely encouraged people to leave, and Raegan and I closed down the bar. Lita and Ronna walked in with brooms and other cleaning supplies. By 3:00 a.m., the bartenders were all ready to leave, and per policy, Kody and Gruber walked us to our cars. Walking Raegan out every night and filling those short moments with subtle charm was exactly how Kody had finally convinced her to let him take her on a date. Gruber walked me to the Smurf, both of us pulling our coats tighter to ward off the cold. When Trenton’s car, and then Trenton standing next to it, came into view, Gruber and I paused at the same time.

“Need me to stay?” Gruber asked quietly as we continued walking.

“What are you going to do?” Trenton hissed. “Nothin’.”

I wrinkled my nose, disgusted. “Don’t be a dick. You don’t get to be an ass to guys who are mean and nice to me.”

“What about those of us who are both?” he said, his eyebrows moving in.

I nodded to Gruber. “I’m good.”

Gruber nodded, and walked back into the Red.

“You’re drunk,” I said unlocking the driver’s-side door of the Jeep. “Did you call a cab?”

“Nope.”

“One of your brothers?”

“Nope.”

“So you’re walking home?” I said, pulling on the shiny red bottle cap opener key ring sticking out of his jeans pocket. His keys came along with it.

“Nope,” he said, smiling.

“I’m not driving you home.”

“Nope. I don’t let girls drive me, anymore.”

I opened my car door, and then sighed, pulling out my cell phone. “I’ll call you a cab.”

“Kody is going to give me a lift.”

“If he keeps taking you home, you’re going to have to make it Facebook official.”

Trenton laughed, but then his smile faded. “I don’t know why I did that. With her. Habit, I guess.”

“Weren’t you the one talking about nasty habits earlier?”

“I’m a piece of shit. I’m sorry.”

I shrugged. “Do what you want.”

He looked wounded. “You don’t care.”

After a short pause, I shook my head. I couldn’t bring myself to lie out loud.

“Are you in love with him? Your guy?”

“C’mon, Trent. What is this?”

Trenton’s face compressed. “You and me . . . we’re just friends, aren’t we?”

“Sometimes I’m not sure if we’re that.”

Trenton nodded, and then looked down. “All right. Just checking.” He walked away, and I huffed in frustration.

“Yes,” I called out to him.

He turned, watching me expectantly.

“We’re friends.”

A small smile touched his lips, and then it spread into a full-blown grin. “I know.” He shoved his hands into his pockets as he strolled across the parking lot like he owned the world.

Once he hopped inside Kody’s truck, my stomach sank. I was in trouble. Big, disastrous, Maddox trouble.