“I’ll get rid of her.” Detective O’Connor grabbed my arm, but I jerked away.
“Gladly,” I snapped, stomping passed them. I barreled down the stairs and out of the house. Mandy followed me shortly after, yelling something or another I didn’t catch.
“Jane!” Mandy shouted, seizing me by the arm. “Are you even listening to me?”
“No, not really.” I shook my head apologetically. “But I’m telling you those people locked her up in that room. Didn’t you see the marks from the locks on the door?” I gestured back to the house where Detective O’Connor came charging out.
“What the hell was that?” he shouted at me but to my surprise, Mandy stepped in front of me.
“Leave it alone,” she ordered.
“But she just insulted our victim’s family. You can’t let her get away with that.” Detective O’Connor glared at me.
I flipped him off.
“I can and am,” Mandy answered. “The captain asked for her help, and we are going to take it. That means looking at all the other scenarios, and Jane has just brought one to our attention that we would have otherwise never noticed. Now, I’m only going to ask you once, detective. Back the fuck off.”
Go, Mandy! I wanted to jump up and down for my bestie but thought better of it.
Detective O’Connor snarled at Mandy but didn’t say anything else. He turned on his heel and stomped toward what I could only assume was his car.
When he was gone, I clapped Mandy on the shoulder with a grin. “Way to go, mama.”
Mandy nodded. “No one messes with my girl.”
9
Normally, I would do anything it took to get out of work. Call in sick, or what not. But tonight, I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in my work.
Perfect for a Saturday night.
The music was booming, and the customers were impatient. Most were drunk before they even got to the bar. I’d had to call Terry to dump ice on a few who were getting handsy already. It was perfect for the mood I was in.
Violence permeated through my veins, and I was just itching for someone to say one more thing to rile me up.
“Hey weirdo!” a familiar voice shouted over the crowd and a mean smile spread across my lips. Maybe I should wish for a pony next.
Turning to the voice, I took in the annoying chatterbox leaning over the bar. His hair was filled with so much product a match would catch it on fire. He had the typical douchebag attire, colorful, collared shirt adorned with a shell necklace he’d probably gotten at the Gap.
Saddling up to him, I grabbed a rag from the counter. This could get messy. “Hey, Pete. What are you having tonight?”
Pete didn’t even try to be discrete as he took in my cleavage and licked his lips. “I’ll have a glass of your fine ass.”
I chuckled menacingly. “Oh, Pete. You couldn’t afford me.”
“Oh sure, I could. Besides, who’s going to pay for a fucked-up bitch like you?” Pete chugged his glass, laughing the entire time.
As if knowing I needed him, Lucifer appeared. His hands slid around my waist, drawing me closer through the power of tingles alone.
The feel of his presence near my back made me relax slightly, but my anger still pulsated through me. I was almost shaking with it.
“Love,” Lucifer purred, his hands moving up and down my sides, making my skin buzz. “You’re vibrating with power. I’ve never felt so much need for vengeance. It’s intoxicating.”
I wasn’t sure what he was talking about and didn’t care. I just wanted to beat Pete’s face in. Too many witnesses. Can’t go to jail.
I forced myself to take a deep breath and let it out. Giving Pete my best kilowatt smile, I said, “You have a nice night, Pete.”
I turned away from him, but he caught my wrist in his grip, stopping me. Lucifer growled in response. These guys sure were getting pretty protective of me. Too bad they couldn’t help. Damn incorporeal-ness and all.
“Let me go.” I locked eyes with the drunken idiot.
“Or what? You’ll throw a drink at me? Summon the forces of darkness?” He laughed, looking at the guys sitting on each side of him. They had the good sense not to laugh with him and even tried to move away from him.
“You know,” I said with a bitter grin. “Every day of my life, I get crap from creeps like you, and I’ve had about enough of it. So, why don’t you go take your happy self elsewhere? Maybe search for that brain you seem to lack.”
The idiot didn’t know when to quit. He opened his mouth to spew whatever filth he had concocted. Before he could get a word of it out there, a fist flew through the air and right into his disgusting face.
A round of ‘ooh’s’ and cheers filled the crowd as Terry shook his hand and summoned Bret to throw the asshole out. Grinning at me, the cowboy said, “Man that felt good. Not my hand, but the rest. You okay?”
I nodded, smiling. “Yeah, thanks for having my back.”
“Anytime, sweetheart.” Terry clapped me on the arm and headed back to his side of the bar.
Lucifer chuckled and tried to brush a piece of hair from my face, which I then did on my own. I turned my back on the bar, glaring at him. “You’re no help.”
The angel shrugged. “I knew you could handle yourself. Besides, I have the whole not being able to touch anything problem.”
“Well, one of these days I might actually need you to be involved. What will you do then?” I fiddled with something by the cash register to hide our conversation.
Leaning up against the wall, Lucifer stroked a finger down the side of my arm, leaving a line of goosebumps in its place. “I guess I’ll have to come to your rescue then, won’t I?”
“And how will you do that?” I clicked my tongue at him. “Punch your hand in and out of them? You can’t deal out any pain unless they are in Hell.”
The delicious sound of his laughter caused my body to react. See, I’d decided to wear a backless top today which meant I’d gone without a bra, and my nipples were on full display. At least, I’d worn pants to hide some of my arousal, not that it helped by the way Lucifer was acting.
“Hell’s not so bad, especially when you have a friend in charge.” Lucifer winked at me before disappearing without a final grope. I had to say I was a bit disappointed. He worked me up so tightly and then left me hanging.
Not fair.
The rest of the night was about the same. By closing time I’d lost count of how many drinks I’d poured and how many I’d dropped on my shoes. These boots were ruined.
By the time the bar closed, my mind only wanted one thing. Sleep. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t be able to see my bed for at least another hour. My stomach and my fridge would not let me go one more day on empty.
Stopping at the local grocery store, I would like to say only healthy choices ended up in my basket. But, as I put my items on the conveyor belt, I realized the only thing close to healthy coming from my basket was the strawberry ice cream carton.
The cashier raised a brow as she scanned the five bottles of wine. Standing by my purchases, I shot her a warning look, daring her to question my selection.
“Having a party?” the cashier asked, bagging my third bag of chips. Clearly, I needed to work on my menacing scowls.
“Nope,” I said with a pop of my lips. “Just like chips.”
“And wine.” She nodded to the other bags already back in my basket.
A chuckle came from behind me, and I glanced back to see two teens exchanging looks and not even bothering to hide their laughter at my expense. I gave them my best mom look, which did nothing to deter them.
Since I’d failed at being a responsible adult, I turned back to the cashier with a cheery grin. “You know what? I lied before, I am having a party.”
“Oh yeah?” the cashier asked, her tone of voice saying she didn’t believe me.