I nod as she walks to the end of the bar and lifts the part of the counter that brings her to this side. When her full body comes into view, I finally see what the bar hid for the night and I nearly have a stroke. My heart thuds loudly in my chest as my body wars between having a heart attack and shooting my load in my pants.
“What the ever-loving fuck?” I bellow, making her jump and catching the attention of the other staff members.
She turns to face me with a look that promises me pain, but it's lost on me thanks to my anger heating my blood. I stand and slip off my suit jacket and stomp over to her, slipping it over her shoulders before she can protest. When she tries to speak, I slam my mouth down on hers, surprising the shit out of both of us, but something tells me that this might be the most effective way of getting her to shut up.
I stare at her in shock as she pulls away and slaps my face hard before snagging my shirt by the collar and dragging my lips back down to hers. I comply without any fuss and deepen the kiss, the taste of her on my tongue sparking off a thousand memories before she tears herself away and swears.
"Motherfucker." She stomps away, heading behind the bar, and I let her, needing a moment to reboot my brain.
This woman is a fucking witch. I sit at the bar, ignoring the rest of the staff who surreptitiously watch me without saying a word until Linda comes back, thankfully wearing more clothing than she had on before.
"Let's go asshole," she snaps.
I don't call her on her smart mouth but she needs to learn that if she pisses me off, I'm going to have fun filling it with more than just dirty words.
I follow behind her until we make it out to the parking lot and watch as she pulls out her phone.
"What are you doing?" I question, walking closer to her and placing my hand on the small of her back.
"I'm calling an Uber. We can meet at the diner on sixth." She’s about to hit the green button, but I pull the phone from her hands and slide it into my pocket.
"Hey, asshole. Give that back.”
"Carry on mouthing off, Linda. I'm not going to lie, all those dirty words of yours are drawing my attention to your lips and what other dirty little things that mouth of yours can do.”
“Well, considering you forgot what this dirty little mouth could do once before, I would say it wasn't that memorable to begin with, so maybe you should just cut your losses and leave me alone.”
"Nope. Now get in the car," I say firmly herding her over to my black Mercedes parked in the corner.
"Yeah, stranger danger 101 says don't get into cars with men you don't know,” she says with a shake of her head.
“I'm your husband,” I remind her.
“And the biggest stranger of all,” she adds quietly, the fight suddenly draining from her.
“Come on, let me get you a coffee and some pancakes or something. You promised me five minutes. That’s all I need right now, and you look ready to drop.”
She watches me for a moment. I can’t tell what she's thinking but I suspect none of it is good.
“Fine, but if you try anything funny, I will kick you so hard in your balls you'll be tasting dick for a week.”
“Deal,” I quickly agree.
She climbs into the car with a sigh and I follow suit, pulling out when she's buckled up. Driving in the direction she points, I steal glances at her as she tries her best to ignore me.
“What?” she says warily.
“Just admiring the view,” I tell her with a smile, making her huff and turn away.
I pull over where she indicates and as soon as I stop, Linda is out of the car before I’ve even turned off the engine. I take my time getting out, running over what I want to say to her in my head as I follow her into the diner.
It’s quiet in here at this time of night, but there are a few stragglers. Some have worked a night shift themselves. Others look like they've stumbled out of a club, their alcohol pickled brains insisting they need something greasy before they pass out or end up praying to the porcelain gods.
I let Linda choose where she wants to sit, keeping myself a few paces behind her. When she slides onto the cracked upholstery seat of one of the booths near the back of the room, I ignore social etiquette and climb in next to her, effectively pinning her in.
“Ugh, figures,” she moans but doesn't argue further, likely already knowing I won't budge.
The waitress comes and I order coffee and pancakes for both of us, even as Linda protests.
"You need to eat. You've been on your feet all night."
Reluctantly, she gives in and we sit in silence for a moment, waiting for our food to arrive.
"What do you want, Asher?" She sounds exhausted and apprehensive, making me feel like an utter asshole.
“I want to apologize.”
She tries to interrupt, but I hold out my hand to cut her off.
“No, let me say this. I was an asshole. I drank way too much. It’s not an excuse, but nevertheless, it's true. I’m not actually much of a drinker and clearly, I didn’t handle it all that well. I'm truly sorry.” And now is where I come clean and tell her what I need, but the words get stuck in my throat. “I’ve spent a year thinking about your tattoos, how you smell, what you taste like.” My voice turns husky thinking about it.
She swallows hard before looking away.
"I never meant to hurt you, Linda," I promise her.
She nods slowly, accepting my apology, for now at least, and it's a start. It's more than I deserve.
“I tracked you down because I want a chance to make this right.”
She takes a deep breath and blows it out, her shoulders slumping. “It doesn’t matter now, Asher, it's over. Thanks for the apology, but the truth is, I'm at fault here as much as you. I married a stranger for god's sake. I wanted the fairy tale. It made me act reckless and stupid. But for those fleeting moments with you, I forgot.”
“Forgot what?” I question softly.
“That fairy tales don't exist. There are no good or bad guys, no white and black, just shades of gray. Everyone is fucked up in one way or another, so in a way, I guess you did me a favor. Because of you, I gave up on seeking perfection and just settled for being me, flaws and all.”
It's my turn to swallow as I stare at her.
“I want to get to know you better,” I tell her, but she shakes her head.
“It's not a wise idea. I'm in a good place now. I don't want to put myself out there again with someone I don't trust,” she says honestly.
Her answer makes my gut twist when I think of my reasons for being here to begin with. “Let me earn it.”
“Asher—”
But I cut her off again. “I want to get to know my wife.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“Why? It's what you are.” And I can’t deny the thrill that runs through me when I say it.
“In name, maybe, but not in deed,” she points out.
“An empty bowl of condoms begs to differ,” I answer and realize as soon as I do it was the wrong thing to say.
She stands, and without fanfare, walks out, leaving me to drop a couple of bills on the table before rushing after her.
I expected her to be at the car waiting for me, but then I should have figured out by now that Linda is not like other females. She is already halfway down the street, hailing a cab before I even reach her. I change direction and head back to my car, climbing in and following her cab. I frown when her vehicle stops and drops her off outside an apartment building on the wrong side of town.