I wrapped my arms around Luke. Leaning forward I placed my chin on his shoulder and whispered in his ear, “Thank-you.” I know there was no possible way he knew what I was talking about. Perhaps he thought it was the iPod, or the ride, or the wakeup call he gave me when he texted my assistant Lindsey, but he responded when he reached back and ran his hand down my thigh and landed it on my knee, where he held on while I rested my head on his shoulder until we came into town.
Our first stop was at 59 Hangout, which was an old run down bar off of highway fifty-nine. On the left and right side of the white block building were old junk cars that had grass growing up around them. A wooden fence separated the building from two trailers that were overgrown with vines and brush. The large green door that led into the building was the only sign of color. We pulled in alongside about fifty other bikes, parking towards the front. Before Luke had time to even cut the bike off, we were surrounded by people. I recognized some of the faces of the men that shook Luke’s hand from the bar the other night. Most of them gave Luke a big hug, slapping him on the back, seeming genuinely glad to see him. I noticed that none of them made any attempt to speak to me until Luke introduced me.
“This is Dallas. Dallas these are my brothers; Tiny, War and Regg,” he said waving his hand in their direction. I slid my helmet off, doing my best to smooth my hair and shook each of their hands. Tiny was a large man, every bit of 6’5 with long stringy hair and kind eyes. I noticed the patches on his vest were similar to the ones Luke wore. War was a man of short stature with a no-nonsense look on his face that made me think his bite was just as bad as his bark. He made me nervous, causing me to quickly dart my eyes to Regg.
“Hello beautiful!” Regg said to me smiling, and then pulling me into a bear hug. He had a boyish face with big brown eyes. His hair was a very light blonde and his goatee was the only thing making him look a day older than fifteen. He was shorter than Luke but not by much and his husky size reminded me of a big ole teddy bear. I returned his hug and not being able to help it landed a kiss on his red cheek.
“Damn girl, you gonna make me take you home with me!” Regg responded laughing. I liked him immediately. He seemed so full of love and life.
“Red will beat the hell outta you boy,” Tiny said playfully punching Regg in the arm.
“Ok, ok, that’s enough,” Luke said breaking us apart and running his arm around my waist claiming his territory.
“Red inside?” Luke asked, looking at Regg. “Yeah, that crazy bitch is in there. She is giving hell to a prospect at the bar.” He replied shaking his head.
“That figures. Come on babe,” Luke led me towards the door, stopping several times to shake hands and hug people, but never introducing me. I wondered why, but just passing it off as him being in a hurry I just stood there and smiled, although they never acknowledged my presence.
When we walked in, it took a moment for my eyes to adjust. The bar was so dark I couldn’t even make out the face of Luke standing beside me. Never slowing, Luke let me through the entry and to the bar where he ordered two beers. I looked around, my eyes starting to adjust, and noticed that a line of men all wearing leather vest were lined up to say hello to Luke.
Once again, they never looked my way and Luke never bothered to introduce me. I couldn’t help the feeling of unimportance that passed over me. I was used to being the center of attention wherever I went. In the presence of Luke it seemed as if I didn’t even exist. I turned my back to Luke and looked around the bar. There was a stage in the far left corner of the bar that was set up for a band. The entire floor was a concrete slab, except for the make-shift dance floor that was covered in wood design linoleum. Floor to ceiling mirrors covered the back wall of the dance floor. Christmas lights were the main source of lighting and were strung up all around the bar. Unmatched tables and chairs were scattered throughout the bar and all were occupied.
“Hey you!” I looked across the bar to see Red coming towards me. She was dressed in tight black jeans and a white t-shirt with an orange bandana wrapped around her head. A black leather vest full of patches and black boots completed her outfit. She looked absolutely gorgeous. Her smile was wide, making her eyes sparkle and I couldn’t help smiling myself. “I had no idea you were coming!” she said, walking up and wrapping her arms around me. I returned her hug enthusiastically, feeling better by just seeing her face.