I lifted my phone. “I need a few minutes to take care of an urgent problem that came up. It won’t take long. I promise.”
Her smile was all I needed to see before I stood and stepped away from our table, heading for the front door with my phone glued to my ear.
* * *
George was forty-six years old,and the average sixty-year-old could outshine his appearance. He was outside the men’s restroom, chatting with one of his buddies. Of course, they were talking about me and Mecca and how the world as they knew it would go to hell because of people like us.
Once they had their fill of bad-mouthing us, the buddy went back to the dining room and George dipped into the restroom. Good. No one needed to hear the conversation that he and I were about to have.
I left the restaurant in the opposite direction with my phone to my ear, so that no one would suspect my true intentions were to get a few moments alone with George.
I crept into the bathroom, locking the door behind me before I tiptoed across the floor and peeked into the three empty stalls to make sure we were alone.
When George walked out of the final stall a moment later, I was standing against the exit with my foot propped up against the door. My suit jacket was open and I had even taken my cufflinks off.
George stopped in his tracks at the sight of me. He let go of the stall door too soon, which caused it to slam and him to jump as he stood gawking at me.
“What was that name you called my wife?”
“I don’t want any trouble. Besides, this is a free world, and I have the freedom to speak.”
A heavy dose of anticipation had me rubbing my hands together before I pushed off the door.
“George, you are old enough that you should know when it’s the right time to keep your fucking mouth shut.”
A few more of my predatory steps had his chest rising and falling faster as his gaze shot to the exit at my back. I aimed my thumb across my shoulder while taking more steps.
“It’s locked.”
“What are you doing? You can’t hurt me. I’m a committee member.”
I loved the way they tossed around the words, committee member, like it wielded a great power I was unaware of. More deliberate steps put me closer as I recalled his insult, and the hurt look it had put on Mecca’s face.
When I took another stalking step closer. George shouted, “Help! Stay back!”
“Don’t worry, no one can hear you. I’ve conducted a little business in this restroom on two, no, make that three other occasions with no interruptions.”
I placed a finger over my lips, insinuating that he should be quiet anyway. He kept moving back until his back hit the far wall near the paper towel dispenser. I continued to advance until I was a few feet in front of him.
“Help! Help! Somebody help me!” he screamed at the top of his lungs, as my gaze fell on his bulging eyes. His voice echoed off the walls as his chest moved up and down with sharp jerks.
He shuffled back into the wall, attempting to push himself through it as his gaze kept bouncing between the exit and me. His fingers were webbed against the wall as the pulse in his neck thumped hard to keep up with his accelerated heart rate.
When I took a quick, stalking step forward, he attempted to kick me, but I knocked his leg away with a hard kick from mine that nearly knocked him off his feet. By the time he recovered, I had the forearm of my free hand pinned under his neck.
Saliva seeped from his lips as he huffed and puffed and squirmed and wiggled. With me standing on the tips of his feet, stretching out his body with the determined force I applied to the arm I had pinned under his neck, his attempts at kicking me were cut short.
“What are you doing? You can’t do this. You can’t kill me.” His words were squeezed out between stained grunts before he started screaming like a lame bitch.
“Help! Help! Somebody help me!”
The moment I spoke, his screaming ceased.
“I’m not going to kill you, George. Fortunately, for you, you have a few things you need to learn before you die.”
A touch of relief eased into him at my words about not killing him.
“You’re married, George. How would you feel if I called your wife one of the most hurtful words I could think of in a room filled with people?”