Shane Read Free Page A

allowed to drink here as well as not take jobs in the sheriff’s office?”
    “I can’t speak for Sheriff Malone’s hiring policy,
but at Last Stop Bar women are more than welcome. We even have a ladies’
evening with half price drinks.”
    “ Oohh , what night’s that?”
asked Lacey raising her hand.
    “Is there someone I can call to come and get you and
see you safely home?”
    People were starting to stare. Why were they
starting to do that ? Bunch
of old cowboys.
    “I demand another drink. This is America, not some
communist regime,” said Lacey, emphasizing her point by stabbing her finger on
the bar top.
    “Sorry, no more until you’re sober, and I think it’s
going to be awhile until that happens.”
    “I’ve already decided I don’t like you. I won’t be coming
here again and will take my business elsewhere,” she said feeling herself
falling backwards. She was prepared to land on her ass, but someone caught her
just in time.
    She looked up it was him . The chauvinist pig in person.
    Shit, if only he wasn’t so good looking it would
make it so much easier to hate him. The cowboy hat made him look like a leading
man. If only his attitude wasn’t from the time when men resided in caves, she’d
want to crawl into bed with him.
    Forget the caveman attitude. She just wanted to get
horizontal with him, period.
    “ It’s okay, Ben, I can take
it from here,” he told the bartender.
    “I’m not an it ,” said Lacey.
    He slid onto the stool beside her. “I wasn’t
referring to you, but the situation. Ben’s father called me because he thought
you might need some assistance.”
    “I’m perfectly okay.”
    “Glad to hear that.”
    He reached over, took her shot glass and downed the
rest of her drink.
    “Hey, I was enjoying that,” she said.
    “Yeah, a little bit too much by the look of things.”
    “Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”
    She wasn’t only slurring, some words now sounded
like she was speaking in tongues. And how come there were two sheriffs now? “You
stole my drink, and they won’t let me have another one.”
    Another burp, but this one louder
than the first. And in all honesty she wasn’t feeling
that great either. It felt like stomach acid was on spin cycle. And then hot
bile rose up in her throat.
    The day was going farther down the toilet. Which is
exactly what she needed to use and probably very soon. “I’m going back to my
motel room. If no one here has an objection to that. Maybe I have to get a permission slip.”
    She attempted to stand but suddenly her legs felt
like they were made out of her mother’s homemade pudding. Shane caught her a
mere two inches off the ground.
    “Okay, little lady, let’s get you safely out of here.”
    “I don’t need help. And I’m not anyone’s little
lady.”
    He attempted to grab her, but she pushed him away.
    “We can do this the easy way or your way, which I
know you’ll regret in the morning.”
    He caught her off guard the second time around, and
she couldn’t fight him when he grabbed her. The other patrons clapped and
cheered as Shane slung her over his shoulder like she was a whole side of beef.
    “Put me down this minute and I won’t press charges
for police harassment.”
    Too much to drink and her head was now facing down
toward the floor. He was asking for trouble. He slapped his hand across her
butt, and more cheers rang out in the bar. Two men wolf-whistled him as he
waved goodbye.
    “You’re all a bunch of chauvinists. Is this how you
treat your women in Timber Creek? If so, my finger chose the wrong place.”
    He put his arm under her butt cheeks and marched
toward the door.
    If she didn’t feel so sick, she’d actually find it a
turn on.
    Shane pulled the door open with his foot, and once
outside a blast of very cold air hit her face. She took a deep breath and
burped again.
    “Did you drive or walk here?”
    “Walked, of course. I
never drink and drive.”
    “I’m happy to hear that