Straight As A Garden Hose

Chapter 4

It was almost one in the morning before we finally finished cleaning the pub up after it closed at midnight, and I was exhausted. But apparently I was the only one.

"Who wants to come with us to Senorita's?" Grey called out excitedly. He was hyped up. Everly was too. She had a pretty big smile on her face, and it made me melt a little. She was sitting beside me on the bar, and Grey was gathering more people to join us.

"Have you ever been to a night club?" I asked Everly. She shook her head.

"Never, but I'm pretty excited!" she replied. I nodded.

"If it gets too overwhelming, just stick close to me. Don't set your drink down, and politely decline offers from the girls and guys that are too forward," I told her. She nodded, her eyebrows furrowing.

"I probably won't drink, but thanks for the tip," she said, slipping off the bar to gather her purse. I was curious at her answer, but I let it be.

"Who's all going?" Wynonna asked.

"Luck, Everly, Selena and myself," Grey answered. Wynonna shook her head.

"Hell no, I'm not going if Charlie goes, she hogs all the girls," Wynonna replied.

"Hence why we call her Luck," Grey said laughing. I rolled my eyes and slid off the bar.

"I won't get in your way tonight Wynonna, I'm not feeling it," I said, grabbing my truck keys. "Who's riding with me?"

"I'll come with you," Everly replied. It was difficult to hide my smile at those words.

"Let's go," I said, walking towards the door.

"We'll meet you there!" Grey called out. I chuckled at how excited he was. Out the back door into the ally, it was muggy, but not unbearable. The sounds of the city were fairly loud, the trash reeked to high heaven from the sketchy Chinese restaurant nextdoor, and it was pitch black. All these things made Everly press against me nervously. I glanced down at her. I liked the fact that she was a solid two inches shorter than me.

"You ok there Ever?" I asked, trying out the nickname. She smiled up at me.

"I'm just not used to the city," she replied quietly.

"It took me a while to get used to it too," I said, reaching the passenger door of the truck to open it for her. She smiled and thanked me as she climbed in, then I walked around to the driver side and hopped in.

"You didn't always live in the city?" she asked as I buckled and turned the key in the ignition. I shook my head.

"No, I grew up about half an hour south of here on a farm," I replied, rolling the windows down and shifting into drive. She looked surprised.

"Really? I didn't take you for a country girl," she said, one eyebrow cocked. I laughed.

"I don't take myself as a country girl either," I said, pulling out of the ally and onto the main street.

"What kind of girl are you then?" she asked. She had her hand out the window and her golden hair was lightly blowing in the breeze. God above she was beautiful. I pretended to think about it for a minute, when in actuality I was thinking about her. She was wearing short shorts and a spaghetti strap crop top. Holy hell was it a sight to see.

"I guess I'm not sure yet," I said after a moment. Everly nodded.

"Fair enough," she said.

****

We pulled into the parking lot of Senorita's just ten minutes later, and we both got out of the truck.

"Do you know any Spanish?" I asked. She started to look worried.

"No. Should I?" she asked. I chuckled.

"You'll be fine, just stay close to me," I told her.

We walked past the two security guards at the front door with ease because they know me. Perks of being a regular I guess.

(Play "Mi Cama - Remix" by Karol G, J Balvin, and Nicky Jam)

As we walked into the dark nightclub, the music was thundering and the hot girls were everywhere, followed by desperate men. I felt Everly tense beside me and I glanced over at her. The men and a few women had started to stare. Not many blondes come into places like this. I grabbed ahold of her hand and leaned in close to her ear.

"Just pretend you're mine and they won't bother you," I whispered. She nodded and relaxed a little bit. I smirked at the thought of Everly being mine. I think this is the first time I ever pictured someone specific as being my girlfriend. What the fuck is getting into me?

"Charlie?" I heard a voice behind me, immediately knowing who it was.

"Oh fuck," I whispered under my breath. I turned around and was met with the stunning Isidora, one of the women whom I had not returned calls. She was definitely on the stalker scale, and after twenty three texts and seven calls in two days, I had decided to quit answering.

"Isidora, you look beautiful as always. What brings you back to San Antonio? Last I knew you were in Miami," I said, trying to ease her evident anger. It didn't work though, because next thing I knew her hand and sharp nails were making contact with my cheek, slapping me hard. Everly yelped out of surprise.

"Don't fuck with me Kind," she said as she turned on her heel and left the building. There was a moment of silence as the crowd watched and the song ended, but soon everyone got over it and another song started up.

(Play "Loco Contigo" by DJ Snake, J Balvin, and Tyga)

"Oh my God, are you ok?" Everly asked, rushing to my side and inspecting my cheek. I nodded.

"Ya, I'll be fine," I said, pulling my fingers away. No blood, no foul. I shrugged. "It happens."

"Who was the bitch anyway?" the small blonde asked, looking in the direction of where Isidora left. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"An old fling," I responded, shocked at her words. She noticed and blushed.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have said that," she said, looking down at her feet. I shrugged again.

"You're definitely not wrong. She is a bitch," I replied with a smirk and wink. She seemed to relax at this, so I took hold of her hand again and led her to the bar.

"Charlie! ¿Como tiene estado?" I heard a voice call out from behind the bar.

"Isabella, oye! He sido bueno, ¿y tú? " I replied, directing Everly to a stool, my hand on the middle of her back possessively. She glanced at me with a smirk, her cheeks rosy. Isabella noticed, and chuckled, shaking her head.

"¿Ella habla este hermoso lenguaje?" she asked as she pulled out two margarita glasses. I laughed.

"Aún no," I replied. Isabella cooed and filled the two glasses with her homemade margaritas.

"En la casa," Isabella responded with a nod, pushing the two frozen drinks our way.

"Muchas gracias, Isabella," I said, taking her hand and kissing it. She laughed and walked to the other end of the bar.

"What did she say?" Everly asked, eyeing me curiously. I took a sip of my drink.

"She asked if you spoke Spanish," I replied.

"What did you tell her?" she asked, glancing at the drink in front of her.

"I told her, not yet."

Everly smiled, and cautiously sniffed the drink.

"What did she say about the drink?" she asked, as I took another sip of it, savoring it.

"It's on the house. Drink up!" I replied, raising my glass to her. She tentatively brought hers to mine and they clinked together. She watched me down half of it in three gulps, and her eyebrows rose, but the second her lips touched the liquid, her eyes grew wide and so did her smile.

"Good, huh?" I asked, and she nodded enthusiastically. Damn this beautiful girl.