Free Hawke by R.J. Lewis Page A

one girl leave his room years and years ago, and she was this pretty blonde thing with legs that went on for miles. I remembered her legs more than her face because I’d watched her put these sexy platform heels on right before she did her walk of shame. She didn’t mind the walk, though. She’d been smiling with this dazzled look in her eye.
    I wanted that dazzled look in my eye.
    I’d never had it. My sex life was abominable in that non-existent kind of way, and I needed a man, goddammit. There were only so many batteries a woman could buy.
    And with Hawke…maybe he felt attainable to me. Like there was a chance he’d notice me because of the few women he had taken to bed during the time he’d been here. That could have been different now, of course. Maybe he was slumming it like his brother was.
    The thought depressed me.
    I was about to turn back around to look at Hector and Jesse again when suddenly a chest pressed against my back. I winced at the pain on my just-inked skin just as a mouth touched my ear. “You’re comin’ home with me tonight, Tyler.”
    I glowered, recognizing the voice. Yuri. Fuck, he found me fast, didn’t he?
    “And all your little secrets will be mine.”
    He pulled away and I watched, disgusted, as he sat down next to me, his body turned in my direction. His grey eyes were bloodshot, like he’d sniffed a bit too much coke, and he sniffed like crazy, which confirmed he probably had a while ago. His hair was oily, his face (which would have looked semi-decent if cleaned up) had red splotches along his chin and jawline. Everything about Yuri was slimy, but it was his smile that sickened me the most. It was that self-entitled kind of smile, the kind that said, “I get what I want and there’s nothing you can do about it”.
    I looked away from him and at Hector and Jesse. Giving Yuri notice would only encourage him to continue. My fingers dug at the sticker harder, peeling away clumps until I was grinding my pink nail against the glass.
    “You wanna know the best part?” he continued, yanking the beer from out of my hands and downing a large gulp. Droplets ran down his chin and to the lines of his greasy neck. He slammed the bottle back down and grinned at me. “The best part is you’re gonna have no choice.”
    God, he seemed extra unusual tonight, looking wired and antsy like he needed another hit.
    “What do you say about that?” he asked me, grinning like the creep that he was.
    I didn’t respond for a few reasons.
    One, I would have probably cursed at him and that would have made him angry, and you never wanted to make a semi-sober man from the Russian mob angry.
    Two, I was admittedly unsettled. Nerves ran rampant throughout my body because of how certain he sounded, and he wouldn’t sound so goddamn certain without a reason.
     
    And three, I didn’t respond to Yuri because the entrance door opened and Hawke walked in.

eight
    Tyler
     
    I felt disarmed when I saw him.
    He came.
    He… actually came.
    I wasn’t prepared for this. Nothing ever prepared me for the sight of Hawke.
    Standing by the entrance of the bar, Hawke’s eyes searched the room slowly, roaming over every inch of the place with a look of determination. When he found my face, his eyes stopped moving. He stared at me for a long moment; at my face, at what I was wearing, at the awkward sitting position I was in, before turning his attention to Yuri. Some dark thought showed in his expression before he masterfully concealed it.
    Then he moved.
    The guys noticed him immediately and the room quieted down. Hector and Jesse were already on their feet. Meanwhile, Yuri smiled in Hawke’s direction, looking calm and relaxed. The slimy bastard was uncomfortably smug, and something about it made me feel on edge.
    Hawke was wet everywhere and his boots squished along the floorboards. I knew right then he’d ridden his bike from the city; a forty-minute hike that must not have been comfortable in the rain. He was