Free Country Love by Chelsea Dorsette

started walking in Roxanne’s direction. The bit about the WSIX radio table didn’t even register with her because her fantasy was so deeply embedded into her psyche that it drowned out everything else. As CJ continued walking in her direction, Roxanne’s smile got even wider as she watched his sexy body move toward her.
    Suddenly, CJ turned left through the crowd in a different direction. The smile on Roxanne’s face disappeared instantly, replaced by a pout and a scowl. As he headed away from her, she stood up and watched him with a furious expression.
    It was that sudden movement of Roxanne’s that got the brief attention of Archie , who had been working behind the bar all night. When he noticed her red hair, his memory went back to the conversation he and CJ recently had about the crazy redhead that dressed down Paden with her eyes at the Memphis bar. Being that the band was between sets, the drink orders were now piling in, and as quickly as he looked at Roxanne, his attention was drawn back to filling the drink orders.
    What followed next almost caused Roxanne to scream out loud and throw her drink across the bar. Now she understood where CJ was going! All at once she dialed in to what he had said on stage about the WSIX radio table. That radio bitch was here, in HER club with HER man and her whole body felt like it was on fire as she watched him sit next to little Miss Radio Pants and put his arm around the back of her chair. Watching the radio whore smile and flirt with her man drove Roxanne completely mad. As quickly as it takes to flip a light switch, Roxanne snapped and knew exactly what she had to do.
     
    ***
     
    Sitting and talking together had been wonderful for both CJ and Paden. They couldn’t take their eyes off each other and spent much of the forty-five minutes catching up with each other. It had been a long month since they had seen each other and even though Paden knew she would have to say goodbye again at the end of the night, she was grateful for the short rendezvous they had tonight in what they both thought was the safety of the club.
    When CJ and his band got back up on stage to begin their second set, Paden said to Neal, the salesperson with her, “I’ll be back in a minute. I left my sweater in the car and I’m a little cold.”
    Nodding his head in understanding, Neal gave her a little wave indicating that he would hold down the fort. As Paden walked past the bar heading to the front doors, Archie gave her a wink and a big smile. Paden understood completely why CJ liked him so much. He was not just a great bar owner, he was also a great guy.
    It was only a few moments later when reaching for a bottle of tequila to make a margarita, when Archie’s eyes crossed the monitor to the parking lot cameras. He could see Paden walking to what he assumed was her car, but coming up fast behind her was a redheaded woman holding what looked like a hunting knife. Snapping his head around to look at the barstool where the re dheaded woman had been sitting earlier, he could see she was gone. In literally seconds, it all came together that this was the same woman that was glowering at Paden in the Memphis bar and that Paden was in terrible trouble.
    Dropping everything, Archie raced out from behind the bar , heading for the doors. From the stage, CJ could see Archie running at breakneck speed, and looking instinctively for Paden, he became panicked when he realized she wasn’t at her table.
    As Archie barreled out the front door into the parking lot, he saw that the woman with the hunting knife was right behind Paden and her hand clutching the knife was up over her head ready to strike.
    “Paden, look out behind you!” Archie yelled at the top of his lungs.
    Hearing his warning cry, Paden quickly turned around, only to come face to face with the same evil looking red-haired woman she had seen over a month ago in Memphis.
    The woman was seething and her expression was one of sheer hatred toward Paden.