Free On the Outside Looking In (Wrong Reasons) by JL Paul

the bar watching the sports channel.  Two tables were occupied with couples, but that was it.
    Standing near the door, clutching my purse while shifting my weight from one foot to another, I contemplated whether I should sit at a table by myself, looking like an idiot, or amble up to the bar and listen to Evan razz me.
    Shaking the thoughts from my head, I crossed the room and slipped onto an empty stool.  I had come because I’d felt bad about turning him down. I’d just grab something to eat and return home.  I didn’t owe him anything.
    “Well, look who’s here.”
    The familiar voice chilled my blood and stiffened my spine.  “I should have known that you’d be here on Ladies’ Night.  Looking for your next victim?”
    Laughing, Owen Masters moved to the stool next to me.  “You’re cute, Morgan.  I miss you.”
    “You don’t miss me,” I said, staring at the light board behind the bar, advertising the specials.  “You miss playing games with me and my friends.”
    “Friends?” he asked, twisting his stool so that his back rested against the bar.  He clutched a short glass in his right hand, swirling it so that the ice clinked together.
    “Yes, friends.”
    Chuckling, he winked at me.  “You don’t have friends, Morgan, remember?  Irelyn and Bailey are not your friends.”
    “Yes, they are,” I said, wincing.  I sounded like a first grader.
    “Whatever you say, sweet thing,” he said, reaching out to caress my cheek.
    I jerked my face away from his touch, repulsed by the mere sight of him.
    “Don’t touch her.”
    Owen turned toward the bar, his leering face a bit astonished.  “McNew?  What the fuck is your problem?  You doing her now?”
    Skin flushed and brows dipped way low, Evan’s dark eyes focused solely on Owen.
    “It’s obvious to me that she doesn’t want you to touch her.  So, leave her alone.”
    Owen’s face broke into a grin as he glanced at me.  “Good luck to you, man.  She’s an icy bitch.  Virginal. Saving her shit for Spencer Kelly, like he’d give up that piece of ass, Jessica.”
    Heat rushed to my cheeks as I held my head up, not letting it fall.  I would not let Owen know that he’d degraded me again.
    “You’re a shit, Masters,” Evan said, his fists resting on the bar, ready for action. “Why the hell are you hanging out here, anyway?”
    Laughing, Owen twisted to face Evan fully. “It’s Ladies’ Night, my man.  I’m here for the ladies.”
    Evan shifted slightly to grab a glass and fill it with diet soda.  He slid the glass in front of me, his eyes still on Owen.
    “Come on, McNew,” Owen said with a laugh that didn’t reach his eyes.  “We’ve been friends for a long time.  Don’t let some…psycho whore… come between us.”
    “She’s not a whore,” Evan said, his eyes narrowing.
    Owen laughed as he set his glass on the bar.  “I get it, man.  You’re into her.  All right.  It’s cool.”
    Evan refilled Owen’s glass with vodka and a clear liquid.  He placed it in front of Owen, refusing his payment.  “Just leave Morgan alone.”
    “Sure, man,” Owen said, picking up his drink and moving to the opposite end of the bar.
    Releasing a breath, I lifted my soda and sipped it.
    “I take it you know Owen,” Evan said, moving in front of me and crossing his arms over his chest.
    “Unfortunately.”
    Nodding, he reached under the bar and snatched a laminated menu, dropping it to the bar.  “He’s not as bad as he seems.”
    “He’s horrible,” I said as I lifted the menu with slightly trembling hands.  I perused my choices even though my stomach rejected the thought of food.
    “I’ve known Owen for a long time,” Evan explained, his eyes shooting to the end of the bar where Owen sat, conversing with two women who’d just entered.  “We used to hang out a lot until his mom fell into some cash and bought him a bar.”
    “Yes, I’ve been in his bar,” I said as I set the menu down.
    “Did you