Ashley's Bend (37 page)

I found out that her ex had been hauled up in some rehab center out of state for several weeks. This meant that he was there when the incident happened at the club. He was also there when the subsequent notes arrived as well meaning he wasn’t the one who was behind it unless he had someone doing the work for him.

The cab couldn’t get to The Celtic Knot quick enough. I was buzzing with nervous anticipation and need. I craved Ashley like I craved the air I breathed. She had breathed new life into me and I had never felt freer and happier.

I haphazardly threw a wad of cash at the driver of the cab before bolting out of the car to get inside to find my girl. Late Sunday afternoons had become a pretty busy time for the club lately, so I was hoping I could sneak in and surprise her.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I knew who it would be before I even looked at it. I snuck off into the bathroom and locked myself in one of the stalls. Bringing my phone to life, I stared at the screen unblinking for several moments until my eyes burned and tears formed.

Mr. Walker: It is time, Ashley. Dominic has arrived.

I slipped the phone back into my pocket and placed my head between my knees trying to fight back the nausea. Taking deep breaths, I reminded myself that I was doing it to protect them because I loved them.
I am not doing it to destroy them
.
I am not doing it to destroy them.

I walked out of the bathroom and stopped in my tracks when I saw Dominic leaning up against the wall with his ankles crossed and his arms across his chest, staring at me. His hard muscles bulged out from the sleeves of his shirt and his tattoo peaked out, teasing me, reminding me what it looked like beneath the clothes he wore. It was the same shirt he wore the night he called me on stage and tied the ropes around my body in the first lesson I ever participated in. His smile was devastating, and I felt my body react to being in his presence.

He pushed himself up off the wall and walked over to me. My legs felt like rubber and I had to hold onto the door frame to keep them from giving out from underneath me.

He reached me in just four quick steps and his hands were instantly in my hair gripping my head to crash his lips to mine. I opened up automatically wanting to indulge in one last, heated kiss. I wanted to memorize his taste and the feelings that I would always carry with me. I wanted to memorize the feel of his lips, and each line of his face as I lifted my hands to either side placing them on his jaw. He looked like he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days and the scruff on his face was devastatingly handsome. My heart ached with desperation to get the one last moment with him and I entwined our tongues together, lapping, sucking and making love to him with my mouth one last time.

We broke away gasping for air and he leaned his forehead against mine.

“God, I have missed you so fucking much, Ashley.”

I didn’t say anything in return, just clutched him tighter to me trying to say with my body, what I couldn’t say with my words.

Knox came strolling up and interrupted the last moment I probably would ever have with him.

“Welcome home, brother.” Knox said and he clasped Dominic on the shoulder. Dominic turned around and gave him the manly half-hug with one arm thing that guys always do.

“Thanks, man. It’s good to be home,” he replied as he looked back at me.

“If you are done sucking the face off of Ashley, maybe you could let her breath and you could…”

Knox never got to finish his sentence, because a loud noise came from the entrance to the club and in walked six police officers, including Officer Russell, Drake, and
him.

“What the fuck?” Knox said as he took in the approaching men.

Dominic turned around and saw what the commotion was all about and in no time at all started to make his way over to the group with seething anger written all over his face.

“Asher fucking Walker, what the hell are you doing here? You know you are banned for life from this club. Get the fuck out,” Dominic sneered with force.

I swear I thought Dominic’s teeth were going to break with how hard he was clenching his jaw. Knox was next to him in a heartbeat putting me behind him and Dominic.

“Dominic Michaels, Knoxville Tanner,” Officer Russell stated in mock professionalism,

“You are under arrest for operating a private club under false pretenses and for illegal prostitution.”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, right?” Dominic asked. “Under what pretenses do you have? You have no proof of anything. We run this club professionally. I told you once before, Officer, that no goods or services were sold here.”

“That is where you are wrong,” Asher said piping in on the conversation. I strictly remember paying several of your
subs
money in exchange for
services
.

“Well then that was your mistake, and your disgusting ass needs to go to jail. Officer Russell, are you going to arrest us due to the word of this fuckwad?” Dominic asked jabbing his fingers in the direction of Asher.

Kelly came bounding into the club and came to a halt when she saw what was taking place.

Great. Just what I needed, for her to be a witness to what I was about to have to do.

“What’s going on?” she asked in shock as she walked up next to Knox.

“These assholes seem to think we are running a prostitution ring. All because Asher didn’t get his way and now he thinks he can get back at us by having us arrested under false pretenses,” Knox explained to her.

“That is where you are wrong, we have another witness. Someone who claimed she was paid money in exchange for sex here at the club.”

“Really?” Dominic said in disbelief. “And just who the fuck would that be?”

“Turn around,” Officer Russell said, “She’s standing right behind you.”

My world had finally bottomed out. I knew that if I didn’t do this convincingly, their lives would all be in danger.

Gasps of shock could be heard all around the room as all eyes turned to me.

“Ashley?” Dominic turned and stared at me in disbelief, “What the fuck is going on!” he yelled and I jumped at the angry tone in his voice.
      
“Ashley, tell the officers what you told me,” Asher urged me on. I drew in a shaky breath. My heartbeat pounded in my ears so loudly, I almost didn’t hear Asher’s command. I would give anything to pass out, or vanish into thin air so that I didn’t have to do what I was about to do.

I looked at each of the face of the people who mattered to me most. Kelly had her hands up to her mouth and tears glistened in her eyes. She was shaking her head side to side. Knox was looking at me like I had grown two heads. I could see him worrying his jaw back and forth and his fists were clenching and unclenching in a nervous rhythm. Asher and Officer Russell both had smug smiles that they weren’t even trying to hide, and Drake was pretending to take everything in.

The look on Dominic’s face was the one that hurt me the most. His eyes showed fear, anger and most of all hurt. I could see the vein in his neck pulsating at a rapid speed. It was almost like our hearts were synced in time, beating at the same rate. It was the last time I would feel connected to him, a part of him, because, I was about to eradicate any connection that we had ever made.

“I have received monetary compensation for favors from both Mr. Michaels and Mr. Tanner.”

“What
kind
of favors, Ashley?” Officer Russell asked.

“Sexual favors,” I whispered. Everyone started talking at once. Members and staff who had been oblivious to what was happening around them now gathered around when they saw the police officers surrounding us. I could hear all the murmurs of the crowd as they called me a
slut
and a
whore
. I didn’t care, they could call me whatever they wanted. Nothing mattered to me anymore. They couldn’t feel any worse about me than I already did about myself.

“That’s bullshit and you know it, Ashley!” Knox yelled. Drake came over and pulled Knox back because he looked like he could charge at me any moment to try to bring me to my senses.

“Why are you doing this, Ashley? Why would you lie about something like this?” Kelly begged me to answer. I couldn’t look her in the eye. I knew her heart was breaking because she knew what the outcome of this would be for Knox.

The one person who mattered to me most in the entire room stood stark still. He didn’t move, didn’t flinch. His eyes were glued to me, but I was afraid to look at him. I knew that if I looked into his eyes, that I would shatter into a million pieces.

I watched him turn away and look to Officer Russell.

“I assure you Officer that I have
never
paid anyone for any sexual favors. She was more than willing to let me fuck her for free. Actually, I watched her salivate at the mouth to get her hands on my cock,” he said through gritted teeth. His anger was starting to show through the initial shock now, and I knew he was trying to hurt me like I was hurting him.

“Well, I am afraid that I am going to have to place you and Mr. Tanner under arrest pending an investigation.”

“You have the right to remain silent…” Officer Russell said as he forcefully grabbed Dominic and slapped the metal handcuffs on his wrists behind his back. Each click of the cuffs closing around Dominic’s wrists was like another nail into my already broken heart. An officer did the same to Knox and both men didn’t try to struggle.