Last Call (26 page)

Saturday - May 11, 2013

Begging

It was late when I decided to head to The Garage on Saturday night. Though we’d talked several times during the week, I hadn't seen Gage since our date Monday and I was suddenly having Aussie withdrawals. He called me around six to let me know he was getting a flight home a day early, and then left me a voicemail around ten-thirty while I was in the shower to let me know he was home and heading to The Garage to check on things. The temptation to see him was overwhelming, so there I was, walking into the bar unannounced.

I made my way over to John, who was working behind the bar with one of the female bartenders I hadn’t met yet. It was busy, but not crazy. That was one of my favorite things about the place. Being located so close to campus, there was always a steady stream of students patronizing the place, but it was still far enough from the strip that it wasn’t crazy with tourists all the time. After making so many visits over the last few weeks, I was starting to feel comfortable here.

The sounds of people laughing and talking over drinks, the clicking of glasses, the beat of the music. I felt at home now walking in and spotting other regulars.
Regulars.
The word reminded me of one of my first conversations with Gage, when he’d assumed I made a habit out of coming to the bar and going out with losers. It made me laugh now when I thought about how that "habit" had introduced me to him.

"Hey Savannah," called John, looking up from the intense flirting he was doing with a couple of co-eds. "He's in the office. Go on back."

I smiled in appreciation and found my way to the office. His back was to the door as he rifled through a file cabinet on the back wall, and as always, I couldn’t help but take in my fill of his beautiful body.

For a moment I flashed back to our dirty phone call from the night before and was tempted to flee from the room. But then his words from this morning when he called and woke me up started playing in my head.

"Good morning beautiful," he whispered, his voice husky with sleep. "I wanted so badly for you to feel like I was really there with you this morning."

"Oh? Why is that?" I was well aware of the ridiculous smile that stretched across my face from the intense happiness I felt at hearing him.

"I didn't want you to regret last night. I'm not the kind of guy who would walk out on you after sex."

"Gage, sweetie," I reminded him playfully, "we didn't actually
have
sex, hun."

He laughed. "We didn't?"

"Um…nope."

"Well it was pretty damn great what we did have. Your little whimpers and moans. Mmmmm."

"Okay - stop before you get me all revved up again."

"Could I do that?"

"Your voice can do a lot of things. I told you it was magical."

"
You're
magical." He complimented me in a way I'd never heard before. Maybe I was finally learning to believe the words he said. More likely though, it was the way
he
made me feel when
he
said those two words. It made me feel invincible
.

Now as I stood there and absorbed all that he was, I sighed. Tonight his usual black shirt was replaced by a crisp white one, and his dark hair was a stark contrast to the light color. He was wearing his perfectly fitted jeans, and I couldn't help but stare at his tight backside when he bent down to open a lower drawer.

"Do you mind if I keep you company for a while?" I hinted; leaning up against the door frame of the office.

Startled, he whipped around with a huge smile on his face. "Hey beautiful." He smiled, quickly closing the drawer and coming around his desk to meet me. He pulled me into a bracing hug and kissed the top of my head; dragging in a slow, deep breath of appreciation.

"Mmmm, you smell so good after a night full of alcohol." With another gentle squeeze, he reluctantly let me go. "You came all the way here to see little ‘ole me, huh?"

"Yeah. Well you know, I just happened to be in the neighborhood, and just thought I would stop in and say hi." I shrugged nonchalantly.

Gage looked at the watch on his wrist. "At midnight?"

"It's midnight already? I had no idea."

"Oh, likely story. I'm glad you're here, though. I've missed your face." He pulled me by the arm into the office. "Tell me about your day. How was work at the gallery?"

I plopped myself into a chair while he resumed going through some files, and filled him in on my busy week.

"It's going great now. Today I finally convinced Harrison to let me set it up the way I wanted. There really are a lot of beautiful pieces in there."

"It's a student showcase, correct?"

"Actually it’s an alumni showcase. It’s meant to inspire current students with what they can achieve. Then we’re also setting up a ‘Best of’ showcase as well."

"You love it, don't you?" he asked as he turned back towards me with a few files in his hands.

"Love what? The art?"

"The art, setting it up. All of it. Your voice has this tone to it that I don't usually get to hear."

I thought on that for a moment. Being able to sort through all of the paintings, drawings and sculptures had been an amazing job, and I found immense joy in setting the studio up in order to showcase each piece to the best of its ability.

"You're right, I
do
love it. It's kind of been a surprise to me."

"Why is that?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "I loved art growing up. I used to go to exhibits and shows all the time, because my mother does a lot of charity work with them. Fundraisers, auctions, that kind of thing. At some point it just lost its appeal to me."

He stood, closing a few files as he did so. Rounding the desk, he held his hand out to me and suggested, "Want to get out of here?"

I placed my hand in his and stood. "Sure."

We stopped by the bar so Gage could follow up on a few things with John, who would be closing up. Gage mentioned offhandedly that John might end up managing the bar, and I tried not to think of what that would mean for him. I was trying to keep our relationship light and carefree, and the fact that we hadn't kissed yet made me think perhaps that’s what he wanted too.

Stopping by my car in the parking lot, Gage turned to me. "How about if I follow you to your place to drop your car off, and then I take you somewhere? Wait - do you have to go in to the gallery tomorrow?"

"No way. Normally I wouldn't have even gone in today, but we want everything to be perfect for next weekend. I'm taking tomorrow off."

"Soooo, I've got you all night if I want?" Gage teased, a lascivious smile playing on his lips.

"Would you know what to do with me?" I clipped back playfully, which caused a look of mock horror to cross his face.

"After last night do you seriously need to ask?" he mumbled. "Don't tempt me, sweetheart," he added as he pulled away and walked to his car.

I was two seconds from telling him to
please for the love of God get tempted
but I kept my mouth firmly shut and climbed into my car. I went to start my engine when I noticed Gage kick the tire of his car angrily.

I pulled the key out of the ignition and started to get out when he looked over at me and yelled over, "Get back in the car and lock your doors, Savannah." He pulled his phone out of his pocket and swiftly dialed a number.

After looking around the parking lot and not seeing any immediate threats, I ignored his warning and walked over to stand by his side. He was on the phone and I overheard him asking for an officer to come to the bar. Then I looked at his car and saw why.

The side panels were scratched up and both tires on the driver’s side of the vehicle were slashed flat. There was a piece of paper stuck to the window and I wondered what it said. Gage pulled me to his side; wrapping his arm around my waist as he ended the call.

"You don't listen, huh?"

"I guess not. Somebody vandalized your car," I whispered, stating the obvious. "Who?"

He was eerily calm for someone whose car was totally messed up. With the exception of his hand rubbing the back of his neck, he looked as unflappable as always. He led me away, his voice calm as he spoke. "I guess I'm going to be a while. You want to head on home?"

I frowned, pausing to take his hand. "No. I want to stay with you. Come on - we can sit in my car while we wait for the police."

Once the police arrived they checked the scene, wrote a report and questioned us extensively. Privately we discussed the possibility that it could have been Jax or one of his buddies, but we didn't mention that to the cops. The note on the window stumped us both. Stamped in smeared black ink were the words:

Consider this a warning. Guard the things you find precious before you lose them.

Gage asked me to wait by my car while he spoke privately with the officer after he’d read the note aloud to us. I stood there and watched as they talked, each one looking back at me at least once. It made me uneasy, and I couldn't help but wonder if there was something Gage was keeping from me.

Finally, an hour and a half later I was pulling up to Gage's condo to drop him off. The police decided to impound his vehicle due to the threatening nature of the message.

As I parked in front of his unit, I discovered that I was still struggling with why he’d wanted to speak with the officer in private. I decided to take a deep breath and ask.

"Why did you need to talk to the cop in private? Is there something I should know about?"

"Why would you think that?" he asked. His voice sounded almost false to my ears, like he
was
hiding something.

"This is going to sound so superficial, but I'm not used to dating a bartender. I've seen movies, so I know these things happen. Are you in some kind of trouble that you don't want me to know about?"

"God no, Savannah," he laughed; rubbing his hand down the arm that gripped the steering wheel. "Is that what you're afraid of? I'm a bartender honey, not a gang member."

"Then what was so secret?"

"I was asking about you. I… the note worried me, that's all." He reached up and flicked my hair away from my face. Stretching, he rubbed the back of my neck while meeting my eyes. "It felt like the person was pointing a finger at you."

"Why would you think it's about me? Do you think it was Jax?" Guilt that I could be the cause of so much damage consumed me. First the fight with Jax, then the mysterious circumstances surrounding him being beaten, and now Gage's car.

"It wasn't Jax. I asked about him and the officer called it in. He’s still in the hospital, and I seriously doubt he’s that type of guy anyway. He was a lousy date when drunk, but I don't think he's a bad guy," he assured me, soothing the stress from my neck with his hand.

"You're right; I don't think this is something he would do. So why do you think it would have anything to do with me?"

"It's not that I think it's
because
of you, but I'm not taking any chances. Whoever it was threatened ‘the things you find precious’…" His hand stilled on my neck as our gazes met, and he finished his thought. "
You're
something precious to me, and I want to be sure I protect you."

I pulled in a breath and allowed his words to fill me, and the honesty in his voice made my heart leap. I wanted to jump over the console and kiss him - show him how much his words meant - but I held back. His hand began to knead my skin again and I held out hope that he would finally make a move. My eyes closed as his hand rubbed my neck and I yawned a small yawn.

"The officer seemed to think it was a generic threat, but they’re going to analyze the note and see if they can find anything since it
was
a threat."

"I'm sure it's nothing, Gage. I mean, besides Candace, Sara, and a few of your staff, nobody knows about us. It was probably just some kids playing a prank and trying to scare someone."

He smiled at that and lifted his hand into my hair to comb it out. "You're pretty damn smart, you know that?"

"Why thank you."

"You need to get home, it's late." He frowned slightly when I yawned again. His abruptness startled me as he popped open his door and walked around to my side of the car. The headlights illuminated his easy stride as he came around to my window and tapped on the glass. I rolled the window down and he knelt beside the car. "Thanks for surprising me at the bar tonight. I'm sorry the night didn't go the way I intended."

That reminded me that he was going to take me someplace before we’d found his car vandalized. "So where were you planning on taking me before things went to hell in a hand basket?"

He smiled and leaned into the window just enough to place a chaste kiss on my forehead. "That’s my little secret. You'll just have to wait and see." He gave me another peck and added, "Goodnight."

I closed my eyes and relished the quick heat brushing across my face from his breath. "You're killing me," I mumbled when he started to walk away.