Page 5 of Barker

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It’s Sunday. It’s been a hectic couple of days since the races. Sinner’s Den has been overrun with customers. I’ve been working a lot of extra hours to make up for the loss of the race the other night. Just the thought of the race has my mind wandering back to Annistyn. She was different from any girl I had ever met before, that much was obvious. I hadn’t learned much about her from Talon. The only thing I got out of him was that she’s his roommate, best friend, and currently attending nursing school. For whatever reason, that wasn’t enough to satisfy my curiosity.

Drake comes out of the bar’s office and he looks stressed to hell. “What’s up?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “Not much, just trying to find us a couple of waitresses to help out around here. I don’t know how we’re going to keep up with everything. This place is booming.”

“Well, that’s good, but I get what you mean. Listen, I’ll be happy to work every night that I can until we can get it figured out,” I tell him.

“What are we trying to get figured out?” Wilder asks, as he comes up and takes a seat at the bar’s counter.

“The booming business,” I reply.

“I’ve got an idea.” Wilder turns around and hollers, “Hey prospect!” Talon turns around and nods his head. “You have a job?”

“I work from home creating web pages and whatnot for companies. Why?” he asks.

“Well, we need some more waitresses, but I’m thinking you will have to do for now,” Wilder says, slapping his hand against his back.

“I can handle that. I’ll try to get the word out, too, that you’re looking for some help,” Talon tells us before he heads to the storage room.

I can handle this. Working with Talon will be cool and hopefully, Annistyn might show up at the bar every now and then to see her friend.

Five

Annistyn

I love heels, but my feet are screaming at me as I leave the Vixens club. Tonight was nonstop as soon as I walked through the doors. I can’t complain because I made killer tips and we all know I need them. As I step outside, I notice that it’s sprinkling. Hopefully, any major storms will hold off until I make it back to my part of Los Angeles. I hear a small whimpering sound coming from the side of the building. I grab the pepper spray out of my bag before I toss it in the car. Slowly, I make my way and peek around the building. I don’t see anything but the dumpsters. Just as I turn to walk away, I hear it again. I walk toward the dumpster. When I look down, I see a small white and gray puppy cowering in the corner. My heart breaks for him.

I kneel down and hold my hand out. “Hey buddy, come here,” I coo at him. He gives me a fearful look, but I stay right where I am. I know I need to give him time to come to me. Thunder roars above us and the puppy comes dashing toward me. I scoop him up in my arms and rush toward my car. We make it inside the car just as the sky opens up and rain pours down. “Just in time little dude,” I tell him, as I pet his soft fur. I think he might have some husky in him. He lies down in the passenger seat next to my bag and I turn on the heater to keep us warm as we make our way home.

When I get home, Talon is nowhere to be found. Luckily, the storm hasn’t hit this part of town yet, so I rush into the bathroom and take a quick shower to get the stench of the club off my skin—then the puppy so he isn’t dirty. Once I’m done, I throw on some sweats, my old ‘book nerd’ t-shirt (that has definitely seen better days), and a pair of socks. I climb into bed next to the puppy who I’m going to call Augustus after one of my favorite book characters. With the TV playing to try and drown out the sound of the storm that’s starting to brew outside, I lay down with the puppy in my arms. Before I know it, we are both sound asleep.

“Annistyn, why does this place smell like a wet dog?” Talon’s voice breaks through my sleep. I growl sounding like a dog myself as I roll out of bed. Talon knows I hate being woken up.

I open my door fully and make my way out into the living room. “Seriously dude! Like what the hell? You couldn’t wait until the morning to ask that question?”

Talon laughs. “I forgot how scary you are when you first wake up. It’s like the dragon guarding Sleeping Beauty is fixing to attack me.” I glare at him. “Okay, in my defense, I didn’t think it was this late. I figured you would have just gotten off from the club and still be awake. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” I mumble.

Talon smiles. “You hungry?” Damn it, why does he even ask that question? He knows I’m always hungry.I just nod my head as I sink down onto the couch. “I’ll fix us something,” he says, as he heads into the kitchen.

He returns with a plate of reheated pizza and a bottle of water. “Thank you,” I tell him, as he takes a seat next to me. We eat in silence until a tiny bark fills the room. My eyes go wide as Talon gives me an accusatory look. I jump up and make my way to the room, where I find Augustus staring down at the floor from the bed. I rush over and pick him up. “I’m so sorry little dude,” I tell him. When I turn around, Talon is standing in the doorway with a shocked look on his face.

“What the hell, Annistyn?”

I shrug with Augustus in my arms. “What?”

He gives me a look of disbelief. “I asked you why it smelled like a wet dog and you said you didn’t know.”

I hold up my finger to stop him. “Actually, I never answered that question.”

“Damn it, Annistyn, why do you have a dog?”

I sit down with him in my lap. “Because I found him and it was fixing to storm and he was scared.”

“He was scared?” Talon asks me in a deadpan tone. I nod my head. “Annistyn, we can’t keep the dog.”

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