The Rockin' Country

Chapter 11

"Guys, you know who she is, but you haven't been formally introduced. Hannah, this is Jared, Bradley, and Chris."

She nodded at each of them as they raised their hands when they were introduced. "It's good to meet you guys, I hope you don't mind that I'm crashing your party."

"A beautiful woman like you? You're not crashing it at all. You're giving us a much better time," Jared grinned up at her from where he sat.

"Don't believe a word he says, he flirts with all the ladies," Garrett said, running his hand down her back.

"Somehow, I think you're telling me the truth," she winked at Jared.

"So when are we leaving?" Bradley asked, running a hand through his black hair. She could see how he gotten his nickname of Raven.

"Whenever you want to." Garrett pulled the keys to the Escalade out of his pocket and threw them for someone to catch them. "Whoever wants to drive, be my guest."

Bradley caught the keys and threw some money on the table to cover the drinks they had while waiting. "Let's roll, gentlemen and lady."

The group of them made it to the Escalade and got in, Garrett taking a spot in the back that was extended. Only two people could sit there, and he brought Hannah along with him. The small space and his big body made them sit pressed up against each other.

"I hope you have a good time tonight," he smiled at her. His voice was deep and intimate against her ear, the timbre causing goosebumps to form along her arms.

"I hope I do too."

There was a silence in the vehicle, and she couldn't help but feel that it was partially because of her. Hannah didn't know these men well enough to break that silence. Just when she was about to say something, Jared turned around in his seat and faced her.

"So tell me, how much of a d**k is Ashton Coleman?"

It took her by surprise, and she could hardly do anything but laugh. "I can't believe you just said that to me," she continued to laugh, but she was in shock.

"Oh c'mon. You dated the guy for like two years. You were obviously too good for him. If we're going to accept you into the group, you've got to give us something," Jared chastised her.

"You don't have to answer anything you don't want to," Garrett told her, hitting Jared on the back of the head. "Dude, some people don't talk s**t about everybody like you do."

"No, it's okay," she said. He was right. If there was anybody she could discuss how much of a jerk Ashton Coleman had been to her, it was these guys. "He really was a jerk."

"No, honey." Garrett put his arm around her. "Jared called him a dick."

"Yeah, a d**k and a jerk are two very different things," Jared nodded.

"A d**k is a straight-up asshole. Somebody that makes you or the people you care about cry. A jerk just makes you want to cancel his porn account. So, what was this guy?" Bradley asked from where he sat behind the steering wheel.

She chewed that around for thought. "Then he really was a d**k," she said the word softly, causing all the guys to crack up.

"It's okay, you can say that around us," Chris told her from his place beside Jared. "We're not gonna run tell all the tabloids that you said a bad word."

"Dude, don't make fun of her," Garrett piped up. "She lives a completely different life than we do."

"No, it's okay," she told him, laying her hand on his thigh. "My life is kind of a joke compared to y'all's. I can take it."

"Yeah, Garrett, let her stand up for herself," Jared needled his friend. He loved to get Garrett's back up.

"Shut the f**k up, man."

"No, he's right." Hannah rubbed her hand along his thigh this time, trying to calm him down. "I can stand up for myself, but I don't because usually other people do it for me. But yeah, Ashton Coleman is the biggest d**k to ever walk the planet."

Garrett couldn't help but watch her mouth as she formed the word. Hearing it come out from between her lips was doing things to him that he didn't want to look at too closely.

"That's so good to hear, because my last girlfriend was totally in love with him," Chris told her. "She had his poster up everywhere. I hated that douchebag."

"She probably slept with him. Everyone else did," Hannah said before she could stop herself.

"Ohhhh," she heard as all the guys hit Chris on the arms, in the stomach.

"That was harsh, Hannah." Chris held his stomach where Jared had hit him the hardest.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I meant that more as a dig on him than on the women he cheated on me with."

"He cheated on you?" Bradley asked.

"Yeah." Her tone was clipped, and it was obvious that she didn't want to talk about it, but one thing she didn't know about these guys was the fact they gossiped like old women. "He sure did."

"He's crazy."

"He's a douchebag."

"I hope you cheated on him with someone else."

"He really is a dick."

The last phrase came from beside her, and she smiled up at Garrett. "Thanks, you're right, he is. I appreciate the support, guys," she laughed as she took in everything they had said.

Pulling up to the valet parking at the bar, Bradley turned around. "Well if you're with Garrett, then you're one of us, and we take care of our own. Welcome to the family."

* * *

This bar was like nothing that Hannah had ever seen before. It was decorated in shades of black and red, and heavy metal played over the speakers. People sat in groups at tables along one side of the room, while the other side held a large group dance floor.

"We're going up here," Garrett said into her ear as they took some stairs and arrived at what she figured was a VIP area.

It overlooked the whole bar and she stepped up to the railing to have a glance. Some people noticed her and pointed at her. She smiled and waved as pictures were taken. It was only when she went to turn around that she noticed Reaper had come up behind her as well.

"What do you want to drink?" He had to lean in close to be heard over the loud bass of the rock beats.

Water wouldn't do with this crowd, so she told him the one drink she liked. "Crown and Coke."

"You like the hard stuff?" Surprise was evident on his face.

"Not everything about me is goodie-two-shoes. I have my moments," she said as she stood on her tiptoes to reach his ear.

"I'd like to figure out how to get to those moments," he flirted with her.

She had taken her jacket off when they entered the club, and he trailed his fingertips down her bare arm. "Hopefully, you'll find out one day."

Hannah watched as he went over to the private bar in this area and placed their order. Taking a deep breath, she smoothed her dress down her thighs to calm her nerves. These guys had been wild in their younger years, and she hoped that they had calmed down enough that she could hang with them. If she couldn't hang with them, she wasn't sure she had a future with Garrett. She plastered a smile on her face when he walked back over towards her, drinks in hand.

"You look hot standing here with the lights of the club behind you. It's like you're starring in my very own music video," he told her as he handed her the drink she had requested.

Wanting to fortify herself, she took a gulp from the glass. "I don't know how to flirt back with you," she admitted. "You're much better than I am. I'm so far out of my league with you, it's not even funny."

"You aren't out of your league, you just need to relax."

He pulled her over to the table, and they had a seat. She sat back, crossing her legs, and listened to the group. There was never a dull moment in their conversation, and she had a hard time following along. They were close, and there were a lot of inside jokes that she wasn't privy to, but she was still having a good time nonetheless.

"So who's your friend that I always see you with?" Jared asked when there was a brief lull in the conversation.

"My friend?" She was genuinely confused.

"You know, that blonde that's always hanging around with you. I've seen her in the background all the time."

"You mean Shell?" She raised her eyebrow in surprise.

"He's talking about the one that was in your car the other day, so I think you said that was Shell?" Garrett confirmed.

"What do you want to know about my friend for?"

"She's kinda cute," Jared grinned over at her.

Hannah leaned into Garrett, her lips touching his ear. "Is he serious right now?"

Lazily he leaned back against the seat, pushing his arm in between her and the seat. His hand rested softly against her hip bone. "You never know with him. Why don't you bust his balls about it?"

"Why would I give you my friend's number? I've read womanizing stories about you in the tabloids. Are you crazy?"

"Damn, man," Chris laughed, putting his drink up to his lips. "She's got you there."

A blank look overtook his face before he took a drink from his own beer. "That was a long time ago," he argued. She'd obviously inadvertently hit on something that pissed him off.

Garrett stiffened next to her before talking. "She's just joking, you know that, right?"

Jared got up from where he sat and stood next to the two of them. "Don't talk s**t about me unless you know me, and honey, just because you might be laying on your back for him doesn't mean you know me." He took off, walking towards the main level of the bar.

She was shocked. No one had ever talked to her like that before in her life.

"I'm really sorry about that," Garrett told her, grinding his back teeth together. He wanted to rip his best friend apart with his bare hands.

"Not your fault. I told you I wouldn't hold anything he did against you, but I will tell you he makes me nervous."

Garrett made a mental note to have a conversation with him later.

"Sorry I asked." She leaned over to the group. "Didn't mean to be such a Debbie Downer."

Chris took a drink from his bottle again. "Don't worry about it, he's different. You never know with him. He's not going to ruin our good time, so don't even think about it. I'm about to go find me a woman," he stood up and flexed his arms.

She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. She thought that maybe she had ruined their night and that had scared her. If there was one thing she wanted, it was for these guys to like her.

"You didn't do anything. Seriously, none of us know what will set him off. You can't be careful of something you have no idea about," Garrett assured her.

Glancing around, she saw that they had been left alone at their table. "Glad that I didn't ruin it, but it looks like everyone left us alone."

"Good," he said, turning around so that they faced one another. "They were imposing on our alone time," he shouted over the loud music.

"So what do you want to do?"

"First, I'm gonna take this shot, and then I think I'm going to do something that I've thought about doing since you climbed into the backseat with me."

Hannah watched as he tipped his head back, swallowing the liquid in one gulp. Her eyes watched his Adam's apple bob up and down as he pushed the liquid past his throat. "That s**t's strong," he said as he set the shot glass down on the table.

What was he going to do? He had taken the shot, and now he looked at her with the strangest glint in his eyes. She had a moment before he buried his hands in her hair and pulled her mouth to his. This kiss was different than the one from before. This time he coaxed her lips open, lightly running his tongue along her bottom lip. When he slipped inside, she moaned loudly, grasping his biceps and digging her fingers into the skin. With one hand he released her hair, moving his palm down to her ass, cupping it, before pulling her so that she had to straddle his midsection.

"We're in public," she panted as she pulled back.

Garrett glanced around, a smirk on his face. "Nobody can see us. Just go with it."

His hand pushed down on her, grinding his hard length up into her, causing her to moan loudly. She shivered as she felt his hand come around the front of her dress, grasping her breast through the material. Her hard n****e stabbed his palm, letting her feel it all the way down to where their cores touched. Wrenching her mouth from his, she threw her head back, enjoying the sensation of letting go with him. It was safe, because they wouldn't go too far here. His mouth buried into her neck, sucking the pulse point and gently nipping at the skin as she grinded against him, doubling up her riding motions when he used his thumb to tease the hard nub at her chest.