Over the Hedge: Part 2- The Finale (Lucky in Love) Read online

  The last song had Lashawnda, Stacy, and Crystal on their feet moving their hips seductively to the music. The spotlights turned on them as they danced to the song. I shook my head as Brad even did the reggae verses as if he was born on some Caribbean island. Brent and Ian were dying with laughter at my expense. I rewarded them with a few shots of the middle finger, and the words, ‘fuck you’ mouthed at the same time. I had to use all my composure from walking out with Lashawnda thrown over my shoulder.

  I doubted she would love my caveman act, then.

  When Brad finished his set, he came over to our table with some guys from the band. He went about introducing them to everyone. Lashawnda did the honors of introducing everyone in our party.

  “So, how did we do?” he asked pulling up a seat next to Lashawnda.

  Not so close, asshole.

  I pulled Lashawnda’s seat closer to mine. She turned to look at me, brows wrinkled in confusion. I returned her stare with a warning glare.

  “You guys were amazing.” She turned back to face Brad. “And, the last song…where did you get that accent?”

  “We spent a lot of time in the islands growing up. Mostly Jamaica, but we also lived in Trinidad too,” piped in Tim, Brad’s little brother.

  Lashawnda looked at Brad with wide eyes. “I didn’t know you lived on the islands.”

  I tried not to roll my eyes at her tone. She was acting as if the islands were some far off alien world that only special people got to visit. I found nothing interesting or amusing about Brad putting on a fake Jamaican accent.

  “There’s a lot you don’t know about me,” Brad said taking a healthy sip of his beer.

  Yup, and she’ll never find out.

  “So, what do you say? Did we get the gig or not?” Tim asked.

  “Hell yeah, you got it,” Crystal chimed in. “If you can go from pop to rock to reggae, so flawlessly, then my parents would be more than pleased to have you play.”

  “I second that,” Lashawnda added. “And, there is no way I’m letting you do this for free.”

  “Yes, you are. We’re friends, aren’t we? I want to do it; just think of this as another band practice,” Brad countered.

  “Well, that doesn’t help any. You guys are so good. I would pay to see you practice. Are you sure? I feel like I’m taking advantage of you. How do the other guys feel about doing a gig for free?” Lashawnda asked looking at the other band members.

  “We’re cool with it. If anything, this gives us an opportunity to try some new things out. We’ve all got other tastes in music than just rock,” Tim added.

  “Okay, if you insist, but I’m going to repay this favor somehow. So, obviously there is a lot I don’t know about you. You better spill the beans about this band and island thing.” Lashawnda leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms underneath her breasts. I gritted my teeth. Did she not realize her folded arms just pushed her boobs out even farther?

  The conversation was light, except for Lashawnda repeatedly trying to get Brad to tell her more about his personal life. Brent got up to get everyone another round of drinks and was on his way back to the table when he noticed Crystal’s stunned expression.

  “Hey what’s the matter?” he asked her.

  Everyone looked at Crystal. Her eyes were blazing with anger. “Nothing…just didn’t expect to see my husband out with another woman.”

  The entire table followed her line of vision toward Brian, practically having sex with a heavily made-up, half-naked woman.

  “No, that motherfucker didn’t! I’m gonna say something to his ass,” yelled Stacy in outrage. She slammed her fist against the table. She started to get up, but Will caught her around the waist and forced her to sit down in his lap.

  “No, you’re not. This is between Crystal and him. If she wants to confront him, that’s up to her,” Will stated.

  Stacy gave him a look that would have killed any man in his tracks. But, Will ignored it and kept one arm firmly around her waist, while reaching for his beer with the other hand. He knew Stacy well enough to know she would not be talking with Brian. Just a well-placed fist in his face and a foot in his ass. Lashawnda had regaled me with stories about Stacy being a bulldog in the past.

  I looked from Crystal to Brian. The glare she sported was replaced with a look of hurt. It was enough to make up my mind. Brian had to leave. He was already out with another woman, disrespecting his wife. The least he could do was find someplace else to go.

  “I’ll make him leave.” I stood up and pushed my chair back.

  “Sean…don’t. We might get kicked out,” Lashawnda pleaded, holding on to my forearm.

  “Lucky thing we didn’t park too far.” I peeked at her before taking a final swig of my beer. I wiped my lips with the back of my hand, then marched over to Brian’s table.

  “Hey, asshole, aren’t you still married?” I asked. There was no point mincing words. I still recalled the night of our family dinner where he tried to take shots at Lashawnda. I might have let him off easy because we were at her parents’ house. But, I damn sure didn’t forget.

  Brian’s head popped up. The wing in his hand dropped on the plate. The silence stretched as I waited for him to say something.

  “You didn’t answer my questions.” I looked at his face, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights. Pathetic. “You know what…don’t bother.” I think you should just leave. You’re making my little sister uncomfortable.”

  “He doesn’t have to answer to you. Obviously, that bitch don’t know how to take care of her man, or else he wouldn’t be here with me right now. He’s moved on. And, now we can finally be together without hiding.” The woman sitting next to Brian spoke up.

  “Tam, that’s enough.” Brian turned to her, voice sounding shaky and weak.

  I shook my head, feeling my ire rise. How in the world did Crystal end up with this joker?

  “Real fucking downgrade man. You went from having a great girl as your wife to some low-class gutter trash who can’t even string a sentence together.”

  “Excuse me?!” the woman yelled.

  “I’m having a chat with this little boy, not you. Now, I might consider talking to you too if you learn how to communicate like a woman with an ounce of intelligence.”

  “What motherfucker?” she said jumping up.

  I felt Lashawnda’s hand take hold of my arm, attempting to pull me back from the table. People took notice of what was going on. One of the guys from behind the bar came over to us, a big tall guy with a bulking frame that looked like he spent hours in the gym. I figured he must have been a bouncer.

  “Is there a problem over here?” he asked, looking between Brian and me.

  “Yeah, this asshole tryin’ to start some shit,” the woman yelled, pointing her fingers in my face.

  “Hey, you need to watch the fingers,” Lashawnda warned.

  My head snapped quickly to look at the vixen who stepped in front of me like an over protective she-wolf. Obviously, something the woman said didn’t sit well with her. Even Brian was shocked. An angry Lashawnda was one I’d never seen before.

  “If you weren’t here with my sister’s husband, we wouldn’t be having this discussion.” Lashawnda turned to the woman with her arms crossed under her breasts.

  “Okay, I’ve heard enough. I’m going to have to ask y’all to leave. I don’t want any trouble in my bar.” The bouncer looked between us.

  Brian and his party started putting on their coats. He signaled three guys at the other end of the room who must have been with them. One of them sized me up as they walked past Lashawnda and me. The woman he called Tam was steady cursing and acting a fool about them getting kicked out.

  “You too. Time to go.” The bouncer said looking at me.

  I walked back over our table and dropped some bills to cover the tab. “Sorry guys, but it seems like they have evicted us.”

  “Just like old times,” Ian said finishing off his beer. “Oh well, at least there’s no b
roken bones.”

  “And, no one is going to jail,” Brent said, shrugging and pulling out his wallet to drop more money on the table.

  He, Brent, and I had a good laugh reminiscing about the past during the cookout. We partied hard in college and got into a bit of trouble along the way. Brent was helping Crystal into her coat when Brian and his party walked by. The girl said something in Brian’s ear, and he turned, looked at Crystal and laughed. It was taking everything in me not to react. Lashawnda had not seen my angry side yet, and I didn’t want her to. I’d just convinced her to move in with me. There was no point in fucking it up so soon.

  The others made it outside after saying our goodbyes to Brad and the band. Lashawnda and I were the last two to leave after talking to them about the upcoming party. By the time we exited the front doors, the others had walked ahead toward the parking lot in the back of the building. Brian and his friends were still standing out front. They were looking over at us and snickering. I helped Lashawnda into her coat and took her hand.

  We barely took three steps before I heard Brian’s voice. “Yeah, I knew that whore was riding on someone else’s dick when she stopped begging me for sex.”

  The words barely had time to leave his lips before my fist connected with his jaw. The sickening sound of bone cracking was as loud as a freight train colliding with a cement wall. Brian picked the wrong day and time to speak his mind. He felt bold now that he was outside and surrounded by so many of his friends. But, these heavy blows from my fists were just what he needed to stay in his place.

  I didn’t give a shit how many of them there were. Brian had disrespected Crystal, and now, he had to pay for it. I recalled the hurt in Crystal’s eyes when she saw him with the other woman. I even remembered the tears she tried to hold back as I carried her to the park after our first big family dinner. No one could make my little sister cry, and for that, Brian had signed his death warrant. I repeatedly slammed my fist in his face.

  One of Brian’s friends jumped into the fight. Shit didn’t faze me. I wasn’t new to this. I’d handled tougher men than these. I cocked my hand back and slammed my fist hard into Brian’s face before turning to take on his friend. I was in a trance. I heard Lashawnda scream, and I felt another person next to me. Instincts kicked in as I put my guard up, ready to take him on as well. But I noticed right away it was Brad. Then Ian and Brent joined in on the commotion. I guess Ian spoke too soon about it being just like old times.

  “Alright, Sean…man I think he’s had enough.” Brent attempted to pull me off Brian’s friend. “Sean, bro, ease up, man.”

  He grabbed me around the shoulders while Ian pulled the guy from underneath me. I came across his jaw with another blow to his chin as a reminder of what happens when assholes run their mouths.

  I could slowly feel the blackness fading. Brent and Ian held onto me, Ian’s arms wrapped around my chest from behind and Brent’s hands braced against my shoulder to keep me from moving. My ears perked up as I heard what sounded like an animal growling. I took a few seconds to realize that it was coming from me. It had been a very long time since I had been this angry. With the plagiarism thing at work, stress of managing the lab, and then Brian’s insult to Crystal—I just snapped.

  Shit!

  I surveyed the scene. If someone hadn’t already called the cops, it was bound to happen. My mind raced with all the bullshit I would deal with if I got arrested. H&G had a code of conduct they were adamant about enforcing. It would not look good for one of their employees to end up with a mugshot in the city newspaper.

  Part of me couldn’t give a shit about any of it in that moment. But there was the other part.

  Brian was slowly getting up to his feet with the aid of his date and another guy. I felt slightly remorseful for the beating he had gotten. By the looks of his swollen eyes and blood dripping from his lip and nose, I had done some serious damage. Yes, Brian deserved it, but knew it wasn’t a fair fight. Physically, I was no match for him. Now, I had no remorse at all for the other guys who jumped in. They got exactly what they deserved.

  I smirked, watching them quickly pile into their car.

  CHAPTER 21

  LASHAWNDA

  My boyfriend is a psychopath. He had to be. There was no other explanation for what I was witnessing.

  When I walked out of the restaurant, I would have yelled for Brian to run…run for his life. I didn’t hear the full extent of what Brian said, but whatever it was it set Sean off. As big as Sean is, I didn’t think he could move so fast. His fist connected with Brian’s face at a rate that made me cringe.

  “Oh my God!” I yelled as one of Brian’s friends jumped into the fight. Sean didn’t flinch. He reacted like it was no trouble handling another person.

  I pulled out my cell, attempting to call Brent. But, when the girl walked over to Sean and tried to kick him in the face, I forgot all about calling for reinforcements. I sprinted over to them and grabbed her by the tangled mess of hot red and blonde weave, yanking her away from Sean. Either her ass had too much to drink, or she needed to invest in some protein shakes. The girl toppled over on the ground. She didn’t even try to get back up.

  I looked up to see a third guy joining the fight. How did these men think it was fair to attack a guy three on one? I took a step toward the flying fists and grabbed the guy that had his arm around Sean’s neck. He wasn’t a lightweight like the Tam girl.

  “Let him go, asshole,” I screamed, digging my nails into the skin around his neck.

  Sean’s face was turning red, but the punches landing on Brian’s face weren’t stopping. The second guy that jumped in was lying on the ground unmoving, with Tam trying to shake him awake. Changing tactics, I used my hands and feet to land a few blows and kidney shots to get him to let Sean go.

  “You want some too, bitch?” he asked releasing Sean. He shoved me away, and I fell backward into the pillar outside of the building. I was expecting to feel pain from whatever contact his hands made when he hit me. But someone pulled me back by a pair of strong hands around my waist.

  “Stay here,” Brad ordered just as he stepped to the guy I had kicked. He landed a solid punch to his jaw and the two men tussled. By the time Brent and Ian came over to break up the fight, it was complete chaos.

  “Holy shit! Damn, Sean what the hell happened?” Crystal exclaimed looking back and forth between Brian and Sean.

  “It looks like Sean took his ass out. Damn, we should have waited,” Stacy said while laughing and pulling on Will’s arm. He shook his head at her in amusement.

  “Stacy, calm down. Girl, you always ready for a fight.” Crystal crossed her arms and shook her head in disgust. “I honestly hate that man with a passion right now, but I wouldn’t wish that ass whooping on anyone.”

  “You say that now, but look at how he’s handling this whole thing. You weren’t talking about compassion when he was texting you about his new woman and how she’s so much better than you.” Stacy cocked her head back while pointing at the woman helping Brian into the car. “He thinks that dirty bird is better than you? Tuh!”

  I couldn’t process everything all at once. A headache was forming above my right eye. This was supposed to be a chill weekend for us. Getting kicked out of a bar and brawling was not what I had in mind. I caught Sean’s eye as he turned away from his friends. The smile he sported confirmed he was indeed a crazy person. He shrugged out of Brent and Ian’s hold. I tensed, nervous for some reason as he walked over to me.

  “Are you okay?” he pulled me into his arms and looked me over.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. Are you okay?” I answered, feeling exhausted suddenly.

  “Don’t worry about me. Why are you holding your arm?” he asked.

  I looked down, just realizing I was holding my arm. “That guy in the blue shirt shoved me when I was trying to get him to stop choking you. I hit my arm on the pillar by the entrance,” I explained with a wave of my hand.

  I reached up and rubbed my fingertips ov
er the slight bruise on Sean’s temple. He was at fault for starting the fight, but it still angered me that they jumped on him.

  “What…which one?” Sean asked, voice calm and even, almost bordering on being menacing.

  “The guy in the blue shirt. I can’t believe he jumped in when it was already two against one.” In hindsight, I should have been paying better attention to Sean’s facial expressions. But I was too busy fussing over the marks on his cheek and neck.

  “Come here.” Sean took hold of my arm and brought it to his lips. Gently placing kisses on it and then two on my lips before blessing me with a sweet smile. “I’ll be right back.”

  I was confused.

  “Sean?” I cocked my head to the side, trying to meet his gaze.

  The fleeting glint of darkness in his eyes had me wondering if I was watching my boyfriend transform into something otherworldly. But as I watched him take a few steps away from me and pull his shirt over his head I knew I wasn’t mistaken.

  The muscles cording his chiseled back bunched and shifted as he took heavy strides away from me. The moon illuminated his sun-tanned skin; casting shadows on the deep contours of his herculean frame. There was so much power in his heavy strides that I feared what he was about to do. I had seen Sean angry before; but this was beyond that. He was inflamed with rage.

  “Sean…” I said, calling after him again. A chill crept up my spine when he gave me no response. He maneuvered toward the car and wrapped his shirt around his right fist.

  “Aww, fuck…” Brent called out. “Hey, Sean, man what the fuck is going on?” he yelled.

  “What the hell is going on?” He turned toward me, throwing his arms in the air. “He just beat the shit out of that guy. Why is he going after them again?”

  “I don’t know. He asked me why I was holding my arm, and I said the guy in the blue shoved me. Then he just walked away.” I felt my sister’s arms come around my body in a tight embrace.