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Jessi
I paused for a long moment outside the bar, wondering if I really wanted to do this. Except that of course I did, or else I wouldn't be here.
I squared my shoulders and marched across the street, meeting the bouncer's eyes with a friendly smile. “Hey.”
“You're not a member of the Hounds of Hades,” the bouncer said, folding his arms across his chest.
“No,” I agreed. “But I'm a friend of Rip's. And J.T. Rip invited me here.”
The bouncer raised his eyebrows at me, but then finally stepped back to let me go in.
Inside, it was busy and noisy, and there was a ton of smoke in the air. It was like walking into some sort of biker bar out of a bad '80s movie. There was loud music playing in the background, and it took me a moment to even identify where the bar was.
I made my way over and ordered a beer, then asked the bartender if Rip was there, because there was no way I was going to find him on my own.
The bartender gave a piercing whistle and half the room turned to stare at us. The bartender pointed and I could see Rip back in one corner, chatting with a busty blonde. When he saw me, he got a devilish grin on his face and stood up, quickly making his way through the crowd and to my side.
“Hey there, pretty lady,” he said, eyeing me. “You look good with your hair down. And in a pair of jeans that actually fit you.”
I blushed a little. “Rip, I'm not here to sleep with you,” I told him.
“I know,” he said. “But there's no reason why I can't sit here checking you out.” He winked at me and flagged down the bartender. “I'll take another whiskey sour,” he told the man.
Once we both had drinks, he led me back towards the corner spot he'd been occupying before. I was glad to see that the blonde woman had moved away. “Didn't think your dad was going to let you come,” he told me.
“I snuck out,” I admitted. It was a bit embarrassing to have to admit that, at twenty-two years old, I had snuck out the window of my dad's house to come out to a bar, but oh well. “Just—don't say anything about this to him, okay?”
Rip laughed heartily. “Darling, I rather like working at your dad's shop. I'm not about to mess that up by telling the man that, oh by the way, I'm corrupting his daughter.”
I smiled at him. “So you said you were going to introduce me to some people?” I asked.
“I lied,” Rip said. “Tonight, I'm keeping you all to myself.” He grinned sharply at me, and I couldn't help the shudder of interest that ran along my spine. With that dangerous, devilish attitude of his, I was all too willing to spread my legs for him. But that made me think about Gary again.
“All right, come on,” Rip said, noticing my expression. “Whatever you've been upset about all day, spit it out. What's wrong? I finally got your dad to agree to use your design for J.T.'s bike, and you've hardly even seemed excited about that.”
I blushed and ducked my head. “It's just ...something that Gary said to me,” I admitted. I chanced a quick glance up, but Rip was still just watching me with a neutral expression on his face. I sighed. “He says that I don't have a place in the department or in the industry if I don't do what he wants.”
“And what exactly does he want?” Rip said, and there was a hint of anger in his tone now, even though it didn't show in his face still.
I didn’t want to tell Rip that part, but ... “Well, remember how you said that he likes to sleep around with his students?” I asked, hoping that he could draw the lines from there.
“He propositioned you,” Rip said flatly.
I grimaced. “Something like that.”
“What do you mean, 'something like that?’” Rip asked, and there was a note to his voice that I had never heard before.
I took a big sip of beer and picked at the edge of the rough, wooden table. “Last night I wasn't in the library,” I admitted. “I was about to come home when Gary called me into his office so that he could talk about the project that I turned into him—the design for J.T.'s bike. He wanted to have a drink to celebrate how much good work I was doing in the department, and I stupidly agreed to it. Next thing I know, he's groping me and ...” I broke off, shuddering.
“Did he rape you?” Rip asked sharply, and from the look in his eyes, I had the feeling that if I told him Gary had, he'd kill the man with his bare hands.
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “He, uh, just felt me up a little and put his dick on my mouth—not in it, but against it. But then the security guy came and said they were locking up the building for the night, so Gary had to get out. And that's when Gary told me all the stuff about not having a place in the department if I don't do what he wants.” I ducked my head, feeling ashamed. I should never have thought otherwise about Gary to begin with. Of course I didn't have so much talent that he would be falling all over himself trying to help me break into the industry. He just played on that so that he could get me to trust him.
I was still afraid to think of what might have happened if they hadn't been locking up the building at just the right moment.
“I'm going to kill the fucker,” Rip muttered, his expression stormy.
“Don't,” I insisted, putting a hand on his arm. “Look, I'm fine. A bit shaken up maybe, and a bit distracted, but nothing happened. And I don't want you to do anything to get me in trouble with the school, or with Gary, or with ... I mean, I just don't want you to jeopardize my place in the program, any more than I want Gary to.”
“Next time, you might not be that lucky,” Rip pointed out. “And I know guys like Gary—there will be a next time. Especially if you're still in his classes and hanging out around the university. You can't.”
“Rip, if you start sounding like my dad, I swear to God-”
“I'm not trying to sound like your dad,” Rip assured me. “I know that he's been a bit overprotective lately. That's not what I'm trying to do. But I am offering you my help, if you need it. I don't want to see you hurt.”
“But I bet you would want something in return for helping me out too, wouldn't you?” I asked cynically. “What does it matter, if it's sex with Gary or sex with you?” It made a lot of difference, actually, but I wasn't about to tell Rip that I was kind of crushing on him, especially after he was being so nice to me that day.
“Jessi, I would never force you to have sex with me in exchange for my helping you out,” Rip told me patiently. He grinned a little. “Now, if you wanted to offer sex with me as a payment for my helping you out...”
“My dad would kill us both,” I told him. We’d leave it at that. I bit my lower lip, thinking it through. “What exactly could you do to Gary?” I asked.
“Well, I'm guessing that you don't want me to just kill him outright,” Rip said, and although he was smiling, I could tell he was actually seriously offering to kill the man. “I could have him run out of town, though. He isn't part of a motorcycle club, so he has no allies. A threat from us could be the end of him here.”
“He's a good professor, though,” I said despairingly. “I don't want him to touch me, but I also don't want him to not be my professor anymore.”
“So maybe I need to have a little chat with him and make sure he understands that you're under our protection,” Rip offered. “And make sure that he knows that if anything else happens between the two of you—anything that makes you unhappy—then things will be more serious for him.”
“Okay,” I agreed, finishing my beer. “But what would you want in return?”