“You like that?” Colt’s eyes were still on Aaron. “Would you like it for your girls? To hear someone talk trash to one of your girls like that? Say some dumb f**k got it in his head to spread rumors, say your girls were easy, sweet pieces. Spread it around that they gave it away to anyone who wanted it?”

“Colt, it was a long time ago,” Aaron said quietly.

“So, that’d be okay with you?” Colt pressed.

“Of course not,” Aaron said then looked at me. “It was a f**kwad thing to do,” he told me. “Stupid. I shoulda told folks they got the wrong end of the stick.”

“So you didn’t nail her?” Colt asked.

Aaron looked to his boots and mumbled, “No.”

Colt looked at Stew. “But you did. Asshole like you, can’t get a woman unless you pay for it, you tagged a sweet piece like Feb?”

Colt sounded incredulous and there was a snicker from somewhere close but I was too focused on what was happening to see who did it.

Stew had caught the insult, forgetting or not caring that he was lying through his teeth about me and not willing to take that kind of hit to his manhood, he pushed away from the bar. “Fuck you, Lieutenant Colton. I don’t gotta pay for it.”

Colt leaned back a bit. “I don’t know. I heard you did. Must be true.”

Darryl slid around the bar to position himself at Colt’s back.

“Shut your mouth, ass**le, you didn’t hear that,” Stew clipped.

“I didn’t?” Colt asked, feigning surprise. “Might just talk to a few folks about it, see if they heard the same thing. They heard it, it has to be true.”

Stew straightened away from the bar and leaned slightly toward Colt. “That shit’s not funny, motherfucker.”

“No, guess it wouldn’t be, havin’ someone say shit about you others might believe,” Colt said. “Then again, Angie Maroni was known for doin’ everyone. Good woman, bad taste. Not so bad she’d give you a shot, though. Saw you my damned self, dozen times at least in this very bar, tryin’ it on with her. Even Angie wouldn’t give it up for you.”

“I nailed Angie,” Stew announced.

Colt’s eyebrows shot up. “You did? Like you nailed Feb? In your dreams? Or was Angie real?”

I watched Stew’s face, already set, grow rock hard and Aaron saw it too.

“Stew, let’s go,” Aaron said, his voice held urgency now.

“You think you own this town,” Stew spat. “Cop. Untouchable.”

“I’m off duty now, Stew, private citizen havin’ a drink at my woman’s bar.”

“You’re not untouchable.”

“That sounds like a threat.”

Darryl got closer. I sucked in breath. Colt waited.

He wanted it, wanted Stew to make the move. He was itching to wipe the floor with him and the bar waited with Colt, probably itching just as bad to watch him do it.

“Stew, come on, man, let’s go,” Aaron repeated.

“I should teach you a lesson,” Stew said and this was definitely a threat.

“I’ve always been a good student. Whatcha got for me?” Colt taunted.

Stew moved in closer. Colt let my waist go and then moved me aside. Darryl grabbed my upper arm and pulled me behind him.

That’s when Morrie showed out of the blue with Dee behind him.

“What’s goin’ on?” Morrie asked, the shiner Colt gave him the day before having moved toward darker and uglier, which was what it’d do for another day or two before it started to fade. He was positioning Dee well away and getting close to Aaron.

“Stew here’s gonna teach me a lesson,” Colt said.

“‘Bout what?” Morrie asked, his eyes never leaving Stew, he’d read the situation and he was on alert.

“‘Not sure, think it’s about pickin’ vulnerable women, spreadin’ lies about ‘em, sayin’ you f**ked ‘em when you didn’t. Stew here says he f**ked Feb and Angie, when I know he didn’t do either. Maybe it isn’t a lesson, maybe he wants to convince me,” Colt answered, not talking to Stew but not taking his eyes off him then he started to address Stew. “Angie, she can’t speak for herself. But Feb, now February tells me you’re a liar. What I want to know is, did you lie about my woman?”

Stew’s eyes were moving from Colt, to Darryl, to Morrie, not, I suspected, assessing the fact that he was f**ked but, I suspected, deciding which one to try to take on first.

“Colt, man, stand down, it was years ago and she wasn’t your woman then,” Aaron waded in, trying to play peacemaker.

Colt still didn’t look away from Stew. “Honest to God, was there ever a time Feb wasn’t my woman?”

“Yeah, when she was bonking me,” Stew pushed it, “then she was all mine.”

Colt stood and got close, he had three inches on Stew but Stew didn’t back down.

Morrie and Darryl got closer too.

Morrie spoke. “Colt, dude, this guy’s not worth it.”

Colt ignored Morrie and called to me, “Feb, you got anything to say?”

Damn, now he was dragging me into it.

“Like what?” I called back.

Colt didn’t answer.

I watched the showdown for a few seconds and then I decided I was done. It went without saying my life was shitty enough without Colt confronting every ass**le that slid through it. Especially at my bar. I moved around Darryl and stood next to Morrie, close to Colt and Stew.

“Colt, Morrie’s right. He isn’t worth it.”

“Did he f**k you?” Colt asked.

“Seriously?” I answered. “Pete was a dick but at least he was hot. You think I’d do this guy?”

“You hear that? She said she didn’t do you,” Colt said to Stew, leaning in closer, pushing it, they were nearly nose to nose and Stew held his ground.

“Who’d you do?” Morrie asked, sounding curious and glancing at Aaron.

“We already established I didn’t do Aaron, you missed that,” I told Morrie.

“Did you do Willie Clapton?” Dee called. “He’s hot and he said he did you.”

“No, I didn’t do Willie either. He might be hot but we made out and he’s not a good kisser. I’m talkin’ bad. I didn’t wanna go there.”

“Euw. Nothin’ worse than a bad kisser,” Dee noted.

“Willie’s a bad kisser?” Morrie asked.