Loving Lawson by R.J. Lewis Page A

another nod before returning to his game. I leaned over to Allie and said, “He’s easy. Don’t worry. Good guy on the inside, that one.”
    “That’s crazy,” she replied, smiling back at me. “When you guys were fighting, he seemed so aggressive. Call me silly, but I didn’t think that sort of thing could be easily turned off.”
    “You’re right. Some of the fighters are naturally aggressive even outside the matches. But it’s their hot-headed tempers that land them straight in jail. You’ll see them around, but personally, I’ve gotten along with most fighters just fine. Like I said, we keep the personal shit out.”
    She nodded in understanding. For a while I let her soak up the place. She listened in on the chatter, relaxed and ate her little heart out. This was nice. For once, I didn’t need the buzz that came with drinking. I was getting it from her.
    “I like this song,” she suddenly said, pointing to the jukebox.
    I stopped moving and listened intently on the song playing.
    “Love is the drug” by Bryan Ferry.
    It was bittersweet. Mom liked this song too.
    “Is that right?” I asked with a smile.
    Before she answered, I stood up and grabbed her hand. I pulled her off the chair and took her to the centre of the bar where others were dancing. She was bright red as I brought her hands up into the air and yelled at her to dance like everyone else. She laughed and, to my surprise, started moving her body around to the music.
    “You know the words?” I shouted to her.
    She nodded. “Of course I do!”
    “Prove it!”
    She took my breath away when she opened her mouth and started singing to the lyrics, getting louder and more confident as she went on.
    “Late that night I park my car
              Stake my place in the singles bar
              Face to face, toe to toe
              Heart to heart as we hit the floor
              Lumber up, limbo down
              The locked embrace, the stumble round
              I say go, she says yes
              Dim the lights, you can guess the rest
              Oh, oh, catch the buzz
              Love is the drug I’m thinking of.”
                  Her whole body was flushed, her face glowing, acting her age for once and not consumed by the recent pressures in her life…
                  Allie Wallace.
                  This unbelievable girl.
                  What the fuck was Ryker thinking throwing this away?
                  She was breathless by the time she finished the song, and the loud sound of applause by the guys sitting at the bar behind us suddenly filled the room. She jumped and glanced at them over her shoulder, her eyes widening and her face – if it was possible – getting even redder. She hadn’t expected an audience, and I’d been so absorbed by her, I didn’t notice them too.
                  “Brilliant singing, Allie,” hooted Matt, coming in from behind her. He had a pool stick in one hand and his arm went around her, pulling her into his chest to give her a “welcoming” hug.
                  Fuck, this guy wanted to die, right? He was begging for it.
                  Allie smiled up at him, and my irrational anger simmered as I watched her give him attention. I wanted it all on me, and it was a pretty fucked up, childish thing to admit to myself. I headed straight for her, glaring at Matt, and took her by the arm. I motioned her to me and said, “Let’s get back to the table, Al.”
                  She moved to leave, but Matt’s grip around her shoulders tightened. “It’s alright, man,” he told me, “I want to have this next dance with her.”
                  “She needs to rest,” I told him, flaring my nostrils as he scowled at me.
                  “She