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 fucked ‘em when you didn’t. Stew here says he fucked 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 fucked 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 asshole 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 fuck 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.
“Don’t make me relive it,” I said to Morrie.
“That bad?” Morrie asked, I made a face and Morrie whistled low before saying, “Sheds new light on Willie.”
“Why’re we talkin’ about who Feb did?” Darryl asked.
“I think the point is Feb didn’t do anyone,” Colt said. “Am I right, Stew?”
Before Stew could answer, I offered helpfully, “I think the rumors got started because I necked a lot after I broke up you,” I told Colt. “Most of the time I was pretty drunk. Though I never made out with Stew, drunk or not.”
“You didn’t do anyone?” Morrie asked me, looking slightly shocked and I would have kicked him or at least punched his arm if the situation was a little less tense. However, the situation was very tense and I didn’t want to be the one to send it over the edge.
“I did Pete,” I answered.
“You were married to him,” Morrie returned.
“Don’t make me relive that either.”
Aaron moved in closer and tagged Stew’s shirt, giving it a tug before dropping his hand. “Come on, Stew, let’s just go.”
Morrie was focused, however. “You just made out with all these guys?”
“Not all of them, for example, not Stew,” I replied.
Stew’s eyes moved to me and then he made his move to Colt, but verbally. He wanted Colt to start it, likely because if Colt did, he’d get in worse trouble than Stew if it got ugly. There were a lot of eyes, a lot of witnesses. Stew started it, Colt could say he was defending himself. Colt started it, he would be fucked. Stew wasn’t like Pete; he wouldn’t back down and do the right thing with a little pressure from people. Pete did the right thing not because he was a good guy but because he was an outsider and he’d had a goodly taste of Colt’s fury backed up by a goodly amount of pressure to get the fuck out of Dodge. Stew would push it and make things difficult for Colt at work. It was frowned on, cops getting in bar brawls and beating the shit out of guys who wronged their girlfriends, no matter who the dickheads were that did it and how much they deserved it.
So Stew made his move by repeating to me, “Bullshit, Feb, I nailed you.”
Colt didn’t miss a beat before telling him, “I know you didn’t.”
Stew’s eyes went back to Colt. “And you know that how?”
“Because I have nailed her and trust me, you had her once, you’d go back for more.”
“Aw,” Dee said, “that’s kind of sweet.”
I rolled my eyes.
Colt suddenly sat down.
Then he said, “Finish your beer, Stew, then I wanna see you in here again never. I never wanna see you in here again.”
Stew stared at Colt, denied his altercation and with Colt unwilling to play finding himself in a position that he was unable to escalate it. Though, he tried.
“Backin’ down, Lieutenant Colton?” Stew taunted.
“Yep,” Colt replied casually, turning toward his beer, “I gotta bust your lip, I might split my knuckle and I want free use of my fingers tonight.”
That’s when I rolled my eyes again at Dee who was grinning at me.
“Jesus, Colt, her brother’s standin’ right here,” Morrie muttered, sounding only half-disgusted, the other half was amused and noting the standoff was over he started to walk behind the bar, finishing, “You’re off, Feb. Me and Dee are closin’.”
This shocking announcement took my mind off the tense situation.
“What?”
“Morrie’s gonna show me how to use the cash register,” Dee proclaimed, like Morrie was going to strap her into a spacecraft and take her on a tour of the stars. She was still grinning and following Morrie behind the bar.
“What?” I repeated to her back.
Dee turned and her face was awash in excitement. “And he’s gonna teach me how to mix drinks.”
“What?” I said again.
“You good, boss?” Darryl asked Colt.
“Yeah, Darryl,” Colt said, taking the final pull of his beer. Aaron had moved Stew a couple of feet away. The standoff was over. Colt backed off and sat down but everyone knew, even Stew, that Stew ended up the loser. We were all still the focal point of a lot of eyes but I wasn’t paying attention, something more important was happening.