Page 62 of Talon (Road Rebels MC 2)
“Hey, there handsome. Would you like to dance?”
“I appreciate it, but not so much right now. Maybe later,” Cort said trying to let her down gently.
The girl was persistent though.
“Well, maybe I can find other ways to make you feel better,” she moaned in his ear.
Cort almost choked on his drink. He smiled and took the girl’s hands off his shoulders.
“I have other things on my mind right now. I was just leaving,” Cort said.
Before she or his friends could even protest, Cort finished his drink in one gulp and walked out of the club. He needed some fresh air. It felt good hitting his face and filling his lungs as he his feet slapped against the pavements, his boots making slight clomping noises on the pavement.
It never ended, did it? Everywhere he went the women would find him, sniffing around like hungry dogs, smelling the fame and the prestige that was given to him simply by being born. He had done nothing really to earn such recognition. He was just lucky enough to be born to the right people. That was it.
He was so tired of it though. It had its perks of course, but he hated that people did not want to ever get to know the real him. It was like he had to be a constant performer. If anyone knew the real him and found out he was a real man with real problems and flaws than the whole image would be shattered to pieces.
And his love life had suffered so because of it. He just could not get away from women who only wanted him because of what he was and not who he was. He was a lot more than the King’s son. Why couldn’t anyone understand that?
As he walked he realized that Markus and Brody were right; he didn’t want to go home. He would actually just sit alone and have a few drinks of whiskey while watching some of his favorite shows or maybe strumming a bit on his acoustic guitar until he fell asleep slumped over it night after night.
Maybe he would work on the new song he was writing. He’d been writing a lot lately. It was therapeutic to work out the demons and the frustrations of everyday life. Lately, he’d had to deal with more than most people. Of course, he would never let anyone hear any of his compositions. It was just for him. Just something personal he did. Maybe one day after his death he would leave instructions for his body of work, some recordings of his songs for people to listen to and judge where he could no longer hear them.
He noticed that the Canal was open and he decided to pop in there for a drink or two. It was a nice little upscale bar that he occasionally went to. He was hard not to recognize but a place like that catered to a crowd that seemed to respect his privacy enough to leave him alone. At least he hoped that would be the case tonight. Things like that could change in an instant.
He went inside and casually walked up to the bar. He ordered a whiskey on the rocks and sat down on an empty stool. The place was pretty busy with a wide assortment of characters all having fun, so far oblivious to the fact that their next possible king was in the room. Even the pretty bartender didn’t seem to notice him, but she was eye flirting with him anyway. Then again that was how she got tips.
Cort began to sip his drink and glance around inconspicuously. This was when he noticed the pretty girl sitting beside him. How did he not see her before? She was about his age with an angelic face and a demeanor that emanated strength and self-confidence. Her smile was beautiful, and as she caught him looking at her, it widened considerably. She was the type of girl who seemed perfectly at ease by herself but was also very approachable and friendly.
Cort smiled back at her and went back to his drink. The girl did the same thing. Was it possible that there was a woman in the country who did not know who he was? Or was it just the fact that she did not really care? He was now thoroughly intrigued. As he watched her, it became evident to him that she was a foreigner. The way she was looking around as if there were things about the bar and the people that she did not understand, but she was taking it all in with a mild curiosity that was innocent, and he found rather beautiful.
“Hi,” he said after a few moments. It felt awkward to be watching her without at least saying something.
The girl’s eyes lit up slightly as she glanced back at him. Wow, she had the most perfect eyes he’d ever seen…
“Hi,” she said back.
“How are you?” Cort followed up. He realized he was really out of practice with making small talk. When women routinely hit on him, he didn’t really have to say much or keep the conversation going. This was harder than he remembered.
“I’m good,” she replied.
She was American. He could tell by the accent. That was why she didn’t recognize him. A wave of relief washed over him right then, and he found himself feeling far more relaxed. The pressure was now over; he could just enjoy the good company and not worry about anything else. It had been a while since Cort had felt like this.
“So how are you enjoying your visit to our country?” Cort asked.
The girl smiled a bit embarrassed. “Wow, is it that obvious?”
“Well, yeah,” Cort joked. “I’m Cort. What’s your name?”
“Teagan,” she said. “It’s great to meet you, Cort. And yes, I am having a great time visiting.”
“What brings you to our little corner of the world?” Cort asked.
“I’m just traveling around. I heard this was a fun place to be, so I stopped here for a bit.”
He loved how vague she was being, but he was not sure if she was flirty or if she was just comfortable sharing much about herself with a total stranger.
“So, what do you do?” Cort asked.
“I teach yoga,” she replied. “Have you ever done any?”
Cort laughed. “No, I have to admit my exercise is mostly confined to jogging and weight lifting. I’m not sure I’m flexible enough to do that.”
“Well, you have to build it up. It’s harder than it looks and a lot of people give up on it too soon. But I swear if you hang with it then it will change your life.”
“I love the passion you have for it,” Cort said. “That’s the best thing in the world, isn’t it? To earn your living through your passion.”
“Yes! It absolutely is. I couldn’t imagine ever going back just a job again. What do you do?”
Cort thought a moment. He was not about to tell her that he was Prince of Rovenia.
“I’m a musician, and I also teach surfing,” Cort said. Both of these could have been true, except no one ever heard him playing music and surfing was something he did alone or with a few friends. He hardly had time to teach it to anyone. But he was deeply passionate about both. Somehow this helped him feel less guilty about the fib.
“That’s great!” Teagan replied. She seemed genuinely impressed. “I’ve always wanted to learn to surf.”
“Oh, it is just life changing. There is nothing more exhilarating than getting out on the waves and just becoming one with the force of nature, you know?”
“I do. I feel like that when I’m in the zone doing yoga, as lame as that might sound.”
“No, not at all,” Cort replied. “I couldn’t imagine you doing anything lame.”
Teagan glanced down, then looked back up at him with a big smile.
God, she was perfect.
CHAPTER 5
Teagan
Teagan couldn’t believe how amazing this guy was. She’d never felt such a strong connection with someone she’d just met before. He was tall, handsome, and beyond sexy with the most perfect smile. He was probably dressed down more than most of the people in the bar wearing a tight t shirt with a pair of tight jeans that had a few rips, but it seemed to suit him. He gave off the impression of being a bit of a bad boy, but the way he spoke to her was a poet almost.
They’d been chatting for almost an hour, and the conversation was flowing even better than the several drinks they were both having. Teagan was not typically a heavy drinker, but she was having so much fun that it just seemed to be the thing to continue doing. Plus, this guy seemed to be tolerating his liqu
or quite well. She was sure as hell didn’t want to come off as a lightweight.
She was feeling something that she hadn’t felt in so long. The connection to another person, the connection and real genuine attraction to a guy—she wanted to stay there and talk with him all night. But she knew that she couldn’t. At some point, she had to say goodbye. But she was going to stretch this out as far as she possibly could, that was for sure.
He told her all about his music and how he played mostly small shows in clubs and bars around here and some over in France as well. At one point, he told her about taking off with nothing more than his guitar and a backpack to just go around city to city playing and singing his songs. He didn’t have any gigs set up or anything beforehand. He was really just flying by the seat of his pants.
She found that sort of dedication admirable. It was something she related to quite well with her yoga practice.
“Of course, everyone told me I was crazy and that I could never support myself with music, but I told them to go take a flying leap for lack of better terms,” Cort said.
