Riley’s POV:

It’s not even midnight and I already want to get the hell out of here. Working the club on Saturday nights is the absolute WORST thing ever. I feel like all the crazies somehow all decide to come out on one day of the week and piss me the fuck off.

Guys end up getting way too drunk and trying their horrible pickup lines on me when I’m just trying to get their drink order. It gets to be especially annoying when dudes think they can jump over the bar and try to dance on me.

Thank goodness Big Jay is always there to throw the plastered nut jobs over his shoulder and throw them out on the curb. I love Jay more than words; he may be as tall as a Sequoia and as large as a dump truck, but he’s the sweetest guy I have ever met and he’ll always be my hero!

The one thing tonight that pushed me over the edge were the THREE bachelorette parties having their private festivities in the V.I.P rooms on the same night. I feel bad for the poor bastards getting married to these unbelievably rude Bridezillas. When I’m in the middle of making a drink order for someone who was here before you, it doesn’t mean that you can snap your fingers in my face and order me to start making your drinks!

I’m about to crack.

To make matters worse, the bartender that was supposed to help me with the late shift showed up high as a kite and got sent home. That means that I am the only bartender serving hundreds of assholes for the next three hours. Larry, my sleazy boss, has decided to graciously leave his favorite booth and the slutty brunette he was tongue battling with and make drinks for the south side of the bar. I hate that he makes the women bartenders wear tight dresses and heels to work. Even though I look hot in my new dress I just bought, it keeps riding up my ass when I bend down to grab beers out of the cooler and my feet are starting to go numb. Larry also deems it appropriate to grope my ass every time he walks by me.

I just want to go home. I want my sweats. And my bed. And a hot cup of tea. And a re-run of Friends.

I just want 3:30 to get here.

I’m making my way down the bar, trying to throw empty bottles away in the process, and helping people I know have been waiting a long time. I hear a group of polo-clad douche bags laughing like gorillas to the right of me. One of the assholes tries to yell at me to get their drink order.

“Hey babe! Why don’t you bring your pretty little ass over here and get us some drinks! And while you’re at it, go back in the kitchen and whip us up a couple sandwiches!” I hear his friends start to roar with laughter and give him high fives for his remark. I look up at him and give him the ugliest glare I can manage with my high exhaustion level.

“I’ll be right with you.” I hiss at him and call him a jerk underneath my breath while I turn back to the group of girls I was waiting on. Apparently he saw me call him a jerk and he starts to yell louder at me.

“Hey, bitch! That’s no way to talk to a man! Someone needs to put you in your place!” Bitch? Did he seriously just call me a bitch?

“Why don’t you leave her the fuck alone!” I’m startled when I hear an extremely deep voice roar at the group of apes. I look up and my heart drops to my stomach. Harry. Harry Styles.

His eyes are the same piercing green color I remember as they blaze into the eyes of Douche Bag #1. Behind him are four other extremely fit and extremely scary looking guys giving DB #1 the same exact look. The guy looks at his friends and laughs as he spits a comment at Harry.

“Listen, asswipe. This is none of your fucking business. So why don’t you take you and your gang of pussies and get the fuck out of here.” After he finishes he turns back to me and snaps his fingers, signaling me to start making his drinks.

Before I could even say something back to him, Harry’s right fist connects with DB #1’s jaw, knocking him out cold. Everyone just stands there and looks at the lifeless body on the floor. I can tell that the punch has scared the absolute shit out of the other apes, and they gather up their friend and run away from Harry and his crew.

I’m standing there with my mouth hanging open, unable to form a sentence. Harry approaches the bar and sits down at a stool, massaging the knuckles on his right hand. He looks up at me and gives me a cute smirk.

“Would you mind getting me some ice? It looks as though that twat’s jaw has bruised my knuckles.” I muster up a small nod and go grab a paper towel and fill it up with ice. I walk back and hand it to him. He thanks me and places the pouch on his knuckles, wincing slightly.

“You know, a thank you would be nice…” I can hear the sarcasm in his voice and I bring myself to smile weakly.

“T-thank you.” I realize that I have been staring at him for a few seconds and I shake off the daze he just put me in.

“Would you guys like a drink? On the house.” The boys behind Harry all shout and slap him on the back in thanks. I get their drinks to them and begin working on the other customers.Every now and then I sneak a stare at Harry and I see him laughing lightly with his friends. A couple times he catches me gawking and wink before shooting me a breathtaking smile.

And just like that, my night turned around for the better.

///

Harry’s POV:

“Come on! It’s almost eleven! How long does it take to fucking do your hair, Zayn?!” I’m tapping my foot annoyingly while I wait by Zayn’s front door for him to come down so we can go to Club Maze.

The rest of the guys are waiting in the cab parked downstairs in front of our flat complex. That’s one of the perks of us five all living in the same building; it’s so easy to get everyone together at the same time. Everyone, except for Zayn. If that kid could look at himself in the mirror for the rest of his life, I think he might be the happiest bastard alive. I honestly don’t know how Perrie puts up with his shit.

I let out a sigh of relief as I finally see him round the corner and jog to the front door.

“Jeez! Sorry, Haz. What’s the rush anyways? The club closes at 3:30!” He gives me a curious glance and I look away, afraid my face might give the real reason away.

I was going so I could see Riley again.

I hadn’t told the guys yet about her, I didn’t really know how they’d react. I decided to keep it on the down low until I knew it was something I wanted to pursue. Yeah, she has a boyfriend, but the guy is a total clown. Sure, he’s probably richer than I’ll ever be, but money only goes so far. I know I promised I’d fuck until I couldn’t fuck anymore, but with someone like Riley as my mate, I would be happy to commit to anything. Dating, Marriage, whatever her little heart desired.

I couldn’t even believe I was even talking like this, but I couldn’t get her out of my mind. Ever since that day outside of the shop, she is the face I wake up to in the morning and the face I dream about at night. Fuck, I don’t even know her and I already want to know everything about her. Her dreams, her fears, what kind of tea she likes, if she snores in her sleep, what makes her toes curl and her eyes roll in the back of her head.

I haven’t fucked anyone since that day before I met her. It’s been an entire WEEK. I mean, fuck! If that doesn’t say something about her, then I don’t know what does! She was making me feel things I haven’t felt since….since Eva. I don’t think about her much anymore because it’s just too painful and the reason that I’ve become my womanizer self.

I just have to find a way to make Riley see how much better she would be with me and not that pompous asshole she’s with now. I could tell he abuses her when she wouldn’t shake my hand the day we met. She was scared he would see her and then lord knows what he would do if he did. It pained me to think that someone could ever lay a hand on such a beautiful creature.

And that’s why I was going to try everything in my power to get her to see the light at the end of the tunnel. My light.

///

We finally got to the bars around midnight and walked right up to the bouncer standing out front. I had some damn good connections when it came to night life in London, so my friends and I never had to wait in line for any clubs.

Big Jay was working tonight and he smirked when he saw me and the guys. I gave him a big hug and he let us through. There is a little kid inside that massive man; he wouldn’t hurt a fly, unless the fly was a drunk idiot.

The air was thick and hot as we entered the club. Strobe lights were blinking and shifting to the beat of the music. The dance floor was packed as we made our way through to the bar.Once we finally got close to the bar, I scanned it to see if I could find Riley. Not only couldn’t I find her, I couldn’t even find a bartender at all!

Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of blonde hair as Riley flew around the corner and started cleaning beer bottles and cups off the bar while trying to take as many orders as she could.

Fuck. She looked so hot.

A tight red leather dress with gold embellishments held tight to her curves. Her hair was down and falling a little bit in her face as she bent down to grab a couple of beers from a cooler. Even with a sheen of sweat forming on her forehead, she had never looked more breathtaking. I was almost at a loss for words.

I guess the other guys noticed what I was staring at and Louis spoke up over the thumping music.

“She’s a looker, ain’t she, Haz?” I glance at him and tried to hide my embarrassment.

“Erm, yeah. Yeah, she is.” I shift and began to look at her again.

“So she’s the one that has kept your dick in your trousers for a week now, yeah?” I whirl around and face him, his eyes wide with curiousity.

“Why the fuck would you assume that?!” I glare at him and he sheepishly smiles while shaking his head.

“C’mon, mate. I know you better than you know yourself. I saw you talking to her last week outside the shop. You haven’t touched a single breast in seven days. I know when you are in to someone and you are definitely in to her.” I let my head fall as I silently damned Louis for being able to read me so well.

“Yeah, well, she has a psychotic abusive boyfriend.”

“Oi! All the more reason to steal her away from that twat! It hasn’t stopped you before, remember?” He punches my arm and I mumble in agreement with him.

“Now what are you waiting for? Let’s get up there and steal someone’s girlfriend!” Louis puts both hands on my shoulders and pushes me through the throng of drunks to where were a few people away from the bar. I try to make eye contact with Riley, but she’s busy getting a drink order from a group of girls in front of us.

All of the sudden I hear a voice yell at her and I look in their direction to see a group of yacht club twats jeering at Riley to take their order.

“Hey babe! Why don’t you bring your pretty little ass over here and get us some drinks! And while you’re at it, go back in the kitchen and whip us up a couple sandwiches!” By the time he’s done with his exceedingly rude comment to Riley, I can feel my fists clench and the taste of metal in my mouth from biting down on my tongue too hard. Who the FUCK does this wanker think he is?

I see Riley look up and scowl at him as she manages to comment back at him.

“I’ll be right with you.” I see her turn and say the word ‘jerk’ underneath her breath. All of the sudden the guy has the audacity to yell at her again.

“Hey, bitch! That’s no way to talk to a man! Someone needs to put you in your place!” That was it. That pushed me right over the edge. I started shaking and couldn’t hold back the loud roar that escaped from my mouth.

“Why don’t you leave her the fuck alone!?” I see the guy whip his head back to look at me. I can feel the guys all crowd behind me and glare at the pathetic lot of so-called men standing in front of us. He turns back to his friends and laughs before looking at me and hissing some snide remark in my direction.

“Listen, asswipe. This is none of your fucking business. So why don’t you take you and your gang of pussies and get the fuck out of here.” He turns back to Riley and snaps his fucking fingers at her to get him drinks.

Wrong decision.

I wind up and allow my right fist to blow a path to his jaw. He doesn’t even see it coming and slumps in front of the feet of his gang. Everyone is frozen, staring at me and the guy on the floor. His friends nervously look at me and decided against a challenge, picking their unconscious friend up off the ground and sprinting off.

I look back at Riley who is at a loss for words as I sit down and ask for some ice for my knuckles. Hopefully I didn’t fuck my hand up from that punch, but even if I did, it was 110% worth it. Because it got me a smile from Riley and free drinks for the guys.

After that night, I made a promise to myself to fight any person or obstacle I needed to make sure Riley was safe and all mine.

Forever.

Notes

FIRST AND FOREMOST...
I cannot thank you all ENOUGH for the kind words you have already sent me on this fanfic! Your comments make me want to try and write my best work!! I am so thankful for your support. It means the absolute WORLD to me! Xxx

Anywhoooo...

How'd everyone like this chapter?? Isn't Harry such a little softie? I love it.
Questions for this chapter..

Who do you think Eva was to Harry?

OR

Do you think Harry's act of aggression towards the drunk will sway Riley into giving Harry a chance?

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-Natalie xx