Bedmates Soulmates

All Brain And No Brains

All Brawn And No Brains

Jesse tapped Kai's shoulder.

Grinning, he said, 'I know why your boss is pissed off.

'Why?' Kai was genuinely puzzled.

'You saw someone taking advantage of his wife. Instead of rushing to her rescue, you left the scene, took the stairs, came up here, knocked on the door, and reported to your boss. How long did that take? Two, five minutes? If I were the bad guy, I would've gotten what I wanted and cleared out a long time ago."

Kai struck his forehead with the heel of his hand.

'Bonehead!' he thought. 'Boss was right to scold me. How could I have been so stupid?'

Hands in pants pockets, Jesse strolled towards the door.

Behind him, Luca had risen from his seat.

He gave a slow shake of his head when he moved past Kai and tapped the PA's thick biceps. 'You know," all brawn and no brains' is just a stereotype. You don't have to live up to it.' Ouch

Kai grimaced.

'Captain O'Neill,' he grumbled to himself. 'You have more muscles than me.'

Austyn's marriage to Kira was a secret known to very few.

Jesse and Luca were kept in the picture by virtue of being Austyn's oldest friends.

The two often quibbled over who could lay claim to the title of 'Austyn's Best Pal.'

Jesse happened to have more insider information on Austyn's true reason for wedding Kira.

He never missed a chance to parade that fact in front of Luca.

When Austyn hung out with them, which was almost every day, he seldom mentioned Kira.

His friends took the cue and dismissed his young wife as a nonentity.

If not for Kai's report, they would've forgotten Austyn was a married man.

***

Downstairs at The Analogue.

Try as she might, Giana could not pry Kira off the disgusting manager.

The drunk girl clung to Geoffrey like he was her last penny.

Running out of patience, Giana contemplated moving up her timetable of giving the manager a thorough ass-kicking.

To hell with her job.

'Morton!' She dropped the 'Mr' and yanked Kira towards her. 'I'll get her home. No help needed.

Oh no, I can't let two drunk and defenceless girls go home by themselves, Geoffrey gave her a lecherous wink. 'You don't know what kind of weirdos are out there.' The two of them played tug-of-war with Kira's arms.

All Brain And No Brains

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The manager wrapped a hairy arm around Kira's slender waist.

His heart rate picked up as he fingered the flimsy cotton fabric of her t-shirt and felt the warm, smooth skin underneath.

'You're in no condition to walk.' He blew a rancid breath next to Kira's face. 'Let me get you a room here.

It's usually reserved for VIP customers. You're in for a real treat today.'

Giana bent her knees slightly and stood on the balls of her feet, getting into ready stance before combat.

She surveyed the hallway they were standing in.

Too narrow for a roundhouse kick.

Plus, Kira was sandwiched between her and the pig.

Maybe she could deliver a knife hand strike to the side of his neck.

Giana let go of Kira's arm and took a step back.

She kept her eyes on the SOB's thick neck and raised her right hand...

'Get your fucking hands off her.'

A low, menacing voice stopped both Giana and the manager, whose paw had moved below Kira's waist.

Giana could make out a tall, broad-shouldered silhouette taking swift, long stridès down the hallway towards them.

Backlight from the wall sconces cast odd shadows across the speaker's face.

She got a good look at the man's features when he was less than a metre away.

Thick eyebrows, high nose bridge, thin lips pursed tightly.

And eyes smouldering with a diabolical fire.

Like a dark-haired Hellblazer, Giana thought.

It was a face she'd seen somewhere before, but she just couldn't recall it at the moment.

'Who the hell are you?' Geoffrey slurred.

He'd helped himself to the bar's well-stocked liquor cabinet before running into Giana and her friend.

'This is none of your business,' the manager snarled. 'Get lost!'

The man looked like a customer.

But Geoffrey was the manager and the club owner's cousin.

That was how he got the cushy job in the first place.

With his cousin away most of the time, Geoffrey was pretty much given free rein of The Analogue.Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

He also made the hiring and firing decisions, so employees subject to his harassment had to grin and bear it.

Geoffrey stuck out his chest.

Austyn searched Kira's face.

She was really out of it.

Her eyes were half-closed.

All Brave And No Brains

She was leaning into the fat man's chest and even allowed him to put his stinky paws around her waist.

The scene fanned the flames of anger already burning so strongly in Austyn.

The hotter the fire burned, the colder the look on his face.

He paid no need to the manager's asinine display of bravado and wrenched Kira from the man's arms, pulling her towards him.

Geoffrey lost his prize before he could react.

He didn't even notice how Austyn had done it.

The man was too fast.

'What the fuck!' Geoffrey flew into a rage.

He lunged for the girl.

She was his prey for tonight and nobody could snatch her away from him!

Before he could touch Kira's shoulder, Austyn seized the man's palm, bent it towards his wrist and pressed down hard.

Snap!

The man's hand folded at an impossible angle.

His fingertips touched the skin of his wrist.

'Ow fuck!' Geoffrey howled. 'You broke my wrist!'

Austyn still had Geoffrey's hand in an iron grip.

Geoffrey stared into the dark abyss that was Austyn's eyes.

He shivered.

Austyn had his left arm around Kira's waist.

With his right hand, he closed his fingers around the man's wrist and squeezed with a walnut-crushing force.

'Ow ow, stop! Stop! It hurts!' Geoffrey felt as if his hand was caught in a hunter's steel trap.

The fight had gone out of him.

He just wanted to be relieved from that unbearable pain.

He was sure his wrist was broken.

'Let me go!'

Austyn let go of Geoffrey's wrist.

The next instant, he thrust out his right leg and stomped on Geoffrey's shin.

When the man doubled over, Austyn kneed him on the jaw and sent him flying backwards.

Geoffrey's head hammered against the wall with a loud thud.

Giana watched the stranger take down the 168cm, 85kg manager without breaking a sweat. The man must have had combat training.

'Keep an eye on her.'

All Brown And No Brains

Giana realised the order was directed at her.

She took Kira from the man's arms and retreated to a safe corner.