Whiskey Rose (Fallen) by Melissa Jones Page B

followed him all the way out into the road before he turned back. She turned too and immediately gasped at the sight. The whole front of the building was red .“ Oh Matt, i t’ s beautiful ! ”
    “ I still need to do the top. I’ ll have to do that tomorrow , ” he said absently picking dried paint off his fingers.
    “ Look how much it stands out from the other buildings . ” She grinned.  
     
    Rose felt terrible. She could n’ t stop coughing and when she coughed it made her head pound. She eyed the whiskey bottle as she set up for the evening. Deciding it was worth a try she grabbed the bottle and poured a shot.
    Matt watched her as people started arriving. She did n’ t look good. She looked nearly dead on her feet. He caught Dixie as she passed by.
    “ Is there someone who can take over for her ? ”
    “ Sure hun, I can do it if you can convince her to go lie down . ” Of course anytime he broached the subject with her she shut him down immediately. She was still coughing and occasionally sneezing but she soldiered on.
    Matt split his time between walking the room and watching Rose. Izzy was once again absent so Matt felt obligated to circulate and make sure no one was causing trouble. The Cannon boys were back tonight with a couple more people but they were n’ t causing problems. Walt Porter was n’ t there, apparently having gotten what he needed the night before. The pinstripe suit guy was back tonight only his suit was charcoal gray.
    His main concern was Rose, he had already seen her take several shots of whiskey and despite the fact that she seemed to have a high tolerance to whatever was in the flask the Whiskey was really affecting her. She was giggling and giddy as she talked to the customers and her eyes were glassy.
    “ Thought you said one was your limit , ” he said when she came close.
    “Listen, no cough. It’s helping ,” she said and grinned.  While she was coughing less it certainly hadn’t cured the cough only masked it. So he brooded and tried not to look as annoyed as he was while the cowboys took advantage of her carefree state. One in particular kept reaching out and touching her when she was serving him. She didn’t bat him away she just laughed. The man even talked her into another shot. Matt wished that he could throw him out just for the sake of doing it but he knew that would just make him appear jealous so his stayed rooted to his spot. He stayed away right up until Katrina started to sing and the man invited Rose to dance. He waved Dixie to the bar and positioned himself to intercept them as they came off the dance floor. The man still had his arm around her waist but he wasn’t leading her back to the bar he was leading her to the stairs.
    “ Yo u’ re going the wrong way , ” he said simply.
    “ Hi Matt , ” shegrinned ,“ This i s …” She looked at the man and frowned ,“ What did you say your name was? He has something to show me , ” she said proudly looking at Matt again.
    “ I’ ll bet he does . ” Matt glared at the man .“ Why do n’ t you come with me ? ”
    “ Why ? ” she asked, immediately stepping away from the other man.
    “ Because he ca n’ t afford you sweetheart . ” He put his hand on her waist to move her farther away.
    “ Tha t’ s right you ca n’ t ! ” she said to the other man in an awed tone as if just remembering.
    “ Hey wait just a minut e …” The man began but Matt silenced him with a finger in his face.
    “ I will break you . ” he warned,letting his barely restrained temper show through. Apparently that was warning enough for the man because he reluctantly backed off. Matt put his arm around Ros e’ s waist and gently but firmly led her to the hallway.
    “ Where are we going ? ” she asked.
    “ I think you should lie down . ”
    “ Oh . ” He led her into her room and followed her in. She heard the door close and turned back.
    “ Lock the door , ” she said forcefully.
    “ Do n’ t worry no