Kicker (DS Fight Club Book 1) Read Online Free

help you.” He nodded at a raven-haired girl that was standing at the far end of the bar.
    “Okay, thank you,” Charlotte said, already distracted by the full menu offerings. The bar grew noisier and noisier behind her, but then again, it was late.
    Charlotte sipped on her beer and tried to catch the female bartender’s eye.
    “What’ll you have, love?” she said with a grin.
    “The smoked salmon plate, please. And another Guinness, please.”
    “Do you want me to start you a tab?”
    After thinking for a moment, Charlotte grinned. “Sure.” Then she pushed her ID and a credit card across the counter.
    Meghan looked at the ID, checking the signature on the back. “Why, someone’s got a birthday coming up—happy birthday.”
    “Thanks.”
    “I’ll get that order right in, love.”
    Suddenly, the already loud bar erupted in clapping and cheers.
    Charlotte swiveled on her seat to see a large group of men walk through the door of the pub. One of the men held his arms up in victory, and the patrons of the bar clapped him on his back and arms, jabbering and gabbling at him, and several attempting to lift his large frame up for a parade around the pub.
    “Wow.”
    “Yep,” Meghan said with a laugh as she slid a large plate of smoked salmon in front of Charlotte. “They must have had a good night at the fights. Can I get you anything else?”
    “No, this is perfect.”
    Meghan nodded and slipped down to the end of the bar where the crowd had gathered.
    Charlotte could not help but examine the group of men as she ate. They were mostly big guys, but there was a smaller one with a black eye, a cowboy hat, and a big grin despite a split lip. Cowboy was winking, and people were pounding him on the back as well.
    The tattooed bartender began ringing a large brass bell, and the cheering of “D-S-F-C” filled the pub, cresting until the noise became almost painful, until a very large, very heavily bearded man stepped into the center of the rowdy celebrants.
    “Huge night for Doyle’s South Fight Club, y’all—huge. Not only did Dig win his interim title bout”—lots of cheering as Beardy acknowledged the first large man, a handsome bearded fellow with lots of bright tattoos—“but I just received notice that our very own Kicker got Fight of the Night, so let’s give it up for Tig.” Lots more cheering rang through the small bar as two men hoisted the slight cowboy up on their shoulders, and they finally got to carry a fighter through the pub.
    Charlotte could not help but smile and cheer with the men, at the looks of joy on their faces as they chanted and hooted their way into a back area.
    “Wow, is it always like this?” Charlotte wondered aloud.
    “It’s generally pretty lively, but I’ll say, since Colin’s started bringing the fighters around after their matches, it’s gone to a completely other level,” the bartender said as he put a glass of whiskey in front of Charlotte. “I’m Sully, by the way. Allow me to treat you to a whiskey, seeing as it’s almost your birthday.”
    “Oh. Oh, thank you,” Charlotte said with a shy grin. She’d never had someone buy her a drink out of the blue before. “Sure.”
    “Oh my Lord, Em is going to kick your butt when she finds out,” said a familiar voice. Charlotte turned, eyes opened wide, to see Bailey standing next to the bar, hands on her hips, rapidly tapping one foot. “Charlotte Markham, you are in so much . . . Colin, put me down.”
    Charlotte watched as the giant bearded man swept Bailey off of her feet and nuzzled his face into her neck and twirled her around.
    “Babydoll, it’s about time you got here,” he said, adding another little kiss to the bottom of her chin. “Give me some sugar, sugar.”
    Bailey rolled her eyes, but she grinned and gave him a kiss. “Now will you put me down?”
    Colin, apparently Bailey’s boyfriend or husband, took a moment to squeeze her bottom and then set her down on a barstool next to Charlotte