Who: Caden, Roxy and Joseph When: Early evening, Wednesday January 3rd Where: Back Porch Warning: violence, NSFW Status: complete
Business seemed to have picked up since the fog had driven everyone inside and fucked things up. The bar was busy tonight, but Caden wasn’t going to complain. They had to make up the lost profits somehow. Roxy and Jocelyn were waiting tables, and Miles was helping Caden behind the bar. Caden kept hoping Aaron would heal up and get his shit together enough to come back to work, but until that happened, they all had to pull their weight.
He was just setting a few glasses of beer a tray for Jocelyn when the front door opened and Joseph walked inside. Caden hadn’t seen his dad since the week before, before the fog. Before Joseph had punched Roxy in the face for trying to help him. Joseph looked older somehow. Frail. He wore his heavy jacket, but was still scowling. Was he ever not looking like a miserable asshole? Caden chose to ignore the fact that he often wondered that about himself.
Forgetting about the order his waitress was waiting on, Caden walked down the length of the bar where Joseph was starting to plop himself down on a stool. There was no line of thought in the back of his mind that he ought to talk first, or take his old man into the back where there wouldn’t be customers, or even Roxy. But Caden had never been much of a talker. It was always swing first, talk later, especially when the rage was as bright and intense inside of him as it was now.
His own dad was the reason why Roxy had bruises under her eyes, why her nose was swollen. Caden knew his own issues with violence and anger, knew he got those issues from his parents. Maybe that was what made him so angry now. What was it… he could hit his girlfriend, but no one else could? But he hadn’t touched her in a long time now. He was doing better. His old man wasn’t allowed to come in and fuck that up.
The counter was in the way, and it made it awkward, but Caden stepped up to it anyway, his fingers curled into a tight fist before he swung it at his father’s face, just as the old man was plopping his ass down on the seat. Bone connected with soft flesh, and Caden could feel, for a brief moment, scratches on his knuckle from his dad’s five o’clock shadow. Joseph tumbled off the stool and people gasped around them, along with a couple shrieks from women nearby. There were seats pushed back against the floor as people stood, wondering if they ought to intervene. Caden was calm as he jumped up and over the counter, his feet landing on the floor beside his dad before he gripped the man’s jacket lapels, his fist coming back to punch him again. There was nothing but pure, white rage driving him and it felt good.
It had been nearly a week since the worst night in the fog, and while Roxy’s nose was coming along with its healing, it still looked fucking ugly. She was still angry about it, while simultaneously feeling defeated about it. In a sick way, she kind of felt really part of the Lucas family now that someone besides Caden had struck her. God knew they hit each other enough. She just wanted it to hurry up and heal completely so she could stop caking on the concealer over her black eyes -- not that anyone was fully fooled -- and could stop feeling like her voice was annoying and nasally every time she talked.
Roxy was delivering a load of shots to a table, Joseph Lucas far from her mind, when the commotion started. At first she thought someone was collapsing off of a stool all on their own when she whipped around and saw a heap on the floor, but then Caden was launching himself over the bar and going in for another attack. Roxy hurriedly put her tray down and rushed over, pushing through the standing people who were starting to circle around the fight. Roxy realized it was Joseph on the floor under her man. Her heart was already pounding, but suddenly something shifted inside of her, and her instinct moved sharply away from break it up. Roxy just watched, wide-eyed, as Caden’s fist came down again.
It felt good, letting loose and watching the blood spatter from his dad's nose. How many times had Caden been on the receiving end of it himself when he was younger? And then Caden had gotten older, and stronger, and he had been able to fight back, but then Gavin was always there to pull him back. Not now though. He could get a few licks in before someone put an end to it. He'd promised himself that he would leave Joseph with a broken nose, just like Roxy's, and as soon as he heard the bone crunch beneath his fist, a surge of satisfaction flooded Caden. His old man was hollering, yelling curses and insults, flicking blood into Caden's face with every word. That was okay. Blood can be wiped up, broken bones would take much, much longer.
Roxy had grown up with violence, it had seemed to follow her all of her life, and while she’d dished out a good dose of it herself, she’d never much enjoyed watching it. Until now, apparently. That was her man, avenging her against his own kin. It seemed to be happening in slow motion to Roxy, every detail sinking in as Caden whaled on his raging asshole of a father. She could sense the tension in the people around them, that desire to intervene being held back by their own fear of Caden Lucas. She knew she should be the one to step in and stop him, but fuck, it was just so damn satisfying to watch. And fucking hot, she thought, as her lower belly fluttered like mad and heat flashed through her.
It ended up being Miles who was the hero, rushing around the bar and through the crowd. He circled around into Caden’s line of vision, looking horrified. “Caden, stop!” he shouted, hands hovering like he wanted to grab on but didn’t quite dare yet.
Caden heard Miles in a vague kind of way, but it was enough to make him drop his dad and straighten. His hand was sore and throbbing, the adrenaline rushing through him in a way that made him feel invincible. At the same time, looking down at the bloody mess that was his father, Caden felt something else. Something awful and guilt ridden. It was like looking down at himself in thirty years. He had gone after Joseph for breaking Roxy's nose, and at some point, it had turned into something else. Gavin hadn't been there to stop him, and Caden might have kept going if Miles hadn't said something. In a way, it was kind of funny, everyone just standing there watching, like they all got off on it. It wasn't like Joseph didn't deserve it, they all knew he did. But would anyone have stopped Caden if Miles hadn't stepped up?
He shook his bloodied hand and looked over at Miles. "Call him a taxi, or an Uber, or fuck... call my mom. Just get someone here to take him home," Caden instructed before he turned to push past everyone to head to the back. He couldn't serve drinks with a bleeding, busted hand.
The small crowd parted like the Red Sea to make way for Caden, and Roxy turned to fall into step behind him to follow him into the back. Miles could take care of the bloody, sputtering Joseph Lucas, and Jocelyn could handle the floor for a while. Roxy was going to take care of her man. Once they’d passed through the swinging doors into the back, she wordlessly slipped her arm through Caden’s to guide him toward the small office where the bigger first aid kit was. And where the door locked. For once, she didn’t feel afraid of him after an outburst of violence. He’d been doing it for her, at least in part. Roxy knew there were bucketfuls of Issues there, and some of those punches had surely been for himself too, but she didn’t care. Once Roxy had closed and locked the door behind them, she gently took his wrist to look at his hand. “Did you break anything?” she asked.
Caden wasn't surprised that Roxy followed. He might have preferred to be alone for a bit to wash up, but he wasn't sure he had the energy in that moment to push her out. So he let her take his hand to look at it. "I don't think so," Caden said with a shrug before snorting humorlessly. "That'd be my luck though. I'm already down two fingers on my other hand. Why not break a few here?" Gavin was probably going to be pissed when he heard about what had happened. Probably not so much that Caden punched their dad, but that he'd caused a scene in the bar. Although sometimes it felt like a scene was expected in the Porch. They were Lucases, after all. "Just busted my knuckles open, I think."
His knuckles looked kind of swollen and sore already, underneath the blood, and they probably would hurt for a while, but it’s not like Caden had never been in a fight before, so Roxy wasn’t too concerned. If he didn’t think they were broken, he would be fine. Roxy got the first aid kit off the top of the cabinet and opened it up to fish out a few alcohol pads to clean him up with. He could probably do it himself and she knew he might end up pushing her away to do so, but it was easier since his other hand was so compromised. Her heart was still beating hard in her chest, and she still felt that quiver deep in her gut. She glanced up at his face as she started to wipe the blood off of his hand, both Caden’s own and Joseph’s. Once she’d gotten most of it, Roxy impulsively rose up on her toes to kiss him, turning his hand to pull the palm against her breast. “I want you to fuck me so bad right now,” she murmured against Caden’s lips.
The adrenaline had worn off as Roxy tended to his knuckles, and Caden felt a bone deep weariness that made him wish he could go home and drink himself to death. Or at least to sleep. He might have done it too, if Gavin had been there. He didn't feel any sort of surprise that Roxy wanted to fuck. This is what happened when things got violent. It was why he didn't think anyone really understood their relationship. They didn't see this part of it. And Caden wouldn't turn her down, if this is what she wanted. Miles and Jocelyn were alone out front, so they couldn't take their time with this. And really, Caden wasn't in the mood for long and slow either. There was the briefest response to her kiss before Caden gripped her arm to move her until she was facing the mirror. He stood behind her and reached around to the front of her jeans to get them undone. It was difficult with his fucked up hands, and he grunted impatiently. "Get 'em down," he instructed before moving to tug open his belt.
Nobody did understand, because nobody else felt the heat that pulsed in Roxy’s stomach during times like these. Nobody else knew that only one man in her life had ever been able and willing to scratch that itch for her. Nobody else knew how peaceful everything else felt afterward, how that satisfaction made her heart ache for him with the most powerful-feeling love. It was like an addiction. Roxy started to undo her jeans, then paused. Caden had beaten the shit out of Joseph on her behalf, and now she felt a little like she was asking for more. She met her own eyes in the mirror for a beat, then turned around and quickly sank to her knees in front of him, reaching for the front of his pants. Roxy lightly tapped his hands away to do it herself. Her body felt needy and squirmy, but she wanted to make Caden feel good. Or at least better, however brief it might be. She knew they had to hurry, but she was pretty skilled at getting him with her mouth by now. Roxy unzipped his jeans and glanced up as she pulled his cock out and took it into her mouth.
For a moment, Caden thought about stopping her. Her nose was still busted and he didn't want her to have trouble breathing. But it had also been awhile since they'd had sex, or done anything else like this, so he let her go, staring down at her as she unzipped his jeans and took his cock into her mouth. "Fuck," he breathed. Pleasure shivered down his spine, mixing with the pain still throbbing through his knuckles. His uninjured hand slid into her hair, holding tightly as his hips pushed forward. He didn't want to choke her, but Caden was having a hard time resisting not losing himself in this and getting what he wanted.
Under ordinary circumstances, Roxy would’ve wanted reciprocation, or at least for him to fuck her so she could get some pleasure too, but right then she wanted it to be for Caden. Since he’d done something for her, more or less. Maybe tracking that sort of tit-for-tat wasn’t healthy, but what about their relationship was? Her stomach fluttered even more when she felt his fingers slip into her hair, mixed in with a weird awareness that there were only three on that hand. It wasn’t quite sexy, but it wasn’t a turn off, either. Roxy’s nose ached already with the way her mouth was stretched, but she could ignore it for this. Enough swelling had gone down that she could still inhale when she needed to. Humming around Caden’s cock, Roxy closed her eyes, one hand fondling his balls while the other dipped into the front of her open jeans to rub herself a little.
Caden closed his eyes and let his head fall back. He ignored everything else in that moment, not caring that Miles was probably starting to get overwhelmed with work. They knew better than to come back there and try to bug him when he was in a mood. He kept his hand in Roxy's hair, tightening his fingers around the dark strands until he was moving her head a little, wanting more of her mouth. Deep down he knew this wasn't something he really deserved, and he knew why Roxy was doing it. But it was something she had wanted, and he couldn't say no. Not tonight. "Harder," he told her, gripping her hair harder and pushing deeper into her throat.
Roxy had pretty much forgotten about the other people outside the office. The door was locked, Miles and Jocelyn could handle whatever, and if they couldn’t, well, it wasn’t like customer service was a huge priority at the Porch. Sharp pain flashed through her face when Caden pushed in deeper and Roxy made a soft sound that was part distress, part pleasure. It was such a shameful thing, how much she liked it, and her fingers started working faster over her clit. Her breathing was getting harsher, whistling in and out of her swollen sinuses. She did her best to relax her throat to make it good for him, moving along with the guidance of his fist and rubbing her tongue against his cock.
He shouldn't have liked it either, the noise she made. Caden knew it was probably uncomfortable for her on some level, but she wasn't making him stop, so he wouldn't. He started to move his hips, holding both hands now against the back of her head. Eyes closed, Caden's breathing deepened and he groaned low in his throat, focused solely now on coming. There was some vague awareness that she was touching herself too, which only made everything feel that much hotter. Her tongue felt like heaven against his cock, even if the noises coming from her swollen nose was slightly distracting. But it didn't put him off any and Caden squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his balls pull tight. "Fuck," he grunted, holding her head in place for only a moment before he spilled into her mouth.
By the time Caden came, Roxy’s eyes had started to water and the pain had moved fully behind her eyes as a sharp throb. That didn’t seem to matter to her lower body though, because as she felt Caden’s cock pulse against her tongue, an orgasm pulsed through her. It wasn’t a huge one, but the shudders of pleasure made it much easier to hold her breath and swallow. Roxy choked a tiny bit, but that was something she was used to. When Caden let her go, she rocked back on her heels a bit, wiping at her mouth and nose as she gasped in some air, even while her other set of fingers pressed into her clit to squeeze out those last small shivers of pleasure. Roxy looked up at her man, swiping her tears away.
Caden felt spent after Roxy finally pulled away, but he tucked himself away in his jeans before reaching down to pull her to her feet. He brushed away the lingering wetness under her eyes, feeling a brief sliver of guilt that he had gotten rougher with her than he meant to. "You should go home," he told her quietly. "Just go home, take a bath and relax. I can handle the front with Jocelyn and Miles." Maybe that was all he could do for her tonight. She would either accept, or she wouldn't, but at least Roxy knew she had the option.
She took the help to stand, her knees protesting a bit, but at least she hadn’t been down there for forever. They could make each other come fairly quickly, that was something they had going for them. Roxy zipped and re-buttoned her jeans, her eyes on Caden’s. She wanted to tell him to come home with her, to just say fuck the bar and fuck his family and fuck everything for the night so they could just be together, but she already knew he wouldn’t want to do that. He’d purged his anger, he’d gotten off, he would just be restless and pissy if she tried to cling to him now. “Sure you don’t want to go? We can handle it if you want the night off ...” she offered, just to put it out there.
"No," Caden said simply, zipping his jeans and working on getting his belt put back together. "I'm going to stay and close up." He was sure they could handle it, but this was his bar, his brothers' bar, and he wasn't going to ditch out because shit went down. He would be fine as long as he went back out front and his dad was gone. Caden planned on texting Gavin soon to tell him Joseph wasn't welcome back in the bar. His older brother should have made that clear when Joseph punched Roxy in the face. "Go home and take care of yourself," he told her. "I'll be home after closing."
It made her feel a little guilty, since they were so short-staffed, but Roxy felt a bit of relief. Joseph wouldn’t be coming back that night -- she hoped, because if he did, things would just escalate even more -- but getting away from everyone at the bar sounded nice. A bath and a glass of wine sounded pretty heavenly. She nodded, then slipped her arms around Caden’s waist and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “I love you,” she told him, making sure not to cling to him too long. “I’m going to go out the back.”
Caden wasn't worried about being short-staffed. Jocelyn was capable and Caden would make Miles help her out. He was sure the guy wouldn't mind the tips. "Me too," he told her, pressing a quick kiss to her lips. "Be careful driving home. Text me when you get there." He had no idea if Aaron was home or not, but if he was, Caden hoped his brother would leave her alone for the night.
Roxy was never surprised anymore when Caden didn’t say he loved her back, and it didn’t bother her at all this time. He’d gotten revenge for her nose, accepted her thanks in the form of a blowjob, and he was letting her have some time to herself, so things felt settled now. “I will,” she promised, even smiling a little at the request to let him know when she got home. Roxy straightened out her clothes and went to the cabinet where she always stowed her purse to pull it out and get her keys. She could salvage this night for herself, at least, and maybe he would be in the mood to actually have sex when he got home and it would get even better.