A Taste of Danger

Teaching Him a Lesson

Rose

I can’t breathe. Steven’s fingers are slowly tightening their hold around my neck while his bad breath is in my face. It seems he never remembered to brush his teeth without me reminding him, and now his yellow smile is right above me.

He chuckles. “Not so tough now, are we?”

I want to flee from him. Slap his face and escape into the kitchen where I’m safe around my colleagues, but it’s like my feet have grown their own gnarled roots and stuck them in the ground. I can’t move.

The only thing I can do is stand there, entirely paralyzed, as Steven’s lips brush against my ear. He nibbles on my earlobe, and I choke on a sob. Why did Steven have to show up today? What started as an exciting day working in the kitchen has changed into a freaking nightmare, thanks to him.

“Do you like this, Rose? Do you enjoy my kisses?”

My legs tremble when he sucks my entire earlobe into his disgusting mouth. I know I need to do something to defend myself, to protect myself from Steven, but all I can do is stand here like a statue while he continues to nibble me.

“Nothing to say, Rose?” Steven hisses in my ear.

I feel a surge of anger and fear. I want to kick him where it hurts, but my body just won’t cooperate. I feel like I’m trapped in a nightmare, unable to wake up or escape.

“What’s going on here? Rose, are you okay?” I hear a worried voice speak to me.

It’s Jenny’s voice, one of the servers at the restaurant. Relief floods through me. Maybe she can help me, save me from Steven’s grip.

Steven looks at Jenny and snarls. “She is fine, and you are interrupting. Maybe you should take a break and step outside with me, Rose.

I try to pull away from Steven, but he takes hold of my arm now. I look at Jenny with pleading eyes, hoping that she can understand the gravity of the situation.

Jenny doesn’t seem to be fooled by Steven’s words, and she steps closer to me. “Rose, are you sure you’re okay? Do you need any help?” she asks, placing a hand on my arm.

I nod, and tears roll down my cheeks. I can’t believe I’m in this situation, and I feel helpless and scared.

“Let go of her,” Jenny says firmly, her hand still on my arm. “She’s not interested in you, and you’re scaring her. Let her go.”

Steven sneers at Jenny. “This is a private matter between Rose on me. So why don’t you go back to your little waitressing job and mind your own business?”

Jenny stands her ground, her eyes blazing with anger. “This is not a private matter when you’re assaulting someone. And I will not stand by and watch you harass Rose. Let her go now.”

Steven’s grip on my arm loosens slightly, but he doesn’t let go. “Or what, bitch.”

Jenny sighs and looks at me. “I’ll go find Victor. He is probably in the kitchen.” With that, she walks away.

I feel reassured but, at the same time, embarrassed. This is the place of my job, Victor is my boss. What will he think when he sees that my personal drama is interfering with my work life? He’d surely let me go! I can’t let that happen.

I glare at Steven. “That’s enough, Steven. This is not the time or place for this. Please leave me alone. Maybe we can talk about things when I’m not at work.”

Victor doesn’t respond to what I said, instead, he narrows his eyes at me. “What was that woman talking about?”

“What?” I stare at him.

“I’ll go find Victor. What was that about? Who the f**k is Victor?” Steven hisses.

“Victor is my boss and he won’t like it that you are causing problems at his restaurant. This is a public place, Steven and you are making a scene.” I try to reason with him one last time. Maybe he will leave on his own now.

“Ah, your boss. Alright, let me speak to him. Maybe he saw one of your videos, and that’s why he hired you so fast. He wants the taste of that sweet p***y of yours. Or did he already taste it?” Steven mocks.

Anger surges through me. How can someone be so downright disgusting?

“Do we have a problem here?”

Victor’s voice startles me back to reality. Steven lets go of my hand, smiles at Victor sheepishly, and says, “No problem at all, man. Just messing around with Rose here.”

A wave of relief wash over me as Steven steps back and Victor takes his place beside me.

Victor arches his eyebrows. “Is that so? And who do I have the pleasure of speaking with?”

“I’m Steven, Rose’s boyfriend. You?”

Victor doesn’t answer. Instead, he puts his hand on Steven’s shoulder and smiles. Can I speak to you for a moment? Rose, why don’t you go take care of table six while I talk to this fine gentleman?”

Something tells me not to argue with Victor, so I quickly walk away, but I don’t go too far. I want to know what more disgusting things Steven has to say about me. I bet he will tell Victor I’m a slut too.

Steven straightens his back and tries to look Victor in the eyes, but it’s hard for him since the man is a foot taller than him. “What do you need to talk to me about? You shouldn’t have interrupted my moment with Rose. Who the f**k are you anywa-”

Steven doesn’t have the chance to finish as Victor picks up a salad bowl and slams it on the side of his head.

A loud pop followed by a glass-shattering noise gets everyone’s attention, including mine.

What the f**k? Did Victor just break a glass bowl on Steven’s head? My heart pounds, but I keep my eyes glued on both men.