Serena
After the tattoo studio, the girls and I went out for some food. The girls grilled me about my birthday and why we ditched school today. I told them everything about Evan, not leaving a single detail out. They were all shocked and pissed off. Naomi offered to get on a plane and beat his ass. I thanked her for the offer, but I honestly never wanted to talk or even think about Evan again. I was leaving that all behind.
I spent the rest of the day laughing and having more fun than I had ever had before.
I open the door and hear Mom laughing. I walk into the kitchen and see her sitting in the kitchen with a man who looks slightly familiar. He looks like he is around the same age as Mom. He is handsome, with dark brown hair and a nicely trimmed beard. I see tattoos on his arms that go up under his shirt sleeve. He is wearing dark jeans and a white T-shirt. He reminds me of someone, but I can not figure out who.
Mom is smiling at him, but she is a little uncomfortable. They are sitting across from each other with a cup of coffee in front of them. I clear my throat, and both of them look over at me. Mom”s eyes light up when she sees me. The man looks at me with cold, assessing eyes, but they light up when he zeros in on my chest, making me want to cover up.
“Serena, this is Axel. He is one of our neighbors.” Mom explains to me.
I walk into the kitchen and go to shake his hand. Axel stands up and wraps his arms around me in a big bear hug. I awkwardly stand there for a little too long while he holds me. The hairs on my neck stand up with how creeped out I feel. I push away from him and try to give him a nice smile.
“I should get going and let you two lovely ladies spend some time together. It was nice meeting you, Serena, and happy birthday.” Axel kisses the back of my hand, then kisses Mom on the cheek before leaving. I hear the front door shut shortly after.
I give her a quizzical look, wondering what I just walked in. Mom brushes me off before she starts telling me about how the school called earlier, telling her about me missing today. Thankfully, my mom is pretty cool and told them she forgot to call me out today.
She asked me what I did today, so I told her everything that happened after she left. She patiently listens to me recount everything with tears in my eyes. I leave out the tattoo and Zeus calling me a club bunny- not that I even know what that means- but the way he said it made it sound like a bad thing. Calling me a slut after sealing that feeling.
I never told my mom about the engagement, and I don’t plan on it now- as far as I am concerned, it never happened.
Mom hugs me and tells me everything will be all right. Of course, she had to take a minute to rub it in my face that she was right about Evan. She was right. I hate to admit it, but my mom does know best.
Mom ordered dinner for us from the local diner. We sit on the couch and watch some of our favorite movies for the rest of the night. I curled into my mom like I used to do when I was little, peace washing through me. Around midnight, Mom calls it quits and heads off to bed. I clean up the living room before walking down the hall to my room. I pull my phone out of my pocket and stare at the black screen. Do I want to deal with all this right now? Not really, but I should.
Reluctantly, I turn it on and throw it on my bed while I shower. I don’t want to hear all the messages coming through. I walk into my bathroom and turn the shower on, letting it warm up. I grab the speaker from my room and turn on Cinderella’s Dead by Emeline. When steam fills the room, I step into the shower and wash away the day. I scream along to the lyrics and let it all out.
I almost ruined my life by tying myself to him. I am a bad bitch, and I plan to embrace it. I am not and never will be that girl again. I am going to find the real me and embrace it. I thought moving here was the end of my life, but it was just the beginning.
I carefully wash around my new tattoo, a black and white crown, red rubies around the band, and a diamond in the middle. I wanted to feel like a queen and become someone strong, someone who no one could boss around and control.
I can’t help but think about the Kings. I can admit fully now that since I have met them, they have been constantly on my mind. I feel this strange magnetic pull to them, all three of them. I haven’t spent much time with them, but I want to.
I turn the shower off and dry myself before walking into my room. I grab a pink lacy camisole and matching shorts from my dresser and get dressed. I crawl into my bed and turn the TV on for background noise. I pick up my phone for the first time since this morning. There are thirty missed calls, fifteen voicemails, and forty-two texts from Evan. I open the texts.
I closed the conversation after that, not wanting to read the rest. I deleted all the voicemails without even listening to them. Evan and I broke up, and it’s a good thing. I know it is. Social Media isn’t any better. There are many messages from random people I used to go to school. All of them said how sorry they were that Evan cheated on me. The rest are people calling me a home wrecker when I came between him and Cleo in the first place. I deleted them all, not even bothering to read most of them. I never spoke to these people when I lived there, so why would I start now?
There are a couple from Zeus. My thumb hovers over the screen. I press down on his name, and the messages open.
A lone tear falls onto my phone. I wipe my eyes and toss my phone down.
Mom pops her head into my room and smiles at me. “I have a surprise for you. Get dressed.” She sounds so giddy.
I get dressed in dark skinny jeans, a white T-shirt, and my new leather jacket. I put my hair into a messy bun, put on a little eyeliner and mascara, and painted my lips a deep red. I have never worn a color like this before, but I like it. I put on a pair of ballet flats and walk out the door.
Mom is outside talking to someone. He looks like an older version of Midas. It must be his dad. He looks at me, and an ominous smile spreads across his face. His eyes sweep over me lasciviously, and he bites his bottom lip before his focus goes back to Mom as he says something to her, but I can feel his gaze on me. I avoid eye contact with him and stay on the front porch. I watch their encounter from the corner of my eye.
He hugs Mom before saying goodbye to her and waving at me. I wave back and then cross my arms over my chest. Mom walks back to me as Midas”s dad walks back into his house. She doesn”t say anything. She grabs my hand and pulls me towards the garage. Mom clicks the button to open it. Slowly, the garage door ascends, revealing a black Tiguan.
“Ta-Da!” Mom exclaims. I look at her perplexed, thinking she bought herself a new car. “Happy birthday, sweetie.” She hands over the keys and kisses me on the forehead.
Grace and Naomi are already there when I pull into Evie’s house. Her family lives in a cute country-style two-story house. Her mom and dad are great people. They welcomed me into their home like family. Evie”s two younger brothers were so excited for someone new to play with.
The four of us spend a few hours just hanging out before they start getting ready for a party the Kings are throwing.
“Come on, Serena, you have to come. Their parties are legendary.” Evie whines at me after the tenth time she asks me to go with them.
Evie looks beautiful in a mid-thigh length, baby pink dress with a square neckline that hugs her curves, showing off her stunning figure. Her naturally curly hair looks stunning down.
“Fine. I’ll go.” I sigh.
Evie squeals and hugs me before dragging me into her closet. I look around at all her clothes. Her wardrobe is twice as large as mine and with so many options. She pulls hangers off the racks, looks at them, and puts them back, trying to find the perfect dress for me. She pulls out a dress and throws it at me with a look of pure excitement.
”Put this on. You will look so hot in it.” Evie demands, pointing at the dress in my hands.
I hold it out, and my eyes widen. The dress isn’t something I would ever wear. Evie gives me a look that screams you are wearing that tonight. I roll my eyes and walk out of her closet into her bathroom.
I strip out of my clothes, leaving on just my white lacy bra and matching thong. I don’t even think I can wear my bra with this dress. The spaghetti straps are so thin you would see my bra underneath. I sigh and take it off before slipping on the dress.
It’s… revealing and beautiful, but there isn’t much to it. I feel so out of my comfort zone wearing this. I have never been this daring with my wardrobe before. I look at the rose gold mini dress with a tulip hem that stops just below my ass and a v-neckline. I twirl around, making sure nothing is showing. I pull the hem down as low as I can. Every time I do, the top goes down further, revealing more and more cleavage.
“Serena!” Evie knocks. She opens the door before I can answer and stops dead in her tracks. Her jaw drops, and she stares at me. I knew it. I look ugly. I don’t have the body for this dress. I start to panic and try to cover my body. I can hear the things Evan used to say to me in my head, playing on a loop.
You look like you could lose ten pounds.
You don’t have to body to pull off clothes like that.
Don’t show off too much skin. It makes you look like a whore.
Wearing clothes like that is just asking for it.
My breathing becomes choppy. I can’t seem to get enough oxygen into my lungs. I rush over to the toilet. The need to get this feeling out is overwhelming. I bend over and hang my head into the toilet. Evie rushes over to me and squats down beside me. She doesn’t say anything, just rubbing my back. I can feel the tears that are threatening to fall.
I slowly stand up when I feel I can breathe partially normal again. Evie stands beside me and gives me a sympathetic look. She knows how Evan used to speak to me and how he would make me feel. Evie also knows about my battle with anorexia and bulimia because of him. I give her a weak smile as she helps me stand up. Without asking her, she excuses herself from the bathroom, giving me a minute.
I pull my hair out of the bun and fluff it to try and make it look nice before touching up my makeup. When I am satisfied with how I look, I turn around and link arms with Evie. She looks at me out of the corner of her eye. I can see the trepidation in her gaze, but I ignore it. We walk back into her room. Naomi and Grace are sitting on Evie’s bed sitting beside each other.
Grace is wearing a forest green, asymmetrical maxi dress. Her hair was in a sleek bob and a pair of gold heels. Naomi is in a navy halter dress with an open back. They are in the middle of a conversation when we walk in. They are leaning in close, looking at each other with such longing.
“Are we ready to go?” Evie asked.
Both girls jump up from the bed and step away from each other. Both wore guilty and cautious looks. I look at Evie, and she shrugs her shoulders, not knowing what is happening between them.
We all climb into Evie’s car. She and I are in the front, while Naomi and Grace are in the back. We drive out of town and into the middle of nowhere. Evie told me the party was at an old warehouse that the Kings own. They turned it into a place to party and do whatever else they wanted with it. Cops know about this place and what happens during these parties but never step in unless someone gets hurt.
The tension in the back seat is thick. Noami and Grace keep looking at each other and turning away quickly. I can tell they like each other but don’t know what to do with those feelings. Evie and I are going to have to help guide them together. I look over to Evie. She looks like she is thinking the same thing I am. I smile at my friends, who are awkward and cute with each other. I wonder how long they have liked each other.
The drive isn”t long. We pull into the field surrounding the warehouse. Cars are parked everywhere, and people are lining up to get inside.
We get out of the car after parking and walk over to the line. A big, burly man stands at the door, letting most people in but turning the odd person away. After the last group of girls goes in, the bouncer yells that no more people are allowed in. Everyone groans, but no one leaves.
Most of the people standing in line, I don’t recognize from school. Some look older like they are in college at least. I hear someone call out my name, catching my attention. I turn around to see a familiar guy. He smiles salaciously at me. He leans over and says something to the bouncer before strolling over to me and the girls.
Odin. He looks so sexy in his distressed dark jeans, white wife beater, and leather jacket. His blonde hair is down in waves with a few braids.
“Evening ladies.” He coos to my friends. He looks me up and down, taking in the dress. He groans and bites his bottom lip. “Serena, you look good enough to eat.” His eyes light up at the thought. I can feel my cheeks getting rosy from his compliment.
“You’re looking not so bad yourself,” I reply, trying to sound snarky but coming off more panting.
“Come on, ladies. You guys don’t need to wait in line.” He ushers us to the door and bypasses the scary bouncer.
At a closer look, the bouncer looks like he is a part of the motorcycle club. He is big, scary, and full of scars. His head is bald, and his eyes are soulless. I can only imagine the shit he has seen. He is wearing a leather cut with a patch on the front that says, Kings. Yup, definitely a part of the MC.
Inside is crazy, with strobe lights flashing and people dancing to the loud music blasting. It”s chaos in here. Odin places his hand on my lower back and leads me to a bar. I look over my shoulder to the girls, and they point to the dance floor. I nod my head and walk with Odin. He raises his hand to the bartender, signaling he wants two drinks. The guy nods and turns to grab whatever. The bartender is wearing a leather cut, but the back says prospect.
He walks over, holding two beer bottles, and hands them to Odin before his eyes shift to me. He looks me up and down, licking his lips and not so subtly rearranging his junk. Gross. His gaze makes my skin crawl, and dread fills my stomach. I don’t want to be rude, soI politely smile at him, and he takes that as an invitation.
“Hey, sexy lady. I haven’t seen you around here before. I’m Diesel.” He shows me his yellowed smile and winks at me. “What’s your name?” He leans over the bar, getting closer to me. His eyes focused on my cleavage.
“Taken.” Odin barks. Diesel jumps back, averting his eyes, but not for long. He looks at Odin, then back to me, before he turns and serves someone on the other side of the bar.
“Thanks.” I mouth to Odin. He smiles and hands me a beer.
I take a sip. The bitter taste coats my tongue, making me cringe. How do people enjoy this? I try to hide my disgust, but Odin notices. He chuckles before grabbing the beer from my hand and placing it on the bar top. He waves Diesel back over and whispers something in his ear. Diesel’s face blanches before he nods to Odin. He turns around quickly, makes a drink, and hands it to Odin. Odin condescendingly pats Diesel on the cheek.
Odin walks back over to me with a glass. “Here, try this. It’s a rum and coke.”
I take a sip. It’s good and not too strong. I start to chug it back. I know I shouldn’t chug alcohol. Tonight, I want to have fun and forget everything. I want to block out the pain and the horrible things I did to myself that I almost wanted to do again. I have been trying so hard not to go down that path again.
I chug back the entire drink before Odin grabs it from my hands. “Whoa, there, killer. Take it easy.” He snickers.
“Let’s dance!” I grab his hand and drag him out to the dance floor.
Tell Me the Truth by Two Feet playing loudly through the speaker system. Odin pulls my back against his front. His hands possessively grab my hips and pull me as close to him as I can get. He starts to sway us back and forth. I can feel his growing erection against my lower back.
I caress my hands up my sides, over my shoulders, and around his neck. I pull his head down beside mine, and he willingly moves. He brushes his nose against my neck, inhaling my scent. He lets out a low growl that sends trembles through my body.
“Tell me your truth, Odin.”