Chapter 4
FOUR
Rebel
Shona had already dropped all the things I asked to make Darby’s birthday one to remember, even being locked away for it.
I hated that she was stuck here on her birthday.
I already knew she was growing on me, I’d been serious when I asked her if we could be friends.
She wasn’t a spoiled princess even if I still called her that, she was someone who I could quite easily see myself being friends with after all this is over.
She was sweet, funny and honestly, spending so much time with her, even with limited words, it was refreshing to be around her. A calm to my insane life.
It was going to be limited, I knew it. Especially when she found out I wasn’t telling her the truth about her family.
Fuck…maybe we wouldn’t be friends.
That sent a cold shiver down my spine and made me want to keep her locked away in this bubble with me forever.
Shona had wanted to stay and yet I’d made some flimsy excuse for her not to.
I don’t know why but I didn’t want anyone else to be here with us, especially when it came to Darby’s happiness.
Her whole life was going to be upended when it all came out what had happened to her family.
I wanted to give her something to smile about while I could.
Was it weird? Yeah and even Shona didn’t understand but when Savage pulled her away, I noticed he did.
Should I have understood my own actions?
Probably, but I’d rather not look into it too thoroughly.
I set up the table with her gifts from Shona and the club and the thing I asked Savage to get me.
I had the cocktail bottles over on the far wall and even her pre-mixed drinks she asked for in the fridge.
For some reason, I was nervous, as I looked over at the table full of balloons and party confetti which Shona insisted on.
My gift was at the back of the table, away from the others, and decidedly not in the colour theme Shona had picked out.
I don’t know what it was about it but the pastel purple and pinks didn’t really suit her.
I knew she wore a lot of darker pinks and her Chuck Taylors were even a dusky pink rather than pastel.
Sure, she liked pink but what I saw on the table is probably what she liked when she was five.
Fuck, why was I even judging this? It was last minute, and even Shona had forgotten her own sister’s birthday.
At least she had dropped everything to run around and get the things I needed.
I had the cake I started making earlier this morning in the fridge.
I knew she liked my cooking so I could only imagine she liked my baking too.
I didn’t want a store bought one, I wanted one that she would like, and one I could give to her that I made myself.
I shook my head. I really was losing it here. I’d never cared about this shit before. I never cooked for anyone else, and I certainly never told people my real name. The princess was growing on me and I needed desperately to put some space between us.
After her birthday…
I looked at the time and saw it was time to start the pancakes.
She usually rose when I started cooking but lately I knew she would wake up no later than eight in the morning.
It was almost that time so I set about pouring in the batter I’d prepared earlier, a buttermilk concoction with maple syrup infused.
As the cakes were cooking in the pan, I sliced up strawberries and pulled the whipped cream can from the fridge along with the strawberry sauce and blueberries.
Variety was the spice of life as my grandma would say.
She was constantly on my mind lately, and as much as I didn’t mind, I found myself wondering if she would approve of my lifestyle now. If she would like that I was looking out for Darby.
No, she’d be horrified that I was lying to her about her family.
I couldn’t believe they still wanted me to hide the fact they were mostly dead.
If she ever found out, she’d be so upset and pissed and it most likely would be aimed at me.
That didn’t sit right in my chest. But it wasn’t my call.
It was the Prez’s and I would follow his ruling to the day I died.
I flipped the pancakes and prepared a plate to rest them on.
I was just finishing up the last of the pancakes when I heard her gasp from the doorway.
Turning around, she was looking at the table, her eyes wide and a huge grin on her face.
I had a strange sensation running through my body at seeing her happy.
“You did this?”
“Not just me,” I told her. “I put the call out and told them to bring stuff. I’m just finishing your pancakes now.”
She giddily sat down at the table and I brought the pancake tray over and popped it in the middle of the table.
I piled her plate with a few cakes and pushed the fruit and sauces her way.
“This is amazing, you really went all out,” she said, the joy clear in her eyes. I was glad I could do at least that for her.
“Everyone deserves to celebrate their birthday,” I told her.
“When’s your birthday?” she asked me. I never celebrated it because it always brought bad memories.
“It’s passed.”
“Well, everyone has a passed birthday, when is the next one for you?”
I could barely contain my chuckle as I looked over at her just as she popped a forkful of pancakes in her mouth and waited.
“December 3rd.”
A smile passed over her then and she continued to eat. “I’ll remember that.”
She wouldn’t. By the time it came around, she’d be free and I would be but a distant memory. Why then did that make me feel like I had severe heartburn?
“Who gave me presents?” she asked, looking at the bright pastel colour scheme.
“Your sister and some of the girls at the club,” I told her. “The one at the end is from me.”
Her head snapped to me then. “You didn’t have to get me anything. You made me this incredible meal.”
I shrugged my shoulders. “It’s not much. You should have nice things while you’re holed up inside. Your drinks are chilling in the fridge.”
An excited squeal erupted from her and she eagerly ate her breakfast. It made me feel good to see her happy and excited. I didn’t understand it but
Once we were done, she moved over to unwrap the gifts.
She carefully undid the tissue paper so it didn’t rip, not at all like I would assume she’d be when unwrapping gifts for her birthday.
There was something so…delicate about it.
Shona had gotten her perfume and I could see it had the word Flowerbomb on it.
No wonder she always smelled like flowers.
The girls had given her a set of Chuck Taylors and some hair ties and assorted hair products.
“Can I open yours?” she asked, hovering near the black bag.
“Of course.”
She pulled the items from the bag and smiled as she flipped through the cookbook. “Is this your way of telling me to pull my weight around here?”
“No,” I laughed. “You just seemed impressed by my cooking so I figured I’d give you something with the same recipes in there.”
She smirked when she saw the cocktail book. “Thank you, Kendrick, this is amazing.”
Hearing my name come from her mouth was making me hard even if it wasn’t a breathy moan that I was dying to hear tumble from her lips. I was teetering on the edge here with all her smiles and squeals of excitement, knowing it was me who made her so fucking happy in the first place.
“What’s your favourite recipe in here?” she asked me after I started to clear the table.
“Probably the cabbage and potato stew,” I told her. “She used to always make that for me and it just always felt like home, ya know?”
Her confusion was evident when she looked down at the cover. “When you say the same kind of recipes…you don’t actually mean…”
“Yeah,” I told her. “That’s my grandma’s cookbook. She had it published.”
Darby’s mouth fell open and she flipped through the book. “This is amazing. So your family is like, famous or something?”
I chuckled. “My grandma isn’t famous because of her cookbook. I wish. My family are known for something else.”
“Oh?”
Nope, not going there, princess.
“What did you want to do today?” I changed the subject before I had to tell her all about my father and his dirty deeds.
“Well, I did want to work out for a little while. Did you want to join me?”
“Hell yeah,” I said. “Put your stuff away and I’ll clean up here.”
I watched as she left out the cocktail book and tidied up. When she got to the balloons and confetti, she smiled but it was a sad smile and not one I would think accompanied balloons and confetti.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“Oh nothing, it’s just…I guess, Shona doesn’t really know me anymore, so it makes sense she would buy this stuff…it reminds me of the things I had when I was a kid, back when she was still in Belfast with me. I should be thankful.”
“But you wish she knew it wasn’t your favourite?”
She nodded. “That makes me a bad person, right?”
“Fuck no, it doesn’t. She probably couldn’t find dark pink and black balloons on short notice though.”
Her head snapped up and she frowned for a minute. “How did you know I liked dark pink?”
“You’re always wearing it in some form or another.”
Her smile returned and she nodded, looking down at her outfit and excusing herself to go change. I don’t know why, but when I could make her smile like that, it went straight to my dick. What the actual fuck was happening to me?
Darby
I tried.
I really did.
Well, that’s what I was telling myself when I finally looked over at him as he used the chest press machine while I jogged on the treadmill.
When I saw the way his biceps bunched when he moved the arms of the machine close together, I almost tripped over my damn feet and slid down the treadmill.
Thank god for the hand rest. I righted myself and stared dead ahead at the wall.