“Pleasure to meet you, sir.” Tatum took his hand, her face bright red.
“Call me Nick,” he replied before he let her hand go. The look on his face made me want to barf, but it was worth it if it made Piper jealous. She needed reminded that she was nothing more than a distraction and could easily be replaced by the next young thing that catches his eye.
“I love your movies. I can’t wait for the next season of Barracuda,” Tatum rambled, and I felt embarrassed for her. You couldn’t talk to movie stars that way, it only fed their oversized egos.
“Maybe Riley can bring you to set one of these days. I could show you around, introduce you to some of my costars.”
“Oh, my God. Really?”
“Sure. It’ll be fun. You love coming to set, right Riley?” My father looked at me expectantly. I struggled not to groan out loud. I barely spent any time with my dad anymore. Not since my mom was locked away and he started publicly seeing that tramp.
“It’ll be fun,” I conceded, and Piper huffed, storming out of the room with her wine glass in hand once she’d been ignored long enough.
“Come on, Tatum. Let me show you my room.” I linked my arm back with Tatum’s and pulled her toward the oversized staircase.
“This place is incredible,” she whispered like it might all disappear if she spoke too loudly.
“This is nothing. You should see our place in LA. It’s breathtaking.”
When I opened the double doors into my room, she gasped.
“It’s like an apartment!”
“It’s okay. I’m having it painted blue,” I sighed, dropping my bag on the floor and taking the back off my earring so I could put them in my jewelry box.
“I knew you were rich, but this is really crazy, Riley. You live like a princess.”
I bristled, recalling Knox calling me princess as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.
“Maybe we could have a party when my dad goes to New York. We could invite some people from school,” I shrugged as I kicked off my shoes. “No losers, though. I don’t want any of my jewelry to come up missing or something.”
“Just because we don’t have money, doesn’t mean we don’t have morals.”
“I didn’t mean you-”
“I’m just messing with you. Some of these people I wouldn’t trust with a goldfish. I can bring over my yearbook, and we can make a list. The last party I’d been too was for my thirteenth birthday. It wasn’t really much of a party. Just pizza and ice cream.”
“Well, you are in for a treat. My parties are legendary. Maybe you can invite Knox and his friends?” I asked, trying to not look like I really cared. But it drove me crazy that he looked at me with such disdain. I wasn’t used to guys not falling all over me, and it pissed me off.
“Yeah, I guess.” She shrugged, struggling to take off her heels without falling over.
“What’s his deal, anyway? He seems like a bit of an ass.”
“Knox is a good guy. He is just really overprotective, you know? I’m sure you know guys like that.”
“Not really.” I rolled my eyes and sank down on the edge of my bed. We fell silent for a moment.
“So… you want to watch Triggered?” She stared at me with hope in her eyes.
“So you can perv out over my dad? Gross.”
“Yeah, I guess that would be kind of weird. It’s not my fault you have a hot dad.”
I grabbed one of the decorative throw pillows and tossed it at her face. She caught it with a laugh, shaking her head.
“Want to pick out our outfits for tomorrow?”
“Sure! I brought a couple of shirts and some jeans.”
“Oh, no.” I stood, pulling her over to my walk-in closet. “You are going to borrow something from here.” I pulled open the door and walked inside with Tatum. Her eyes danced over the rows and rows of clothing. Most of the items still had their tags because I didn’t want to bring my wardrobe from home. My father had a personal shopper fill it up before I arrived.
I ran my fingertips of the clothing, occasionally pulling out a dress or shirt to look it over. “Try this,” I pulled a hanger and held it out to her. “And this.” I grabbed another. “And anything from here to the wall.”
I smiled as I walked out of the closet, leaving her to try on some clothing. While I waited, I slinked down to the kitchen to grab a bottle of wine and some cheese.
“Drinking on a school night?” Piper called from behind me, and I cursed under my breath as I closed the fridge door, turning around to smile at her.
“You drink at breakfast,” I quipped.
“Those are mimosas. You’re supposed to drink them in the morning.” She folded her arms over her chest, and I snorted.
“Okay, Piper. Why don’t you go back to running errands and blowing my dad? The mom role doesn’t really suit you seeing as you’re basically my age.”
“We are not the same age.”
“Oh, you’re right.” I looked up, examining her face. “You have wrinkles. I know a good doctor who can fill those in for you and you don’t even need to screw him first.”
“How dare you talk to me like that you little bitch. Like it or not, I am with your father now, and you will show me respect.”
“You’re kidding, right? You think giving a married man a blowjob earns respect?” I grabbed my glasses and the wine bottle, shuffling the items in my hand before picking up the cheese platter. “I’m going to be upstairs with my company. Why don’t you go clean something pick up the dry cleaning? Whatever it is that the help does.” I walked out of the room before she could respond. It was time to get rid of Piper.
Tatum was ogling herself in front of my full-length mirror, spinning to the side and causing her skirt to fly up slightly. I sat the food and drinks on my dresser as I watched her.
“You like it?” I asked, startling her. She spun around, her cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment.
“It's so beautiful but it probably just looks weird on me.” She looked down at the clothing as I walked toward her.
“You look amazing, but this whole self-deprecating thing needs to go if you don’t want people to walk all over you.” I grabbed her shoulders and turned her back toward the mirror. “You look hot. Own it.”
She smiled as she looked at her reflection. “Is that why you act that way?”
I took a step back. Typically someone saying something like that to me would be bitchy, but Tatum didn’t smirk or roll her eyes. She was genuinely curious if my attitude was just a show to protect myself. “I don’t know, Tatum,” I replied with a sigh.
“I get it,” her eyes went back to herself in the mirror. “But you know you don’t need to be that way with me, right? I don’t care about any of this stuff.”
I nodded, swallowing hard. Could I just be myself around her?
“You are such a dork. I brought drinks,” I announced, grabbing the cheese platter and wine from my dresser. Her eyes lit up, and we both giggled as I filled our glasses.
***
We talked until three in the morning about guys and school. The one topic I wanted to learn more about, Tatum avoided at all cost. Knox.
“Trust me, he hates everyone. Don’t take it personally.” Tatum flopped on her back, staring up the blank ceiling.
“I don’t think he hates me, he just isn’t used to a woman not being a weak pushover.” I looked over to Tatum, who was frowning. “Not you, I just meant women in general. Besides, you seem to be the only person he likes.”
“He feels obligated to like me.” She shook her head before stifling a yawn.
“Why is that?” I asked, rolling to my side and propping myself up on my elbow.
“Let’s save that story for later.”
What she was actually saying was she wasn’t sure if she could trust me with her secrets yet.
“Fine. I need some beauty sleep anyway.” I reached over to my stand and turned off the light, falling into a restless night. I dreamed of Tatum coming to my school
back home. Everyone ignored her and laughed behind her back.
That’s how we treated anyone from the outside. She would have been begging her parents to homeschool by the end of her first week. But here, where the story was flipped, she was the only person I felt like I could talk to. I would miss having someone who didn’t expect me to be perfect all of the time when I finally went back to live with my mother.
Knox
I traipsed from my room, running my hand over my face before banging on Tatum’s bedroom door. “I’m making breakfast. You want something?” I waited for a response, but no answer came so I turned to look behind me at the bathroom. The door was open, and the light was out. I knocked again, louder this time.
“Tatum. I’m coming in.” I opened her bedroom door, and her bed was made. I knew she hadn’t slept in it because that girl had never made her bed a day in her life. Greta always did it for her during her morning routine.
I grabbed her book bag from the floor and headed back into my room, cursing her new friend Riley as I pulled on a t-shirt and jeans.
My eyes danced over the naked blonde who was sprawled out on her stomach across my bed. I kicked the frame, and she groaned.
“Party’s over, sweetheart.”
She blinked her eyes open before yawning and rolling over, exposing her perky tits. “What kind of man kicks a naked woman out of his bed?”
I smiled, knowing I would regret it later, but I had to find Tatum. “I got shit to do, Cadence.”
Her lower lip jutted out in a pout as she climbed out of bed and slipped on her tank top before sliding her thong up her long legs. “Wanna do this again sometime?” She asked as dimples settled into her cheeks. Her fingers curved around my necklace. I pulled the small, silver bullet from her hand as I took a step back.
“I got your number.”
Cadence finished getting dressed, and I drove her back to The Mill so she could get her car, nodding to Ivory, who was just climbing off his bike when we pulled up.
“Keep your phone on you,” Ivory called out.
I nodded before pulling back out onto the road. I had no idea where Tatum’s new friend even lived so I headed to the school, parking at the edge of the lot as I watched the students file inside.
“Bryce,” I called out, and his eyes widened before he said something to his friend, Landon. Landon looked at me, his eyes narrowed as Bryce hurried over to me.
“I’ll get the money tonight.” He looked around the lot, and I knew he was afraid Tatum would see him talking to me, but since she missed the bus, I knew she wouldn’t be arriving early, if at all.
“What do you know about this girl Tatum is hanging out with now?”
“Riley?” He asked as he began to smile but when I didn’t do the same, his quickly fell. “I don’t know. She just moved to town a few weeks ago. Word is her family is loaded.”
“Really?” I asked. As I lit a cigarette, pulling a long drag.
“If coach sees me over here with you smoking-”
“Coach isn’t gonna do shit. The club pays for all your gear. I’m the one you should be scared of.” I stood up straighter, taking a step toward him.
“I can find out more about Riley, I mean, if you want.”
I nodded before taking another drag. “You should get to class.”
FIVE
Riley
We arrived at school with all eyes on us. I smiled as I looped my arm in Tatum’s, walking her toward the front door. She was nervous but excited to see the world through my eyes.
I stopped short of the front doors when a giant wall of a guy stepped in front of us, a scowl across his flawless face.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Knox asked, his question directed at me and not Tatum. I squirmed under his intense gaze, but I refused to let him know he frightened me.
“Knox,” I smiled, but his angry glare never wavered. “I didn’t know you went here.”
“I don’t.” He looked to Tatum, who was wilting under his anger. “Why the hell weren’t you home this morning?”
“She left early,” I chimed in, pulling her closer to my side. “I picked her up.”
He ignored me. “If Greta would have noticed you snuck out last night, she would have lost her mind.”
“But she didn’t. So, if you will excuse us, we don’t want to be late for class.” I put my palm against his chest, over his necklace, and pushed lightly, but he didn’t budge. His long fingers wrapped around my wrist and he removed my hand from his body as my pulse raced beneath his fingertips.
“I wasn’t talking to you, Princess. You think because I’m from a small town that I must be stupid, but I assure you, I knew exactly who you were when you knocked on my door. If you want to play games, we can play, but leave Tatum out of it.”
I yanked my hand from his grip, annoyed by his tone. “Tatum was with me, her friend. So you can leave us alone now. Right, Tatum?” My gaze turned to my new friend who was bright pink and stuttering. “It’s not like you’re family.”
“That just proves you aren’t half as smart as you think you are. We don’t have to be blood to be family. She doesn’t need someone like you coming in and screwing up everything she’s worked hard for,” he snapped, his voice low and angry. It made my stomach flip, but I couldn’t look away from his hard gaze. It wasn’t often someone talked down to me.
“Why don’t you let her decide what she needs?” I shot back, my chin raised in defiance.
He eyed me for a moment, the muscles under his angular jaw jumping and flexing as he bit back an angry retort.
“Fine.” He looked to Tatum as he held up her book bag. She took it from his hand, and her eyes glassed over like she was ready to cry. “You want to fuck up your life to hang out with this manufactured doll, be my guest.” His hand rose, and he extended a finger in her face. “But I won’t let you hurt Greta. She has done too much for me.” With that, he walked around us and across the parking lot.
I watched him slide his leg over a motorcycle before the engine roared to life, and he took off at a speed I would only call suicidal. My head was spinning with what he’d said to me and I wanted to scream, but I had to maintain my calm surrounded by other students.
“Wow, dramatic much?” I joked, but Tatum didn’t say anything, only nodded before pulling open the door to the school, and we slipped inside.
We hurried toward our lockers, and I watched as Bryce’s eyes lit up when he saw his girlfriend in my green halter and black skirt, that hugged her curves like a glove. Grabbing my books, I shoved my shoulder bag into the locker and slammed the door before plastering on a smile and walking to Tatum.
“Hey, Riley.” He smiled widely, and I didn’t miss how his eyes roamed over my body.
“Doesn’t Tatum look phenom?” I asked, and he nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, she looks hot.”
I rolled my eyes, already bored with watching him drool. “She was always hot, Bryce.”
He swallowed hard stuttering with his reply. “Yeah, no. I know she was always hot.” He smiled again, but it was forced. I rolled my eyes, pulling my cell from my bag and scrolling to the camera.
“Selfie!” I pulled Tatum closer, and she rested her head against mine, beaming. I snapped a few pics before picking my favorite and uploading it to all of my social media accounts. “Come on, Tatum. We need to get to class.” I pulled her along as she mouthed goodbye to Bryce. He was cute for a high school boy, but if she wanted to hang with me, being tied down was the last thing she needed.
“We need to start planning our party,” I chirped as I stood in the doorway of my first class.
“I can’t wait,” she called out as she headed off down the hall to her room.
Knox
I worked on the bike I was restoring while periodically checking my messages as Bryce updated me throughout the day on Tatum’s new friend. He wasn’t able to get much be he found out her address from Tatum, and that was all I needed for now. He also informed me that her fa
ther was an actor and after a few quick searches on my phone, I knew exactly who he was.
Someone from the production had come by a few weeks ago wanting a custom bike for one of the episodes, and I was still trying to get the parts I needed to finish it.
I also found some articles about one of his old costars that were romantically linked to Riley. The guy looked like a first rate asshole, exactly the type I’d picture a girl like her with.
I didn’t miss the way she clutched her purse when she saw me. Maybe a few words would be enough to snuff out their friendship before she ended up getting Tatum in any trouble.
My phone rang, and I wiped my hands on an old shop rag before answering.
“Yeah?”
“I need you to keep an ear to the ground for me,” Ivory replied.
I ran my hand over my jaw, not wanting to get myself tangled any deeper into the club’s business, but I knew I didn’t have a choice, not until my debt was paid.
“Horse’s daughter was found passed out in the bathroom out at the Old Mill. Some guy had given her some shit. An out-of-towner. We think he may have just been passing through, but if he’s still around, we need to speak with him.”
“Shit, I was there last night with Liam, but we left before last call. Is Charlotte gonna be alright?”
“She’s good. She’s been through worse.”
“Tell Charlie I’ll let him know if I hear anything.” Horse was a good man but his daughter ran with a tough crowd, she had grown up with the club and was partying harder than half the members before she was even out of braces.
“I’ll text you the details.”
SIX
Riley
The day dragged on and by the time I pulled up to the gate that surrounded my house, I nearly ran into the motorcycle parked on the corner.
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