We walked towards the exit of the car park. The other guys were keeping watch. I think my eyes were straining with the amount of eye-rolling.
“Won’t this get you in trouble?” I looked at Ian, then at my arm through his.
He shook his head with disgust. “I don’t give a flying fuck.”
I started giggling. Pretty soon, Ian was joining in. We were being like two rebellious kids out to sock it to mum and dad without them knowing. I had never had fun like this before. I liked it and Ian more and more. It was almost as if he were family to me now. Family I never truly had.
The moment I thought this, I pulled my arm out of his. Despite wanting to be close to him, I knew it was for the best. When he frowned, I smiled sweetly. “I really don’t want you to get into trouble.”
A part of that was true, but the other part—the one which was now stabbing my heart—was telling me not to get too close. Everything got taken away from me and, pretty soon, Ian would, too.
He looked at me quizzically, but I put on my best smile as we walked. I needed to try and stay cheerful. Put on that happy face and carry on. That was what my mum used to tell me when I was small and she wouldn’t let me play with my friends.
Livy, always the happy, smiling child from a loving family. How more wrong could anyone be?
We went into Drummonds. I picked out three pairs of sandals, four different coloured tank tops, two Capri trousers, and a cute little soft pink ra-ra skirt that I just had to have.
Once all was done, we went to the counter, Craig suddenly appearing with his credit card.
“That will be one hundred and twenty pounds.”
Craig laughed. “Boss is going to think you bought one bra with that amount of money. Why didn’t you aim higher?”
I shrugged. “I’m not that kind of girl, Craig. I never have been.” I didn’t want to explain to him.
He laughed harder now. “Fuck. No wonder the Boss wants to keep you as his pet.”
Ian saw the expression on my face and punched Craig in the arm. “You watch your fucking mouth, Craig.”
I saw the venom in his eyes and even I recoiled a little. Craig’s eyes went wide. “Sorry, man. I didn’t realise you had been tapping that.” He looked me up and down, leering at certain parts of my body. “I know I would if she gave me the chance. Shit. I know I would even if she didn’t.” He licked his lips, and Ian raced towards him. I managed to stop him before it was too late. I couldn’t be heading home so soon.
“Ian, please,” I begged with a whisper. “Not here. He’s not worth it.”
Ian’s rigid posture loosened, but he still looked like he wanted to murder Craig. The poor girl behind the counter stepped up her efforts to process the payment. I couldn’t blame her. I would, too, if I had these oversized men in my store looking like they wanted to throw punches.
She handed the receipt over with a tight smile, and Craig grabbed it with a shit-eating grin on his face.
“Where to next?” Ian asked, motioning towards the door.
“Shaney’s,” I answered with a knowing smile. I wanted to stay out longer, but I didn’t think the level of testosterone could take it. Besides, I was desperate to get more pills.
“Fuck, yeah!” Craig yelled as we walked out the door. A couple of other guys laughed nervously at him, but Ian just scowled.
“Ian, you’re giving yourself away. Tone it down,” I whispered.
“I can’t fucking help it, Olivia. He’s behaving like a twat lately.”
I discreetly tapped his hand. “Try.”
The six of us all walked towards Shaney’s. I could see the clinic Ian was talking about and my heart picked up a notch.
As we entered the shop, all the guys’ mouths hung open. It was amazing how much a pair of frilly knickers could affect a man.
“Are you going to try a few on for us, Olivia?” Craig winked in my direction, and I flipped him off. “I take that as a no then?”
I walked over to a couple of bra and panty sets, picking out my size. I came across some lacy knickers I knew Zac would like. He asked me to pick out things he would like, and like the good girl I was, that was what I was doing. I came across a white satin flowered basque. It was sexy, but elegant. I liked it because it didn’t look like I was going overboard. It even had frills at the bottom to hide my modesty. For some reason, Zac liked me in white, so it was that reason I picked it up.
As soon as I had it in my hands, I started wobbling on my feet. Ian grabbed me. “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “I’m feeling a little dizzy and nauseous.”
“Do you want to go and sit down?” another man offered.
They were all around me now, fussing like mother hens.
“No, it’s okay. Let’s just pay for these.”
Craig took them from me and placed them on the counter. “Fuck me. Are your boobs really that big?”
He placed a bra set on top of his head, pretending he was radioing in. “November, Tango, Romeo… Come in. Over.”
Ian flung the bra off his head, and Craig started laughing. “Lighten up, mate.”
As the clerk was ringing the items up, I wobbled enough so that Craig noticed. He steadied me this time. “What the hell?”
“I don’t feel too well.” I moaned to emphasise my point, and Ian looked at Craig.
“We have to take her to the doctor.”
Craig frowned. “Well, let’s settle up here and take her to Dr. Barry.”
I moaned again and collapsed into Ian’s arms. “There’s no time for Dr. Barry. There’s a clinic next door. We can take her there.”
“But the Boss–”
“Do you want to be the one to explain to him that there could be something seriously wrong, and because it took you so long to take her anywhere, it put her life in danger?” I felt Ian wrap his arms around me, offering support.
“I’ll call it in.”
That was met with silence as I nestled my head in Ian’s chest. He bent down and gently picked me up, holding me in his arms.
“We have a situation,” I heard Craig say. “It’s Olivia. She’s passed out. She was complaining she didn’t feel well.” He went silent a moment, listening. “Yes, I know, but there’s a clinic next door. It sounded like she was in pain.” More silence. “Got it.”
He must have put down the phone because I heard him speak to Ian, “He says to just take her in, but not to leave her side.”
I felt Ian move. “You pay up and I’ll take her in. You can follow me when you’re done.”
Ian quickly moved out of the shop. “So far, so good,” he whispered.
I pulled my head up slightly and smiled at him. He had such a kind face, you couldn’t help but smile.
Ian ran through the door like a pro, shouting for a doctor. I had my eyes closed again, but heard a woman’s voice, “But this is a well woman’s clinic.”
“I know,” Ian growled. “But she needs to see someone immediately. Money is no object. We’ll pay triple. Someone needs to see her and see her now.”
The woman’s flustered voice was all wobbly, “Okay, sir. Let me speak with Dr. Kemp.”
She must have walked away because Ian whispered down to me, “Looks like it’s show time, Olivia.” I smiled, but tried my hardest to hide my face from any onlookers.
Within a few seconds, the woman came out. “You can go right in.”
I felt Ian place me down on a bed. “What happened?” a woman asked.
I opened my eyes and saw it was just us in the room. When Ian saw me, he nodded and walked out, softly closing the door behind him.
I turned to the doctor. “I don’t have much time, but I urgently need the pill.” I looked at the door, then back at her. “Please. You have to say I fainted because of low blood sugar or something, but I really need the contraceptive pill.”
She looked at me, pure shock on her face. “Darling, if you’re in trouble, maybe I should call the police.”
I violently shook my head. “No,
you can’t. If you do, you’ll put us both in danger. Please. Help me.” I grabbed her shirt, willing her with my eyes. Suddenly, I heard shouting. I quickly released her and dipped my head a little.
“He said not to leave her side!” Craig growled, swinging the door open.
Dr. Kemp swung around. “Excuse me, but you’re not allowed in here.”
He ignored her, stalked through the door, and slammed a load of notes on her desk. “Check her out. There’s your money. Now hurry. We haven’t got time for this. By the way, I’m staying. I can’t leave her side. It’s for her protection. Isn’t that right, Olivia?”
He glared at me as Dr. Kemp turned to face me. I looked up at her with a smile. “Yes, that’s right. All those men out there are my bodyguards.”
She looked back at me, fear in her eyes, but she cleared her throat and started playing the role of a professional doctor. She checked my blood pressure, temperature, eyes, ears, everything.
“Can you tell me what happened?”
I smiled sweetly. “I felt nauseous and dizzy.”
“Okay. I would like to take a urine sample.” She went over to her desk and pulled a tube from her drawer, then rang a number. “Barbara, can you come in here a moment. I need you to take Miss…” She looked at me and I was about to reply when Craig spoke up for me.
“Miss Jones.”
She snapped her head to him, but replied over the phone, “Miss Jones to the bathroom for a urine sample.”
She placed the phone down and someone I can only assume was Barbara knocked on the door. She smiled sweetly at me and ushered me outside, Craig following.
Once I got to the toilet door, I turned to him. “You are most definitely not coming in for this part.”
He actually pouted. “I could make it worth your while.”
I elbowed him in the stomach and smiled when I saw him hunch over with a grunt. I walked in and shut the door behind me. Once I was done, I walked outside, trying to hide my sample as much as I could.
When I walked back in, Dr. Kemp took the sample and discreetly pointed to a list she had made. I saw it was a list of contraceptive pills. I spotted mine straight away. Luckily, it was the only one that began with a C.
I tried to think about how to tell her, then the light bulb came on. “You know, I took Biology when I was at school. I didn’t do very well in the exam though. I got a C.”
Dr. Kemp saw me look down at the list and smiled. “I had to do well in that subject…as you can see.”
I watched as she pulled a pregnancy test kit out and put a couple drops of my urine inside. My eyes widened, hoping and praying it wasn’t positive after all this. It would be too soon, I’m sure. When she was done, she stuck one of those urine test strips into it and studied it against her chart. She then looked back at the pregnancy test before looking up at me. “Negative,” she smiled.
“What’s negative?” Craig asked.
My heart went into my mouth as I waited for her to answer.
“All the tests I’ve conducted. Miss Jones has low blood sugar, and I think she may be anaemic. I’ll prescribe something for her now.”
I sighed my relief as she got her prescription pad out and started writing something down. When she handed it to me with a smile, I noticed there were six months’ worth of my contraceptive pill on there.
“Thank you so much, Dr. Kemp.”
She smiled. “You’re welcome, Miss Jones. Just take more care. Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, and drink plenty of fluids.” She smiled when she said this, but I could tell she was worried for me.
“Where can I use this?” I asked, holding up the prescription.
“If you make a left out of here, you’ll find a chemist about three doors down. They’ll be able to help.”
I nodded with a smile. “Thank you.”
I walked out, finding all the men sitting around, a couple women in the waiting room looking rather uncomfortable. These men screamed bad boys, so it wasn’t any wonder.
Ian jumped up, grabbing me by the arm and squeezing in silent conversation. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’ve got something to take for low blood sugar and anaemia.”
Ian nodded and we all walked out of the clinic towards the pharmacy. I handed it over to the pharmacist, praying to God there wasn’t a problem. To my relief, the guy behind the counter looked at it, smiled, then walked off.
We waited a couple minutes, my heart in my mouth the whole time. Once he returned, I was quick to grab the contents before any of the men could see. I doubted they knew what it would be, but I wasn’t taking any chances.
Craig handed the money over, not bothering to wait for the change or the receipt. Instead, he grabbed my arm and we all walked outside.
“Boss wants you back home immediately.”
I nodded, fear, dread, and excitement tingling down my spine in one sick, twisted ball of fuckedupness.
We hastily made it to the car, and I made sure to hide the contents in my bag as best I could. I felt relieved and also a little bit more in control. I knew that wasn’t true, but it was something. At least I could control when I wanted a baby. I was too young, and I knew Zac wasn’t the one with whom to bare children.
Craig and another man put all the stuff in the boot, then quickly got in the car. It wasn’t long before we were on the main road and heading for home.
One the way, we were all silent. I could tell there was tension in the air, but I couldn’t tell why. I didn’t know whether to be scared or to just put it down to the fact that something out of the ordinary happened and Zac didn’t like it.
Once we got out of the car, Ian took my bag and offered me a reassuring smile. I knew he would take care of it for me.
Suddenly, a guard came marching up to me. “He wants you to wait for him upstairs. He said he’ll be back in ten minutes.”
I nodded to him and I went upstairs, Ian following with all the bags. Once I reached the room, he followed me in and placed the bags down.
“Are you okay?”
I sat down on the bed and crossed my legs. “I was scared back there, but I’m calming a little now. I didn’t know whether I’d make it.”
Ian shook his head. “Fucking Craig and his stupid pig-headedness.”
I laughed a little. “He was following orders like a good soldier.” I saluted to show how ridiculous this whole thing was.
Ian started laughing. “You’re so funny. You remind me of my sister. She had a spark like you.”
I heard the hidden message. “Had?”
Sadness took over his face. “She died five years ago. She actually would have been your age.”
I saw his eyes glisten a little and it made my heart wrench. “I’m so sorry, Ian. What happened?”
His face hardened. “She was killed by her obsessive boyfriend. Well, I say boyfriend. She was only fifteen, almost sixteen. He was nineteen and said he fell in love with her at first sight.” He huffed a little and looked away. “He didn’t take it too well when she decided to break things off. He especially didn’t take it too well when she started dating someone who was closer to her own age. I was away on tour; otherwise, I would have stepped in and done something about it.”
I looked into his eyes, which were filled with regret and remorse. “You blame yourself, don’t you?”
He fell silent for a moment and hung his head. He nodded slightly, and I stood up and went over to him. I wrapped my arms around him and, pretty soon, he was hugging me right back. It was amazing how a hug could change your whole day...especially if it was with the right person.
“You couldn’t have known, Ian, so none of this is your fault. You were off fighting a war. No one in their right mind could blame you for that.”
“I know.” His voice was muffled as he spoke into my shoulder.
He pulled away and placed a strand of hair behind my ear. His smile lit up my heart. “Maybe I’m getting my second chance.”
I gasped, wondering if there was a hi
dden meaning behind that statement. Was Ian planning on rescuing me? I didn’t know, but the thought made the hope build. It was only for a moment, but it was there.
Once I calmed, I realised that unless there was a miracle, I was never going to escape this place. I was doomed to spend the rest of my life as a slave.
Ian sighed, bringing me out of my daydream. “Listen, I better get downstairs. I was supposed to just drop these off and leave. I don’t think Boss will be too pleased if he finds me in here again.”
I nodded with a smile. “Thank you for today. Although it was fraught with anxiety, it was better than sitting in here all day.” I kept the smile on my face, but Ian didn’t return it. He found me being here difficult. I understood that now. I just wished there was something I could do to ease his suffering.
He gave me a curt nod and disappeared out the door. I didn’t know what to expect of my life anymore, but at least it felt as though I had a true friend here. Someone who respected me and didn’t try to mould me into being someone they wanted me to be.
I wanted to be free.
Just when I was mulling this over, a distraught Zac came rushing through the door and, just like that, I was tuned back into him. Every movement, every stride was my undoing.
“Livy, baby, I’ve been so worried about you.” I stood up from the bed and looked into his eyes as he held my face in his hands. He searched it, smiled, then kissed me tenderly.
“What did the doctor say?”
I tried shrugging it off. “Just low blood sugar and anaemia. I should be fine in a couple days.”
He motioned to the bed. “Here. Lie down. I’m going to pamper you silly today. It’s just going to be you and me now, baby.”
I felt my belly dance at the thought, my smile spreading wide for him. “Really?”
When he saw my reaction, I saw the happiest look I’d ever seen from him. “Yes, really.” He looked at my bags, then back at me. “So what did you buy today?”
I figured I’d better not show him the clothes I got, so I went straight for the lingerie bag. I pulled out the contents and smiled brightly when I saw his reaction to the basque.
“My girl knows what her man likes. I want you to wear this on a special occasion. For now, put these on.”
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