Stella
“Nicole, pick up, pick up, pick up,” Stella said as she finally walked back into her apartment complex, cradling her cell phone between her chin and her neck.
The phone rang six or seven times before she got an answer. “Hello?”
“Nicole!” Stella exclaimed, temporarily too excited for coherence. “Nicole, come over as soon as you can.”
“What’s wrong, honey? Is everything all right?”
“Yes, yes, it’s fine. Well, no, actually, it isn’t,” Stella said. “But I’m okay, it’s not an emergency. I just need to talk to you as soon as possible, hopefully privately. As in, Ian can’t hear what I’m going to say.”
“All right, all right,” Nicole said. “I’ll be over to your place in ten.”
Stella passed the time by pacing back and forth across her tiny studio apartment, swiping open her phone just to stare down at the number she’d copied down from the poster at the bus stop. Maybe this was her chance, her one true shot at getting out. She’d just have to do it the right way.
Cameron couldn’t find out about it ahead of time, otherwise he’d intimidate the Haven’s boss and ensure that they wouldn’t even give her a chance to get the job. Nicole’s boyfriend Ian was one of Cameron’s top lieutenants in the MC, but Nicole was loyal. Stella could trust her to keep her mouth shut.
Nicole knocked on the door a few minutes before Stella expected her to. Stella rushed to let her in. “Come in, come in,” she said, hurriedly shutting and locking the door behind her friend once she was safely inside. “I’ve got some news!”
“Is it the blind date you were supposed to go on tonight?” Nicole asked, a grin slowly spreading across her face. “Oh, my God. Did you actually get laid?”
Stella scoffed and shook her head. “No such luck. Cameron sent a couple of the guys out to pummel the shit out of him. My date’s in the emergency room getting patched up.” She sighed and headed over to the couch, gesturing for Nicole to walk over and sit down next to her. “And you know what the saddest thing is? With my history with Cameron, it’s not even close to being the worst date I’ve ever had, even though my knees are fucked up now.” She pointed at the patches of blood on her legs.
“Ugh, poor baby,” Nicole said, leaning over to give Stella a hug. “Cameron’s been such a dick recently. I’m so sorry.”
“Yeah, well, it’s what I should have expected,” Stella said with a shrug. “As long as I work at Stormwatch, Cameron will always have a way to get into my business and interfere with my life.”
Nicole frowned, tapping her fingers on the back of the couch anxiously. “So what are you going to do?”
“Well,” Stella said, struggling to fight the beaming smile that threatened to crack her face wide open, “I’m going to apply for a new job, across town. Safely out of the Marauders’ territory.”
“What job?” Nicole asked, her mouth falling open as Stella’s words sunk in. “How can it be out of Cameron’s reach? Practically everything in this town is affiliated with the club.”
“Not anymore! There’s this new place, called the Haven, opening up on the edge of town, right outside of the Marauders’ jurisdiction.”
Nicole bit down on her bottom lip, looking up at Stella with worry in her eyes. “Is it a Thunder Rebels’ place?” she asked softly, referring to the rival club that ruled the neighboring town.
“No!” Stella said, even though she wasn’t one hundred percent confident of that fact. “I’m pretty sure it’s neutral territory. If an MC was pushing up on Cameron’s space, I think we would have heard about it by now. There probably would have been a war started already, for Christ’s sake.”
Nicole nodded slowly, even though the concern written across her face remained in place. “When are you going in for the interview?”
“Tomorrow,” Stella said. “Tomorrow afternoon, right in between my shifts at Stormwatch. I’m hoping they’ll let me know soon if I get the job or not…”
“You’ll get it,” Nicole said encouragingly, reaching over to squeeze Stella’s hand between her strong fingers. “You will.”
Stella blew out her breath and smiled across at Nicole. “Nic,” she said, “you’re the only one that believes in me.”
“That’s not true!” Nicole argued. “Ian believes in you, too.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet,” Stella said in between laughs. “But Ian is Cameron’s man first and foremost. He doesn’t really care about me.”
Nicole shook her head, her brows furrowing together in frustration. “Okay, Ian’s loyal to Cameron, sure. It’s an MC thing. But I’m the boss, and what I say goes. Ian loves you because I love you. End of story.”
“Fair enough,” Stella said, chuckling. “Could you do me a favor?”
“Anything, sweetheart,” Nicole said quickly.
“Just don’t tell anyone that I’m applying for this job, okay? I don’t want it to blow up in my face, especially if I don’t get it. Can you imagine how pissed Cameron would be if he found out I was trying to find a way out of Stormwatch?”
Nicole scoffed and shook her head. “That fucking asshole needs to get his shit together and let you go. But don’t worry, I won’t say anything. My lips are sealed.”
“Thanks,” Stella said, squeezing back at Nicole’s fingers. “I knew I could count on you.”
They sat there in silence for a minute, until Stella felt an odd sense of anxiety creep over her body, making all of her tiny little hair follicles go erect like they were preparing for battle. It took her a long moment to figure out why she suddenly felt nervous, and then it hit her. “Do you think I can do it?” Stella whispered, not looking directly at Nicole for fear of showing her own weakness.
“Get the job? I know you can,” Nicole said, patting the back of Stella’s hand encouragingly.
“No, I mean, do you think I’d do a good job if I actually got it?” Stella murmured. “I’ve only ever worked at Stormwatch, ever since I was a teenager. I don’t know if I can do anything else.”
“It’s a bar, sweetie, just like any other. You’re going to do fine,” Nicole said without hesitation.
But Stella still chewed on the inside of her mouth, biting down on the sensitive inner flesh just to distract herself from the bubbles of anxiety that rose and popped within her stomach. “I’ve just never known anything else, you know? Maybe I’m secretly terrible at everything and Cameron just keeps me around at Stormwatch because I’m supposed to be his girl.”
“He’s not that thoughtful,” Nicole shot back. “He doesn’t care about your feelings. If he did, he wouldn’t cheat on you with every cheap skank that rides into town.”
“True,” Stella said, laughing at the situation even though really it wasn’t funny at all. “Maybe when I’m out of the picture and he doesn’t see me every day, he’ll get over it. You know what I mean? Maybe he’ll let go of me, finally, once I get another job.”
Nicole rolled her eyes and shrugged. “I mean, I wouldn’t count on it. He’s an asshole, but he is in love with you. Not, like, sweet, true love. Like obsessive, controlling love. Personally, I don’t know how the hell you put up with it as long as you did.”
Stella sighed deeply, feeling a familiar sensation of shame burn inside of her. She knew there was some truth to what Nicole was saying. If she had any real self-respect at all, she would have done something like this years ago. But maybe she simply wasn’t ready before, and only now did she have the strength and the skills necessary to break out of her situation. Even still, she knew how to handle her current life, as bad as it was. She was going to be walking into unfamiliar territory, meeting new people and doing new things. It was a terrifying prospect.
“Hey,” she said to Nicole, pulling insistently on her fingers to make sure she was paying maximum attention to what Stella was saying. “Promise me something.”
“Sure, what is it?”
“Promise that no matter how far apart we get, or however messy things get between me and Cameron, you and me will always be friends.”
“Of course!” Nicole said, launching across the couch to crash into a hug, pressing Stella roughly against her torso. “Always. Never forget that you have me, no matter what.”
Stella smiled into Nicole’s neck, allowing herself to feel a little glimmer of hope, no matter how irrational it might have been. Despite everything she’d been through, despite all the bullshit with Cameron, she was still lucky to have the MC in her life if only because it brought Nicole to her. As long as she had Nicole, she knew she’d be all right. Nothing could break them apart.
But still, the fear lingered inside Stella’s heart, making it beat faster and harder every time she checked the clock that night. She watched the minutes tick by, bringing her closer to her interview, the moment of truth. I can do this, she told herself on a loop. I can do this. I’m strong. I’m tough. I’m not as weak as Cameron thinks I am. I. Can. Do. This.
# # #
Mark
Mark got the job within five minutes of showing up the next morning. The owner took one look at him, clearly appraising his height as well as his protruding muscles, before offering Mark his hand. “Welcome to the Haven,” the owner, Wesley, said with a broad smile before clapping Mark on the back. Mark felt a little awkward at that. He got the sense that Wesley wanted to be his friend or at least a friendly acquaintance, but Mark just wanted to do his work and be left alone. In any case, Wesley hired him as a nightly bouncer, but he was allowed to work during the day as well to help set up shop before the bar opened.
That was what he was doing now, lifting boxes of liquor to and from the basement under the main level of the bar, when the girl from the night before walked in through the front door. She was dressed much differently now, having traded in her tight black dress for a button-down shirt and formal-looking black slacks. But she still looked hot; her bountiful curves caught Mark’s eye again, even though he tried as hard as he could not to look at her. He couldn’t afford to be distracted, especially not on his first day on the job.
“Hello? Is Wesley here? I called about an interview yesterday?” she said hesitantly, nervous energy coming off of her in thick waves.
Mark ignored her, focusing on getting the bottles out of their various boxes and positioning them behind the bar in an orderly arrangement. Wesley popped up out of a backroom the next second, offering his hand for the girl to shake. “Wow, you look perfect for the job!” Wesley announced as soon as he saw the girl standing within the front doorway.
Jesus, this guy wasn’t subtle at all, was he? His entire hiring strategy seemed to hinge on what the prospective employees looked like. But Mark supposed that made some degree of sense. After all, bouncers needed to be intimidating to make sure that the patrons didn’t start shit, and bartenders needed to be attractive so that creepy old men would keep coming back to buy more.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name on the phone last night. What was it, Susie? Something like that?” Wesley asked. Mark watched the exchange out of the corner of his eye, seeing the young woman smile broadly, some of the tension in her shoulders evaporating.
“Stella,” the girl said, shaking Wesley’s hand enthusiastically. Her smile seeming to get even wider and brighter.
“Well, when can you start, Stella?” Wesley asked.
“Really? That’s it? Are you sure you don’t want to check my résumé or anything, I brought it with me…” Stella said, digging through her bag to pull out a piece of paper. But Wesley just shook his head.
“Not necessary,” Wesley said, waving his hand dismissively when she tried to hand him her résumé. “I can already tell you have what it takes to be a part of the family here. Hey, why don’t you grab yourself a drink from behind the bar, get used to the feel of the place? Otherwise, you can come back tomorrow night for work. I’ll see you then.” Wesley retreated from the bar, nodding at Mark on his way back into his office, next to the restrooms at the back of the building.
Stella slowly walked over in Mark’s direction, walking around the bar and staring at the line of drinks he was assembling. “I’ve never had champagne before…”
She was murmuring to herself, but Mark couldn’t help but stare at her profile, looking at the way her breasts and hips and ass stood out from her waist, even dressed as conservatively as she was. She probably had no idea what the criteria was for the bartender position. Even just looking at her, Mark could already tell that she had no idea how attractive she was. Somehow that just made her even hotter—the fact that she didn’t realize that she could have most men wrapped around her little finger in sixty seconds flat. Not Mark, though. He was very accustomed to women and the various tools they could use to get a man under their control, and as far as he was concerned he was immune to it. Even if she was one of the hottest women he’d ever seen.
“I’m sorry,” Stella said, turning on her heel to face him without warning. “I’m stuck on two bottles of champagne here and I’m not sure which one to open for myself. Do you think I should save the expensive one for the customers or just go all out?”
“Pick the rich people one,” Mark said without thinking. “You never know when you’ll get another chance to taste it.”
“Thanks,” Stella said, pulling out the bottle he’d pointed out and reaching under the bar for two glasses. “Want some?”
“It’s supposed to be just for you, right?” Mark said.
“I don’t think Wesley will care,” Stella said, popping open the bottle and pouring healthy portions of champagne into each glass before pushing one of them in Mark’s direction. “Here, toast me. To our new jobs.”
Mark begrudgingly clinked his glass against Stella’s before turning his back on her, draining the glass of champagne in less than thirty seconds. He had learned how to drink in the military, so drinking for him meant getting fucked up fast, not savoring every last detail of the flavors in each glass.
“I’m Stella, by the way,” she said, apparently not getting the hint that he wanted to be left alone. “And you are?”
“Mark.”
“Mark who?” she asked. The overt curiosity in her voice would have been adorable if it wasn’t so goddamn irritating. This chick was hot, but she clearly didn’t know how to pick up on subtle cues.
“Maxwell,” he answered, resuming his work of stocking the shelves above the bar, even though he could tell that Stella was still staring at him.
“Maxwell. That’s an interesting last name. I don’t think I’ve ever heard it before. Do you have family in town?” Stella asked, sipping her drink.
“Nope,” Mark said, heavily slamming bottles of whiskey down on the shelves, hoping she’d get the message that he didn’t want to talk to her.
“So you must be new,” Stella said. “I’m guessing you’re not with the MC. That’s how most new people come here, because they want to be a part of a family or something. But I’m guessing that’s not the case with you, huh?”
For a minute, Mark considered not acknowledging her at all. The conversation had already become so awkward, it was like the air between them was crackling with some kind of uncomfortable energy. But for some reason he couldn’t stop himself from at least nodding in response to her statement, confirming all of her suspicions about him. There was something irritating about that, her ability to read him so accurately and so quickly. But mostly he was just impressed. Most people thought he was mysterious and dangerous, too scary-looking to even talk to. But not this small, cute woman with the disarming smile.
“I noticed you last night, you know,” Stella said. “At the bus stop. Guess we both had the same idea.”
“Guess so,” Mark replied, but his tone didn’t come out as harsh and unfriendly as he’d intended it to, even if the awkwardness between them lingered on.
“Well, here, shake my hand,” Stella said, putting down her drink and stepping closer to him. “We didn’t introduce ourselves properly. We should do that before we lose the chance to do it forever.” She stuck her hand out for Mark to take.
For a long moment he just stared down at her hand, weirdly hesitant to touch her. It was like he knew that if he brushed up against her skin, he’d be addicted. He’d want to do it again and again. Things would be safer or simpler or easier if he just never touched her, forever watching her out of the corner of his eye and imagining what her skin felt like instead of finding out for himself.
But he finally took her hand, shaking it firmly, surprised at how strong her grasp was despite how small and delicate her hands were.
“I’ll see you tomorrow night?” Stella said, phrasing the statement like a question, forcing Mark to nod in acknowledgement. “Great, see you then!” She quickly downed the rest of her champagne and stuck the dirty glass in the sink.
Mark might have to clean that later, which should have annoyed him, but watching her skip out of the bar and into the blazing light of the afternoon outside, he couldn’t help but be amused. She was just so excited, so happy to work in a messy little bar at the edge of town. For some reason, that lifted Mark’s spirits out of the dirt inside of his heart, making him feel lighter and freer than he’d felt in months.
For the rest of the day, he couldn’t get her out of his mind, struggling to keep a smile off his face as images of her happy expression filled his head. It was silly. He didn’t know this woman at all, but she made such a huge impression on him. He hated to admit it, but he was excited to see her again. And that scared the fucking shit out of him, in ways he hadn’t felt since he’d been at war.
The only thing scarier than a gun is a woman with a sharp smile, he thought.