Adele
Alex is a rude cocky bastard. I was waiting on his fucking customer and he gives me an attitude for it. I know he doesn’t like and doesn’t want me here, but damn can I at least work in peace? I walk away from the bar and I notice the others are watching me. I almost wonder if they can see the smoke coming from my ears I am so pissed off. I am happy that it’s time for me to call it a night. If I had to spend any more time here with Alex, I might get fired or arrested for assault.
I head up the stairs to Frank's office and glance back towards the bar. Alex is glaring at me as I head up and I am tempted to flip him off, but being the adult that I am, I keep all my fingers in their proper place. I knock on Frank’s closed office door and he calls for me to come in. When I open the door, he is at his desk and there is another guy in the office with him. I shake my head when I look at him because he is hot. He stands up holding out his hand and I reach out to shake it. He is at least six feet and like all the other men that work at Deluca’s, he has an olive complexion, dark hair, and dark eyes. He gives me a small smile and I notice he has a dimple. He is wearing black trousers but has a black t-shirt so I notice the tattoos that cover both of his arms. I notice Frank rise from his desk and walk over to me and the mystery guy that has finally released my hand.
“Adele, this is Nick. He is going to be taking you home. He’ll help you get your car fixed tomorrow after taking you to the bank.” Frank advises and I look over at him with a questioning look.
“What do you mean he is taking me home? I thought he’d be dropping me off at a hotel?” I ask.
“That was the original plan. I don’t want you to freak out, but Nick works for Lola’s family. I had to bring her into the loop...”
“Wait… You had to bring her into the loop? You promised that what I told you would stay between you, Alexis and me!” I cut off Frank and reach for my bag to give him back his check.
“Adele, calm down. I didn’t tell Lola everything, I told her enough to know you needed help. She didn’t ask questions, but she is letting you stay at her old place.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask.
“You won’t need to go to a hotel. You can stay at Lola’s old house, which is fully furnished until you are up on your feet. It’s a lot better than staying at a hotel and it’s free,” he suggests.
I shake my head and look from Frank to this guy Nick, and I don’t know what I should do. They are all being nice and it feels like they are being too nice. He gives me money and now his wife is letting me live in her fully furnished house for free? My feelings and doubt must be displayed on my face because I hear Frank sigh and I look up at him.
“Adele, there are no strings attached here. Did Alexis ever tell you that I used to be a cop?” he asks and I nod my head. I had no idea he was a cop, but I don’t understand how he went from being a cop to a club owner.
“No,” I respond.
“I guess there is a part of me that still want to help and protect the innocent.” He pulls a key from his pocket and hands it to me.
“Here is the key to the house. Nick will drop you off tonight and will pick you up tomorrow morning.” Frank says and I do nothing else but grab my backpack and head to the door with Nick.
As we walk through the bar, I only pray that Alex doesn’t notice us. We finally make it to the door and Nick walks around me to open it for me and I walk past him and stop once we’re outside. He places his hand on my back and leads me to his black Suburban. He doesn’t say anything as he drives me to Lola’s old place. The silence in the car is almost deafening. I feel that I need to end it and quickly.
“So, you work for Lola’s family?” I ask and turn towards him waiting for his answer.
“Yes.”
“What exactly does her family do?” I ask hoping to get a longer response than the one-word answer.
“Her father is a judge,” he calmly states.
“You work for him?” I ask and I realize I won’t be getting an answer when he looks over at me and turns on the radio, which is quite rude.
We finally pull into a driveway and it’s a very nice neighborhood. I guess when your father is a judge, you have family money. I open my door and walk to the door with Nick following close behind me. Once inside, I am quite impressed by what I see. The furniture is quite nice. The couch is a gray leather and there are wood tables and even a large screen tv. I don’t understand why Lola would just leave everything here? The place isn’t even dusty, so someone had to have been staying here.
“Are you sure this place is for me? It still looks lived in.” I ask and Nick walks past me to check the house for possible issues.
“The family sometimes comes for visits and they stay here. What time will you be ready tomorrow morning?” he asks and I realize once again our conversation is now over.
“I can be ready by nine. The bank should be open by then.”
“Where is your car?” He asks and I advise him it’s in the mall parking lot.
He shakes his head and asks if I can be ready by eight. I snap my teeth together and nod my head letting him know I will be ready. Nick leaves and I lock the door and begin my inspection of the home that I will be calling mine, at least for the time being. I glance towards the dining area which is attached to the living room. There is a box sitting on the table. I walk over and notice that my name is on a card lying on top of it. I open the card and there is a note from Frank.
Adele,
On your application, I noticed you didn’t give a phone number either. Since you’re in between places, I figured you didn’t have a cell phone either. Please take this business phone in case we need to call you in. Please feel free to use it for emergencies. My phone number is already programmed in and I also programmed Nick’s number.
Frank
I open the box and as mentioned, there is a new Apple iPhone in the box. I shake my head as my eyes start to tear. I grab my backpack and look for the bedroom. As expected, it is more than I deserve. I take off my clothes and head for the bathroom and notice there is a huge bathtub. There is even bubble bath sitting on the edge and I make good use of it all before heading to bed.
The next morning Nick is knocking at the door at exactly eight. I assumed he would be prompt, so I am glad I was ready and waiting for him. I notice that Nick is not a morning person as we head to the bank to deposit my check. When we enter the bank, Nick walks right over to one of the ladies who is sitting at a desk. She greets him and he advises that I need to open a bank account. She asks how much I will be opening the account with and I had her my check for five thousand dollars. Nick reaches into his suit jacket and passes her another check and I raise an eyebrow at him as he does.
“She will actually be opening the account for fifteen thousand dollars,” he tells the banker and she reaches for the check and continues to type.
“I’m sorry.” I reach for the check and hand it back to Nick. “I will only be opening the account for five thousand dollars,” I smile at her and look over at Nick, who I notice is now agitated.
He slides the check back over to the banker advising that I will be opening the account for fifteen thousand dollars. She notices the tension and advises that she will go grab the paperwork off the printer while we decide.
“What the hell are you doing? I am not taking any more money. I am opening the account with five thousand dollars!” I practically yell at Nick handing him back the second check.
“This is your money. You’ll take it.” He growls as he slides the check back towards the other one.
“What do you mean that is my money?” I ask, once again reaching for the check and Nick reaches past me and slams his hand over the check so I can’t move it.
“I had your car pulled into a shop. It is a bunch of crap and it’s not worth fixing. I had one of my buddies buy it for scrap. This check is what he paid for it.” He tilts his head but manages to keep a straight face.
“Are you fucking with me? You decided my car wasn’t worth fixing? You made this decision on your own. Then you tell me that someone bought my worthless car for ten thousand dollars?” I ask, now pissed off.
“Yes,” He gives this simple one-word answer as the banker comes waltzing back to her desk. She eyes both of us obviously wondering if it’s safe to sit down. She asks if we have decided what I will be opening my new account with and we both say fifteen thousand dollars in unison.
Once my account is open, Nick drives me back to the house. The car once again is silent and I would prefer it to stay that way. I am so angry that I don’t even want to hear his voice or even look at him. We finally get back to Lola’s family’s house and I jump out of the truck. I run towards the house and open the door and notice he has followed me in.
“What the hell do you want? You did your duty. You can leave,” I tell him as I hold the door open for him.
“There is one other thing, Adele.” He advises as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a key and I close my eyes.
“What is that the key to? You’re not moving in with me, are you? Oh, wait. Is that a key to my new car that you took upon yourself to buy for me?” I ask and I can hear the contempt in my voice.
“No one bought you a car, but there is a car in the garage that you can use. We leave it here for family visits since it’s easier than always taking a cab,” he says and I start to laugh. I don’t know whether I should thank God or get the hell away from these people. Nick walks over and drops the key on the coffee table and walks out.
I shake my head and drop to the couch. I look at the key and look around at the house that I am now living in. This can’t be my life. I have managed to connect with people that are nice and giving and this just can’t be my real life. I need something to snap me out of this before I forget what real people are like. The cell phone rings and I practically jump out of my own skin. It’s been so long since I have had a cell phone that when It rings my first thought is that Garth will be on the other end and he’ll be pissed off at something that I didn’t cause. The ringing stops and it starts once again. I reach over and press the answer button on the phone.
“Hello,” I answer and I can hear the nervousness in my voice. Has he caught up with me? My gut is screaming that these Deluca’s are too good to be true, maybe I am right and they are.
“Do you think you can get your ass to the club early today or would you prefer I get special permission, Princess Adele?” Alex the Bastard asks as I close my eyes and snap back into my reality. They aren’t all good and this Is the proof that I needed.