He must give up because I make the tube without him tailing me. Pushing my way through the crowded carriage, I eventually find a seat between an elderly man and a woman dressed similar to me. She doesn’t look uncomfortable or out of place like I do. She fits the business woman image. I glance down at my dress again and frown. Nobody is looking at me like I’m different, and they’re not laughing at me. In fact, nobody is paying me the slightest bit of attention.
I lean my head against the window and spend the ten-minute journey remembering the way my father spoke to me whenever I tried to change the way I looked.
I find myself heading straight for the oak tree when I get back to the club. My feet hurt from the low heels I’d worn to match the dress. I usually wear flats. I kick the shoes off and lower to the ground, staring out across the field.
I spot Mum heading over to me holding a mug. She smiles, hands me a coffee, and lowers to sit beside me. “You’re spending a lot of time out here lately. Everything okay?” I nod. “Didn’t the judge grant the restraining order?” I nod again. “Then why the long face?”
She always used to ask that question when we were little, and it brings back fond memories. “Mum, do I look like a whore?”
She almost laughs before realising I’m serious. Concern replaces her smile. “No, Hadley. Why would you ask that?”
I pluck at the dress. “It’s not me, is it?”
“Why?”
“Because I never wear this kind of stuff. It’s just not me.”
“What is you?”
I shrug. “Baggy jumpers. Joggers.”
“Clothes that cover your beautiful body,” says Mum, tucking a stray hair behind my ear. “Hadley, you’re beautiful, and I didn’t tell you often enough when you were little because your dad . . . well, you know what he was like. You don’t have to hide away.”
“Why did he make me feel like the ugliest person in the world?” I whisper, and she smiles sadly.
“Because he was scared at how perfect you were, and he didn’t want any man to take you away. You were his precious butterfly. He used to say you were too good for the club and he’d never let a brother marry you. He wanted you to fly away and find something or someone better.”
“He didn’t treat Meli like that,” I point out.
“Meli didn’t have it easy either. He got to her in different ways, but you know her, she’s never been one to be told what to do. She drove him nuts because she was so unruly.” Her smile fades, and the thought of Ripper must enter both our heads because we fall silent.
Eventually, she takes my hand. “I never told you this before, but after what I did, betraying your dad, he became bitter. He said you looked like me, too beautiful and too alluring. He was worried the brothers might look at you wrong.” A tear runs down her cheek. “He became so obsessed with hiding you, he forgot about Meli. In the end, she got hurt instead.”
I wrap my arms around her. “Sorry, Mum, I didn’t mean to remind you of all the bad stuff.”
She pulls back and wipes her eyes. “Don’t be silly. We shouldn’t brush it under the carpet. I just hate seeing you torture yourself. You look amazing today and you shouldn’t hide away. Stand tall and be proud of who you are and how incredible you look.”
I smile. “Thank you. I love you.”
“Where the fuck have you been?” yells Grim, marching towards us.
Mum exchanges a concerned look with me. “I got the tube,” I snap.
“And you couldn’t answer your phone and tell me that? I was worried out of my mind!”
Mum stands. “Well, she’s here now, and she’s fine as you can see, so take a breath.”
“You can’t run off like that!” he barks, ignoring Mum.
“You seem to like it when Meli does it,” I mutter.
Mum winces. “I think I’ll head inside,” she says, then rushes back towards the clubhouse.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he growls.
I stand. “You like the way she runs off, the way she pushes your buttons. You like how she dresses and the amount of skin she shows off.” I begin to walk away in the direction of the fields. “You like her. You like Meli.”
I hear his heavy footsteps behind me. “Not like that, I don’t!” he snaps.
“Bullshit. But you don’t tell her she looks like a whore, do you?”
“Because she knows she does.”
“I’ve spent years watching you watch her, your eyes full of lust. Not once have you made her feel like you made me feel just then.”
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”
I turn off in the direction of a cluster of trees. “But you did say it. Do you know how much it took for me to put this dress on?”
“Hads, I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”
“I know you don’t look at me like that, but how dare you mock the men who do. Why shouldn’t I feel nice? Why can’t a man tell me he wants to take me out on a date? Am I that repulsive?” I spin to face him as we step amongst the trees. “I looked nice today. I looked good.” He nods. “I can wear what I want!” I feel more empowered by each outburst.
Suddenly, Grim pushes his face close to mine. “I was jealous.” I stare wide-eyed at his unexpected confession. “Seeing you in there today was like watching a stranger. You owned him, a powerful man like that, and he did exactly what you wanted. Fuck, it turned me on. But I didn’t like the flirting. That pissed me off.” I open and close my mouth a couple of times. “And I shouldn’t have said it. I knew the second it left my mouth it was a dickish move, but it fell out and you ran off. I’m sorry. You do look amazing and—”
I crash my mouth against his. It’s an unplanned and rushed move that makes our teeth clash together in a hungry yet haphazard kiss. And then, as we slow down, his hands cup my face and his tongue sweeps gently against my own. I grip his large shoulders to steady myself, hardly daring to believe that Grim is finally kissing me. He’s kissing me!
After a few seconds, he carefully pulls back and stares at me in shock. “We kissed,” he whispers, and I nod. “I just kissed my President’s little sister.” I see the panic in his eyes and I desperately want to rewind to moments ago so we can just kiss over and over and not do the talking part. The teenager in me is stamping her feet and screaming at him not to ruin this moment, this special moment that I’ve waited over a decade for.
The buzzing of his mobile breaks the silence. “Sorry,” he mutters, pulling it out and answering. “Pres?”
GRIM
Fuck, fuck, shitting fuck! What the hell just happened? I turn my back on Hadley and try to focus on Mav’s words. “Nick Cambridge has been discharged from hospital. I’m waiting on Hadley to see if she got the paperwork.”
“Erm . . . yes, yes, she did. It’s right here. I’ll get her to come and see you.”
“Christ, I’ve been pacing the office waiting for her call. Tell her to get a damn move on. This is time critical.”
I disconnect. “Mav wants the paperwork. Cambridge has been discharged.”