Chapter 6

Kennedy – Two Weeks Later

I spinmy phone between my fingers, trying to hold my tears. He told me he"d be in touch, but I haven"t heard from him in two weeks. I returned to working day shifts at the hospital, only to find out he"d taken a sabbatical, and he went radio silent.

I"ve called several times, and nothing.

This isn"t normal, right?

I gave him my virginity and finally told him how I felt after he claimed me, only to ignore me…. That cannot be normal.

Is he ghosting me?

Did he use me, and I fell for it?

Some of my tears escape, and I quickly wipe them away, ready to try and call Lucas again, refusing to ask Alex and bring him into the middle of my love life drama. I hear my mother call for me, making me sigh. I was hoping she"d be passed out by now. I walked in this evening after my shift to see her doing lines of cocaine.

Oh, how the mighty has fallen.

Shaking my head, I get up, put my phone in my jeans, grab my keys, and go see what my darling mother wants.

I lock my door, a habit I"ve got myself into after she ransacked it a few months ago. Thankfully, she didn't find my savings underneath the floorboard.

I go to the living area, where my dad is already passed out on his chair, while Momma is watching two women make out. Her head turns toward when I walk in, her brown eyes glassy from the drugs.

She smiles condescendingly and rasps, "I"m going to need you to up your payments. Bills have gotten higher."

I just stare at her. I"m already giving her half of my wages, and she knows this. She sees my pay stubs each month. Their bills haven"t gone up, her drug use has.

I don"t think I can do this crap anymore, and honestly, with Lucas now ignoring me, the job in New York is looking more and more appealing.

I sigh. "Sorry, Momma, but I can"t give you any more than I already am. I can barely afford gas and food as it is." Her eyes harden as she stands up in nothing but a bra and panties, but I don"t back down. I state, "Also, I may be moving, and I need to save as much as I can."

Her eyes widen in shock at my revelation, and she sneers, "And where would you move to, huh? Half your money comes to me, so I know you can"t afford an apartment."

I try not to smirk. I'm going to tell her something I"ve wanted to all these years—to finally knock her off that ego pedestal. I admit, "Actually, Momma, I"ve been handpicked to attend a program where they train you to become a NICU nurse with the best of the best pediatricians. New York General, the main hospital doing the program, wants me, and is giving me accommodation and travel expenses."

Her face goes red. I"m basically living her life, and she hates it. She chose this path of drugs and debauchery, while watching the daughter she resents, living her best life.

Shame.

Momma looks at the women, then Daddy, before her body starts to shake, and before I can blink, she"s in front of me, her fist hitting my lip, making me fall into the wall.

Wow, that flipping hurt.

I blink several times, my eyes tearing up from the pain as I taste blood. I look at my mother, who has tears running down her cheeks, shame etching her features as she looks at my lip before she sneers, "You are not allowed to go. You are my daughter; I birthed you. You go to work right now and decline that job."

With that she turns and walks away toward the women, bending behind one to lick her out, making bile rise.

I quickly leave.

I can"t stay here anymore. She thinks she owns me, but she doesn"t, and I"m done being blackmailed into staying here just so she can live the life she"s living with drugs and sex.

I climb into my car and check the mirror, wincing at my cut lip. I quickly start my car up, pulling away from the curb.

I"ll come home once everyone is passed out and grab my stuff. It"s time I start living for myself and not everyone else. It"s time I speak to the man who owns my heart, and see where I stand, so I can finally move on with my life.

With a sniffle, I grab my phone and call Aunt Shelly, asking if I can stay at her place tonight. She agrees, and I head to the club where, hopefully, I can speak to Lucas.

Maybe he"s been on club business and just couldn"t contact me?

Or maybe he never loved me at all….

Fifteen minutes later, Tim, the prospect and local farm boy, lets me in with a wave, and I park. I notice Alex isn"t here, and I sigh, wishing he was; one of his hugs sounds good right about now. With my slumped shoulders, fed up with everything, I head inside and look around the room filled with brothers, old ladies, and clubwhores who want a brother"s patch. Honestly, from the outside, this place looks like a normal warehouse, but on the inside, it"s rustic and homey.

I notice Lola and smile but my heart sinks, my smile faltering when I don"t see Doc. I head over to her.

I really need to see him; until we talk, I don't think I'll be able to breathe properly.

I sit next to her, smiling, but her smile soon fades, seeing my lip.

I chuckle a little and state, "Remember when you fell over in tenth grade, and your skirt flipped up in front of everyone, including your crush Zac, and you were wearing your old Barbie panties?" her face goes red, her eyes widening at the memory, and I chuckle. "Yeah, I did that an hour ago, only it wasn"t in front of a crush but half the college"s hockey team at the hospital."

Her eyes nearly pop out of her eye sockets in shock before she starts to laugh, and I grin, mostly to hide my sigh of relief. I didn"t exactly lie because, yes, that did happen today. Thankfully,I was wearing my scrub bottoms. Lola isn"t aware of my home life, only that I don"t get along with my parents. I haven"t even told her that Alex is my cousin, mainly because she can"t keep a secret to save her life. I still love her, though.

I smile as she winces at my lip, before movement to my right catches my eye, and I have to do a double look.

Please, no….

My heart thumps hard before it shatters when I see Prue wearing Doc"s cut, her arm around his waist, her head on his chest while he has his arm over her shoulder, and tears build.

No, please, no.

"Hey, do you want to go shopping with me tomorrow?" I ignore Lola"s question as my eyes make contact with the ones I love so much, and guilt shines back at me, and I know…he lied to me.

Son of a….

"Kennedy, are you alright?" Lola asks, concerned, her hand gripping my arm as Doc looks away from me.

I shake my head and whisper, admitting, "I gave your brother my virginity, Lo."

She sucks in a breath. I look at her, allowing a few tears to fall, and admit, "I"ve been in love with him since I was twelve, but I didn"t think he felt the same." Her eyes fill with tears at my pain. "Two weeks ago, he told me he wasn"t with Prue, and he told me he loved me. He even has my name tatted on the side of his neck." Pain slices through me as tears slide down my friend"s cheeks. "He told me he wanted to marry me and give me his cut." She furrows her brows before looking toward the bar to see where I was looking, and anger etches over her form, her body stiffening, her fists balled. I admit, "He hasn"t contacted me for two weeks, and now I know why."

She goes to stand up, but I quickly grab her hand to keep her in her seat, making her look at me, and I shake my head at her as Crow, Doc"s dad, states loudly, "Brothers, my son has an announcement to make."

Oh God, he"s going to do it in front of me?

I look and see he"s still not looking at me, but she is, and she has a wicked gleam in her eyes.

Doc clears his throat, but I don"t look at him as he speaks; I keep my eyes on hers, "I, uh, wanted to let you all know that Prue is now not only my old lady, but we"re also starting afamilytogether. She also agreed to marry me."

Her eyes show hunger and happiness as she looks at me like she"s won, all while Doc refuses to look my way. Crow, however, looks at me with pity, proving he knew what we did two weeks ago, but I ignore him; this is his son, so, of course, he will stand by him. It doesn"t matter that my uncle was a brother, it doesn't matter that I gave him my virginity.

Doc will always come first to this club, and this is one of the reasons why I refuse to allow the brothers to know my true blood. This is the sign I needed. My mind is finally made up.

I grab my phone and quickly type out a message to Claudia.

Me: Hey Claud, just messaging to let you know I accept the New York offer.

My thumb hovers over the send button as Lola whispers, "Kennedy?" I send the message, refusing change my mind, hoping Noah can forgive me.

Taking a deep breath, I give her a heartbreaking smile, my eyes shining. Her tears fall faster, seeing my defeat.

I look at Prue again. She won, and he lied to me and used me.

Alex enters the quiet room while I watch the love of my life holding the woman he told me he wasn"t with.

He made me the other woman; he cheated.

"Please fucking tell me, Doc, that you have not fucking given your fling, a patch chaser, your fucking cut?" Alex growls as everything becomes hazy, my ears feeling like they are filling with water until I can"t hear what he"s saying over the shattering pieces of my heart.

Was I just something he wanted to get out of the way before settling down?

The pain consumes me, my chest hurting to the point I feel like I"m having a heart attack, and I can"t take it anymore; I need to get out of here. I turn and kiss Lola on the cheek, and she shakes her head, knowing it is a goodbye.

She can see I'm done…

Ignoring everyone in the room, I squeeze her hand, before standing up and making my way over to the door as Alex lets loose for me. When I walk past him, he goes to grab my arm, but I grab his instead, give it a squeeze, and go out the door into the cool night air. I hear Doc shout for me, but I ignore him, too.

He"s dead to me now; he"s broken me.

I was just another notch on his bedpost. He said everything I wanted to hear, and it wouldn"t surprise me that he got that tattoo as a dare.

Oh God, I gave him my virginity, my heart—I even buried someone for him.

I thought he loved me.

An hour later, after saying goodbye to Alex, hurting him. After giving him the confirmation about my job, I went home to a passed-out Momma and Dad, and packed my bags quietly. I kept what cash in my purse—around $200—and left the rest under the floorboard. I only needed money for gas. On the counter, I left a note saying goodbye, and got in my car. Claudia messaged me back, saying they wanted me there as soon as possible. I decided to drive to New York to clear my head, not telling anyone I was leaving or where I was going. What better way to clear my thoughts way than a twenty-six-hour car ride, right?

I just hope Noah can forgive me….

As I drive past Lookout Point, I stop and take one last look at a town I'll likely never see again, my gaze moving toward the direction of the club, where my heart lays in pieces, where the man I love is starting a family, or thinks he"s starting a family because right now, it wouldn"t surprise me that she lied just to get his cut, and he fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

With one last look and a silent goodbye, I climb back into my car with the promise to only stay in touch with Alex and Sniper. I refuse to make Lola choose between me and her brother.

I cry when I reach the "See you soon…" sign of Huntersville, and a sob builds. A vision of Doc"s beautiful eyes stare at me as he enters me for the first time, before he makes love to me.

Though, it wasn"t love, it was all a lie—he made me the other woman to scratch an itch, and that hurts.

He played me.