Sitting, I try to sort myself out. I don’t want to go in looking broken. I don’t want her to get to me like this.   “Are you okay Alena?” Marcus finally breaks the silence, which, in a way, I am grateful for. “I am just angry, honestly, more angry than anything else. The fact that she is judging Jackson when she is well, her. On the plus side, I have a sister.” Marcus grins, the look on his face teasing.   “Don’t even think about it, Marcus. You’re staying well away from her.”  “Well, can I at least know if she is like you?” Laughing, I shake my head and lie. “No, she has brown hair, a big nose, and goofy teeth, so not your type.” I laugh. He is joking, trying to take my mind off things. I am grateful for that. “With your blessing, she might be my type.” He nudges me, winking. I am glad he came and not Jackson. “Anyway, did you have any issues with the girls?” I laugh now, remem

Getting in, Marcus is right. The house is quiet. The girls are obviously asleep. “Hey Kitten, I have a surprise for you.” Oh, I love surprises, especially Sir’s surprises. “Oh, really, Sir? What surprise might that be?” I look around, not seeing anything out of the ordinary.  “Go to the office and see Kitten.” I look at him. Is this a way to get me out of the way to talk to Marcus? Either way, I am excited to see what it is, so I go upstairs. I walk into the office. Demitri is sitting there. Okay, what is going on? “Hey Alena, I am here to do another tattoo for you. Everything is set up.” Excitement builds up inside me. “Really?” He laughs, looks at me, nods, then pats the seat next to him. “Really. You have shown Jackson a few styles you liked. He sent them to me, I re-did them to look better and to be unique. It will be going on your bum, though. Well, it will be starting at the small of your back and going down

Waking up, everything is still quiet. I am glad there are no alarms waking me up. It means we got through the night without another break-in. Showered and dressed, I walk downstairs, just like most mornings. Jackson is sitting with the girls, and Marcus sits in the living room. “Ready for the launch?” His voice is soft and soothing. I smile, feeling giddy. “Hell yes. Today is going to be amazing, plus, I find out when I can have private one-to-one lessons.” My hands clap like my inner child burst out of me. “One-to-one, really?” His eyebrows raise up. “Yes, the lap-dancing ones. I may take the pole dancing ones as well, actually.” “Well, I look forward to seeing the results.” He winks at me. I want to stay and play longer, but I have to make sure everything is being set up for tonight. Each of the rooms will be used tonight by professionals. There will be three pole dancers, two lap dancers, and exercise coaches. The whole point is to make it

I walk into the pole-dancing room, and, sure enough, Georgina is trying it out, failing, but trying. She is laughing too much to stay on the pole long enough.  That is what I want it to be like, not serious, just fun, so if someone struggles, it isn’t like everyone is staring at them. “Alena, you need to have a try,” Georgina calls over. I laugh, shaking my head. There’s no way I will get on a pole with so many people just walking by and watching, even fully clothed and joking. “No, thank you, I have work to do.” Not a bad excuse, what work though I don’t know. It was a good enough excuse for her to stop asking me and start trying herself again. Walking out, I look around Freya, who is standing talking to Jackson and Liam. Roxy is standing with someone. I can’t see who, because there are crowds in front of them. Walking closer, I notice it is Jake. As much as I dislike her for what she has done, I don’t exactly want her getting hurt by Jake, but

The police and guests are gone. Georgina, Liam and Marcus are sitting at the bar. “We checked everything. It’s all locked up, empty, no one here.” Marcus starts as we reach them. “Thank you, Marcus, for saving her again when I was too busy to realise.” Jackson reaches out his hand. Marcus shakes it. It is a strange thing to see, yet I can see a conversation they are having in secret in their eyes. “You know, I would be the same for any damsel in distress, and Alena sure is one, except she actually broke his nose, which I think is bloody amazing.” “My head does come in useful.” I laugh, although it hurts more than before. “We are going home. I think she needs sleep after tonight,” Jackson points out. “I will lock up and follow you. I rechecked the cars.  They are all safe, and now Jake is gone. I doubt we will have any other issues.” Marcus stands up, grabbing his things. “Yeah, we will go as well. See you tomorrow, Alena.”