CHAPTER 10

ABBY POV.

I wake up late the next morning to the smell of bacon and my stomach rumbles. “Mmm. Yum bacon.” I utter as I sit upright and turn my head towards the little open-plan kitchen of my brother’s little house, but I frown in confusion when I see no one there. Just then, Audrey comes walking out of the bathroom, fully clothed and ready for the day. “What was that?” She asked as she walked around the counter and busied herself by getting out two pans from the cupboard. “Oh nothing, just that the bacon smells nice.” I said and I stretched my arms above my head and sighed. I actually slept well last night and felt great. I turned to look at Audrey when she didn’t speak. She was holding the pans in her hands with a frown on her face as she looked at me and then towards the fridge. “What?” I asked as I got up. “The bacon is still in the fridge; I haven’t cooked it yet.” She said and my eyes darted to the fridge too and I sniffed but couldn’t smell anything.

“Oh.” I said and shook my head before laughing at myself. I must have dreamt it then.” I said shrugging and Audrey gave a laugh too. “Yeah, why don’t you go freshen up while I get started on breakfast.” She said as she started to busy herself. “I put some clothes for you in the bathroom. James had quickly gone over to the parents for some eggs.” She said shaking her head with good humor. “He seems to forget to buy every time he goes to the store.” She said and I nodded my head in agreement.

I quickly folded the bedding up and put it away before slipping into the bathroom. Luckily, Audrey and I were about the same size so I could wear something of hers. I took my time in the shower, washing myself and attending to my hair and when I climbed out, the entire bathroom was fogged up as steam rolled off my skin. I sighed as I wiped the condensation off of the mirror and I stared at myself for a while. I wasn’t ugly but I was decent-looking, I guess. With a bit of make-up, I could turn a head or two, but other than that I was actually quite plain.

Long black hair fell just below my shoulders as I studied myself with my forest green eyes… I always wondered about my eyes. My dad and James had blue eyes whilst my mother had brown. My mother always teased me and said that it was a perfect mixture between the two.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK! I was startled when James pounded on the door and I shook my head out of the daze. “Come on Abby, breakfast is ready.” He said through the door. “Coming!” I yelled back and quickly opened one of the windows to let the steam out. I stalled when I thought I saw movement. I tried to look out as I clutched the towel around my waist but didn’t see anything and sighed. “Probably the neighbor’s cat, Abby.” I spoke to myself and dried off. I quickly towel-dried my hair and got dressed. As I was about to pull the shirt over my head, I noticed that the love bite on my neck was gone. The skin there felt soft and smooth and I breathed in a breath as the memory of feeling his touch on my body, made my skin tingle. I shook those thoughts from my head and finished getting dressed. When I stepped out of the bathroom, the smell that I was dreaming about this morning, only fried now, reached my nose and my mouth watered.

After a quick breakfast, we arranged to meet at the doctor’s office. Audrey managed to get me an appointment so I had no choice but to go and I did promise my brother that I would. Lucky for me everything checked out fine just like I knew it would. The doctor did comment that I felt a little hotter than normal but she shrugged it off to the weather but gave me some Pain and fever tablets just in case and she stocked up my birth control.

By the time we left the doctor’s office, James was hungry again. Audrey and I exchanged knowing looks and we headed to Bob’s diner where we have been hanging out for years now.

“This place has the best waffles and ice cream.” Audrey said and I laughed. “We know.” I said with a smile as I scanned through the menu. I already knew it by heart but I flipped through it anyway. “I’ll just have…” I started to say and looked up. My jaw dropped at the two that had just entered the diner. “Oh shit!” James exclaimed when he saw them a second after I did and this made Audrey’s head snap up and when she looked in the direction that we were, she turned red with anger.

“The nerve!” Audrey exclaimed and both James and I caught her by the arm before she could storm from the booth where we were sitting. Our little commotion gained Josh and Kate’s attention and Kate immediately plastered a shit-eating grin on her face before hooking her arm through Josh’s and was starting to pull him along. I felt my heart jump into my throat. I didn’t want to see them. After she purposely had me invited under false pretenses… if I had known then I wouldn’t have gone! I thought. ‘But then you wouldn’t have met Marcus either.’ Another thought popped up and I had to admit that I couldn’t bring myself to regret that night. Knowing that, I felt better and by the time Kate had successfully marched over to us with Josh in tow, I felt much calmer and seeing Josh didn’t hurt so much.

“Well well well, if it isn’t the ex.” Kate drawled in her spoilt voice and clung lovingly to Josh’s arm. “Well well well, if it isn’t the man stealing slut!” Audrey countered loudly that drew a few heads in our direction and Kate got a few dirty looks. Kate looked out of place for a moment before she composed herself. “You better watch what you say to me, girl…” Kate snapped at Audrey but Audrey cut her off. “Or you’ll what?” Audrey challenged and I saw Josh’s eyes widen at Audrey. Was that concern in his eyes? I asked myself and I gave him a quick look over. “He looked a little ruffled… no he actually looked sick. His skin was pale, dark circles under the eyes and it looked like he had lost weight. Before I could read the situation better, Kate reached out and grabbed Audrey by the front of the jacket that she was wearing. “Kate! No, she’s a friend.” Josh said as James and I leaped to our feet, but before James or I could even lay a finger on Kate, a voice pierced the air “KATE!” and Kate immediately let go of Audrey and stepped aside. It looked as though she had gotten the fright of her life as she paled when the man the voice belonged to stood right in front of us. MARCUS. He had on a pair of tight blue jeans and a white shirt. The shirt stretched over his broad chest and the whiteness of the shirt, made his brown eyes seem lighter… or it could have been a trick of the lights inside of the diner. I wasn’t sure.

“What the hell do you think you are doing!?” He demanded in a voice full of authority and I had to admit, it was kind of hot, him sounding so domineering and looking even better than the last memory of him.

“This is none of your business, Marcus!” She snapped back but I could see that she watched him wearily and I saw her eyes dart to the diner exit. “That is not what it looked like to me.” Marcus said and he folded his arms in front of him, making him seem bigger than any man here and he probably was.

“Please, she didn’t mean any harm. We only came here to get something to eat.” Josh said as he stepped to the side to be seen. “We will go somewhere else.” Josh said and took Kate’s arm but she shrugged it away. “I am not leaving and you can’t make me.” She said and Marcus raised an eyebrow at her before his eyes darted to me and he gave me a small smile. “Hey, beautiful.” Marcus said and I swooned at the endearment. Kate, Josh, Audrey and James’s heads snapped to me simultaneously. “Sorry I am late but now that I am here…” He said and it took me a moment to register what he was doing. “We can order.” He said and he pushed past Josh, making sure to brush his shoulder while doing so, and came to take a seat on the other side of me and my heart fluttered when he pecked me on the lips. “Y-yeah… oh, you’re just in time. I was going to order the blueberry waffles with the vanilla ice cream.” I said, playing along and he smirked at me. “I hope you don’t mind, my niece joining us though, I really didn’t know that she would be here.” He added as he looked at James and Audrey. “Hi there, we haven’t met. I’m Marcus Moonlock.” He introduced himself to my brother with an extended hand. James was a little out of it but he snapped out of it. “Nice to meet you. I am James Charter and this is my girlfriend, Audrey Summers.” James introduced the two of them. Audrey sat back down in her chair with an oomph. Shocked to see THE Marcus that I had been talking about at our little table.

Marcus looked at Kate and Josh who were both standing there like idiots and staring at me and Marcus in disbelief. “Well? Are you going to join us or not?” Marcus said mockingly and wrapped an arm around my shoulders and I leaned into his embrace. Josh looked at me with an even paler face as he stood frozen whereas Kate looked so red in the face that she looked like she was about to blow her head off. “THIS IS HER!?” She exclaimed angrily and pointed a fat pink-painted nail at me. “Yes, it is and I will make myself clear only this once...” Marcus said and his voice dropped dangerously low that it gave me goosebumps. “Her family and friends are under my protection.” He said and I looked at him strangely then. Under his protection? What did he mean? I wondered

Kate looked like she was about to spit out insults but she turned on her heel and stormed out of the diner. Josh stood there and was still staring at me. he had a worried look on his face now. He opened his mouth but whatever he was going to say was cut short by Marcus. “I think you should leave too.” That was all he said and Josh closed his mouth. With a last look at me, Josh turned and followed out his new fiancé.