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2023-10-31 13:28:36Tears blurred her vision as she held her tote bag close to her chest with one hand and her car keys in the other. James had fired her, there was no point begging him. She earned the least and she was only taking up space backstage.
What upset her wasn’t losing her job but the fact that she couldn’t pay her bills and the man at the club had looked at her like she meant nothing.
She was probably never going to cross paths with him but it still hurt. She wondered if he had looked at the other girls like that or if he was just disappointed in her and her inability.
She tried to start the car but it won’t budge just when she thought her day couldn’t get any worse. The car was a hand me down from her father for her eighteenth birthday. It was well over six years but she still tried her best to maintain it, it was all she could manage until she could afford a decent one.
She sighed and wiped her tears as she thought of what the problem could be.
It was a cold night, the flimsy dress she had on was inappropriate. She rolled her eyes and blinked back her tears. She wanted to scream, to pull her hair and bang the stupid car until it roared to life.
She opened the bonnet and stared at it. She was confused by the mechanics and she hoped she would touch the right thing.
“Do you need help?”
She turned to the sound of the voice. It was the man from the club, the same man who had looked down on her. He was with his friend who was smiling sheepishly.
“No, thank you” she answered coldly and resumed staring at the bonnet
She didn’t not need his pity. He probably felt bad for what happened in the club and he was trying to compensate for it.
“It’s late, are you going to stay out by yourself?” He asked
She wondered why he was bothered by what wasn’t his business. She took deep breaths to regain composure, she hated how vulnerable and helpless she was.
“I’m just fine” she snapped
“It’s dangerous” his friend said
The clouds were dark, threatening to rain. She knew if she didn’t leave as soon as possible, she’d be drenched in rain.
“We can give you a ride” he suggested
She shook her head. If it rained, she would simply wait in her car until it stopped raining. Taking help from a man who made her cry wasn’t an option.
He sighed in defeat and pulled out a band and placed it on her bonnet.
“Get yourself a cab home”
He began walking before she could say anything or call him back.
She stared at the money like it was going to hurt her and she stared at his retreating figure. It was more than enough to hire a cab and pay some of her bills. She had to ignore her pride and emotions and take the money. How could she reject the money when she was going to be homeless in a couple of weeks? She wasn’t that stupid.
She wanted to reach out to him, to thank him but he was already gone.
She placed the money carefully in her bag and began walking back to the club. It was no use trying to fix her car so she made up her mind to check it out the next morning.
It had been a long day, her emotions were all over the place but she was relieved she got money.
“What are you doing here?” James asked, the corner of his lips turned down
Luckily, he wasn’t in a bad mood because he made money or he’d have thrown her out for what she did.
“I called a cab but he won’t be here until about ten minutes” she explained
“I also want to apologize about what happened, I was only trying to make money”
“Well, how did that go for you?” He snorted and walked away
The cleaners didn’t bother cleaning up the bar until the next morning so she decided to seat at the table the men were at. She was touched by his generosity, no one at the club really cared about her well-being. All that mattered was making money and bringing in more customers.
She ran her fingers lazily along the rim of the empty bottles of wine they had drank.
His face looked familiar but she couldn’t place where she had seen him. Most of the men who had come that night were familiar faces she saw on TV or in newspapers.
She wondered what it felt like to have that much money, to do whatever she felt like doing without worrying about pending bills.
She sighed and relaxed her shoulders for the first time that week. She didn’t have any class the next day so she could take the day off and even get herself a nice meal with the money she had just got.
She wondered what could have bothered a man like him, he looked stressed and sad. It was definitely not an issue to do with money. Perhaps, it was a woman?
She had to admit that he was stunning, his jet black hair as dark as midnight were the same color as his eyes. His jaw was well chiseled, he had a face she wasn’t never going to forget even in years to come.
She imagined he had so many women chasing after him.
She sighed and stretched her legs, in about three minutes her cab would arrive.
Her eyes caught something on the table, it was a credit card. She sat up immediately and reached for it. The name on it was Aiden Braithwaite.
She quickly shoved the card into her bag, certain it belonged to one of the men she had met at the parking lot.
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SHE’S MINE 42
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SHE’S MINE 38
This was what life was about, drinking champagne, networking with colleagues and discussing business. One day you could be working as a stripper and the next day your life would be changed for better, you’d be discussing business plans and networking with people in your field.Catherine Lukeman’s home was beautiful, the garden was the perfect place for their little get together. After three weeks of working at Ray.co, Jeanine had quickly made friends with quite a number of people. She couldn’t be more thankful to have people who had more experience guide her in her career path. Aiden wasn’t left out, most times he gave her advice and when he had important meetings, he invited her to join him in the board room so she could learn a thing or two from whatever was being discussed. He was supportive and he also helped her with her school work. For someone who had a cold demeanor, he knew how to explain things to her like a five year old and she wasn’t sure if it was by her focusing on
SHE’S MINE 37
All he could think of was her as he landed heavy blows on Henry’s boxing glove. It was his usual routine to go boxing with Henry on Saturday mornings, thankfully they were the only ones in the ring. He felt his hands hurt from the heavy impact but he wouldn’t stop until he got rid of all the anger he felt. Streaks of sweat found its way to his neck from his forehead but that was not enough to get rid of the anger. “Chill out man!” Henry cried as he pushed him off.He took off his gloves and tossed them to a corner of the ring.“What the heck is wrong with you man? We are supposed to be boxing not you physically assaulting me” Aiden fell on his knees as he tried to catch his breath, he was now weak and all he felt was pain in his joints. “What’s up with you?” Henry asked and joined him on the floor He ran a hand to his wet hair and waited for his pulse to return to normal. He’d never felt so much anger and sadness in a long time. Aiden loved to be in charge of hi
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SHE’S MINE 35
Filthy? He wondered the kind of things that went on in her head. How would she think that he’d ever find her filthy? When he asked her to be his contracted wife, he wasn’t skeptical about it. There was something about her that gave him the reassurance that she’d not tell anybody about it or try to make fame from being his wife. Had she seen the way Donovan and the other men looked at her? Although Jeanine wasn’t the lady he’d go for on a normal day, he was proud to show her off. She was worthy of everything, in character and beauty. While he wasn’t sure she was seeing anyone, he hoped that she found a good man who would cherish and take care of her after their marriage. She hadn’t necessarily made mention of any man or lover and he didn’t wish to know but he hated to admit that he was awkwardly pleased to know her whereabouts and control it. She kept her routine simple, school, the orphanage, the library on some days and mama Lucia’s diner on some other days. “Do I hav
