As we were walking out of the mall, I saw a small sparkle in his eyes and he whispered to me, "Hey, I'm starving. Would you like to grab a bite to eat with me before we head back?"
"Umm, I thought we were supposed to be heading back. Isn't that what Milo said?" I looked at him with a bit of worry in my eyes. I didn't want to upset Milo, not after he had been so kind to me. He also just spent a great deal of money on a dress and jewelry for one freaking night.
"That's true, but I would like to treat you to some food, Naomi!" He flashes me his pearly whites innocently.
I raise my eyebrows. "Are you asking me out right now?" I ask.
"Yeah, I guess I kind of am." He chuckles.
I stopped and looked up at him, trying to figure out how real he was right now. "What will Milo say?"
He smiled, "How'll he know, plus he ain't staking a claim on you, so you're still free game!" he snickered.
I raised my eyebrows and looked at him. "I seem to remember that he also told you to keep your filthy hands off his merchandise!" I shook my head in disbelief as I said that. I disliked the idea of being seen as merchandise, no matter how true it was at the moment.
He laughed as he folded both arms across his chest. "That is true, but I don't have to touch you to feed you. So are you game or what?" he asked me.
"Yeah, sure," I reply quietly, and we walk through the mall until we get to the food court where he immediately gets in line for some Japanese cuisine. "Do you like Japanese food?"
He tilts his head at me and gives me a look. "Yes, I do, why... are you not interested in it?" He asks, looking around at the other choices.
I chuckled as he looked so worried. "No, that's not what I was saying. I like this kind of food. I was just trying to initiate conversation, I guess." I nodded shyly.
He raises his eyebrow at me, giving me a suspicious glance, before looking away and shrugging his shoulders towards me. "Oh... Okay." I felt so awkward standing in line for food with him. I thought I heard my name called, so I turned around to see Sutter and Blaze both walking casually toward us. That made me wonder where Jax was, because if they were here, then he was too!
"Is that you Naomi? Where have you been?" She rushes forward and rushes me into a tight hug, and I turn my head towards Sam pleading with my eyes for him not to do anything wrong here. I knew he had a gun in his pants. As she let me go, I stared back into her eyes. "What are you doing here of all places? Your dad told me you ran away and he doesn't know where you are. What's up?"
I knew she must have had so many questions, especially if that was the story my dad was telling. Sutter knew I would never have run away because of my younger sisters. "Sutter." I start explaining myself to my best friend when Sam interrupts.
"Naomi... Come, I think it's time that we go back. We'll just pick up something on the way back," he growls, placing his hand on my wrist and tugging lightly. I watched as my best friend looked up at Sam with such hatred in her eyes.
"Who are you?" She demanded, practically in his face. I put myself in between them and earned a look from Blaze.
"Sutter, I am sorry. But I have to leave. Tell Jax that I am sorry but he is going to need to forget about me. I am no longer available." I say placing my hand into Sam's. I knew that I was going to have to make this believable for them to drop it. This is because I disappeared from their world and they knew the truth about mine.
"What does that mean?" Blaze screamed. He curled his lips at me and raised his eyebrows. I felt anger rising within him, as since he learned how shitty my Dad was, he has taken the role of a protective brother and has done everything in his power to ensure that the rest of my life is trouble-free. He tried to take away the drama and the pain from me. He was like a brother to me.
Sam straightens up next to me, "It means you need to back up and leave her to me. She's my responsibility. Don't worry; I'm taking very careful care of her," he said with a smirk on his face. When Blaze's fist connected with Sam's face, I could almost see the shock on his face as he barely flinched away from the impact. I stared with wide eyes as he flashed Blaze the handle of his gun. He then tightened his grip on my wrist, pulling me with him outside the building to his SUV. Once we got there, he opened the back door and shoved me inside before jumping into the driver's seat and speeding off down the road.
"That hurt me, Sam!" I snap at him as I try to situate myself in the nearest seat.
"Well, I'm not exactly sorry about that... we need to get back! I will just get some food from home. I have to report this incident to Milo!"
"What? Why does that sound so terrible?" I asked, confused by how he was acting.
"Because..." He started to say but stopped himself. I look at him but don't do anything. I just sit there and watch as he pulls into Milo's brick driveway. He jumps out of the truck and holds out his hand to help me down. He grabs the bags as I step down on the brick, and I follow him inside. I start heading up the stairs, and he clears his throat behind me.
"WHAT?" I turn around and snap at him, so annoyed with him.
His smile spread wide. "The sweatshirt my dear..." he growled. I knew he was annoyed by the way I treated him. However, he upset me by not allowing me to explain things to my friends back at the mall. I know they would have understood what had happened, but now I am sure they are just more confused about the whole thing.
"Oh yeah," I murmur as I pull the sweatshirt off and throw it at him before trying to storm up the stairs for the second time today only to hear him clear his throat again at me. "Aren't you forgetting something, sweetheart?" he smirked at me.
"What?" I ask, seeking to look at him a second time, staring into his face as confusion settles into my mind at his actions. Then it hit me like a sledgehammer. I was supposed to report straight to Milo in his office when I got back.
I turn around and walk past Sam flipping him the bird as I march straight into Milo's office door without knocking this time. I storm right up to the desk and throw myself down in a huff on a chair in front of it. I glance towards Milo, only to see him staring directly past me at Sam who was walking in right after me with arms full of dress bags.
"We may have a problem, boss." Sam snaps his face at me. I just fold my arms and keep my face turned away from him.
As Milo glares at Sam, "What happened now?" he growls, narrowing his angry eyes to me. I shrink in the chair as Sam explains what happened at the mall to him.
"Her friends saw us at the mall, boss," he says as he sets the bags on the table. He then sits down in the other chair in front of Milo's desk.
I hear a soft chuckle from Milo and turn away from staring at Sam to look at him confusedly.
"That's not a problem Sam, it's just a nuisance. Something we've dealt with many times before, so deal with it," he growled, pointing at the door. Sam nodded to Milo and stood up to leave the room. It was like he was sending him away. My assumption was correct. But then I realized I was once again left alone with Milo. I look up at him and notice he is already staring at me. "Did you find a proper dress and everything you need for tonight?" he asks me sharply.
"I did, yes," I replied with a friendly smile.
"Okay, now get something to eat in the kitchen, and then go upstairs and get ready. We leave at 6 pm," he says.
"Y-yes sir," I replied before standing up and walking out of the office, wondering what Sam was intending to do about my friends. I silently hoped that he wasn't planning to do anything to them, especially since Blaze punched him in the face. Even though they have not physically hurt me, I know they are capable of doing horrible things, as they have both already told me so a few times now.
When I walk into the kitchen, I immediately notice Sam eating a sandwich at a table. He was speaking to another guy about something that seemed significant. However, they both stopped talking as soon as I entered the room. Awkward! He sends me a warm smile, "Hi, cupcake!"
"Hello?" Cupcake? What's with the nickname? I thought to myself as I stepped up to the counter and asked the friendly-looking chef if he would make me something to eat.
"You can have some of mine, cupcake!" Sam says loudly, probably making sure the chef hears him. I look over at his plate and see a whole sandwich lying there on his plate. I grabbed it and bit into it while sending him a small friendly smile.
"Thank you," I say to him as I take a seat across from him and swallow my bite.
"You are welcome. I made it just for you anyway," he said with a smile.
I stare at him with narrowed eyes. "You did?"
"Yeah, I did. I knew you'd be hungry because we hadn't eaten anything earlier, and eventually, he'd be sending you this way."
Thank you! I send him another smile as I grab the bags and start up the stairs to Milo's room so that I can get ready for the ball. Pulling the dress on, I look at myself in the mirror. I looked so beautiful. The dress seemed to suit me, and I quietly added jewelry and shoes to add the final touch. I stared at the mirror and wondered what I should do about my hair and make-up.
Knock-knock
I go to the door after hearing the quiet knock, and when I open it, I find a small girl standing there looking very worried. I'd never met this girl before, and she looked so scared. She had some kind of kit in her hand, and she smiled at me eagerly. "Hello, are you Naomi?" she asks, flashing me her pearly whites.
"Yes, that is me!" I reply, opening the door for her to step inside.
"I'm here to do your hair and makeup for tonight. Your boyfriend was very specific about what he wanted." She says as she unfolds a stool in the middle of the room. "Come here and sit down." So I do as she says and sit on the stool, fidgeting with my hands as she begins to work on my hair.
An hour and a half later...
I stared in the mirror, feeling beautiful. Leaving half of my hair to frame my face, she braided a wavy crown into my hair. The make-up she applied added subtle highlights to my natural beauty. As she had already packed up her kit, I didn't know what to say to her. "Thank you so much," I responded with a smile as I watched her tuck in the final items and shut her case.
She turns to me and smiles, "You are very welcome. After all, it is my job to make women look their finest." She nods and then leaves. I stare at myself in the mirror. I felt so pretty at that moment. She did a great job.