“Dat’s not necessary, cher. However, if a problem arises, I want to know about it.”
“Of course. Thank you.” She could hear the relief in her voice and was certain Caine and Emelise heard it as well.
Several hours later, Kylie was dressed in a black skirt that hugged her body and a dark red shirt that fit in with the color scheme at Scarlet Flux. Was it fate that made her pick out those exact items at the thrift store the day before? Maybe. She’d put her hair up in a twist and had a faint trace of makeup on. It was understated yet attractive. After one last glance in the mirror she stepped into the only expensive item she owned: a pair of black thigh-high Louboutin boots her father had given her on the last birthday she’d shared with him before his death. The four-inch heels made her legs look longer than they were. At 5’4 in her bare feet, they would give her enough height to make leaning across the bar during work much more comfortable.
“Looking good, girl. I love those boots. Where did you get them?” Emelise asked when Kylie joined her in the living room.
“My father gave them to me for my birthday the year he died. I was…stunned because they’re Louboutin’s. I’ve looked at his stuff online; they’re not cheap.”
“Wow. No, no they’re not. They look good on you, though.” She paused a moment. “I’m sorry for your loss. Losing a parent isn’t easy. I lost my mama a few months ago and the pain is still so raw sometimes that I just want to break down and cry. There are things I wish I could share with her but I can’t because she’s gone.”
“I don’t believe that. Just because the body is gone doesn’t mean the spirit is. She’s out there, waiting for her rebirth, but even then, the part of her that was your mother will still be there watching over you.”
“Oh, you and Lily are going to get along great. She has similar views. Who knows, maybe you’re both right. Anyway, let’s get out of here. The club will be opening soon and I’d like to introduce you to Joe before then.”
Kylie followed Emelise to the dock and carefully climbed into the boat. The heels on her boots made it a little tricky but she managed to not embarrass herself. “How long have you lived in New Orleans?” She wanted to get to know the woman who was her boss and potentially a friend.
“A few months. I moved here not long after my mama died. She wanted to be cremated and her ashes scattered in the desert, so that’s what I did. I didn’t have anything keeping me in Phoenix and I’d wanted to come here ever since I was a little girl. What about you? Why did you decide to move to New Orleans? I know you said you needed a new start in your life, but I know there’s more to it. You don’t have to tell me everything, Kylie, but I’d like to know more about what brought you here. Not just because you work for me, but because you’re part of the Pard and we look out for each other. If there’s something, or someone, in your past you’re putting distance between, we need to know. In case it comes back to bite you on the ass.”
Kylie looked out at the trees as the boat made its way to the docks on the outskirts of New OrleansShe was certain her words were going to come as a surprise to Emelise since she’d been so uncomfortable going into detail with Caine. Kylie wasn’t sure why but she felt comfortable talking with Emelise. Maybe it was because they were both women. “You know how every little girl dreams of meeting ‘the one’? That one guy who sweeps you off your feet and makes you feel like you’re the most special girl in the world? Well, I thought I found mine. Ezra was a smooth talker. He was attentive, sweet, considerate—all the things you want a man to be. Until he wasn’t.
“After my father died, a little over five years ago, he changed. It didn’t happen overnight, and if you asked me, I couldn’t tell you exactly when it started; I just know it was after my father’s death. At first it was just little things that I passed off as him being playful. Little pinches on my arm or slaps on my ass. He made me quit my job as a bartender and before I knew it, I was so isolated from everyone. I’d fallen out of contact with friends, the only time anyone in the Pard saw me, he was with me, and because the marks didn’t last for days like they would on a human, no one ever saw the bruises. The one time our Alpha saw him get rough with me, he turned a blind eye.”
Kylie closed her eyes. “The night I finally left, I thought he was going to kill me. He kicked me, beat me, and strangled me almost to the point of passing out. I finally had enough. So when he passed out from downing a bottle of whiskey, I shoved what I could into one bag, took the money he had in his wallet, grabbed his car keys, and fled. I abandoned his car in a nearby town and hopped a Greyhound bus out of Maine.”
Emelise sat there in silence as she talked about her life and the hell she’d been through. “Oh my God, Kylie. What he did to you, that bastard needs to be hurt, seriously. And your old Alpha? He’s no better if he didn’t step in. You don’t have to worry about that here. If anyone dares to lay a hand on you in anger, they’ll have hell to pay. Caine doesn’t put up with that shit and neither do I. Hell, I don’t think anyone in the Pard does.” She paused a moment before she continued. “I know Remy would go off if someone tried to touch you. I saw the way he was looking at you, girl. That cat is interested.”
Kylie sighed. “I doubt he will be when he hears I let myself be abused for five years.” She shook her head. “Besides, I just got out of a relationship; I’m really not looking to get in another one anytime soon.”
“If Remy Delacroix held that against you, I’d personally kick his ass. I get what you mean, though. I can only imagine what it feels like to go through that and then suddenly be away from it.”
“It’s freeing and scary as hell. I fled with very little money and I had no idea if it was going to take me a while to find work but even if I’d had to live on the streets for a while, it would have been better than staying with Ezra.”
“It’s scary moving somewhere else regardless, but you had the added stress of not knowing when you’d be able to support yourself. Sometimes I really think the Fates are guiding us. How else do you explain you showing up in New Orleans three days before Joe leaves, leaving me without a Mixologist for the VIP lounge?”
“If the Fates are guiding us then they suck because they guided me to half a decade of hell on earth,” Kylie growled.
“Yeah, there is that. That wasn’t very nice of them but they’re deities. They have a different view of things.”
That made Kylie laugh a little. “Good point.”
The ride from the docks to the club was a quiet one. She spent the short drive putting the past back in the little box in her head she’d shoved it into when she left Maine, so she could focus on the present and future. She didn’t want to be bogged down with those memories.
