Page 2 of Before We Were Us

Me: The offer to work for my father still stands. You can tell your dick boss to shove it up his ass right now and walk out.

Taylor may be dramatic but she is also a ballbuster. My father sees potential in her and frankly so do I. I’d love to have her at my side.

My father owns seven clubs, five bars, several apartment buildings, and three restaurants in Chicago. He grew up with nothing and was determined to have everything.

I wait for her to respond and when she doesn’t I figure she got busy. I take the long way home, enjoying the morning air and my coffee. Twenty minutes later, maybe more, I find myself on the corner opposite my apartment building.

Making my way across the road I reach the front entrance and step inside, finding our doorman, Kevin, waiting with a smile on his face.

“Back so soon, Ms. Webster?”

My father wanted me to live in one of his buildings and when I refused to live off his dime this was a compromise. I have security and a doorman, he still doesn’t love the idea, but he finally gave in. He can blame himself for me being so strong-willed and unwilling to bend.

“Meeting was canceled, Kevin,” I offer him, noticing the way his eyes roam over my body. He’s the same way with Taylor. Kevin is harmless, just a middle-aged man who enjoys a pretty lady, or that’s his way of explaining it.

I walk past him toward the elevators and pause looking back over my shoulder. Of course he is checking out my ass which makes me laugh. He smiles, knowing he has been caught. “A little warning, when Tay comes home, she may be in a bad mood.”

“Ms. Hudson, no way.” His grin widens. He’s witnessed her moods and knows when to stand down.

“Have a great shift, Kevin.” I step into the awaiting elevator and offer him a little wave before the doors close and the elevator starts to ascend.

two

. . .

Brynnlee

“You should know that in the end, if I can’t pay rent it's your fault.” Taylor stands in front of the mirror puckering her lips, applying her lipstick. “I called him a limp dick pussy, so there is no way I can grovel and get that job back.”

I snicker imagining Taylor fired up and going at her boss. Years of frustration and taking his shit built within her and he got it back tenfold.

“I told you my dad said you’re hired.”

Taylor is like one of the family. A second daughter, she has been around since I was three and when I say around I mean at our house more than her own. She’s had the biggest crush on Sebastian for years and I can’t guarantee it, but I’m pretty sure they fooled around a time or two. But the two of them could never be anything more than that as they clash incredibly badly. Like fire and ice, there is no way they could survive without a casualty.

Taylor is too much of a woman for Seb, she would eat him alive. And Ciara is good for him, the two of them give me hope that maybe one day I’ll find my own perfect match.

“Thank God, I was already feeling the withdrawals of shopping.” Taylor turns around to face me. “Damn!” She lets out a low whistle as she takes me in and immediately I look down.

I chose my black, short, tight dress. The one that hits mid thigh and cuts dangerously low in the front.

“I really love that dress on you.”

Taylor and I are built completely opposite. I am tall, thin, and wish more than anything I had a little more on top. In high school boys used to laugh and say I was built like a boy until Taylor would call them out and bruise their egos. Or Sebastian would threaten to kick their asses. Both had equal effects.

Granted I have filled out a bit since then, my hips are fuller, my ass is no longer flat, and I have a B cup. I’ve tried to gain weight, but I’m one of those people that the weight settles in my stomach and my thighs, and nothing more. So I gave up that idea and instead have embraced my shape.

Now Taylor, she gains attention wherever we go. She is voluptuous, with her hourglass figure, able to fill out a pair of pants to perfection. She complains about her body, I complain about mine, and I’m thinking no matter what there is always the wishing you had something else mentality in a woman.

“It’s been awhile since I wore it.” I’ll admit I love this dress too. It’s one of the few dresses I own that fits me perfectly, making what little shape I do have pop to attention.

“Are we meeting Marco or is he coming here?”

“I told him we’d be at his place at eight and to be ready.” I splash on some perfume and grab my lip gloss off the sink. Tucking it into my small handbag I give myself one more look over.

“Are we ready?” I ask Taylor. “I have two shots each waiting in the kitchen,” I tell her, remembering her earlier comment about pre drinks at our place.

She smiles brightly, doing a little shimmy with her hips, before hooking her arm through mine.

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