Page 3 of Finn

This went on my entire childhood. If I wasn’t saving her pathetic life, I was stealing food, so we both didn’t die. The older I got, the more she took advantage of the fact that I would be there to help her. It got to the point she thought of it as some kind of game.

“You’re a good boy, Finn. One day you will walk among kings. You will be a part of their kingdom—their empire. You will be feared and worshipped. You will fly high and soar gracefully. You’re only a mere mortal now, but one day my boy, you will walk among kings.”

She’s high. She’s always high. The stories she tells are fantasy, just like the world she lives in. It’s cold, and there’s no heat. The lights don’t work anymore, and I hate being in the dark. Bad things happen in the dark. I hear her screaming in the dark. I’ve been beaten by her friends in the dark. I’ve been locked outside in the dark. I’ve hurt her friends in the dark. I’ve cried in the dark. I always cry in the dark.

I hear the door slam, and I’m once again alone in the dark.

“Finn?” Mia says, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“What?” I turn to look at her. She has tears in her eyes while she wraps her arms around herself. She’s trying to hold herself together. It’s something I understand.

“Did you know that guy in your club was my father? Is that why you came looking for me?” she asks.

Even though anger fills my veins, I grab her and wrap my arms tightly around her. “No, baby. I came looking for you because I couldn’t stop thinking about you. Your eyes haunted my dreams,” I whisper. She tightens her hold on me, but I pull back to see her beautiful face. “I found out about Porter being your dad the other day. I swear to you, I had no idea. When I told the club your name, he told me that you’re his daughter. I was going to tell you, but I didn’t know if it was my place.”

She searches my face. Probably looking to see if I’m lying. We’ve been seeing each other for a couple of months. I first saw her when Kace went chasing after Ivy. She was at Ivy’s apartment. She lives in California, and I live in Vegas, so the time together has been limited. The sex is off the fucking charts, but we don’t really know each other that well. The time we spend together is usually naked, and the talking is usually dirty. So, she can keep looking to see if I’m lying, but she doesn’t know how well I can hide my secrets.

“I feel like my entire life has been a lie,” she says, shaking her head.

“Listen, you have two guys that want to be your father. It’s two more than I ever had. I don’t know the man that raised you, but I do know Porter. He’s a great guy with a huge heart. He’ll do anything for the people he loves,” I explain.

“Why did he let me go then? No contact in twenty-two years? That doesn’t sound like a guy with a huge heart to me,” she says angrily.

I kiss her forehead and step away. “It’s not my story to tell, Mia. If you’d like to talk to him, I can arrange that.” My phone rings, and I excuse myself.

I answer it, and I’m greeted by Gillian’s sweet voice. She really has become my best friend, and I’m relieved to hear from her. “Hey, everything alright?”

I sigh, lighting a cigarette on the small front porch. “No fucking idea. She’s all over the place with it all. Jim, her stepdad, tried to get her to go back to California with him, but she refused. She keeps saying her life is a lie. She’s pissed at him, pissed at Porter, pissed at me. I might be outta my league on this one,” I say.

She laughs, and I can’t help the smirk that hits my lips. She went through hell with Riley. Every time someone in this club tries to make a relationship work, the gates of hell open and pull us all in. First, it was Zane and Harper. Then Kace and Ivy, followed by Riley and Gillian. Not to mention the shit that went down with Brooks and Gloria. Her death forever changed this club. Porter couldn’t make it work with his ex and lost a child because of it. Alex lost his life in the name of love. It’s a vicious cycle that seems to have no end.

“Do you want me and Ivy to come over? Maybe she just needs an old friend, and I’m sure you could use a friend,” she suggests.

Smoke floats toward the sky as I crush out my smoke. “That might be a good idea. We have to be around the table in a few hours, so you think you can come now?”

“Yeah, I’ll grab Ivy, and we’ll be right over.”

I sigh as I nod. “Thanks, Gillian.”

“It’s all gonna be alright, Finn,” she says.

“If you say so,” I retort.

She laughs, and I hear her car door close. “I’m your best friend, asshole, you have to believe me.”

I laugh as I hang up with her. Hopefully, having them come over doesn’t piss Mia off more, but I don’t know what else to do. She has two men who want to be her father, and I don’t even know the name of mine. Where he is or what he looks like. If he’s dead or alive. So, I don’t think I’m the best one for advice on this.

If it was a junky mom, I’d be the one to go to. The answers are clear and easy.

I walk inside, and she’s sitting on the couch. I rent this place. It’s small, old, and sometimes lonely, but it’s mine. It’s never cold. There’s food in the fridge, and it’s never dark. It’s a safe place to sleep every night.

“Who was that?” she asks, peeking up at me.

“Gillian. She’s gonna come over with Ivy. We thought you could use a friend,” I say, shrugging.

She stands up and begins pacing again. Christ, she’s gonna wear a hole in my shitty floor. “Gillian doesn’t even know me,” she hisses.

“It doesn’t matter. That’s how we work. If someone needs help, we help. They don’t need to know you to do that. Plus, Ivy is your friend. She’s the reason we met in the first place,” I say.

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