Page 2 of My Shining Stepbrother

My mom pipes in with her two cents by making a small joke. “Let’s hope we all get along. Haha.”

We sit in comfortable silence, waiting for his son to show up. I start looking around at the diner taking in the atmosphere of it all when my eyes land on a tall, tattooed, muscled, godly familiar face from the club. I stand from the table, excusing myself as I try to escape before I am seen. My efforts fail as soon as I hear my name come out through his deep, sultry, and intoxicating voice.

“Rose?” That is all he said, and it was enough to have me speechless.

“Oh! Um…. Hey Reese.” That is the best thing I can come up with. Are you serious? Internally I am smacking my forehead repeatedly. How could I be such a damn idiot?!

“What are you doing here?” His voice almost sounds as if he is annoyed with my presence at the moment.

“I’m having dinner with my family and my mom's boyfriend. Would you like to know what I’m eating as well?” My voice is now laced with sarcasm in my reply. It doesn’t go unnoticed by Reese either because I can see the corners of his mouth lift into a sneaky smile.

“That won’t be necessary. I was actually about to do the same with my dad and his girlfriend.” There is a bit of tease in his voice as he says that. I doubt this fucking god of a man is Damien’s son. No way in hell would my mother be okay with seeing him and how he displays himself. She would undoubtedly throw a fit, and Damien would have been long gone.

“Okay, well, I gotta get going, so I’ll see you some other time. Bye!” Not even offering him a chance to reply, I quickly enter the bathroom, burying my face into my hands, hoping I can hide away for the rest of my life. Okay, maybe not the rest of my life, but at least until he is gone, and it’s safe for me to walk out without looking like an idiot.

I finally gather the little amount of courage I had. I splash some water on my face and walk out of the bathroom. That strength, though, hits me like a rubber band. There at the table, sitting directly next to my seat is Reese. My mom is laughing at whatever he said, and Rachel is practically drooling out of her mouth. I try to sneak out, but Damien catches me and yells for me. With no strength or courage left, my shaking legs move their way over to the table.

Reese turns around, looking at me with a playful smile. I would love to smack him, but that might not go over too well. Damien breaks this little deer-in-the-headlights look as he introduces us to one another. “Rose, this is my son, Reese. Reese, this is Anita’s daughter, Rose. She just finished her tattoo apprenticeship and works at a club as a bartender at night.”

This gains his attention because he knows the truth behind my night job. His eyes turn dangerously playful as he looks back at me. “Tattoo artist, and what was that, a bartender?”

I’m sure I look like a tomato right now. The heat pouring off of me only proves my point further. “Yes, a bartender, but hopefully, I won’t be working there much longer.”

His face shows almost a shocked and confused look at my response, but it quickly fades away as he continues his game.

“What bar do you work at?” He winks at me, trying to get me to out myself.

As I try to think of a good response, nothing comes other than to dig myself deeper into the hole. “You wouldn’t have heard of it. It is called Bar Louie,” I smile with my response, hoping it will shut him up.

“I think I’ve heard of it. I’ll have to stop in sometime for a quick visit.” His reply makes me frustratedly rub my hands over my face.

Knowing I have gone too far, I give up and give in. “Yeah, for sure.” I relax into the chair as much as I possibly can.

My mom breaks the tension between us by giving a somewhat normal and less harsh response than usual. “I disagree with her life choices, but I love her. I've never actually been to where she works, so you'll have to let me know if it's an okay place.”

“Oh, I will, Anita. We can't just let her work anywhere now, can we?” He smiles, showing his perfectly aligned, stark white teeth through an award-winning smile.

The tension between Reese and I could be cut with a dull, rusty spoon right now. Our meal became awkward, but apparently, none of them can see it other than Reese, who is proud of the reaction he pulled from me.

The rest of dinner goes by quickly as the subject of my life finally drops. The looks that I sneak at Reese, and feel him doing the same thing, causes my heart to increase in pace—echoing through my body and beating into my ears.

After dinner, my mom brought Rachel and me back home, where I had to hurry and get ready for my shift at the Centers tonight. After packing my bag and changing into a slightly more comfortable outfit, I say goodbye to my mom and Rachel as I grab my keys and head out the door.

Walking into the club, I see it's packed, meaning it will be a good night to make money. I quickly make my way back to the locker room, changing my outfit and putting on my makeup. As I'm finishing up and walking out to start my shift, my boss, Hector, stops me for a quick talk.

“Hey gorgeous, ready for a busy night?” he smiles at me as he leans against the wall.

“Always big man. What does my night look like tonight?” I always call the men big man; it makes them feel better and gets them going.

He smiles, knowing exactly what I'm doing, and shakes his head, laughing lightly. “So far, three dances on stage and two private room dances.” He pushes off the wall to look at me.

“Thanks! Hopefully, I'll get more private room dances after the stage dances.” I might hate the private room dances, but that's where you make money.

His eyes are full of sincerity as he looks at me. “Rose, I have told you before that if you need extra money, I can help you. I hate seeing you dancing and working so much and so hard. I have seen your feet blistered and bleeding from it….” His worried tone is the same as it is every night.

“Hector, I appreciate the offer, but I will be fine. That was when I started here. I'm good to go now, big man. I promise I'll let you know if it gets too much, okay?” I touch his arm softly. He is a sweet and caring man. He nods as my name comes through the speakers to get on stage next. It's time to get my head in the game and earn that money. Here is to a long busy night ahead of me.

Chapter 2

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