UNDER REVISION - Road Rage, Dark Shadows MC (Book 1)

Waking Alone Again - Silver

Silver 

A sick sense of dread lurks when I slowly wake up. Shifting my thighs, it takes a second for the stickiness, the ache, to register. The next thing is realizing that I'm alone in my bed, the sheets where Ash had been lying cool and empty.

I swallow hard, wishing that I'd dreamed the whole thing but the physical evidence is proof enough that he was here and that he fucked me bare. Wishing more than anything that I'd gotten up and showered when we'd finished, just so I didn't have to wake up like this, I pull myself to sitting, immediately seeing that his clothes, vest and boots are gone. Snatching my phone up, I check for notifications–a message, a missed call, something, but there's nothing there. When my chin trembles, I clamp my teeth down on it, refusing to let even one tear fall for this asshole.

How many more times did he need to do this before I was out of his system? Because every time he came back, he delved a little more deeply under my skin until I didn't know if I'd ever get him out.

Pushing it all down to deal with later, I pull myself out of bed and head into the bathroom, planning on scrubbing every inch of him off my skin. I had things to do today and none of them included moping over Asher fucking Steele.

After I start feeling semi-human, I put my hair up into a messy bun before getting dressed in leggings and a comfy shirt, the perfect outfit for spending the day in the bakery. I'm not going to admit to anyone but myself but knowing that I don't have to turn up for my shifts at the diner has definitely taken a weight off my shoulders. I'm still worried about the bakery failing, about becoming a burden on Chloe, but for now, I'm finding solace in optimism.

I head down the stairs, intent of finding coffee, when I hear Chloe's voice drift up to me. At first I think she must be on the phone but when a masculine voice responds to her, I pause on the stairs, closing my eyes.

Please don't be Trevor.

I'd never told Chloe about what had happened at Platinum and he'd kept his distance after that night, but something about him just didn't sit right with me. That wasn't even touching on the shit I'd ever heard, him calling Chloe stupid for letting me into her life, insinuating I was lying to her, scamming her with my 'dusty fucking letters'. Chloe defended me but I wonder if there's even a seedling of doubt about me, about our relationship. She didn't even hesitate welcoming me into her whole life, but maybe it was naive to think we could ever build something real with as rocky a foundation as we have.

Deciding that I can't keep lingering on the stairs, I continue down the stairs, working on fitting a polite expression onto my face. As I near the kitchen, their voices get clearer.

"...would visit her when she was a teen but we lost touch." Chloe's voice is melancholy and I find my steps slowing as I listen. "I wished I could have been more involved but I didn't know how."

"When was the last time you saw Silver? Before she moved here."

My hands slam up to cover my mouth, muffling the gasp that wants to escape. That is not Trevor.

"Hmmm..." Chloe hums, her voice sounding distant as she thinks. "She must have been thirteen or fourteen. My parents... they wouldn't let me visit when I was younger and then when I was old enough to make the choice for myself, I didn't want to rock the boat, I guess. If I'd known what Hayley was really like..." She trails off, her voice sad and I hate myself for the resentment that swells. Chloe didn't owe me anything but I wished she'd tried harder to fight back against her parents, against Mama.

I wished someone had fought for me, chosen me.

"Anyway," Chloe's voice is quieter, as if she's turned away from the doorway, "I went to visit not long after my parents died. I think Silver must've been 12. I'd go to them every couple of months but Hayley, she hated me. It was like the very sight of me was a reminder of everything that had been taken from her. She started blaming me for the way her life turned out and I just–"