Fetish

Chapter 20

Sitting on the counter, I gaze at Miles who stares back at me. I can tell he has something to say but wisely chooses to keep his mouth shut. "I want to get on birth control," I say. "I was on it before I got here."

He raises an eyebrow. "Okay," he pauses. "What method?"

"The shot. The three month mark is... tomorrow actually. I had an appointment set up before all of this happened."

He nods, standing and walking toward a cupboard. "Okay. Is there any chance that you could be pregnant?"

I chuckle. "No."

He glances back at me. "I'm required to ask."

"Like I said, I was already on it before and was scheduled to get the shot again tomorrow."

He turns to me wearing gloves then puts a few things on the table before rolling it over to me. After wiping my arm with the alcohol pad, he grabs the needle. Once he's finished, he puts a bandaid over it and I stand up. "Thanks doc."

"No problem."

The day goes by rather quickly. It's particularly boring today because it's a weekday so all of the older kids are gone and some of the kids in this classroom that are also old enough to go to school. But Bryant kept me company so it wasn't entirely bad. Owen hasn't showed up to check in on him so I decide to wander around in attempt to find him. Telling Bryant goodbye, I leave the daycare and head out to the open lounge. Michael is at the other end of the room with a few men who are all standing in a line. When he notices me, he smiles. "Madison!"

Sauntering towards him, I look at the men questioningly. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Well, Julius was talking about how he was in JROTC in high school and I told him I was too," he begins. "We were trying to remember how to march."

I place my hand on my forehead. "It's been a long time."

"Did you continue the program your senior year?" he asks.

I shake my head. "I started hanging out with the wrong crowd and got kicked out for not wearing my uniform and giving them attitude at the end of junior year ," I chuckle, shaking my head regretfully.

"Damn. You probably would've been battalion commander if you would've kept your head on straight," he says. "So do you remember any of the commands?"

I nod, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "Yeah. They'll have to start with stationary drill first. Do any of you know it?"

"Vaguely," Julius shrugs. "Just go over it once."

"Call the commands," I instruct Michael.

"Attention!" he says, authority clear in his voice. My heels come together and my fists settle at my sides with my thumbs aligned with the seams of my pants. "Right face."

My right foot turns and my left foot comes to meet it. All my old memories of the program come back to me and I can't help but wish I would have stuck with it. I could have been the battalion commander and after graduation I could have enlisted as an E2 but I became friends with a few bad people and screwed it all up. My life would be so much better if I would've continued to be a good student but I got careless. I could still enlist but I am not in shape anymore and it's upsetting.

After an hour of screwing around, we sit at the bar talking. Some of the men left, leaving me with Michael and Julius. "Why didn't you enlist?" Michael asks. "That was your dream. You used to talk about it all the time."

"I told you. I started hanging out with the wrong people and my mindset changed," I sigh. "I definitely regret it."

"You can still do it," he says.

A pair of hands slip around my waist and Owen's delicious scent surrounds me. "Do what?" he asks from behind me.

"Enlist."

"Why would she do that?" he asks.

"We were in JROTC together in high school. That's all she ever talked about," Michael says.

"I'm surprised you remember anything about it besides getting in trouble," I chuckle.

Owen removes his arms from around me then spins the barstool so he's standing between my parted legs. "She shouldn't be in the military."

"Why? You were," Michael responds.

I raise my eyebrows in surprise. "You were in the military?"

He nods. "Marine Corps. 4 years."

"Wow," I say in disbelief. "Why did you join?"

"To get away from my father in hopes of avoiding all of this," he admits.

"What happened?"

"When I got home he convinced me to stay and help run this. We agreed on a few things and I've been here ever since."

"Owen!" A man yells from the opposite side of the room.

"I'll be back," he says, leaning forward and pressing a quick kiss to my lips.

The man looks slightly panicked so Owen jogs over to him. I stare at his retreating figure until Michael nudges me. "So he isn't caught up in all of the mafia bullshit?" I ask, turning to him.

"Not as much as our dad would like him to be. He deals with small things and close allies. Our father is still very active and plays the biggest role. He plans on handing it down to one of us."

I frown. "So there's a chance Owen could take his place?"

He shrugs. "Possibly. He is more mature than me. Even though I want it there's a chance that he would get it."

"But it can't be forced onto him if he doesn't want it," I state in disbelief.

He shakes his head. "You don't know our father."

The sound of a gunshot causes me to jump. My eyes go in the direction of where the sound came from and I realize it's the same way Owen just went. That guy was freaking out so it makes perfect sense. But what if it was...

My feet move on their own accord and I push through the small crowd of people, gasping at the sight in front of me.

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