Figure Eight (Celtic Knot Book 2) by Cassy Roop

of my stomach at the words on the screen.
    Asher: What the fuck was Dominic doing at your place??
    If I had any doubt that he was watching me before, then the text message gave me proof. I felt nauseous knowing that he and his fucking goons, Drake and Officer Russell, were watching me. Asher alone made me want to punch something hard, but I was even angrier at the thought of Drake and Russell being involved. Drake was supposed to be Dominic and Knox’s friend, but instead, he had chosen money over loyalty, and Russell was a fucking officer of the law for Christ sake.
    I angrily punched the screen to type out a reply. I knew if I didn’t the repercussions would not be good.
    Me: He showed up out of the blue. What was I supposed to do?
    Asher: You better hope you kept your trap shut.
    Me: I did, don’t worry.
    He didn’t say anything else after my reply, and I was thankful. I threw my phone down on the desk and went to take a shower. Peeling my ripped shorts and panties off of my body and tossed them aside to discard later. After lifting my cami over my head, I turned to face myself in the mirror and that is when I saw the marks on my skin. Angry red spots in the shape of fingerprints were branded onto my hip bones serving as a reminder of Dominic’s visit. I traced each spot in an attempt to feel closer to him just from the touch of the imprint. Tears stung in my eyes and I swiped at them before they could fall.
    I have to find a way out of this.
    Stepping into the shower, I welcomed the sting of the hot water as it trickled down from the showerhead. At the same time, I was saddened by the fact that I was now washing Dominic’s scent off of me. I wanted to still smell the aroma of him upon my skin; I wanted to still feel like he was close to me, but I couldn’t go to my art class smelling like sex.
    As I washed my hair, I also started thinking about how I was going to find employment. With the club being closed down pending the court hearing, I no longer had an income. I doubt that Dominic or Knox would let me back anyways. I had made some great money working at the club in the short time I was there, but I did spend a large chunk of it on my tuition for classes, so I needed to find a way to support myself. With Kelly not really speaking to me, Lord knew how long I would be welcome in her home.
    I turned off the taps and stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around myself. Padding to my room, I paused when I noticed an envelope on the bed addressed to me. I turned around to peek out of my bedroom door to see if Kelly might have come home, but I didn’t see her. I sat down on the bed and tentatively slid my finger through the hole to open the flap of the envelope. I was stunned when I pulled out a card from Kelly.
     

 
    The tears that I had wiped away earlier before my shower, were now flowing freely down my face. With me being sick, and all of the shit going on with Dominic and Asher, I had completely forgotten about my birthday. Looking over to the calendar I had hanging on my wall above my nightstand, I confirmed that it was indeed April Twentieth, my twenty-sixth birthday. I let out a sardonic laugh. What a way to spend my fucking birthday, away from those that I love. I was grateful to Kelly for even remembering and for even reaching out to me in the first place even though she was angry. She must have come into the apartment while I was in the shower and left before I got out.
    I got dressed in a pair of comfortable jeans and a navy blue racer back tank with white stripes. It looked to be a nice day out and I could always wear a cardigan over the top of my tank if it got too cold. I slipped on a pair of silver gladiator sandals and reached into the top drawer of my dresser to retrieve the necklace that I have carried around with me everywhere I have gone. The submissive training necklace had been a comfort to me, a way of carrying Dominic around with me. I was too ashamed to wear it around my neck, so I