ROMANCE: BIKER ROMANCE: Valentine Biker (MC Alpha Male Pregnancy Romance) (New Adult Valentine Romance Short Stories) (113 page)

CHAPTER TWO

Nina was a smart girl.  Smart and pretty wasn’t something that was often found in the same package.  People were always surprised when she spoke or presented a paper.  Her dark hair, heavy makeup and fashion choices left people with the assumption that she was a bad egg.  It was what they got for assuming things about her.

She was a well-spoken girl in the top of her class, which meant she had her pick of colleges.  Nina could have gone to MIT or Harvard, but she wasn’t interested in schools like that.  She wanted to go somewhere that she could be herself.  She had a fantasy of being a dark and brooding artist, though what she really wanted was to be an illustrator. 

Nina wanted to illustrate books and movies that told kids it was okay to be different.  She wanted to impact the world with the things she created.  Other artists had gotten her through tough times.  What was so farfetched about her being able to change the world?

Her father helped her apply for a total of ten schools.  Her top choice sent their letter back first and she could still remember standing in the kitchen with her father, her hands shaking as Henry urged her to open it.  The anticipation was killing him as much as it was her, apparently.  She’d inhaled deeply and slid the letter opener across the envelope. 

When she turned it over the letter had spilled out onto the floor and she bent to pick it up, reading the beginning of the letter out loud,

“Dear Ms.  Raymond, We are pleased to announce that you have been selected to attend the New York Academy for the Arts…” Her voice trailed off at the end and she leapt into the air, jumping up and down with excitement. 

The letter went on to detail orientation times, but she wasn’t concerned with that at the moment.  All she cared about was that first sentence.  It was an affirmation that she could be what she wanted to be.  It felt like redemption for all those times her mother had told her that her art wouldn’t get her anywhere.  She wanted to shove the letter right in Michelle’s face and cackle like some old witch.  She'd felt like she’d won. 

*  *  *

Packing up for her big move to campus was easy, but saying goodbye was a lot harder than she’d expected it to be.  Nina and her father had a quiet relationship.  They loved each other, but never said it much.  They never felt the need to over articulate their relationship.  Their love was simply understood. 

Her father smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her forehead, telling her to be safe and call him every once in awhile.  Nina felt a wave of sadness roll through her and she found herself thinking back to the day he’d left her with Michelle.  They hadn’t said goodbye that day because Henry didn’t want her to know he was leaving.  Goodbyes scared Nina. 

When her father started to say goodbye, she brought her pale hand to his lips and pressed her fingers to them.  Her black nails stood out against his skin and she just shook her head.  Nina didn’t want to hear him say those words. 

Henry understood and smiled, pulling away from her hand and making her promise to come visit him in the next few weeks.  If she took the train as far as she could, he’d come pick her up.  Their house was about two hours outside the city and she could get back and forth easily.  Nina felt silly for being so worked up about her father leaving. 

Henry finally turned and left, the door clicking behind him as he exited through the main lobby of the dorm.  Nina turned and went to the small, lonely window that looked out to the parking lot. 

It was still warm out since it was August and the autumn weather wouldn't set in for another month or two.  She pushed the glass pane open and when the hot summer air hit her the smells of the city came with it.  It took her a moment to realize that she actually liked the smell of hot asphalt and street food. 

She watched her father walk to his car and pull out of the parking lot, heading back towards the highway that would take him back to their small house in the suburbs.  When she was sure her father was out of sight she closed the window and locked it.  Dwelling on the fact that her father was gone wasn't going to help anyone.  She needed a distraction.

The room was completely empty except for the bland furniture that came with it.  The whole place was kind of drab, actually.  She’d expected the rooms at an art school to have a little more... something.  She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting, but it hadn’t been white walls, tiny beds and particle board furniture.  Prisons probably had better furniture.

Since the school had a smaller number of students than a traditional college, the rooms were private and the bathrooms communal.  Nina was thankful that she wasn’t going to have to share a room.  She had always been a shy girl and the idea of sharing her personal space made her skin crawl. 

Nina was starting to feel sad standing in the boring white room and so she went to her suitcase, threw it open and started pulling out her personal items.  Her clothing was minimal and the space in the boxes and suitcases had been taken up by little plastic character figures, posters and art supplies. 

Nina hung her own work and some of her other items.  She set up her figurines around the room and went to work hanging cheap shelves her dad had bought her at IKEA.  She had a fondness for knick knacks and she wasn’t willing to give them up in this move.

It took most of the day, but the room finally started coming together.  It had been dark for a few hours, though she failed to look at the clock to figure out what time it actually was.  She knew it was late but she didn’t care.  The boring room she’d walked into finally looked like a place she wanted to exist in. 

There were dark purple and black wall hangings covering the walls and anywhere there wasn’t fabric there were posters and art prints.  Every inch of wall was covered with something that was distinctly hers and the swell of joy in her chest made her break out into a rare grin. 

The very last thing she put on her night stand was the picture of her and her parents under that beautiful tree on that beautiful day.  She set it on top of a pile of drawing books so that she could look at it while she fell asleep.

CHAPTER THREE

Nina adjusted to school life better than she thought she would.  She missed her father terribly the first week or so, but soon managed to find likeminded friends. 

Living in New York had been easier than anywhere else, but people had still considered Nina a little strange.  Her dark hair and nails confused people and her weird Japanese clothing brought strange looks from everyone. 

When she first got to college she met a small group of people who liked the same things as her.  They watched Japanese cartoons and painted their nails black too. 

Out of this group, one girl stood out to Nina.  Her name was Petra and she had shaved one side of hair and dyed the short part shocking pink.  The rest of her long hair remained blonde.  She had a piercing in one nostril and in the middle of her bottom lip.  Nina thought she was the coolest person she’d ever met. 

Petra and Nina became best friends almost instantly.  They would lie together on big squishy bean bag chairs and watch whatever crazy show was coming out of Japan that week.  They had days where they would meet outside at one of the fountains and draw together in silence.  That’s what Nina like most about Petra.  They didn’t have to talk.  It was never weird when they sat in a calm silence. 

They had a few classes together, but Petra was on the fashion design track and Nina was on the animation track.  They were pleased to find out that they lived on the same floor in the same dorm and used it as an excuse to study together.  Studying usually consisted of watching bad movies until they passed out on the bean bag chairs they had dragged into Nina’s room from the lobby. 

It was on a morning following one of those marathons, that Nina received a call from her mother.  She knew it was her because “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” was blaring out of the little speaker on the phone.  Nina thought it was funny and she knew her dad did too, even if he did cast her a slightly disapproving glance the first time he’d heard it. 

“Nnnnn, Wha’ you wan’?” She murmured, her speech still slurred with sleep. 

“Are you drunk?”

“No.  I just woke up,” Nina said, sitting up and stretching, her black hair a mess on top of her head. 

There was a moment of silence on the other end and she knew her mother didn’t believe her.  Nina didn’t really care, but it still annoyed her. 

“Whatever you say,” her mother said with disgust. “Listen, I called for a reason.”

“Obviously.”

“Don’t get smart with me, young lady.  You’re still my daughter.  And because you’re my daughter, I’d like it if you came to my wedding.”

Oh boy, another wedding.  “Can I skip this one and come to the next one?”

“You aren’t funny, Nina.”

“Actually, I have it on good authority that I’m hilarious.”

“Nina, I know we’ve had a rough past, but I love you and  I want you here.  Please don’t fight me on this.  I’ll pay for all the expenses.”

Nina was quiet for a long time.  Part of her felt guilty that she’d all but abandoned her mother and it was a big enough part that she let out a long sigh and ran her fingers through her tangled hair.

“Fine,” she finally said with a sigh.  “Where’s this one happening? Will I need to fly out for it?”

“Yes.  I’m getting married in Tennessee! Oh, it’s so pretty out here, Nina! You’ll love it!”

“I’m sure.  When?”

“Around the end of November.”

“I can probably miss a few days of class.  Book the flight and email me the itinerary.”

“Alright, Sweetheart.  I love you! Toodles!”

“Toodle you, mom.” She hit the little red button that would end the call and sighed, flopping onto the bean bag chair she’d woken up on. 

Petra was already awake, though her eyes hadn’t opened yet.  Most of her tan, freckled face was covered by the long parts of her hair.  She sighed and said, “That sounded like it went well.”

“My mom wants me to go to her wedding.”

“Free food and a free vacation, right?  Besides, Tennessee is supposed to be really pretty.”

“I guess you're right.  I just...I know she’s going to fuss about my hair and try and put me in some gross, pink dress.”

“If she tries to put you in sateen or flocked velvet, you let me know and I’ll come save you.” She rolled to her side and pointing a finger in Nina’s direction to make her point.  “I can make anything look good.”

Since Petra was on the fashion track she was a bit of a fabric snob.  Nina had no idea what she was talking about half the time and just took Petra’s word for it.  Nina laughed a little and nodded, “I’ll be sure to tell you what she puts me in.”

Petra leaned back into the bean bag and stretched out her limbs and yawned.  “Besides, you know that people hook up at weddings all the time, right?  There will be plenty of hot guys to mack on.”

“I’m not picking someone up at my mom’s wedding.  That just sounds gross.” She pushed herself up and headed towards the sink to wash her face. 

“Oh, c’mon Nina.  You could use a guy to loosen you up.  Or maybe a really hot chick.”

Nina was mostly hidden by the partial wall that cut the sink off from the rest of the room, though she managed to stick her hand out in Petra’s direction, flipping her the bird and causing her friend to howl with laughter. 

CHAPTER FOUR

The next few months went by too quickly.  Thanksgiving break was just around the corner and Nina was somewhat thankful that her mother’s wedding had fallen on a break.  She was only going to miss one day of classes. 

Petra seemed sad that Nina was going to be gone for Thanksgiving.  Her parents lived in California and she wasn’t going to be able to make it back home for the holidays.  Petra was all pouts when she dropped her friend off at the airport, parking in a drop off lane and helping her pull the black bag out of the trunk. 

Petra put her hands on her hips and sighed, watching Nina pull out a book and a pillow for the flight.  She said, “Call me if you need me to come save you.  I’ll drop in all Ninja bad ass and pull you out.”

Nina smiled and wrapped her arms around her friend, offering her a kiss on the cheek before she took a step back.  Petra rubbed the spot that Nina had kissed, wiping off the purple lip stick that had been left behind. 

“You better get going or you’re going to miss your flight.”

A laugh left Nina’s lips as she waved and turned around, jogging into the airport.  LaGuardia wasn’t known for being the easiest airport to manuever and Nina had left herself plenty of time to find her gate. 

Security was always a bitch, but she managed to get through with about a half hour to spare.  Nina stopped by a news stand and picked up some candy and a magazine that had hundreds of pictures of tattoos.  She’d been obsessed with them lately.  Nina liked the idea of a tattoo, but she was too broke and too chicken to get one.

When her flight was called she tucked the magazine under her arm and went to the boarding gate.  She hated the noise on airplanes.  Babies crying and people coughing.  It made her feel so damn claustrophobic.  She put her headphones on, hoping that whoever came to sit beside her would take the hint and not talk her ear off. 

Nine slept most of the flight, but was happy to get off the plane anyway.  She didn’t like being up in the air.  It seemed unnatural for humans to fly and she preferred to keep her feet on the ground.  She shivered at the air that managed to work its way in between the crack of the airplane door and the exit tunnel. 

She was surprised by the chill.  Nina hadn’t spent an extensive amount of time in the south, but she had assumed that it didn’t get cold in Tennessee.  Nina had been born in Maryland and lived there until her parents divorced.  Even though her mother bounced her around from place to place, they always seemed to stay in New England.  Nina was okay with that since she loved the Northeast. 

The South was new territory and she had always expected that it would be hot all the time, even during Thanksgiving and Christmas.  It wasn’t cold by New York standards, but it was colder than she’d expected.  Her light jacket wasn’t really keeping her warm. 

When she stepped out of the tunnel and turned to look at the floor to ceiling windows she noticed it was raining.  She smiled.  She loved the rain.  It made her hair curl and her make-up run, but she loved the rain. 

The airport was super busy with holiday travelers and she was pushed out of the way by more than one person on their way to pick their bags.  So much for Southern hospitality, she thought. 

By the time she reached the escalators that would take her down to the baggage claim she was in a foul mood from being pushed around and facing the chilly weather that she hadn’t planned for.  If her bag had gotten lost she was going to explode. 

Luckily for everyone in the airport, her bag came out right on time and she hoisted it over the edge and dragged it out to pick up.  She stepped out into the wet weather and shivered, pulling her hood up over her head and searching for her mother.  Who else would have picked her up?  She wouldn’t even know who else to look for. 

Nina saw no sign of her mother and groaned, falling back into one of the small benches that were meant for people waiting to be picked up.  She put her head in her hands and felt anger rising in her belly.  Why had she agreed to this?  Coming here had been a terrible idea.  She should have expected this to be how things turned out. 

She wanted to turn around and go back into the airport and call her mother and demand that she send her home.  Nina was seconds from standing when the chill of the wind was suddenly blocked by something.  Nina pulled her head out of her hands and looked up to see a tall, well built man standing in front of her. 

Nina’s eyes widened when she met the man’s piercing blue gaze.  He wasn’t the type of man she thought she’d fall for, but he was certainly good looking.  He had bright blue eyes and long blonde hair that had been swept out of his face.  Rain was dripping onto his tanned skin and the stubble on his face was just enough to make her swoon. 

He was easily six inches taller than her and probably could have crushed her in his powerful arms, though she imagined him wrapping them around her just to hold her.  She shivered delightfully at the thought, and tried to collect herself. 

She was about to ask him who he was when he answered her question.  “Nina?”

“Yeah.  I’m Nina.”

“Welcome to Nashville,” he said with a broad smile.  He stuck ou this hand and waited for her to take it.  “I’m Chris Ackerman.  I’m your stepbrother.”