Resisting The Bad Boy

Chapter Three

Lilian’s POV

Two years, it’s been two years since I left college, high on my success and sure that I was headed into the world of Journalism where I could make a name for myself.

In that time, I’ve worked more dead end jobs than I can count, sent out thousands of CV’s that never get looked at by a person who could actually offer me a job, let alone replied to and my morale is now at an all time low.

Walking down the street from my barista job, my phone vibrates in my pocket and I take out, a smile brightening my face as I see my best friend’s name on the screen.

‘Hey sexy mama!’ I gush as I answer, ‘how’s my favourite boy doing?’

‘I’m doing fine Lil, thanks for asking’ comes Declan’s cocky voice in the background as Dakota giggles.

‘Denver is fine, missing his auntie lil though’ she replies, ‘so is his mama for that matter.’

Denver is Declan and Dakota’s six month old son, they stuck with the D name saying it would be wrong to make him different as they and Dakota’s brother are all D’s. The kid is gorgeous and you just know he’s going to break hearts when he’s older.

‘So, how’s it hanging?’ I ask, tucking the phone under my chin as I rummage in my handbag for some money for the bus.

‘Low, wide, and to the left’ Declan’s voice comes through the speaker again, making me roll my eyes, not even fatherhood has matured that man. Not that he isn’t devoted to my best friend and their baby, oh he is suffocatingly loving to them both. No I’m not jealous, who needs a man following them around everywhere? Telling you what to do and when to do it? Not this girl.

‘Ignore him’ Dakota giggles, ‘he had a beer at lunch.’

‘Hey, don’t start spreading rumours that your man is a lightweight babe’ Declan growls, ‘this guy is all man and can still get the job done even after a night out with Wade.’

Blocking out the cocky bad boy that somehow landed himself a diamond of a girlfriend in my best friend, I lean against the bus stop with a deep sigh.

‘How’s the job hunting going?’ Dakota asks softly, and I try not to wince at the sympathy in her voice.

‘It’s going’ I reply tiredly, ‘going absolutely nowhere. They all want to pay entry level wages but demand you have two years experience in the field before they will give you a shot. How can you get experience if no one will hire you to gain some?’

I’m whining, I know I am but damn, I feel like I’m headbutting a brick wall every single time I get a rejection letter thanking me for my interest, but they’ve found someone more suitable to the role or as is more often the case, no reply at all. Trying to get an interview is like searching for a unicorn being ridden by a leprechaun and my morale is at an all time low right now.

‘Maybe I should just give up’ I huff depressed, ‘I’m never going to break into the world of writing! This might be God’s way of telling me that I was always destined to serve other people coffee.’

‘No!’ my best friend growls back at me, affronted on my behalf, ‘you are really good Lil! You just need someone to realise your potential that’s all. It’s not you, it’s those assholes who do the hiring process who wouldn’t know a good thing if it ran them over in a truck, backed up and shouted down at their mangled corpse “I’m a good thing!”.’

I snigger despite my mood, yeah, Kota always could cheer me up, ‘if only you could hire me’ I reply, glancing upwards as a drop of water hits my hair and runs down my face. Great, just what I need, for it to start raining! I stare down the empty road, willing the bus to appear like a mirage but it doesn’t and the damn heavens open above me, drenching me in seconds.

‘Son of a b***h!’ I hiss, wrapping my thin coat around me to try and keep some body heat, ducking my head down as far as it will go into the collar.

‘What?’ Dakota demands in my ear, her mama bear up and on display, as I push my already soaked hair out of my eyes. Why did I move to Boston again? Oh yeah because I wasn’t going to find anything going back to my two bit town of a homestead, To be honest, I’d wanted to be as far away from that town as possible and I couldn’t get much further than Boston was.

‘It’s started to rain’ I grumble, answering my friend, ‘and the bus is nowhere to be seen . . again!’

I huff, giving up on keeping myself dry and instead crush my phone to my ear as I hear a gurgling sound on the other end that can only be my nephew waking up.

‘Is that my favourite boy’ I coo eagerly, thoughts of the rain an being cold and wet pushing from my mind.

‘It is, say hello to auntie Lil, Denver’ Dakota urges, ‘no! don’t eat the phone! Say hello!’

I try not to laugh at the sounds of my pseudo nephew eating my best friend’s cell phone fills my ear.

‘I love you too Denver’ I say down the phone, getting baby noises back before my best friend’s voice comes back on the line.

‘Ugh, this child stinks!’ she groans, ‘seriously, I wish we have smellovision available because I have no idea how something this cute can create a stench this awful!’ the phone moves from her mouth as she calls out to Declan, ‘come take your son! He reeks’ she shouts as I start to laugh.

‘Babe!’ Declan scolds as the sound of the baby being passed over comes through the speaker. ‘My son does not reek! That’s a manly smell, isn’t it mate? Your mummy doesn’t know what she’s talking about.’

‘Yeah, yeah, go change your little prodigy’ Dakota replies before she comes back to me again. ‘Sorry, I told mum to go easy on the veg yesterday but she didn’t listen and now he’s ripe every single time he needs a butt change.’

I shake my head, yeah, sooooo not doing the baby thing, I am happy to be auntie Lil!

‘You love it’ I retort teasingly.

‘Yeah’ my friend replies breathily, ‘I really do, I can’t imagine not having him here and I do love Dec so much.’

‘Yeah, he’s a lucky bastard to get someone as good as you’ I reply pushing away from the bust stop as I see my bus finally trundling toward me in no great hurry. ‘Look Kota, I gotta go, my bus is pulling up’ I mutter quickly as I hold out my arm to wave the bus to a stop.

‘Wait!’ Kota yells quickly, drawing my attention back to her.

‘What?’ I ask, frowning, my gaze on the bus that is taking its sweet time getting to me.

‘Umm . . ‘ I can hear my friend’s hesitance and I’m on alert immediately.

‘What?’ I ask sharply, ‘are you sick? Are you sure Denver is OK? What about Declan?’

‘We’re all fine’ Kota replies, ‘I just . . ‘ she swallows and I wait impatiently for her to spit out what she wants to say. ‘I heard about a job’ she finally admits and my heart stills in my chest.

‘A job?’ I repeat robotically, ‘what kind of job?’

Dakota huffs out a breath nervously, ‘it’s not journalism’ she admits slowly.

‘OK, what is it?’ I prod again, trying to keep my impatience in check.

‘It’s for a sports team’ she mutters quickly, ‘working in the public relations part, you know sorting interviews with the players, writing blog posts, doing hype stuff . . It might give you some experience to get your foot in the door of where you want to be . . ‘

I bite down on my lip, PR? It’s not really what I wanted to do, I wanted to write real stories, about real life problems. I wanted to bring attention to the wrongs in this world, give people who need it a voice. PR is greasing the public with an ideal, making them believe that the sportsmen they are idolising are something they are not.

‘Kota’ I start slowly, unsure how to answer.

‘Just think about it Lil’ my friend cuts me off quickly, ‘it could be just the bit on your CV you need to get you into an interview!’

I groan to myself, it’s not what I want to do, but have I really been getting any closer to my dream by making coffee and serving beer in a dive bar? Shaking my head, I sigh as I mumble, ‘send me the details to my inbox, I’ll have a look.’

At the other end of the line, Dakota squeals excitedly, ‘I’ll send it right now!’ she replies, ‘I have a good feeling about this Lil! I promise!’

‘yeah yeah, we’ll see’ I reply, ‘now I really gotta go!’

As I lower the phone and go to press the call end I hear my friend’s voice comes through the speaker, ‘oh and it’s in San Francisco’ she calls out.

‘What? Dakota?’ I yell, scrambling to put the phone back to my ear but I’m too late, the woman has already hung up.

Rolling my eyes, I put my phone in my bag just as the bus pulls to a stop in front of me, sending a tidal wave of water up over the curb, soaking my from head to foot.

‘What the Fu . . . ‘ I screech as the door hisses open and I glare up at the driver who stares at me uncaringly.

‘You getting on?’ he mutters, waving a hand down the bus, ‘I got a schedule to keep.’

Muttering curses under my breath, I stomp onto the bus and drop my money into the dish before taking my seat. Shivering with cold, I dump my bag on the seat beside me, maybe going to San Francisco isn’t such a bad idea, it would certainly be a damn sight warmer!