Jenna breathed heavily as she made it just in time for the bus as it left the station just a few minutes later. She took a seat in the back with her face covered from the cameras and she even wore a wig to try and conceal her identity when her parents realized that she was gone from home.
She even decided to toss her phone out the window on her ride to the station with the driver giving her a weird look. But he didn't say anything when he dropped her off at the station and she gave him extra to not talk about how she was a passenger.
She should try and get some sleep but she couldn't. There was a feeling of exhilaration yet nervousness as she looked on the map to decide which town she was going to temporarily stop at.
All the endless possibilities that she had.
For the past few months she had been planning to run away from the sheltered and enclosed life that she lived. But her parents telling her that they already had a marriage partner for her was what sealed the deal for her and she had planned her escape.
Even though she was above the age of legal, her family was powerful enough to control her. Hell, they owned half the city with all its corrupt politicians who ran the county force. They had that many people in the palms of their hands.
All she had to say was that she was leaving the family. Her parents would be so pissed. The only thing that she would regret was leaving behind her siblings and her mom, her dad not so much as he was the overbearing ass that he was.
Jenna recalled the last conversation she had with her mom when she realized that she was not on her side.
"Seriously mom?"She had asked when they told her that she would be marrying the Don of some rival gang. As poetic as the story sounded, she wasn't into some weird Westside Story wannabe tale. That was for the movies, and her partner was supposed to be the head honcho's son. He was the next heir as the current one was rotting in prison.
"It's what your father wants." Her mom answered when she braided her hair down her back. "What about what I want?"
"If you got what you wanted, you would be ruined goods." Her mom answered and Jenna could only look at her with her mouth open.
"That's rude." Jenna told her and she received a slap on her arm as an answer. "Sweetheart, you're beautiful and you know that boys only want one thing. I don't trust the men that are out there. We also don't want word that the women of Castigioli put out." Her mom said.
"I couldn't even see a guy naked let alone for him to screw me before Papa had him castrated and beheaded." Jenna cried thinking about the last guy she had snuck a kiss with. Let's just say she hadn't seen him since.
Leave it to some backwards ass mob to think of stupid crap rules like that. It was the age of women and Jenna wanted to be free. Which brought her to why she took all the money that she had in the bank and took the next bus out of town.
Give it twenty four hours before her family started looking for her and hopefully by then she would be long gone.
There. She thought to herself as her finger landed on Portland, Oregon. It was on the other side of the continent and her choosing randomly wouldn't give her family a way of finding her too easily.
Closing her eyes, she waited until the next stop so that she could find her way onto her newfound path journey to her new future.
***
Cade looked at his phone as he watched the property manager show some girl around the complex and apartment next to his. Their balconies were close together and if he wanted he could jump from his balcony to hers.
He was standing outside in a gray t shirt and jeans hung low on his hips as he took a puff of the cigarette. When he heard the sliding glass door open, he took a look in their direction and found the manager talking.
The preppy manager spoke, and then lifted her head and looked towards him. Her too proper make up and hair scrunched up and she narrowed her eyes at him in judgement. "Mr. Doe, please refrain from smoking on your balcony, there are designated spots to smoke. If you keep this up, we would have to charge you for any damage that smoking causes." She told him.
He pulled the cigarette from his mouth and put it out on his ashtray that was sitting on the edge of the railing. Before going back inside his unit, he flicked his finger in a mock salute and went back inside. He didn't close the door but closed the screen.
He could hear the manager say, "Sorry about that. We promise he won't be a problem and smoking is not allowed on the premise. Only in the designated area." She explained to the girl.
He didn't catch a word that the girl was going to say when his phone rung and he went to answer it.
***
Jenna's first thought of the first few days in her new apartment was that it was great. She woke up by herself and she could lounge around in her underwear without worrying about anyone scolding her or worrying that whoever was guarding her would be offended.
She started off her morning with some small yoga stretches to ease her aches and then she even had a cup of coffee on her balcony. There was no need to wave to the guards who were roaming the premises or not worry about someone wanting to take a shot at her when she was out in the open.
Life seemed to be great when she was not the mob boss's daughter. Was this what it was like to be a normal adult at the age of twenty two?
She had on a sports bra and yoga pants when the sliding glass door opened from the other side. She tried to concentrate on the position she had when she heard his voice. Cade Doe, her next door neighbor who was handsome and looked like he walked away from hell just to wreak havoc on earth.
He was talking on the phone when he hung up and she heard the sound of a lighter. "Those things are going to kill you slowly." She said as she stood up straight to let him know that she was there.
Cade glanced at her with his jaw clenched and it looked like she took a shit in his breakfast with the way he was looking at her. "I'd die from a car crash sooner than this crap." he said as he took a puff.
He was wearing a dark t-shirt that was either too tight or it was made for him to mold his body into as his biceps were bulging and his forearm was thick. His dark hair went slightly past his shoulders and she could see the hint of some brown in it the way that the sun shone just right. He had it half up in a ponytail and the rest just hung loose.
When he moved, his right arm that had a full sleeve on him made her eyes want to wander and see what ink he was sporting on his arms that went and disappeared under his sleeves.
She couldn't tell what his eye color was without staring deeply and he didn't seem to like that. Instead, all she could guess was that it was dark. His cheekbones were high and he was sporting a viking look to him as the beard that was on his face looked like he went past no-shave November and they were currently in May.
She shrugged her shoulders at him and wiped at the sheer sweat that build on her with a towel and took a sip of water. "Don't peg you as the yoga type." He said as he nodded towards her.
"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked him and he shrugged. "Don't judge my smoking and I won't judge your work out." He took a puff and then put the butt out.
With a mock salute she was thinking was his trademark of dismissing people, he walked back inside. Before he fully made it inside he heard her say, "Ass." Before he fully disappeared.
Jenna walked back into her apartment and looked at the bare conditions of her living space. She was planning on buying furniture and the air mattress that she had temporarily purchased was starting to hurt her back. She was almost tempted to buy a vehicle but she knew that they would want to run her information. Instead, she opted for the city transportation, reveling in the fact that she may have gotten lost twice and got off on the wrong spot but it was still eye opening to think that as an adult this was her first time riding something other than her private chauffeured vehicles.
She purchased a prepaid cell as well and found a furniture store. Entering, she was greeted by the salesman and she was glad that they would deliver to the apartment.
After, she decided that she needed groceries to make food.
At the grocery store, she walked upon the aisles looking at things she wondered what she could make and decided against simple ingredients. She could always come back when she made a grocery list.
A lot of things she had delivered to her apartment due to not having the ease of transportation and she spent a few days cooped in putting her furniture together.
There was countless times that she had burned her food, or it tasted horrible, nothing like what the online instructions had instructed her to do so. She eventually opted with takeout and delivery most nights.
Regardless of the fact that she could not cook, being an adult without rules was still better than being at home with everything catered to her. Still she missed her family.
