Table of Contents
Epilogue
D. S. Wrights 1
One. 1
Two. 1
Three. 1
Four 1
Five. 1
Six 1
Seven. 1
Eight 1
Nine. 1
Ten. 1
Eleven. 1
Twelve. 1
Thirteen. 1
Fourteen. 1
Fifteen. 1
Sixteen. 1
Seventeen. 1
Eighteen. 1
Nineteen. 1
Twenty 1
Twenty-One. 1
Twenty-Two. 1
Twenty-Three. 1
Twenty-Four 1
Twenty-Five. 1
Twenty-Six 1
Twenty-Seven. 1
Twenty-Eight 1
Twenty-Nine. 1
Thirty 1
Thirty-One. 1
Thirty-Two. 1
Epilogue. 1
D. S. Wrights 1
Zero. 1
About The Author 1
DARK ALLEY:
SEASON 1
D. S. Wrights
Copyright © 2016-2017 D. S. Wrights
All rights reserved.
Dedication
This is still for Christine.
Contents
D. S. Wrights
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Epilogue
D. S. Wrights
Zero
About The Author
Acknowledgement
Thank you to Agnese, Amanda, Amy, Annie, Avril, Candy, Eboni, Janneke, Jodi, Holly, Lilith, Nancy, and Thai.
Especial thanks you Amy & Ella!
Dark Alley:
Stranger
Dark Alley Ep. 1
D. S. Wrights
One
Alice stared into her mirror’s reflection, perusing her features, which were slowly starting to show signs of aging. She was in her thirties, but now and then people still mistook her for much younger. But maybe that was just an effort to make her feel better. In the end she didn’t really care anymore. She thought of herself as pretty. She didn’t have to hide her face or be shy about herself, and she didn’t want to either.
Her look in the mirror had one purpose only; to make sure that she hadn’t totally messed up her make-up. She looked fine – even beautiful – but she blamed it on the heavier make-up than she usually wore when going into the office. The dark eyeliner brought out the green in her usual dominant blue eyes and her dark-brown hair was pulled back in a slick, high ponytail. She was wearing tight black jeans and a low cut black blouse which showed the dark silver tank top that hugged her boobs. She could get rid of the blouse anytime, if she wanted to. Alice didn’t wear high heels, pumps or any of that pain inflicting crap. She wore black sneakers, because she wanted to dance herself into exhaustion, even if it meant she would do that on her own.
Her best friend Bianca had been bugging her for weeks to go out partying with her and the girls, and now she had finally given in. She dreaded going out with them, because most of them were mommies and the only topic they could talk about was their kids.
She had no problem with children, it’s just a topic, one which she had no idea about, and it was unnerving to be reminded that all her friends were now married with children – apart from Bianca, who had a fiancée.
The reason why Alice had agreed on joining in the girl’s night out was that it was time for her to throw herself out there again. She wanted to enjoy herself, and most importantly, prove that she didn’t need a boyfriend to be happy and complete.
It had only been two months since she had dumped Gary, because she couldn’t endure his thoroughly planned life. Alice wanted more, more of everything, and he didn’t even comprehend her, as she tried to explain her desires.
Their relationship had been perfect, that was just the point. They had never fought, never strayed from their daily routine. Gary knew her likes and dislikes in and out, never daring her to try something new.
What once had been sweet and romantic was now bland and annoying - and she finally had enough. She had been with Gary for four years, and the last twelve months had been pure torture.
In the last few weeks being single, it had given Alice enough time to make up her mind, and she had come to the conclusion that she didn’t need a boyfriend to feel fulfilled - that it was okay to be different from her friends.
She stopped herself from looking into the mirror one more time, grabbed her little purse, tucked it into the hidden pocket of her jeans, and hit the road.
They had agreed to meet in front of the brand new and exclusive club in town. Reservations had been made two months ahead; enough time for Alice to mentally prepare herself for going into battle. This time, however, without the usual war paint. She went clubbing for her own pleasure only and not to turn random men’s heads, just like Bianca had suggested.
Alice had tried her very best to be blind to the fact that going on a girls night out wouldn’t change the main topic of the evening, kids. Eventually she had slowly set herself apart from the competing mommies. Bianca, however, was obviously torn between being her best friend and wanting to be part of the clique.
It didn’t take long for Alice to realize why. The woman, who had been her sworn ally for more than a decade, had stuck to drinking water for the last two hours.
Closing her eyes in frustration, Alice let out a long sigh and turned toward the bartender, downing the remains of her fourth White Alexander.
“Want another one?” the hot guy asked.
She shook her head. “Gimme a Scotch, neat.”
The beautiful man with reddish-blond hair and bright blue eyes was definitely ten years younger than her, but she still allowed herself to imagine him fucking her from behind in the backyard of the club during his five minute break.
A few moments later her drink was served. With a flirtatious smile, Alice told him to keep the change. She had reached the point where her self-confidence had been liquor infused into overdrive, and this time she wouldn’t try to stop it. She was here to have fun and she would fucking have it.
Turning around, Alice waited for Bianca to look around and check on her, so she could give Bianca a toast, pointing at her belly with her free hand. Watching her best friend’s facial expression derail into paleness was the satisfaction she needed to take a big gulp of the golden liquid, swirl it around in her mouth and swallow it down. Closing her eyes, she tried to follow the burning trail in her throat right down to her stomach. Secretly she hoped it would burn the disappointment away. Soon she would be the only not-mommy of the clique - the black sheep, the one they would start to forget. Time to make new friends.
Alice knew downing the Scotch was close to blasphemy, but she needed to dance off the hurt Bianca’s betrayal had evoked. Bianca
had told her that she and her fiancé Matt would wait until they were married for a few years before even thinking about having children - and now this.
Without looking, she placed the glass on the bar and did what she had never done before. She walked straight to the dance floor, alone. Luckily the song blaring through the speakers was one of her favorites, from when she was about ten years younger. Musically revisiting the past seemed to be a new trend, but again, she didn’t really care and started moving to the rhythm.
Dancing was easier than she had expected. It was like muscle memory as her hips swayed to the familiar rhythm and she left all embarrassment aside. Admittedly, being blinded by the flashing and colorful lights was helpful. She ignored anyone who was trying to move up to her, even though now and then she played along, just for the fun of it. Most importantly, she almost forgot about the bragging women she had come to this club with. They stayed in their rented lounge the whole time, drinking and talking, as if they couldn’t do that at home. Maybe this whole thing was about giving the entire responsibility of babysitting to their husbands. That she could somehow relate to.
Alice returned to the bar only when her mouth was dry as a desert. The hot bartender was still there and his eyes clung to her as she walked straight up to him. He didn’t have to ask her what she wanted to drink, because his face already did.
“Water,” Alice said with a crooked smirk, knowing that she would surprise him.
She allowed her stare to linger as long as possible before she turned her back on him and leaned her elbows on the counter, while the bartender filled her order.
“Just water?” It wasn’t the bartender, so she looked towards the origin of the male voice and recognized one of the dance partners she had allowed to come close to her.
Now in the brighter light of the bar, he didn’t look as good as on the dance floor. Pity.
“Yeah,” was Alice's non-committal response before she moved her attention back to the crowd, then, because she was curious, to the hen house.
She almost felt bad for how she thought about the women she used to go out a lot with. Her view focused on her best friend, who, it seemed, she was about to lose. A part of her was happy about Bianca being pregnant, but she also knew what it would inevitably mean. So tonight she decided she would try to practice going out alone.
“Your water…,” she heard the bartender shout to her, and the hesitation in his voice sounded like he wanted to ask her for her name.
Alice leaned over the counter, so she wouldn’t need to shout, and the creep next to her wouldn’t overhear.
“Alice,” she said, “without the rabbit hole.”
He laughed in response.
Cute.
She leaned back to set her feet on the ground. Alice snatched her water and started drinking through the straw, all the while watching the eye-candy in front of her, and ignoring the creep next to her. Out of the corner of her eye, she secretly tried to get a closer look at her one-time dance partner, who appeared to have realized that she didn’t want to talk.
Her efforts turned out to be successful – he ordered himself the same drink she had gulped down before stepping on the dance floor: scotch, neat.
The man was probably six foot four, and his black hair was messy and short. He was wearing a blue long-sleeved tee that brought out his steel blue eyes, and even darker jeans. Mr. Scotch wasn’t as jaw-dropping handsome as the cutie behind the bar, but as she gave him a closer look, she had to change her prior judgment about him.
There was something interesting about this man she couldn’t quite figure out.
When she caught herself staring, Alice quickly turned around and put the small bottle she had emptied, without noticing, on the counter, slightly leaning on it, keeping an eye out for the cutie. She had no idea why the hell her attention was glued to the guy, maybe she felt safe because there was a piece of furniture undeniably separating them. She shouldn’t expecting miracles from herself on the first night out single.
Alice could feel Mr. Scotch watching her, and she had to admit that, now, as he silently accepted her rejection, he didn’t feel as creepy after all. She brought her heels back on the ground and looked directly at the man as he reverently sipped his drink. He blatantly returned her gaze and she felt herself blush.
Not as self-confident after all, was she?
“I would have offered you a drink,” the man shrugged and smiled crookedly.
His voice easily drowned out the music from the dance floor, but it wasn’t deep. Still, it perfectly fit the Scotch in his hand, smooth, yet packed a punch.
“That was a one-time thing, courtesy of my best friend,” Alice replied with a smile. She assumed that he was talking about buying her the Scotch if she hadn’t shown him a cold shoulder.
“The girl that constantly looks over at you?” He responded, and Alice saw that he was right about Bianca watching. She waved quickly and laughed, moving her body around to face him again.
“Yeah,” Alice nodded once. “She’s having a baby. I thought that was worth a Scotch.”
She had no clue why she was telling him all this. Maybe she just wanted to see his reaction. What he did do was not something she had anticipated. He just looked at her as if he was studying a piece of art.
That’s when Alice realized that Mr. Scotch had called Bianca ‘girl’. Was he thinking the same about her? What made him choose that title?
How old was he exactly?
Since he didn’t seem to mind openly staring at her, Alice did the same and looked for wrinkles and gray hair. He actually did have some, at his temples. Somehow this made his appearance even more intriguing.
“Do you do this a lot?” she blurted out before she could stop herself, and he cocked one brow in reply. “Blatantly staring at pretty women in a dark club?” Her question made him laugh out loud. His laughter came from deep in his chest and was as far from fake as she had heard in a long time.
“No,” Mr. Scotch eventually answered and took a sip of his scotch. “That’s what I usually do when women are lying under me, exhausted.”
Alice couldn’t help herself, she just blinked and gaped at him. Then after a few seconds of processing, she started laughing, feeling her cheeks flush once more. She imagined herself, lying exhausted under this terribly confusing man. Alice was pretty sure that was what he intended.
“Sir, you have a dirty mind,” she chuckled and turned back to the counter, looking for the bartender.
“Guilty as charged,” he replied and placed his empty glass next to her.
When she brought up her eyes to meet his again, a cold shower of rejection struck her – he was walking away along the bar, seemingly heading to someone specific. Her view was disrupted as another guy she had danced with took the spot of Mr. Scotch. And the new Mr. Creepy was…
“Can I buy you a drink?”
Alice had no idea how old this guy was, definitely younger than the man who had literally left her dry, maybe even younger than herself. She seemed to attract the latter tonight, as usual. Gary had been two years younger and she always had thought it wouldn’t bother her. Maybe that was the reason why she ended up dumping him.
“No,” she replied, trying to look past him to see where Mr. Scotch had gone, but Creepy Junior had positioned himself perfectly, so there was no way of catching a glimpse without contorting her body.
Alice favored him with a judgmental stare. His hair was brown, close-cropped, and made her think of the military. His physique appeared to agree with that assumption.
“Look,” she eyed him over, just as she had done with Mr. Scotch, whose real name she hadn't even learned, much to her annoyance, “I don’t have an interest in being the adventure you’re going to brag about with your comrades. No offense.”
Alice almost felt bad because of the distressed look he gave her, but the words had already left her mouth. God, she had sounded like the ultimate bitch.
At least she had made herself clear, that she wasn’t a wh
ore. Her annoyance was getting the better of her, and her anger about Bianca’s betrayal didn’t help. Maybe she really only needed some good, hard sex, but Private Creep was already marching off.
He hadn’t been tall enough anyway.
Now, as the guy had cleared the path, she could see that Mr. Scotch was whispering into a woman’s ear, who was closer to his age than Alice. What she did have in common with her was their height. The stranger towered over the other woman by a whole 12 inches, and he needed to bend down pretty far in order to talk to her. His position gave Alice a perfect view of his muscled back, as the fabric stretched tightly across his shoulders.
Somehow, Alice couldn’t deny that she was disappointed about what she saw. That was until the woman directly met her eyes, her glance seemed to spear right through to her stomach, especially as the corners of the beauty’s mouth moved slowly upwards.
Was he talking about her?
Quickly Alice spun around and brought her attention back to the bartender, who finally returned to her and frowned slightly, noticing her distress.
“I have no clue what I should order,” she admitted and he gave her a warm smile.
“Looks like you need something stronger again?” He asked, being very friendly, slightly leaning towards her and probably trying to claim her full attention.
Did she finally get him hooked? Was this even what she wanted?
Alice didn’t know and realized too late that her eyes had wandered back to Mr. Scotch, only to find that he had moved and the lady was out of sight.
“Don’t get involved with them.” The bartender suddenly turned serious and placed another scotch in front of her.
“Why?” Alice asked before she could think twice about it and tilted her head in slight confusion.
“They have something strange going on. I don’t know,” he answered quickly and then shrugged it off, turning towards another customer.
She picked up the drink, but when she realized she hadn't paid for it, she tried to catch the cute bartender's attention. She wasn’t the type to exploit someone else’s mistake. Now, somehow, it seemed that the guy was ignoring her. Prime example for sending mixed signals.
Dark Alley: The Complete First Season (Dark Alley Seasons Book 1) Page 1