I carry my suitcases out to my beat-up Nissan Sentra and throw them inside. I go back inside and the only other thing I bring with me is a photo album. I grab my purse, cell phone, and keys, let the door slam behind me and get into the car.
I’ve been driving for hours and I finally see a sign that says, now leaving Louisiana. I smile and know I am finally on my way. I turn the radio up and listen to Little Big Town sing ‘Tornado’ and it just makes me smile. It’s the perfect song for me right now. I sing, song after song that comes on, making my ride more fun than I thought it would be. I look down and realize I need to get gas soon and since I don’t know what lays ahead, I better get it at the next station. I see one and pull in. I get out and put the pump in my car while I go inside to get something to drink and pay for the gas.
After I get on the road again my cell phone rings, and I look to make sure it isn’t my mom calling to bitch me out again. I answer it right away when I see it’s my best friend Leigh.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“McKinley, what are you doing? Your mama is over here crying to mine,” she says with sass in her voice.
I roll my eyes and put her on speakerphone. “Leigh, I am finally going after my future.”
I hear her close a door and I regret answering the phone.
“Listen, I know how badly you want to make it, but are you sure you want to do this? I mean what are you going to do, just show up and say surprise it’s a girl?”
I laugh, even though I know she isn’t kidding. “Actually, that is pretty much what I plan to do. Leigh, I just found out my brother is Blake Foster. Do you have any idea what kind of influence he has in the modeling world?”
“No, I don’t and honestly I don’t care because it’s fucked up. You can’t just expect your long-lost brother to just help you out like that,” she whispers.
I just ignore her and keep right on talking. “His best friend is Jax Burke. Jax’s girlfriend is Kallie Gregory, one of the top photogs right now. I mean if this isn’t fate, what is it?”
She gives me a sarcastic laugh and I’m ready to hang up. “It isn’t fate McKinley. Fate is when you find the love of your life when you least expect it when a friend you’ve been needing happens to find you when things happen you least expect. What this is, is you thinking you are entitled to something that you aren’t. Blake doesn’t owe you shit; he doesn’t even know you exist. It’s not his fault his father left your mom. You don’t suddenly get to have a different life because your mom got drunk and told you the truth. You are setting yourself up for disappointment and setting him up for a fucking grenade he doesn’t deserve.”
Fuck her, she’s just as bad as my mother. She’s a rich bitch who has no idea what it’s like to have nothing. She hasn’t had to sleep with a guy, just to have a place to stay or sell yourself to get rent money or work at a fucking strip club because no one else would hire you. She doesn’t know how shitty each photographer I went to made me feel unless they were the ones wanting to fuck me for payment. I deserve a chance and Blake Foster is my chance.
“I’ll talk to you later Leigh.” I just hang up; I don’t wait for anything else. She’s only going to try to make me feel like shit and I won’t let that happen. I’m not doing anything wrong. I’m going to find my brother. If it happens that he wants to help his sister get in with big models and photographers, well I will thank him. I sure as fuck am not about to let my mom or Leigh make me feel like shit for my decision. I’m not hurting anyone by going, I’m simply putting myself out there. No harm in that.
Chapter 2
Braden
Never in my life did I think I’d hear the words; I want a divorce. Even worse, never did I think I’d feel the relief I felt when I heard those words. Sarah and I had what I thought was the perfect marriage. We always wanted to be together, we had a ton of laughs and our sex life was amazing. I thought I’d spend the rest of my life with her. After we had our daughters, Dawn and Tiffany, I just couldn’t imagine being any happier. I had the love of three beautiful girls.
Things started going downhill after Tiffany was born. We were always fighting, over nothing and everything. She would literally start jumping down my throat as soon as I walked in the door. I was tracking dirt, I was too loud and woke the baby, I forgot to take the garbage out, I didn’t put my coffee mug in the dishwasher. I could go on and on. When we weren’t fighting, we weren’t talking. It seemed that if she wasn’t yelling at me, she wasn’t talking.
We never had sex anymore and believe me, I tried. I tried every fucking day, but she always had an excuse. She was too tired, the girls could wake up, she wasn’t in the mood. Again, the excuses went on and on. It was to the point that we were just roommates,
