CHAPTER ELEVEN
THE RULES OF SELINA
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
When I returned to Savannah, there was a crowd in front of our gate. Behind the bus windows, I waved to as many fans as I could before we drove past them.
"Congratulations. You're famous now," Tai told me, and I pulled my hoodie up. Yesterday Madison, Tai, Nick, and I went to a bar and drank until we couldn't anymore. We got back to the hotel at around 2 am only to leave Atlanta at 5. Even though I tried to force a smile, I was barely even awake right now.
The bus parked in front of the manor and instantly, the staff welcomed me back and begin offloading my bags. Mom and Dad waited for us inside, hugging me once they saw us. Toni and Tasha weren't here anymore, they had gone back to London last week which sucked.
"You smell like shit," Dad told me and I rolled my eyes.
It was the alcohol that I practically chugged down my throat.
"While you were gone, I managed to finesse my way out of a speeding ticket," Serafina said walking down the stairs, making me roll my eyes. She was only 18 yet she's had 6.
"How much did you pay the officer this time?" I asked, earning a chuckle from my father. "I give you guys too much money,"
"I didn't pay him anything. I simply just told him I started my period and began crying," She said, moving her blonde hair off her shoulder. "Men are so easy to manipulate,"
"Exactly," Mom said, while dad just mumbled something in Italian and walked off. "You two are beautiful women, own your divine feminine energy,"
"I mean, Selina isn't that good-looking," She said, my draw dropping open. Mom shrugged, "Oh please. I'm Diana Maxwell, I can't make ugly children."
She kissed our cheeks before walking towards her office. I stood in front of my sister and narrowed my eyes. "Cum stain,"
"Dirty Tampon,"
"Sleep paralysis demon,"
"Herpes Horse,"
We both burst out laughing at our stupid nicknames. Even though we gave each other hell, we were still best friends. "Come here, I missed you,"
I pulled her into a hug, just as my brother walked down the stairs. "Fatneek,"
"I see Toni has taught his British slang," I said, tilting my head to the side. He walked past me and headed towards the front doors. "Where the hell are you going?"
"Just to meet up with some friends," He said, sending me a wink before walking off.
"I don't trust him," Serafina said, earning a small nod from me. When we realized we were still hugging, we quickly pushed ourselves away from each other and pretended to gag.
"I think I got some of your dark hair in my mouth," She told me.
"That's not more traumatizing than seeing your eyes up close," I explained, before heading up the stairs. When I arrived at my room, I closed the doors and jumped on my bed before cursing slightly at my headache. After having a shower, brushing my teeth, and washing my hair, I wore a pair of sweats and laid back down. Just then, there was a knock at the door. I opened it, revealing Peter, our family butler.
"Miss Maxwell, your mail from your family's P.O. box," He said, holding up a package and envelopes, but I only frowned and shook my head. "I think you have the wrong Maxwell, they're probably for my mother,"
"No, I'm afraid not," He assured, placing them on my table before walking out. I groaned, standing up from my bed and walking over. In front of me was a large package from Dior. Once I opened it, I picked up the handwritten note and began reading.
Dear Selina Aakifah Maxwell, Congratulations on your first concert. Please accept these gifts from Dior as a celebration of your success.
"Damn, I'm famous now," I joked, moving the tissue paper out the way. I wasn't used to having brands sending me things, normally they only did that for my mother.
They send me a pair of heels and a black bag, everything was so adorable and I couldn't wait to wear them.
When I was about to open the large pile of fan mail, big large red letters caught my attention. My eyes scanned across the large letters, RICARDO's AUTO SERVICE. FREE SERVICE. VALID JUNE 25 - 26TH ONLY.
"Free Service?" I whispered to myself, my eyebrows furrowing together. A blush made its way to my face, this was Ricardo's way of asking me to come see him. I pulled the empty lollipop wrappers out of my jacket and into my trash can, along with his little note.
"Fuck you. You're not slick," I suddenly said, throwing the paper somewhere in my room. "I'm not coming into the shop,"
The cool air brushed against my skin as I walked into the shop, my eyes skimming around. The Receptionist narrowed his eyes—he recognized me. "I'm here for the free car service,"
"We do free car services?" He whispered to himself, almost as if he was unsure. I sighed, pushing my hair off my shoulders. "Is DickRic here?"
"Yes, he's in the back," He said, sending me a small smile. I nodded, tilting my head to the side, and continued eyeing the blond boy. "What's your name, sweetheart?"
His adam apple bobbed up and down, while he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Jared,"
"Hi Jared," I said, holding out my hand. Together we shook, and I swore I saw his cheeks turn a light, blush pink. "And you're Selina Maxwell. The new singer. Your concert was on the news,"
"Yep, that's me," I mumbled. He cleared his throat and fluffed his blond hair. "You're also the reason why my boss felt like the biggest asshole these past few weeks,"
Before I could respond, I spotted Ricardo who worked on a car. He lifted himself from the floor, placing his tools onto the table nearby. He used the edge of his shirt to wipe the sweat off his forehead, unknowingly giving me a glimpse of his abs and v-line. Oh fuck.
I sent him a small smirk, strutting over to where he was. When I stood in front of him, my hands sat on my hips while my right eyebrow raised. "I'm waiting,"
"For what?" He narrowed his eyes, a frown settling on his luscious lips. I sucked in a breath, even though my legs squeezed together. "For my apology,"
"I already apologized. You didn't get my note?" He asked, walking into his office, with me following his trail. He opened his mini fridge and pulled out a bottle of beer as I sat down in his desk chair. I placed my feet on his desk and leaned back. "Well, I want one in person,"
"Fuck off," Ricardo mumbled something under his breath and pushed my feet off his desk. He placed his hands under my armpits and pulled me off his seat, before sitting down. "Grumpy asshole,"
"Spoiled princess," He said. I scoffed, crossing my arms when suddenly I got an idea.
I sat on his left thigh, crossing my legs and humming slightly. His entire body tensed and contentment washed through my veins, I had the power to affect him. "What are you doing?"
"Just sitting," I said innocently even though I wished to fuck him right then and there. When his arm wrapped around my waist to stabilize me, I felt a chill travel through my body. With his fingers on my skin, there were tiny fires and I had to manually begin breathing again.
The fact that he even let me sit on him was enough to see he was warming up to me.
"You came to my concert," I changed the subject, while he took a sip of his beer.
"I was just in the neighborhood,"
He was a liar. Atlanta was 4 hours away, no one from Savannah was just in Atlanta but I wasn't going to push it.
"Did you like my performance?" I asked, with a soft seductive voice. Ricardo just chuckled, running his hand through his hair. "It was okay," He admitted, earning an eye roll from me.
"So let's talk about that free car service. I saw your little advertisement," I muttered, grabbing his beer and taking a sip before he could protest.
"I'll work on your car Thursday," He assured, his hands now playing with the edge of my skirt.
"It's a date," I said, wrapping one arm around his neck and placing the other on his chest. His brown eyes trained themselves on me, and I smiled knowing he was getting closer and closer to being wrapped around my finger.
"It's hot isn't it?" I asked, taking off my jacket and revealing my white corset I wore underneath.
When his gaze moved down to my cleavage, he grabbed his beer while cursing in Spanish. He took a large sip of his beer before turning away. "What fucking game are you playing, Selina?"
"I'm not playing anything," I whispered, feeling the tension between us. "Maybe I just make you nervous?"
"Leave me alone," He said, with his casual grumpy voice. I pulled myself closer, trailing my finger along his jawline before biting on his earlobe with my teeth.
"Since you let me push your buttons so much, will I get away with unbuttoning them?"