All Chapters of The Captain Wants Me Back!: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Joey's POVThe bass dropped, and I let it take me, wrapping one leg around the pole and using the momentum to spin harder than I usually did.My hair whipped across my face, the gold fringe on my hip catching the light in a way that probably looked, from the crowd's angle, like pure showmanship.But it wasn't just showmanship. It was fury with nowhere else to go.I gripped the pole as if it owed me something. Every roll of my hips, every arch of my back, every slow slide down toward the floor was fuelled by that fury.I wasn't dancing for the room tonight. I was dancing at him. At the cold metal under my palms, standing in for a face I couldn't stop seeing no matter how hard the bass hit.The crowd loved it. I could hear it in the way the noise changed, whistles sharpening into something closer to roaring, hands slapping against the edge of the stage like they could pull more of whatever this was out of me if they just clapp

Gabriel's POVI woke up with my shoulder throbbing like it had a heartbeat of its own, the pain worse than it had been days agoFuck. I must've twisted in my sleep again.I reached for the bottle on my nightstand without thinking, expecting to feel the pills inside, but my fingers found only the empty plastic bottle."Shit."I had noticed the bottle was getting low a few days ago, but I hadn't done anything about it. Mostly because getting more meant walking into a pharmacy without a prescription and being turned away. I'd already tried that once, and I didn't plan on going through it again.I sat there for a minute, trying to figure out how bad my shoulder really hurt without the medicine to dull the pain. Almost immediately, I decided I didn't want to know.I showered, moving carefully so I wouldn't hurt myself more. It had become a habit over the past few weeks. Same as learning to avoid a piece of furniture after

Joey's POV"Who's there?" I called out.No one answered. I took a step closer anyway, heart hammering, one hand already reaching instinctively for my keys, bracing myself for anything at all—Roland, or even one of Juan's men, or a stranger who had finally decided tonight was the night everything I was afraid of actually happened.I peered in when suddenly a cat came out from behind the trash cans, tail flicking, entirely unbothered by the fact that it had just taken five years off my life."Oh, my god." I pressed a hand flat against my chest, laughing shakily at myself, both relieved and embarrassed. "Okay. Okay, it's fine. It's a cat. It's just a cat."The cat gave me a very unimpressed look, seeming offended at the accusation, before disappearing back into the darkness. I went into the building, my legs still a little shaky, while my heart slowly began to calm down.Winona and Cassian were already curled up on the couch when I walked in, some cartoon playing low in the background an

Gabriel's POVThe porch light was still on when I finally pulled into the driveway, well past midnight. Ryder was sitting on the front steps with his phone in his hand, seemingly checking the time every few minutes for the past hour.He didn't even let me get close before he asked, "Where were you?""Out," I said, still walking. My keys were already in my hand as I headed for the door."You weren't answering my texts. I thought maybe—""It's not your business, Ryder."It came out harsher than I meant it to. I saw him flinch. Hurt flashed across his face before he quickly hid it."Okay." He stood up and brushed off the back of his jeans. His voice became flat, which told me exactly how much my words had hurt him. "Forget I asked."He went inside without another word.I stayed on the porch for another second, feeling like the worst version of myself as I watched the door close behind him.I hadn't meant to snap at him. I just wasn't ready to explain where I had been, mostly because I wa

Gabriel's POVI didn't plan to drive to the club; my hands just took over.Maybe because the one person I could really be around was there. Or was meant to be there.I knew I had promised myself to stay away. But I couldn't think of anywhere else to be.After the argument with my father, Joey was the only person I wanted to see.This was going to be the last time. At least I hoped it would.The bouncer at the door already knew me, so he let me in without saying anything. I went straight to my usual booth in the corner just as the lights started to dim.The energy in the room changed immediately. The crowd was louder and more excited, and I felt my heartbeat speed up with them.She was back.I hadn't realized how much I had missed her until the curtain opened. Last night, I had watched the other girl perform while the crowd waited for someone who never came. A small, ugly part of me had even been glad they were disappointed too.But now Joey was here.Well, Natasha was.The gold light