He led me straight out the back door and down the dark street to his building, and then it’s like he just collapsed. Shut down. All the fight left him in one swoop, and I was there to catch him.
He sits up, grinding the heels of his hands into his eyes. Bleary, he meets my gaze. His lips twitch in the smallest of smiles, and I’ll take it. At this point, I’ll take even the ghost of his usual confident smirk.
“Been better. Glad you’re here, though.”
The words are so plainly honest that they pull my stare, just to make sure he’s real. There’re no games with Ace. He just tells me how he feels, what he wants, what he doesn’t. It’s such a change from normal guys I deal with I can’t get enough.
“Me, too.”
We’re both quiet for a moment, until I speak up again. “I understand, you know.”
He glances at me, his expression doubtful.
“No, I know. I mean…my parents aren’t like your mom in the obvious ways. But I’m only twenty-two, and my whole life has been planned out for me. And they don’t even care about my interests or opinions. They never check up on me. They never sit down to a meal with me. They’re never…there.”
Ace’s arm tightens around me. “What do you want to do? When you graduate?”
Nibbling on my lower lip, I worry the soft stitching of his coffee leather couch. I’ve never talked about my future goals…I actually can’t remember a time that anyone’s asked.
“My parents know that I’m graduating with a major in chemistry, and they assume I’ll go to medical school when I graduate. It’s what they’ve been raising me for, my entire life. It’s what they say they came to America for, this type of opportunity for their daughter.”
Ace gently grasps my chin between two fingers. “I didn’t ask what your parents wanted, or what their plan was. I asked what you want.”
I meet his steady, intense gaze, and all of my hesitation melts away. “I’ve minored in business. I…have a trust fund.” I try to hand my head, knowing how ridiculous this must sound to someone like him, but he doesn’t let my gaze drop. “In a perfect world, in my world, I’d move to a city where music is the heartbeat. And I’d eventually start my own record label.”
A slow grin spreads across Ace’s face. “Music, huh? Why doesn’t that surprise me, now that I know you?”
Tentatively, I return his smile, right before it falters. “My parents would never understand. To them, it’d be nothing but a disappointment.”
His hand slips around to cup the back of my neck, his fingers gentle where the bruising has settled on my throat. “And it hurts you. I’m sorry, baby.”
I shrug. “I just wanted you to know that just because money separates us, it doesn’t mean shit. We’re still the same in so many ways.”
His eyes, those gorgeous green pools, burn into mine. “I know.”
Leaning forward, I brush his lips with mine and my eyes close as the pleasant buzz of awareness starts to tingle inside me.
“You’re staying with me tonight.” His gaze slides toward the doorway leading to his bedroom at the same time mine does, and his eyes go wide while he backpedals. “No, not that. I mean, yeah, I want you in my bed, but there’s no pressure…shit.” He rakes his hands through his hair, frustration scrawling an adorable picture on his face.
I can’t help the amused smirk spreading over my lips. “You want me in your bed?”
Because God, I definitely want to be there.
His eyes narrow as he scoops me into his lap. One hand slides up my jeans-clad thigh, while the other dives into my hair to pull me closer. His eyes flare a bight green, with only a ring of brown around the edges of his irises. Burning. Eating me up.
“Hell, yes.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, tilting my head to one side. The pain in my neck is there, and I try not to wince. His eyes zoom to the spot, and he leans in to kiss me there. His lips are so gentle, it could be feathers brushing against my tender skin. Even though my neck aches, the sensation of his lips touching me ignites a fire inside me.
“Ace.” The word falls out on a moan.
Moan? I’ve never thought of myself as a noisemaker. But his hands and his lips are all too much for me. I can’t contain the sound.
Somewhere between us, something buzzes. Without removing his face from my neck, Ace reaches for his pocket and pulls out his phone. He scans the text and then frowns.
“You’re staying because I need to know you’re safe. I need to make a quick run back to the bar; there’s a name I need to get from Carson.”
He says all of this while his lips are pressed to my collarbone, and I nod my agreement as I gasp out my response. “Okay.”
He pulls back, staring into my eyes. “Don’t move.”
But he stays, and his expression is torn. He glances at the door and then back at me.
He doesn’t want to leave me.
I lean in and drop a kiss to his full mouth. “Go. I’ll text Bryn, even though she’s probably already asleep. I’ll tell her I’m safe. It’ll be fine. If I need you, I’ll call you. Okay?”
Finally, he sets me aside on the couch and stands up. He rolls his shoulders a couple of times before striding toward the door.
With one last glance toward me, he’s gone and I’m left with just my thoughts, my heated body, and my phone.
I send the message to Bryn telling her I’m fine. She immediately calls me.
“Do you want me to come get you?” she asks as soon as I accept the call.
Sighing, I draw my legs up beneath me. “No…I’m okay here B. I’m safe with Ace, and we have some things to figure out.”
“I’m scared, Ny. I’ve never seen you like that before.
