24. Beneath the Surface
My eyes fluttered open at the sound of someone’s hushed voice speaking next to me.
“Yeah. I won’t leave her until you get here. She’s waking up right now.” A pause.
“Okay, I’ll see you soon.”
I sat up slowly, noticing it was dark out. Also, I was freezing. I rubbed my eyes, feeling thoroughly disoriented.
Where the hell am I? And why does my back hurt so much?
It came back to me all at once. Ace rejecting me. Clara telling me they had a date.
Madoc confessing I wasn’t going to be the only girl in Ace’s life anymore. Running away. Crying.
Crying some more.
The last thing I remembered was finding a bench on the hiking trail and curling up on it. I must have been asleep for a few hours—it was basically pitch black.
A familiar face was looking down at me.
“M-Madoc? What…?” I was still groggy from just waking up.
Or was it because it was the first time since meeting Ace that I had been able to fall asleep without him next to me? I must have exhausted myself with all my sobbing and self-pitying.
It felt so strange to be waking up without him. I didn’t like it.
Madoc shook his head, crossed his arms over his chest, and tutted. “You’re in so much fucking
trouble.”
My eyes widened.
I had fallen asleep.
Outside.
All on my own.
All while ignoring Ace’s texts and calls.
Which meant he had no idea where I was.
Holy crap, Madoc was right. Ace was going to kill me.
My immediate instinct was to run. It didn’t take a genius to know who Madoc had been talking to on the phone just now. I needed to get out of here before Ace got here and did lord knows what to me.
I jumped off the bench, prepared to make a run for it. I only took one step forward before Madoc was in front of me, blocking my path.
He scowled. “Nuh-uh. You’re not going anywhere. Sit back down,” he said in a stern tone.
“Please, Madoc,” I begged, unconcerned with how pathetic I sounded. I was beyond the point of caring.
“I don’t want to see Ace right now.
“I’ll go home. You can even text him and tell him where I am. I just don’t want to see him. Please.”
Madoc shook his head. “No. Sit. Down.”
I ignored his request and attempted to dart around him once more. He stepped in front of me yet again, put his hands on my shoulders, and firmly pushed me back down on the bench.
I squeaked.
He could move me with such little effort, just like Ace could. They both had superhuman strength or
something. It was ridiculous.
Madoc kept his hands on my shoulders, keeping me firmly in place. “You’re going to stay right here until Ace gets here. No more running away. No more hiding.
Understood?”
I deflated in defeat and let out a tortured groan. “He’s going to be so mad. I didn’t mean to stay out this late. I just needed some time to think. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
Madoc didn’t respond. The wind picked up, sending shivers down my body. I was so cold.
At last, Madoc lifted his hands off me. For a second, I thought he was going to let me go, but then he draped his jacket over my shoulders.
“You don’t have to give me your jacket.” I already felt guilty as it was. “I don’t want you to get cold.
It’s my fault that you’re even out here.”
Ace probably had the whole town out looking for me. It was a miracle that Madoc found me before he did. I was grateful that I had some time to prepare for the world of trouble I was about to be in.
“I’ll be fine. I just want you to be okay,” Madoc replied. “You get that, don’t you?
This is all about making sure you’re okay—not hurt or dead or lying in a ditch somewhere.” eep without him I looked down at my shoes. Guilt ate away at my stomach. I had worried him. I had probably worried a lot of people.
I didn’t even want to think about what my mother was going to say as soon as Ace was done yelling at me.
I felt stupid and immature. Part of the reason I ran away was to punish Ace, and I didn’t even know why. He hadn’t done anything other than turn me down when I’d confessed my feelings.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice thick. I swallowed down the emotion swelling in my throat. “I just wanted a break without having to answer to Ace.
“But that doesn’t mean I should have run away without telling anyone where I was.
I didn’t mean to worry anyone.”
Madoc stayed quiet.
“How mad is he?” I asked him.
Madoc’s expression softened at the fear in my voice. “You’re his world, Dorothy. His entire fucking world. Any anger you might see from him tonight is only fueled by his love for you.ore Madoc was in “That being said, you don’t have to be afraid of him. He would rather die than hurt you. Or see you get hurt.”
I sighed. I didn’t doubt that what he was saying was true. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t terrified of thehe point of caring. state Ace was going to be in when he got here.
I had never done anything like this before. I was about to witness a side of Ace that I had never seen before.
That silent moment of reflection was interrupted by the sound of someone making determined strides toward us.
My heart hammered in my chest. It was hard to make out the approaching figure in the dark, but I didn’t need to see his face to know who it was.
Wow, he was moving fast. And he was coming right for me.
“Ace, I’m sorry. Please don’t be mad,” I said. Were his eyes glowing? “I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I just took a walk and got tired. I’m sorry. Hold on. Wait. Please don’t —Ace!”
Ace ignored my pleas, picking me up and flinging me over his shoulder the moment he reached me. Hen to stay out this nearly knocked the wind out of me, and I shrieked at the unexpectedness of it all.
He supplied me with no explanation as to where he was taking me as he carried me off into the night.
I lifted my head to look back at Madoc. I gave him a pathetic wave.
Madoc returned the gesture with a sympathetic look before grabbing his jacket from where it had fallen on the ground and walking off himself.
As much as I wanted to fight Ace, I ultimately ended up relaxing over his heaving shoulder, knowing the best thing to do was succumb to my fate.
Ace didn’t even bother putting me in my own seat when he got into his car, which was parked very haphazardly, I might add, in the parking lot off the side of the hiking trail.
Instead, he sat in the driver’s seat and set me down in his lap so I was straddling him, chest to chest. I shouldn’t have been surprised. It was his favorite position.obably worried a I lifted my chin, hesitantly searching his dark eyes. Sometimes I could swear they changed color when he was really upset. Like right now, they almost appeared black rather than their usual deep blue.
It was probably just the lighting though.
Thinking he expected me to talk—or maybe to apologize again—I opened my mouth, only for my words to be cut off by Ace clamping his hand under my jaw.
He squeezed it in his huge palm, not hard enough to hurt but enough to let me know who was in charge.
“Not a word, Doe. Not a single fucking word,” he growled, his tone harsh and clipped.
I shut my mouth. I was still heartbroken over everything that had happened that day and didn’t really want to be around him but decided it wasn’t the time to bring it up. He was too mad.
And, if I was being completely honest with myself, I had no energy to argue. I was exhausted, and my body felt heavy from spending the day away from him.
To my relief, he eventually dropped his hand from my jaw, moving it instead to the back of my neck where he squeezed slightly. I whimpered.
He used his new hold to lead my face into the crook of his neck.
I obliged, pushing my face against his warm skin to take in big gulps of his earthy scent, seeking the ease he provided me with after several hours by myself.
Sometimes I felt like a walking contradiction. How could the man who was the cause of my fear also be the source of my comfort? It made no sense.
Several moments passed like that. I assumed he wanted to hold me for a while so he was calm before we talked. But then he reached forward and started the car.
I froze. Was he really going to drive with me in his lap like this? Didn’t he realize how dangerous it was? He didn’t even have a seatbelt on!
Before he could put the car into drive, and probably kill us both, I lifted my head up.
“Ace—”
He moved so fast, I didn’t have time to process what was happening until it was too late. One of his hands speared into my hair and jerked my head to the side, baring my neck to him.
With his other hand, he grabbed hold of my waist and violently wrenched my body to his chest in a e reached me. Hehard tug that left me gasping.
Next thing I knew, his sharp teeth were on the newly exposed skin of my neck, and he bit down hard.
here it had fallen
ho was in charge.
of my fear also be
“Ace—”
He moved so fast, I didn’t have time to process what was happening until it was too late. One of his hands speared into my hair and jerked my head to the side, baring my neck to him.
With his other hand, he grabbed hold of my waist and violently wrenched my body to his chest in a hard tug that left me gasping.
Next thing I knew, his sharp teeth were on the newly exposed skin of my neck, and he bit down hard.
