Page 17 of Broken Bonds

“You aren’t going to die, Celine.” She paused, clearing her throat, then continued. “I love you with all my heart, darling. Never forget that. Dad and Ryan love you, too. Be strong, my angel. You’re a fighter. Never forget that.” I ended the call, swallowing the giant lump in my throat, and a lone tear rolled down my cheek. I quickly swiped the traitorous tear away.

Be strong, Celine. You are strong.

“Princesses aren’t supposed to cry.” Ace said, suddenly appearing in front of me. I wondered how much he had heard, but from the sorrowful look in his blue eyes, I knew he had heard enough. I forced a smile to my face that I definitely didn’t feel.

“Please—as if I would let you see me cry.” A small smile graced his lips before he turned away to reach for a sandwich, taking a huge bite and moaning in delight.

“This is amazing.” I reached for a sandwich and took an equally huge bite, surprised at how hungry I still was. I nodded in agreement and took another bite. We finished the two sandwiches in a few minutes, then headed to the lounge to watch the turmoil outside. Remembering the games my mommentioned, I dug through the chest and found my favorite board game, placing it on the coffee table.

“You any good at Monopoly?” I held up the lid of the box, which was battered from years of use.

He smirked. “You bet, princess. I’m about to whoop your ass!” he exclaimed, getting up from the couch to help me set up the game on the coffee table.

“Please,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him, “I’m a champ at this game. Ialwayswin.”

He winked at me, his smirk widening. “You’ve never played me before.”

chapter seven

CELINE

So far, I was in the lead with the most properties. I was just about to roll the dice when Ace got up to get us some water. I waited for him to sit back down before I made my move so he wouldn’t accuse me of cheating. He was quiet as he watched me, something unreadable in his eyes.

“What accident were you in?” I instantly dropped the dice onto the floor and looked at him in shock.

“What accident?” The words almost got stuck in my throat. It was a struggle to get them out.

“I heard you earlier—when you were talking to your mom.”

I shouldn’t have said anything to her on the phone with Ace so close. But I’d been so scared. I’d needed my mom, and all of my fears had just come tumbling out.

Ace must have seen my panicked look because he interrupted me just as I was about to make up some lame story in hopes of keeping him from prying more.

“I’m sorry for eavesdropping; I just remember Ryan saying something, too.” I clenched my jaw.Fucking Ryan. “It’s okay if you don’t want to share. Trust me, if anyone will understand, it’s me.” Pain flashed in his eyes for a brief moment, leaving me toyet again wonder why he hadn’t rushed off to be with his family during the hurricane.

I looked down at the game, my throat convulsing, the words wanting to get trapped again.

“I was in a motorcycle accident two years ago with my boyfriend,” I managed to choke out.

“I’m so sorry, Celine. I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend. Why didn’t he come help you instead of me?” For once, he wasn’t being a pain in the ass. Pain lingered in the depths of his eyes, but so did another emotion that I couldn’t quite pinpoint. It was almost like he was hiding something from me, too.

“He’s dead.” Two years later and it still felt like it was the first time I was telling someone.

He reached for my fisted right hand and gently uncurled my fingers. Wrapping his fingers around mine, he moved closer, coming to sit beside me. He didn’t say anything when he looked at me, but I could see a million questions swirling within his hypnotizing eyes. He was the first person I hadwantedto tell, yet he was the last person I should be sharing such intimate details with.

“If you want to talk about it, then I promise I’ll listen. But if you don’t and you just want to sit here in silence, I can do that, too, princess.” His words were low. Soothing. Calming. And the way he called me princess…

I was starting to love my nickname. And I shouldn’t. I didn’twantto. But it was happening anyway.

“At first, I thought you reminded me of him,” I confessed. He frowned at me. “But in reality, you’re nothing like him. I think I associate all bikers with him and that accident.” Ace still hadn’t let go of my hand—a silent encouragement for me to continue.

“We were best friends before we started dating. He was the new kid in our high school sophomore year, and I was on the welcoming committee, so we met.”

Ace laughed. “Welcoming committee? Never heard of one of those.”

“My brother started it,” I explained. Understanding dawned on Ace’s face because if there was truly one person in this world who would go above and beyond to help others, it was my brother. “There was a kid in his grade who committed suicide because he never made a friend. Never had anyone that had his back. That was a year before I started at the high school.”

I drew in a deep breath, getting back on topic. “Anyway, Aidan and I became best friends. He was everything I was not. He was mysterious, he didn’t follow the rules, and he didn’t take anybody’s crap. I wanted to be just like him.”

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