Page 30 of Broken Bonds

The water was pushing me further away from the Ave, pulling me closer to the beach. I had to fight the current to keepmy head above the water. The road wasn’t too far from me, but it was far enough that it made trepidation and paralyzing fear begin to cling to my limbs.

Through my burning eyes, I thought I could make out Ace, his arms waving in the air. He was safe on land. He couldn’t get to me; I was so far. I was going todrown.

“ACE, HELP!” I screamed for him again. Water rushed into my mouth, and I coughed and sputtered, the saltiness burning its way down my raw throat.

I was tired of always fighting and begging someone to save me. This was supposed to be a fun adventure. Ace was supposed to protect me. He wasn’t supposed to let me go.

He wasn’t supposed to be another Aidan.

Rain fell hard, hitting my face. I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I couldn’t fight against the cold anymore. I hoped someone found my body. I hoped my parents found peace once I was gone. I hoped Ryan didn’t turn his back on Ace for this. I hoped Ace didn’t suffer from survivor’s guilt. I hoped he survived and made it to the shelter, where he would be safe and warm.

I closed my eyes against the harsh raindrops. I was so tired.

Aidan, I’m coming.

chapter thirteen

ACE

THE OTHER NIGHT

I had never wanted to kiss a girl more than I did as I stared down at Celine. After everything she had shared, everything she had been through, all I could focus on was how much I wanted to feel her lips pressed to mine. How badly I wanted to erase the pain lingering in her eyes.

It took every ounce of willpower I had to walk away from her when she looked so vulnerable. I never walked away from a girl asking me to kiss them. Never walked away from a girl whose eyes were begging me for so much more. Ineversaid no to a girl when they offered themselves up to me.

Yet… there I was. Walking away from the most tempting girl I’d ever laid eyes on because I’d promised her brother—the only person who’d been decent to me inyears—that I wouldn’t touch her.

I had trouble falling asleep that night, my every thought plagued with images of her pinned under a burning bike. I had been riding since I could walk. My bike was like an extension ofmy arm. I had raced dirt bikes growing up and broken just about every bone in my body while doing it as I learned to do tricks. I knew how dangerous bikes were, butneverhad I been pinned underneath one while it was on fire.

I wanted to know more about her. I wanted to know about her recovery. I wanted to hear her story. She shared so much with a stranger, and like her, I had a past I would rather forget about—a past that I was still fighting to break free from. A past that plagued me and affected every single decision I made in my life.

I fell asleep thinking about the restless nights I endured after I graduated, how many times I had cleaned up my own blood, how many times I had stopped my stepfather from hurting me and my mom, and how many times I carried my mother to bed during one of her drunken stupors.

And the little boy I missed more than fuckinganything.

“HELP! Aidan, help!” Celine’s panicked voice startled me from a deep sleep, and I jerked into a sitting position, sweat clinging to my own skin from the heat and from my own flashbacks. “Aidan!” Celine screamed again, even more panic and fear in her voice.

I rushed out of bed, tripping over my own feet in the darkness of the room. She had gone quiet, but I could hear a whooshing sound coming from downstairs. Frowning, I changed direction, heading for the door of Ryan’s room. My eyes widened in horror at the sight. Water was flooding into the house.Shit, shit, shit!We had to get the fuck out of here.

Celine screamed again—no words this time—just a blood-curdling scream that sent goosebumps down my arms and a chillracing down my spine. I ran into her room, where her tortured screams were filling the air. She was reliving that nightmare over and over. Just like I relived my own every night. Ihatedit. I wished I could remove all that horror from her memory.

“Celine! Celine! Wake up! Celine, wake up!” Leaning over her bed, I roughly shook her. She slowly opened her eyes, blinking them once, then twice, not registering anything. Her cheeks were wet with tears, and her body was damp with sweat. I didn’t know whether to help her or continue freaking out over the water. “We have to go, Celine. We have to go!” The flooding won out. I pulled her out of bed and spotted her sweatpants on the floor, so I threw them at her, not looking at her legs. I couldn’t go there—she wasn’t available. She screamed again, and I jumped in surprise, my heart damn near slamming out of my chest and onto the carpet of her bedroom.

“Don’t look at me!” I barely bit back a flinch. I guessed she hadn’t meant what she said last night. If I had kissed her, we would have woken up in the same bed. She would have woken up in my arms, and maybe she wouldn’t have had that dream. But one thing was for sure—she would’ve regretted it as soon as she woke up.

When I turned to look at her, she was jumping into the sweatpants, doing it so quickly that she almost fell over.

“What are you talking about?” I turned away from her, trying to see in the darkness for a bag. I had to get us some supplies and get us out of this house before we couldn’t safely get out any longer.

“Why did you wake me?” I yanked open her wardrobe door. I could just barely make out the shadow of a backpack in the darkness, so I grabbed it and threw whatever clothes touched my fingers into the bag.

I left her room, running through the shared bathroom into Ryan’s room, and threw a pair of Ryan’s jeans into the bag anda shirt. I rushed back to the sleepy girl looking at me like I was crazy. Couldn’t she hear the water? It was soloud. She was going to panic when she realized what was happening to her vacation house. And I knew she was going to want to stay, but I promised Ryan I would protect her. I promised Celine she would survive. And I wasn’t willing to break either of those promises.

I would not be the reason someone died. Not again.

“Ace, what the hell are you doing?” She rubbed her eyes and then looked at me, like she wasn’t understanding why I was running around.God, she’s beautiful.I wished I had met her before I met Ryan. Maybe then, I could have pursued a relationship or even just one night with her.

Immediately, I shook the thought from my head because there was no future for us.Just friends. Nothing more. I couldn’t let her get attached to me; I had to make her hate me. I had to be the asshole she kept calling me. I wasn’t good enough for her. I wouldneverbe good enough.

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