Page 25 of Into The Darkness

Ash reached up and pulled my elbows forward, forcing them to stay leaned over the table slightly. His eyes were dark and hooded.

“If you take those perfect lips and pull them over that straw while mouthing off to me, I will punish you in ways that you hoped didn’t exist,” he whisper-growled.

My eyes widened. I had never heard anyone speak like that before. It did something to my lower body I had never felt, and when Ash let me go, I felt empty again.

“I know your brother because, yes, his fraternity happens to be our rival. We are all very aware of who your brother is. The rivalry is nothing but a grudge.”

I couldn’t help but feel like that wasn’t the full truth. Partially because I’d heard more from my brother, but it was just another piece of the puzzle laid out on the table, and I couldn’t quite find where it belonged yet.

“But I told you this now twice. You shouldn’t be around people . . . like me.” There was a resignation in his voice.

“Because then I get drugged and tattooed?”

He chuckled. It wasn’t funny.

“Yes, mi sol, because of that.” He looked down at his hands, which he was rubbing together.

“Is that the only reason?” I was pushing a boundary by asking.

His lip twisted into a half smirk but quickly fell as his head hung low.

“No.” This time he sounded . . . sad, almost heartbroken, so I decided not to push the issue.

“Why did I get a personal invitation in the mail?” I put my hand up. “I swear to God, Ash Ortiz, if you give me some fucking roundabout answer, I will walk out of this fucking place and . . . kick your fucking car.” It was the best I could do with what I knew. I wasn’t exactly known for threatening people every day, so it was the meanest thing I could think of saying in the moment.

Then I realized how dumb I looked.

“The best you could do?” Ash grinned.

I slammed down on the table and tried to stand, but he grabbed my wrists, forcing me back down.

“I don’t know who invited you. I know your roommate was invited, but someone put your name on the list last minute without my knowledge. If I had known earlier, I would have crossed your name off the list before you showed up, before you decided to make out with my doorman and let him feel you up. You never should have gotten in.” He sounded annoyed.

His doorman? I shook it off, feeling satisfied that I pissed him off this time around.

“It was pretty fun to make out withyourdoorman.”

“Fuck, Ember. You are going to be the death of me.” He rubbed his temples but looked right at me as he practically moaned it.

“Do you know what happened to me?” I asked, switching conversations. He didn’t move. I wouldn’t have known this question bothered him but, like earlier, there was the smallest tic in his jaw.

“Do you trust me?” he rasped, and I almost snorted my milkshake out of my nose.

“Do I trustyou? No.”

“I need you to trust me.” He leaned in as if this diner was suddenly packed and he only wanted me to hear. “Ember, I really need you to listen to my words.”

“I don’t even know you.” Tears lined the rims of my eyes. “I came to Isles to study English. All I wanted to do was to go to school, maybe meet a few friends, and do some things that I wouldn’t dare do if I was still in high school.” I couldn’t do it if I was still living under my father’s roof, but I didn’t want to add that in just yet. As I was confessing the feelings that had been stuck inside me the last couple days, the dam opened and I started to cry, not caring anymore that it was Ash sitting in front of me.

“In the last two days, I got sucked into something really fucking shameful for me. I drank too much. I am disappointed that I let myself get so drunk and taken advantage of. I didn’t have my clothes on, Ash.” I reminded him, and the tears rushed freely.

“What if someone did—”

“I told you, Ember, they didn’t.” His voice trembled, a thread of vulnerability running through his words.

With a heavy sigh, I unleashed my pent-up frustration, the weight of everything crashing down on me. “And to top it off, my damn car decided to give up on me today. Then, like a complete idiot, I managed to embarrass myself once more in your presence.” I buried my face in my hands, as if shielding myself from the relentless stream that refused to stop. The floodgates had opened, and the past few days’ collected stress, sadness, and angst poured out. Exhaustion had gripped me; a weariness that went beyond the physical, a bone-deep fatigue that had been building up.

In a heartbeat, Ash slid beside me, offering solace amid the turmoil. I gazed up, his proximity a balm to my tormented emotions, our knees touching in a shared moment of quiet connection.

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