Guarding the Broken

  “Yeah, and I loved LA,” she flirted.

  That sounded so much like the words from last night that my insides squirmed. “I loved LA too.” I loved it more than I could ever tell her. “So, what were you dreaming about last night?” I probed, trying to go for the casual approach in finding out if she’d been talking to me when she said those three little words.

  She shrugged and pushed herself up to a sitting position, holding the sheets to her chest. “No idea, why?”

  “You were talking in your sleep,” I explained.

  She raised one eyebrow inquisitively. “Really? What did I say?”

  “You said something about Jack,” I lied. “Were you dreaming about him?” I asked, hoping to be able to get the answer I wanted without having to ask outright.

  She pursed her lips, obviously thinking back. But then she shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. Maybe, but I don’t usually dream of Jack unless it’s a nightmare,” she winced.

  I sighed and pulled her back down next to me. My heart was thumping wildly in my chest. If she didn’t usually dream of Jack, then was she talking to me last night? Deep down I knew that she may have heard me say it and subconsciously thought I was Jack. I’d probably never know so I should stop stewing over it before it drove me crazy. “You didn’t have a nightmare, Baby Girl. I just thought I heard you say Jack, that’s all.”

  She shrugged one shoulder. “I don’t remember dreaming anything.”

  I smiled. That answer was good enough for me.

  “I’m gonna go make you some breakfast. Do you want scrambled eggs or something? I’m in the mood for something hot.” She climbed out of the bed and pulled on my boxer shorts and shirt that I’d worn the previous night.

  A lump formed in my throat. She looked seriously hot in my clothes. I laughed at my excited body, and she looked at me weirdly. “I think that is the sexiest outfit I’ve ever seen you wear,” I explained, raking my eyes over her slowly, taking in every delicious inch of her.

  She looked down at herself and laughed incredulously. “Yeah, okay, Ashton.” She shook her head dismissively, blowing me a kiss at the door as usual and heading to the kitchen.

  Once I was alone, I looked down at my crotch and sighed heavily. Another cold shower was needed. They were becoming pretty normal for me in the last two months. As much as I loved waking up next to the girl of my dreams, a wood that wouldn’t go away and aching balls really wasn’t something that I enjoyed very much.

  After an extremely quick shower, I dressed and then headed out of my bedroom, stopping in the kitchen doorway. I leant on the door frame watching Anna make breakfast in my oversized clothes. I’d never seen anything so sexy in my life – and Nate obviously thought that too because he was leaning over the counter, watching her legs while she cooked with her back to him.

  “So, do you have a sister you could hook me up with?” he asked her.

  “Nope, and even if I did, I wouldn’t let you hook up with her,” Anna replied, laughing.

  “Hey, why the hell not?” he cried, sounding a little hurt.

  “Because you’re a player, and players break girls’ hearts,” she answered, shrugging, totally oblivious to him checking her out.

  “Well Ashton’s a player too, and you’re dating him,” he countered. I got a little uneasy at that statement. I’d changed; there was no way I was going back to that life again. I wanted her and only her.

  “Well, Ashton’s special,” she answered. I smiled at that.

  “Special, huh? You love him?” Nate asked.

  Her back stiffened as her hand stilled on the eggs she was stirring on the stove. “Do you want two slices of toast?” she asked, totally avoiding the question.

  Please say yes, please say yes! My head was screaming, begging her to answer the question.

  “Don’t change the subject; do you love my best friend? I need to know what your intentions are, young lady,” Nate teased, using a father figure tone of voice.

  She shrugged. “We’ve been going out for two months. That’s not long enough to fall in love with someone.” Her tone was uncomfortable and tight.

  “He loves you,” Nate stated.

  Fuck! What did you say that for? Shut the hell up, big mouth! That was the second time he’d told her I was in love with her this weekend.

  She shook her head, moving three plates onto the counter next to her as she started to butter the toast. “No he doesn’t, he just thinks he does. He doesn’t know what a bitch I am; when he finds out, he’ll leave me. They all do. I’m cursed,” she joked, laughing.

  “Well, if he does, you give me a call,” Nate replied, looking over her legs again.

  As I stood there, dumbfounded, I slowly processed what she’d said. Clearly she still thought I was going to leave her. Maybe if I showed her I wasn’t going to, then she’d finally open up to me.

  Clearing my throat, I stepped into the room, forcing a smile. She grinned at me, her eyes twinkling with that little spark that she’d had all weekend. As I got to Nate’s side, I slapped him on the back of the head. “Stop staring, it’s rude.”

  He groaned and rubbed the back of his head, wincing. “Shit, Taylor, when the hell are you leaving? I’m gonna come out of this weekend covered in bruises!” he whined.

  I grinned and sat on the stool next to his. “About four,” I answered, pouring myself a glass of milk.

  Anna smiled as she set a steaming pile of eggs in front of me. My stomach growled and my mouth watered as the smell wafted up. As we all dug in, Anna sat next to me. “What are we doing today?” she asked.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. Whatever you want. We need to pack though and leave for the airport about four, but we’ll have a few hours here at least.”

  She pursed her lips and nodded. “We don’t need the car for the next hour or so, do we?”

  “I guess not,” I answered, confused as to where this was going.

  Anna grinned and closed her hand over the keys to the rental car, sliding them across the counter towards Nate. “Go on then, Nate, knock yourself out,” she chirped.

  He gasped. His eyes widened in shock. “You’re kidding me. Seriously?” he asked, grinning and jumping off his stool, abandoning his half eaten breakfast.

  “Sure,” she agreed. “And don’t worry about scratching it or anything, it’s in Ashton’s name,” she joked, winking at him.

  I scoffed and shook my head quickly. “You’d better freaking worry about scratching it!” I warned.

  He actually giggled like a little girl as he practically ran for the front door. “I’ll be careful,” he promised, slamming the door behind him.

  I groaned. “I love that car,” I whined, making Anna laugh.

  She chuckled and stood up, scraping the last bits of her food into the trashcan before turning back to me. “So what shall we do for our last couple of hours?”

  Deciding to make the most of our last few hours of freedom, I strode over to her and grabbed her waist, lifting her easily and throwing her over my shoulder. She squealed and giggled as I carried her into the lounge and plopped her onto the sofa. “Cuddling, making out and getting naked sounds good,” I answered, settling myself down at her side.

  She giggled and poked me in the ribs, which just started a tickle war that she most certainly lost before she begged me to stop, claiming she was about to pee herself. Happier than I had been in a long time, I settled down on the sofa next to her, just breathing her in as we talked about nothing in particular. In the back of my mind, I knew that I had to be the luckiest guy in the world because Annabelle Spencer was in my arms.

  When the sound of the front door opening cut through the happy cloud I seemed to be floating on, my heart took off in a sprint. Reacting instinctively, I jumped up and wrenched my gun from my ankle holster, pointing at the door ready to shoot if it was Carter or one of his men.

  Instead though, Nate gasped and his hands flew up innocently. “Whoa shit! It’s me. Damn it, Ashton, calm down!” he shouted,
shaking his head in disbelief.

  I recoiled quickly, immediately clicking on the safety on my gun. “Shit, sorry, I wasn’t expecting you back so soon,” I admitted sheepishly.

  “Soon? Dude, I’ve been gone an hour,” he grumbled, frowning at me as if I’d lost my mind.

  “Oh, I didn’t realise,” I admitted, running a hand through my hair. I hadn’t realised we’d been cuddling and talking for that long. My eyes flicked down to Anna; she was sitting up, seemingly frozen in place, her eyes wide, and her mouth agape. I knelt down next to the sofa and shook my head. “I’m sorry, Baby Girl. Are you okay?”

  She nodded, finally closing her mouth. She pushed herself up to her feet, not looking at me. “I’m gonna go take a shower.”

  As she walked off, my gaze dropped to her hands, noticing that they were shaking. I frowned, hating myself because I’d frightened her. Following her up the hallway, I slapped Nate on the shoulder apologetically. My hand closed over hers as she got to the bathroom. “Are you really okay? I’m so sorry that I scared you. It was a shock, I wasn’t expecting anyone, I just reacted,” I explained.

  She nodded. Her face was pale, and her eyes were a little vacant. “It’s fine.”

  I traced my hands up her arms, gripping her shoulders. “If it’s fine, then why are you shaking all over?”

  A tear escaped down her face. “I… I just thought, when you jumped up like that, I thought for a second he was there and he’d come back for me,” she whispered. Her lip trembled as she spoke.

  I groaned, looking up the hallway to see that Nate was watching us curiously. I couldn’t have this conversation in front of him. Reaching behind her, I pushed the bathroom door open and guided her in there, closing the door tightly behind me. “He won’t hurt you again, I promise. You don’t need to be scared anymore. I won’t ever let him hurt you,” I vowed, kissing the top of her head as I pulled her in for a hug. She nodded and clung to me tightly. “I’m so sorry I upset you, this is my fault.”

  She shook her head quickly. “It’s not your fault, it’s mine. I’m such a stupid idiot.” She pulled away from me and swiped at her face roughly, wiping the telltale tears away.

  “You’re not an idiot, Baby Girl. You’re perfect.” I hated the way she thought of herself so badly. She always seemed to turn everything bad around and make it her own fault. It was no wonder she didn’t cope particularly well sometimes; she shouldered too much guilt and blame.

  She sniffed and looked over at the shower. I took that as my cue to leave and dipped my head, kissing her cheek before walking to the door. “I’ll just be outside,” I muttered.

  “Wait!” she called just as my hand closed around the door handle. “I don’t want to be on my own. Will you stay with me?” she begged. “Please? Just sit on the toilet or something.”

  She wanted me to stay in here while she was in the shower? “Er, yeah, sure okay,” I replied, nodding. I made my way over and sat on the toilet, watching as she brushed her teeth before turning on the shower. I groaned internally because I was about to be in the same room with her, naked. As my shirt that she wore fluttered to the floor, I closed my eyes so that I wouldn’t see.

  “You’re really going to sit on the toilet with your eyes closed?” she chuckled weakly.

  “Mmm hmm,” I mumbled, not trusting my voice to speak. The sound of the water changed, so I knew she was under the spray. I put my head in my hands and tried to think of something else other than the water caressing her flawless body. This felt like torture.

  “Ashton?”

  “Yeah?”

  “We’re still in LA, you know,” she giggled.

  My body jerked. Does that mean what I think it means? “And?” I prompted, not wanting to get my hopes up.

  “And, get your hot ass in this shower with me and make me think about something nice instead of what I’m thinking about right now.”

  I stood so quickly that I almost stumbled as my hands went to the bottom of my T-shirt. She didn’t need to ask me twice. Once naked, I stepped into the shower and groaned because of how stunning she looked.

  She smiled weakly. “That was fast,” she teased.

  “Well, that was an offer I couldn’t refuse,” I answered, my voice husky and thick with lust. I watched as the water ran down her body, caressing every inch of her. She gave me a sexy smile and stepped back further into the spray, holding out one hand towards me. I gripped her trembling hand, vowing to take her mind off what happened even if it killed me.

  The day passed incredibly fast. While she packed her clothes, I hung out with Nate in the lounge. Although we were playing a video game, I couldn’t keep my mind off the hot, little shower scene that had gone down hours before. I’d probably never be able to take a shower again without thinking of it. That was another thing she’d ruined for me.

  Suddenly, Nate groaned and looked down at his watch. “I have to leave for work. Where’s that sexy ass of a girlfriend you have? I want to say goodbye.”

  “Bedroom, packing.” I pushed myself up and he followed me into the bedroom, where she was still gathering stuff up. I noticed that she’d started packing my clothes for me too.

  “Hey, Anna, I’ve got to go to work now. It was really good to meet you,” Nate said, walking up to her with his arms out. I stiffened, knowing that she wouldn’t want to be that close to him.

  I saw her hold her breath as she hugged him. “Yeah, you too, Nate. Thanks for letting me stay in your bachelor pad.”

  He grinned wolfishly. “You know what, you can come and stay anytime you want.” He turned back to me, slapping me on the arm. “Seriously, Taylor, bring her back here, she’s a lot of fun.” I could tell by the way he said it that he’d meant it, he genuinely liked Anna.

  “I will,” I confirmed. I would certainly be working on her, trying to convince her to come back here with me in her next scheduled school break. Hopefully her father would go for it a second time, seeing as this trip was so successful.

  He gave me a hug and slapped me hard on the back. “I’ll give you a call, we can arrange a time for playing,” he chirped excitedly. I grinned and nodded in agreement, thinking lovingly about my PS4 that I had waiting for me at our apartment.

  “Yeah, definitely. I’ll call you.”

  Anna smiled and waved as he left the room, closing the door behind him. “Nate’s a great guy. I can see why you like him.”

  “Yeah, he’s cool, all the girls think so,” I replied, grinning at her.

  “Hmm, that’s funny; he just doesn’t do it for me,” she winked at me, and we both laughed and packed up our belongings. Before we left the apartment, I took a few shots of the place. I already had the exact pictures that I wanted on here. There were at least fifteen good photos of me and Anna, and more than that of just her on her own, looking like a goddess.

  On the way to the airport, we stopped by Denny’s to get another chilli cheese dog. That was another thing I would miss about LA. Before we boarded, I called Dean to make sure that he knew where and when to meet us on the other side of the flight. Once everything was set, we were ushered through and seated in first class. As soon as we were in the comfy chairs, she scooted closer to me and I wrapped my arm around her tightly. Within minutes, my eyes became heavy due to my lack of sleep the previous night. When I knew I couldn’t fight it anymore, I rested my head back on the chair and just let myself doze.

  “Ashton, help me please!” she begs. I can hear that she’s crying, her breathing is hitching somewhere off in the darkness, but I can’t see her. I turn, running in the direction that I think she is, but I can’t find her. Doors and corridors stretch off into the distance, and her crying seems to echo from the walls so I can’t get a sense of direction. The place is like a maze. “Please, he’s coming. Please help me!” she screams.

  Desperation makes me feel sick as I run and run, crashing through door after door, trying to get to her. “I can’t find you, Anna! Where are you?” I shout, spinning in a little circle as I grip my
hands into my hair, totally panic stricken.

  “Please help me,” her voice is a whisper and it breaks my heart as I start running aimlessly again.

  A wicked laugh echoes down the corridor and my hair stands up on the back of my neck as I hear his voice. “Well hello, Princess, long time no see.”

  I jerked up, gasping for breath as my hand shot straight down to my ankle, fumbling as I reached for my gun. But it wasn’t there, my holster was empty. I’d had to check it in, so it was locked in a little box in the cockpit with the pilot because of the standard air travel procedure. Sweat beaded on my brow as I looked around quickly, realising that I wasn’t in some darkened maze trying to find her; I was, in fact, still sitting in first class. Anna looked up at me worriedly, her sketchpad balanced on her knees.

  “Ashton, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, Baby Girl. I just had a bad dream.” As soon as I said it, I wished I hadn’t.

  “Really, what about?” she asked, snuggling against me. Her touch made my panic fade marginally.

  I grasped wildly at anything that wasn’t to do with Carter. “Car crash.”

  She recoiled, scrunching her nose up. “Maybe I should drive when we land,” she replied, raising one eyebrow teasingly.

  I shook my head and laughed, feeling my tense body relaxing. “No. You were driving in my dream.”

  She slapped my chest playfully. “I’m not a bad driver!”

  “Yeah right, I won’t trust you to drive our kids around,” I joked.

  She poked me in the side playfully. “I’m not having your babies, Pretty Boy.”

  I shrugged casually. “Hopefully you’ll change your mind. I still have time to make you fall for me. I predict we’ll be engaged within a year,” I teased, pulling her body closer to mine, noticing how she tensed at my words.

  Her forehead creased with a frown as her eyes tightened. “You still under the impression that I’m gonna fall in love with you?” she replied sarcastically.

  “I’m hoping.” I smiled and couldn’t help but laugh; if she knew I was serious, she’d freak the hell out! Knowing I needed to change the subject before she saw though my playful joke that wasn’t actually a joke, I nodded at her sketchpad. “What you drawing?”