Into The Fire (11 page)

Now I felt like an idiot. I put myself out
there and got rejected—coldly.

“Hey.” His voice came out gentle. “Saying no
wasn’t easy. You know how attracted I am to you. I sincerely hope
you still want it in the morning. Because my morning wood is going
to be bigger than usual.” He leaned in and gave me a gentle kiss on
the lips. His mouth was soft and delicate. Even though the touch
was innocent, it somehow made me melt. “Good night,
sweetheart.”

“Good night.”

***

When I woke up the following morning, I had a
huge migraine. My head throbbed and it wouldn’t stop. I remembered
going out last night with Shelly. And I remembered Tom and his
slick moves. But everything else was a blur.

I groaned then opened my eyes, hating the
light from the window. Then I turned to see Ash beside me. The
sheets were around his waist, and his chiseled torso was defined
and hard.

What the hell?

I quickly sat up and searched my brain. Why
was he here? I was with Tom so how did I end up with Ash?

What the hell was going on?

Ash released a loud sigh as his eyes
fluttered open. He stretched his arms above his chest then looked
at me. His hair was messy and he had a sleepy look in his eyes that
was somehow sexy. “Morning, sweetheart.”

I slept with him?

I didn’t even remember it.

Oh god, this was bad.

“Uh…” I kicked the sheets away and realized I
was wearing his shirt. “Oh no.”

Ash wrapped his arm around me and pulled me
back to his chest. “Where do you think you’re going?”

I moved out of his embrace again. “What
happened last night?”

“You don’t remember?” That stupid smile was
on his lips.

“Does it look like I remember?”

“Then I made the right decision…”

“Sorry?”

“You called me last night from outside of a
bar. I picked you up and brought you home.”

“Oh…” That wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought.
“Then why are you sleeping with me?”

“Well…there’s more to the story.”

That didn’t sound good.

“You wanted to sleep together—badly. I said
no.”

My cheeks flushed red instantly. Everything
came back to me, and the humiliation washed over me like cold
water. I remembered everything, the way I tried to seduce him and
even…kissing him through his boxers. “Oh my god.” I covered my
face.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.
It’s really not a big deal.”

I quickly jumped out of bed but slipped on my
dress and fell on the hardwood floor.

God, just kill me
.

“You alright?”

I grabbed my chest and stood up “I’m fine. I
just…have to be somewhere.”

He released an irritated sigh.
“Alessandra—”

“You should go.” I stormed into the bathroom
and shut the door.

Ash sighed then left the bed. His feet were
heard on the hardwood floor. “I’ll leave. But I want to talk about
this later.”

I sat on the floor with my knees to my
chest.

He approached the door and leaned against it.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I had a great time. I prefer you
drunk.”

“Just go.”

He sighed. “Okay. I’ll see you later.” His
feet walked away and then I heard the sound of my front door
opening and closing.

Once he was gone, I covered my face with my
dress. “Ugh!”

***

I didn’t speak to Ash all week and he didn’t
call me. Maybe if I avoided him long enough, everything would just
go away. Maybe he would forget everything. And maybe I would stop
thinking about it.

I made such an idiot out of myself and now I
was totally mortified. I acted like such a slut and totally threw
myself at him. I even kissed his erection through his boxers… I was
such a skank. And the fact I liked it so much made it even
worse.

He must have thought I was pathetic, begging
him to sleep with me like that.

All my class went out the window.

I was sitting at home when my phone lit up
with a text message.

Hey, sweetheart. I know you’re trying to
forget everything that happened but I need you on Saturday for
dinner with my parents.

Dammit. Now I had to face the music.
Sure.

So, can I pick you up at six?

Yeah
. I didn’t want to face him but
there was no way around it. I had to escort him tonight. It would
sabotage his plan if I didn’t. He couldn’t just replace me with a
new girl because that would ruin everything.

I look forward to seeing you.

I threw my phone down and tried not to
scream.

***

Ash knocked right on time.

I stared at the door and considered not
answering it. How could I face him and not blush crimson red? How
could I hold my head high when I was just on my knees last
week?

I smoothed out my dress before I opened the
door. I quickly turned my back then grabbed my clutch from the
kitchen table. Not facing him right away might make this
easier.

Ash shut the door behind him. “Hey. Long time
no see.”

“Yeah…” I fidgeted with my clutch just so I
had something to do.

Ash came behind me and pressed his chest to
my back. His arms circled my waist. “Would you stop being a drama
queen about this?”

I didn’t turn around.

“I had a lot of fun that night. Hearing you
tell me what you want from me was a nice treat.”

“Not helping…”

“Why are you ashamed of that?” He gripped my
waist and forced me to turn around and face him. “You think I
didn’t want you? You know how much I wish you were sober? It wasn’t
easy for me to lie there and do nothing when my dick was
rock-hard.”

“Let’s just not talk about this anymore…” I
avoided his look.

“No.” He pulled me tight against his chest.
“You have nothing to be embarrassed about. I’m the least judgmental
person in the world. You really believe I think less of you?”

“I’m just embarrassed that I was so
aggressive.”

“Why?” he asked. “It was hot.”

“Yeah?”

“Really hot.” He pressed his forehead to
mine. “Don’t be awkward around me. I don’t like it. I miss
you.”

“You miss me?”

“Yeah. You’re the only girl friend I’ve ever
had. I don’t want to lose you.”

Somehow, he made me melt and forget about my
humiliation.

Ash saw the life return to my eyes. “There
she is. Now, are we okay?”

I nodded.

“Good. Because that was a stupid thing to be
embarrassed about.” He grabbed my clutch from the table and handed
it over. “And you look hot tonight, by the way.” Without waiting
for my reaction he headed to the door. “Let’s go.”

***

His parents lived in the suburbs in
Connecticut. It was a nice little house with a decent backyard. It
wasn’t a mansion by any means, but it was definitely comfortable.
It would be nice to be away from the city every once in a
while.

We sat down to dinner and made small talk.
This time, Ash was affectionate with me and I didn’t need to remind
him to be. His arm went over the back of my chair and he spoke to
his parents like everything was great.

His parents were nice, but I was irritated
they were making their son jump through hoops just to get back the
money he loaned to them. It was so morally wrong it left a bad
taste in my mouth. Ash was a little crazy and over-the-top but he
had so many good qualities. Why did they feel the need to change
him? I wouldn’t change anything.

His mom clapped her hands excitedly. “Now
that dinner is ready…”

“You’re going to get the check book?” Ash
blurted.

His mom ignored his comment and returned with
a photo album. “It’s picture time.”

“Picture time?” Ash asked. “Why would
Alessandra want to see pictures of me?”

“Because I’m your girlfriend,” I reminded
him. He could be really dense sometimes.

“So?” he asked. “That still doesn’t make any
sense to me.”

“Just shut up and sit there.” His mom sat
beside me and flipped through the pages. “And here’s Ash’s story…”
The first few pictures of Ash were of him as a baby.

“Ugh,” Ash said. “I was one ugly baby.”

“Were not,” his mom said defensively. “You
were beautiful—still are.” She continued flipping the pages to
pictures from his little league days. “He was always good at
sports.”

“I’m good at everything,” Ash said.

“Can you be quiet for a few minutes?” I
asked.

His mom chuckled and kept turning the pages.
When we got to his time in high school, his handsome features
really came in. He lost all his baby fat and was nothing but
hardness. Slight facial hair was on his face. He wasn’t as tall as
he is now, but he was still gigantic.

Then she turned the page to his military
days. There were pictures of him in his uniform when he was sworn
in, and other times when he was visiting. I’d never been a fan of
the uniform but Ash looked really hot in it.

“So handsome,” his mom said. “Strong
man.”

I leaned toward him and lowered my voice.
“You really fill out that uniform…”

That stupid grin stretched across his face.
“Maybe I’ll put it on for you when we get back.”

That’d be nice.

His mom finally put the album away. “We have
such a handsome boy. We’re very lucky.” She patted his shoulder
affectionately.

“Thanks, Mom.” He sipped his wine and kept
his arm around me. “Alessandra and I were talking about me going
back to school.”

We were?

His mom sat back down again. “Really?” She
couldn’t hide the happy surprise in her eyes.

“Alessandra says I’m really good with
sketching, so she thinks I should pursue a degree in art history,
maybe become a professor or something.”

I couldn’t picture Ash ever doing that.

“That sounds like a great idea,” his dad
said. “An admirable goal.”

Why couldn’t they just accept him for
exactly who he was?

“You’re really rubbing off on him,” his mom
said. “But in a good way.”

“She’s pretty amazing,” Ash said. “I’m lucky
she puts up with me.”

Sitting there and lying to his family felt so
deceitful. Ash shouldn’t have to pretend to be someone else. It
simply wasn’t fair.

“Let’s move into the living room for coffee
and dessert,” his mother said.

“Great idea.” His dad rose from the
table.

I turned to Ash and gave him an accusatory
look.

He knew what it meant. “I just have to get
through this. Then I can tell them where to go.”

***

Ash walked me to my door. “Thanks for putting
up with my family tonight.”

“They really aren’t that bad. It’s obvious
how much they love you.”

“They love me so much that they want to
change me?”

“I admit that isn’t fair…but they mean well.
At least, they think they do.”

“Whatever.” He leaned against the door panel
with his hands in his pockets. “So…you like a man in uniform,
huh?”

“Well, you looked really hot in it.”

“I look hot in everything—and nothing.” He
gave me that smartass wink.

“You’d be the perfect man if you were a
little more humble.”

“I don’t want to be perfect,” he said. “Then
I’d never be able to shake the stalkers.”

“There you go again…” I got my keys out of my
clutch.

“You didn’t lose them this time?” he
teased.

“I wouldn’t want to be stuck with you for the
night.”

“Sure…” He wiggled his eyebrows.

I got the door unlocked then walked
inside.

Uninvited, Ash entered behind me. “So, what
do you want to do?”

“I want you to go home,” I said. “Our date is
over.”

He eyed his watch. “It’s not midnight yet. I
still get two hours of your time.”

Damn, I forgot.
“Want to watch
TV?”

“Sure.” He moved to the couch then plopped
down. “This is pretty comfy.”

“Thanks.” I sat beside him and grabbed the
remote.

“Where’d you get it?”

“Macy’s.”

“I’ll keep that in mind when I decorate my
house.”

“What house?” I asked.

“The house in the mountains. You know, the
one I told you about.”

“Oh yeah.”

“I think we’re making progress with my
parents. They should give me the money soon.”

“What if they want you to get married
first?”

“Uh…I sincerely hope not. That’s a little
ridiculous.”

“I wouldn’t put it past them.”

“What would we do if that situation came
up?”

“I can pose as your wife. I’ve done it
before.”

“We don’t have to actually sign a marriage
license?”

“Nope.”

“I guess that could work. And after they gave
me back my money, we could stop the charade and I could give them
the bird.”

“Like you ever would.”

He shrugged. “Even when they’re wrong, I
can’t tell them off. It’s weird, you know? At the end of the day,
they’re still my parents.”

“I know what you mean.”

“So, what are we watching?” He snatched the
remote from my hand and clicked through the channels.

“Hey, why do you get to choose?”

“Because I took the remote.”

I tried to take it back.

He moved it out of my reach. “Too slow,
sweetheart.” He put it on the sports channel. “Ooh…the Yankees are
playing.”

“This is a rerun.”

“Whatever. It’s either this or some dirty
movie.”

“I’d prefer the dirty movie, honestly.”

His head snapped in my direction at lightning
speed. “You serious?”

“Well, I’ve already seen this game.”

“If you’re dead serious, I’ll change it. I’ve
never watched porn with a chick before.”

“It’s just porn.”

“Alright.” He changed the channel and found a
dirty movie. “Ooh…she needs to keep her job but she broke the
rules. What will she do?”

I rolled my eyes. “Go out and find another
one. That’s what I would do.”