“I’m not—“
He struck me across the face, and I fell into the barstool, barely grabbing in time to stay on my feet. The sting reverberated in my skin down to my teeth.
“I told you once, Chloe,” he said, standing over me. “You belong to me.”
I peered through my disheveled hair, gripping that barstool so much that my knuckles were white.
The wine bottle I’d been drinking from was on the counter.
“And if you’re not mine, no one can have you.”
Aidan’s hand threaded in my hair. He jerked me upward—
I lunged for the wine bottle and threw it over his head as he whipped me around. It crashed into his scalp, shattering over us, and I bolted. Screamed at the top of my lungs. I jumped over the couch, trying to grab my phone before running into the bedroom—
He grabbed my hair in mid-air and yanked me backward. I landed on my spine, my head slamming into the hard floor, and for a moment, I could only groan at the pain and stars behind my eyes.
“Fucking bitch.”
My phone was buzzing. Gavin’s name appeared on the screen. I scrambled for it, swiping the answer button in a rush. “Gavin!” I nearly screamed his name into the phone. “Gavin—“
But his slow chuckle caught me off-guard. Blood evacuated from every cranny of my body. I stopped squirming, stopped breathing.
“Did you like my surprise, baby?” he asked, his voice sinister and profound.
No.
No. No.No.
“Gavin?” I managed, heartbeat thudding in my ears.
Hands grabbed my ankles and snatched me in reverse. My nails dug into the rug and the floor, grabbing for the chair, even as my writhing did nothing. The couch became a blur. The rug was a distant thing that my nails couldn’t catch. The living room grew darker, smaller. I screamed, screamed,screamed—
I bolted upright off the couch so fast that I fell to the floor.
Sweat beaded on my forehead. The television was on the same reality tv show it was on before. My heart continued to throb in my ears. I threw the blanket off me and scrambled away from the couch, the rug, the tv—everything that had just been in my dream.
Dream.
It had been a dream.
Just a dream.
Cold relief washed over me. I buried my head in my hands, tears streaming down my cheeks. My heart didn’t want to slow down, even with my deep breaths.
Shit. I hadn’t had a dream like that in months. The last time had been over Christmas when I thought I’d seen Aidan on the streets, but I had looked up his band and found out he was across the country. Thank fuck, Lana had been in town to keep me sane.
I rubbed my hands over my face and hugged my knees, reminding myself to breathe.
He isn’t here. There are no pictures of you out there. You’re safe. You’re okay.
My phone vibrated on the glass coffee table, making me jump. I was positive my heart completely stopped at the surprise. But as I slowly rose to my feet and saw the name on my screen, I sighed.
Are you awake?Gavin asked.
I didn’t reply until I had gone to the restroom to put a cold towel on my neck and then pour myself a vodka soda. Gavin had texted again by the time I sat back on the couch, and finally calmed down from the scare. Though, I still made sure to tilt a barstool beneath the doorknob.
Or am I too late?
