She never used to be this aware of her surroundings. It’s taken a lot to get her to this point, but with my…guidance,she’s come a long way. I groan at the memory of her pressing the blade to my throat and my cock twitches. The fire that blazed behind her crystal blue eyes, the flush in her cheeks, and the determination in her words stirred something feral inside of me.
I want to push her further; to see how much more she can take before she finally breaks for me.
The sound of tires squealing breaks me out of my momentary trance. Looking in the rearview, I see the red Audi speed around the corner, past my vehicle and out of the parking garage. She thinks she can lose me, get so far ahead of me that I won’t catch up. This is what I’ve been waiting patiently for so long to change–and I am anything but fucking patient–her to realize that I’m not going to fucking leave her alone. She can run all she wants to, I will always catch her.
I decide to give her a few minutes head start. I remove my jacket and place it on the passenger seat, then pull my cell out of my jeans. There are some texts in the group chat between Mav, Slater, Cole and me. Slater wants us to meet him in the security booth tomorrow morning after shift change. There’s another one from Elias telling me he’s going to take tomorrow off and handle some things. What things? Don’t give a shit. I send him a quick ‘K’ in response then drop my phone in the compartment under my radio.
“Time’s up, terror,” I mutter to myself, then press in the clutch and throw the car into reverse.
Once out of the parking space, I shift into first gear and peel out of the garage. Leaving Perdition in my rearview, I speed down the winding road that leads to the interstate. My Camaro has had an engine swap and a ton of other upgrades which make it possible for me to easily catch up to her.
I shift into fifth gear merging onto the highway, taking off like a bat out of hell to find her. It takes around twenty-two minutes to get to Ashlynn’s apartment from Perdition if you’re going the speed limit. Tonight, we’ll make it in half the time. I catch up to the red Q8 in no time and follow behind her. My phone rings almost immediately,Terrorflashing across the screen. A grin tugs at the corners of my mouth as I answer the call.
“Miss me already, doll?”
“Fuck you, Karson! If you follow me home I promise I’ll slit your fucking throat this time. Stay the fuck away from me!” she says, her tone even and harsh, trying to tamp down her anger. Hearing her struggle to maintain her composure makes me chuckle. I watch as she tries to speed up and pull away from me.
Not happening.
I press the gas pedal in further and ride her back bumper, then ease into the left lane. Pulling alongside of her, she whips her head to the side and snarls at me through the window.
“No you won’t,” I say dryly and stare at her.
She’s silent on the other end, breathing heavily like she was back in the parking garage. Ashlynn has been riding the “Fuck Karson” train ever since I barged back into her life and is refusing to get off. She fights me at every turn and I’d be lying if I didn't say it wasn't a turn on at first–now she’s just pissing me off.
It would be one thing if she held her ground like she did in the beginning, but there was a shift after Parker went missing last year. She stopped demanding I leave her aloneeverytime she saw me and became slightlymore tolerable of my presence. She watched how Parker would hug me every time she saw me, and still does. To this day she watches our interactions in shock, as if she can’t believe that someone would actuallylikebeing around me.
“Do you really want to try me, asshole?” she spits and I let out a dark chuckle.
“Sure do.”
I punch the gas, launching past her then merging in front just in time to get off of her exit.
“Son of a bitch,” she mumbles to herself before the line goes dead.
Dropping the car into fourth, then third gear, I don’t even stop at the light at the end of the ramp before turning right andracing the three blocks left to her apartment. Looking up in my rearview, I see her stop at the red light, and I take advantage of the time I have before she catches back up to me. I ease past her street and look for a parking spot on the next one over. She’ll pull right up in front of her building like she always does and think she managed to get me to fuck off.
Sorry about your luck, doll.
Pulling up on the emergency brake, I exit the car and start walking in the direction of her building. The cool, early morning air slaps me in the face, giving me a burst of energy and I pick up the pace. Digging around in my pocket, I pull out a cigarette and stuff it between my lips. Lighting it with my zippo, I take a long drag and feel the mentholated nicotine swirl through my lungs with the crisp, early morning air; the excitement I feel calming slightly. As I round a corner to turn on her street, her Audi pulls up along the curb and parks. She steps out of the car, slams the door and locks it behind her before stomping onto the sidewalk to enter the front of the building.
Poor thing’s still pissed at me. She needs to get over it. I’ve been patient with her long enough. I lean against the brick wall of the building beside hers, counting to myself while I finish my smoke.
Thirty–she’s checked her mailbox in the lobby.
Forty-five–the elevator doors are opening and she’s stepping inside.
Seventy-five–she’s arrived on the fourth floor.
Ninety–putting her key in the lock.
One hundred and twenty–I look up and like clockwork, the lamp in the living room area is turned on.
One hundred and sixty–the soft glow of another lamp illuminates the fifth floor, and her silhouette appears in the window of her bedroom.
She’s looking for me. I watch as she cranes her neck to the left and the right, but I’m still perched against the neighboring building. When she disappears from the window, I make my way to the front door of hers and walk inside. I don’t bother with the elevator. I want her to think I’ve decided to just toy with her instead of actually showing up tonight.
I ascend the stairs in just under two minutes, trying to take as much time as I can, and open the door to her floor. Strolling down the hall, I quietly hum the tune from the song that played in the club tonight when she noticed I was there. I run my finger along the wall absentmindedly as I think about that night when she came crashing back into my life like a goddamn hurricane.
