“Is it your side?” I shifted to move back, but his hold anchored me in place.
“Yes… and everything else.”
Not wanting to dive into the possibilities of what his statement meant, I asked him another question. “Can you tell me anything about what happened?”
“Other than someone shot me?”
“Yeah.”
“No.”
Ace was secretive about most of his dealings with the Knights, more so as of late, and I’d never cared before. But now things had changed and him holding back information irked me. I had a right to know how much danger I could possibly be in, but if I asked him again, I’d get the same answer.
With a roll of my eyes and an elongated sigh, I asked, “What did you want to talk about?”
“Don’t be like that.”
“Like what?” I played dumb, but he saw right through me.
“You know I can’t tell you certain things about the club, and this is one of those instances.”
“Fine.” My shoulders bounced in a lazy shrug.
“If I wasn’t in fear of popping more stitches, I’d throw you over my shoulder and punish you for being so….”
“So what?” He struggled to find the words this time, so I tried to help him out. “Inquisitive? Worried? Curious?”
“Curious is the same as inquisitive.”
I ignored his correction and finished with “Scared?”
Ace pulled me closer. “Please don’t be scared, Chels. I won’t let anything happen to you. Which brings me to what I wanted to talk to you about.” A moment passed, then another. “I think it’s best if, for now, you stay here with me.” He gently clamped his hand over my mouth when I started to interject. “Let me finish before you start in on me. I’d feel much better if you lived here with me until we can settle all this shit that’s goin’ on. This house is secure and yours isn’t. On top of you movin’ in, like I said at the salon earlier, I don’t want you goin’ anywhere without either me or one of the other guys. I’ll do my best to take you back and forth to work myself, but just in case, we have help. And you need to make sure I can reach you whenever I’m not with you.”
I grabbed his wrist and shoved his hand away from my mouth, careful not to jostle too much because of how close my body was to his. I didn’t want to injure him any more than he already was.
“Anything else?” I asked sarcastically.
“Yes.” He inhaled a breath and suddenly what he was going to say next seemed to have the power to make me dizzy with anticipation. He could utter anything in the world at this point, make more demands of me, and what was I gonna do? Refuse? Because that wouldn’t go over well at all. I prepared myself for a massive argument when our little “talk” was complete, even though I didn’t believe I possessed an ounce of pushback tonight. Not after trying to come to grips that Ace could’ve been stolen from me for good, and all while I was being a stubborn pain in the ass toward him.
The silence continued until I leaned back on his lap, putting a bit more distance between us, just in case I didn’t like what he said next, which I doubted I would if I knew anything about the obstinate man beneath me.
“Are you gonna tell me?” Why did I ask the question? I should’ve just let it go. Maybe he would’ve forgotten or let it go altogether.
Apparently, I loved being delusional.
His fingers dug deeper into my waist, then he shifted underneath me, and it was all I could do to not let him know how turned on the simple movement made me.
“I know I gave you an ultimatum, and when you didn’t give me the answer I wanted, I said it was over between us. I wanted to stick to my guns and forget about you, but I couldn’t. I can’t. I was comin’ for you even before I got shot.” Ace moved his hands to cradle my face, pulling me so close his lips were a whisper away from mine. “I love you. You’re it for me. You’re mine. I’m not letting you go, and more than that, I’m not letting you push me away anymore.” I closed my eyes because I didn’t want to see the disappointment in his when I couldn’t reciprocate. “Don’t do that, baby. Look at me.” He gently pressed his mouth over mine, then pulled back. “Look at me,” he repeated, stroking his thumbs over my cheeks. “Please.”
His plea sliced me in two, my heart stuttering when I finally pried my lids open. In his uncertainty, his teeth harassed the corner of his bottom lip, the sight tugging at the deepest part of me.
I didn’t want to admit it, but I did love this man. I just couldn’t tell him, not yet. I hoped one day I could, but the walls were still raised too high for me. There was too much at stake. I couldn’t risk it. I gave someone my heart once before and he’d trampled it when he betrayed me. Dealing with the issues I had toward my father was enough, then to add a broken heart in the mix only served to shove me into the world of detachment and avoidance… which was where I lived now.
“I don’t know what to say,” I confessed, making a move to get off him but he wouldn’t allow me to just yet.
“You could say the words.”
“What words?”
“Tell me you want to be with me.” I parted my lips but remained quiet. “You don’t have to tell me you love me yet, but I want you to acknowledge that we’re together now. For good. Just you and me.”
The last bit of hesitancy evaporated when I gave life to my next words. “Yes.”
“Yes what?” He smirked.
“Yes, I agree we’re together.” I mirrored his expression. “Just you and me.”
Instead of coming back with a smartass comment, Ace schooled his expression. “And tell me you’ll cooperate with me on all the other stuff. I need to know you take what I said seriously.”
My instinct was to buck against every bit of it. I was independent and could take care of myself, but through all my stubbornness, my sensible side somehow emerged. He could’ve lost his life the other day and he pretty much admitted he wasn’t out of danger yet, which meant neither was I or anyone else associated with the club.
“I’ll stay here until everything is dealt with.” Ace’s upper lip twitched. “But I want you to be the one with me when I have to go to work or anywhere else. Unless of course I’m mad at you, then I want Brick, Linc, or Kaden. Not that bastard whose truck I hit. I don’t know him.” I couldn’t believe the words coming out of my mouth and by the surprised look on his face, he was shocked as well.
“Okay.” He nodded. “Okay,” he echoed. “One other thing.”
“Haven’t you pushed me enough already?”
He shook his head. “While you’re here with me, do you think Linc and Maddie can stay at your place until they find one of their own? He’s having a hard time finding one and this solution would be perfect for now.”
I moved back while remaining on his lap. “Wait. You said my place wasn’t safe. So why would it be safe for them, especially Maddie?”
His face scrunched up a bit. “Uh, that’s the other part of my question. Can he install a security system there, complete with indoor and outdoor cameras?”