Running on Empty//Closed; Kay

[Ashton Wentworth]

He could hear the water running; she was giving the damned thing a bath. For all he knew she was likely washing the damn thing with his toothbrush just out of spite. Granted, it wouldn’t be a very effective means of cleaning anything but teeth, he didn’t put it past her. He knew that it was highly likely that he was overreacting. The betrayal that he felt was probably not even distantly related to her, it was just her dredging up all the buried feelings of angst and hurt that had been buried in a very shallow grave under his skin. He was acting like they had been together for a long while, when in fact that wasn’t even a little bit true. Hell, they weren’t even technically together at all, nor had they ever been in anything other than the most basic sense of the word. He had just put up with being second or third in people’s lives for as long as he could remember, and he wasn’t going to let a female that he hardly even knew treat him like he didn’t matter. He had to of been wrong, she didn’t really want anything to do with him, not whenever she had bigger and better things to do, that was what she should be doing. She should go and run an animal shelter, then her need for him would be gone completely, he could just purchase her a few choice toys and be on his way, off to sulk in his hotel room all alone. The last thing he wanted was to hold her back. He obviously meant so little to her that he could be so easily replaced by a mongrel. Hitting the heel of his boots with the palm of his hand to make sure that they were on properly he yanked back up the fabric of his jeans and begun to lace them, he had forgotten in his haste. He pulled the nylon strings far too tight, he didn’t want to cut off the blood going to his feet, he also didn’t really want to wear them without socks but he didn’t have much of a choice. The wind had been whipping his little hair around whenever he was outside and he didn’t want to get caught outside barefoot in case the storm decided that it was ready to go for round two. The hood of his jacket was still pulled up over his head; he didn’t even bother to look up whenever the water stopped running, nor whenever he heard feet stomping in his direction. The growls coming for his direction were enough to make him want to head back to the bathroom and place a swift steed toed kick to something, preferably that little Lumps muzzle, shut the damned thing up for a moment.

He could picture it now, after knocking out one of the things front teeth he could snatch the toothbrush and shield It from any further degradation, wielding it as some sort of trophy and storm out of the room, leave her to deal with an angry injured animal all by herself. Hopefully she would sit there furious and let the thing wander off, soaking her carpet and wandering around chewing and marking its ‘territory’ wherever it saw fit, she would be stuck in a cleaning frenzy for the rest of the weekend, and hopefully into the week just so that she wasn’t tempted to call him for any reason. There was no way that he was going to be coming back here again if she insisted on keeping the mutt. He didn’t have the most devout sense of self control so if she did end up calling him for the usual services, he would be happy to provide them. In his suite of course or whenever he decided to live after this, if he was willing to forgive her digressions, maybe then they could move past all of this. It would just have to be like this weekend had never even happened. He would just have to kick her out after they were done, they would fall back into the same old patterns until she decided that she was done with him for good and then move on to some other poor unwitting sap who would think that she actually had the capacity to care for them. Yanking on the straps until he was sure that the strain was about to break them he tied the first knot, gathering the pieces to form the bow and tying it together. For some reason, this was affecting him much more than he cared to admit. Georgie had always chosen her blasted cats over him dozens of times and he hadn’t been this bothered, he guessed it was because the possibility was being taken from him before he actually got a chance to expand on it, or it was because he had been honestly trying to help her all morning long and she didn’t care, much less notice. Pulling the towel from over his shoulder with relish he flung the thing back down on the couch next to him, at least she had the thing back and he would owe her nothing else.

Shuffling his feet to start to lace and tie the other shoe to keep it on his feet during his upcoming bitter get away he had pulled his pants leg up to his knee whenever he heard her clearing her throat. He paused for only a moment before making a few deliberate swipes at the hem of his pants, watching as a few clumps of sand that had formed during the duration of their walk down the waterfront together shook loose and fell to their death on the carpet, exploding upon impact into lot of much smaller little clumps. He didn’t look at her; he figured she was going to start harping on her any moment now. He felt that he knew her fairly well for the short few weeks that they had spent together, and while he might have come to grips with the feelings that he knew now that he had for her, that wasn’t enough to stop him from going running in the opposite direction as fast as he possibly could. He should have never invited her back or bought her that damned dress. He knew better, women never changed, he needed to at least attempt to turn a few of them down, starting with her. “You mind telling me what you’re doing?” Her voice was grating. He didn’t bother to look up at her, it should have been fairly obvious what he was doing. He was getting his things and doing it in a manner that he assumed was going to bother her the most. Pulling on the straps of his second boot firmly, only again pulling them far too tight in his rage, as his fingers fumbled in attempt to make the second knot she wasn’t going away. Didn’t she need to go attend to lump? “Or do you just thoroughly enjoy acting like a child?” At this, his eyes bolted up toward her annoyed face, her little hands firmly planted on her hips. His glare was obvious; she really didn’t know what she had just done? To him it was as obvious as her putting a flashing neon sign above her head stating ‘Go The Hell Away, You’re nothing to me’ He had already played out his part, now she was verbalizing her answer. “Maybe I do” he growled, his voice deeper than it normally was, an edge of hurt seeped in, much to his frustration. What did she expect him to say? That he was okay with being treated like second hand clothing, only around if there was nothing better to wear? He was a man of power and importance, she should know him well enough that he didn’t put up with her crap.

As the dog barked, his head darted to his little ugly furry face, glaring daggers at him as well. He wanted her? Well fine, he could have her. He was obviously better company than he was. As Kaydence’s face came into his view, blocking him from staring at the dog any longer he stared at her instead. “Well? You think this is really necessary?” Without comment he lowered his pants leg again. Moving away from her gaze he slid down onto the body of the couch, his hand dipping in between the couch cushions, searching for his cell phone. Whenever he reached his jacket he balled it up, it was ruined by the water anyway and tossed it in the direction of the door with some force, little water dropping falling from the fabric and dotting her floor like the path of a bee until it landed, there no doubt was going to be a small colored spot whenever he picked up the jacket to take with him back to the hotel room. He didn’t want to answer her, he was no doubt going to say something that he was going to regret in the morning. She was good for her purpose, he just needed to convince himself that was all that she was good for and move on his merry way. He hadn’t come back to Austria looking for any sort of love connection, he had come back in order to work and that was exactly what he intended on doing. Groaning in frustration whenever he didn’t find his phone in any of the cracks he rose off of the couch and stood at his full height, doing his best to not look at Kaydence, he would run the risk of caving if he did. Spotting the electronic item on the counter top he nodded once and headed over to grasp it, avoiding walking too close to lump, if the dog bit him he was not going to be responsible for whatever he did to the damned thing. “Well, You said that I could have my freedom! This is me taking it”

[Kaydence Morgan]

Just when she thought she had begun to get a handle on the man childishly continuing to let sand drop on her floor, he had to go and do something to mess it all up. It was also amazing that he had that much sand attached to various parts of his body. Seriously, it was like he had brought the entire beach back with him. Her anger towards the sand adding to the mess that was her apartment was nothing compared to the anger towards his behavior now. It really was like a five year old was sitting in front of her throwing a temper tantrum because he wasn’t getting his way. His response to her question about his behavior Kaydence didn’t even know what he was so upset about. Her sneaking suspicion assumed that it had to do something with Luka’s presence in the condo. Probably his presence in general. She had no clue as to why it bothered him so much though. Even though the dog was up here, she still was going to spend time with him. Of course she her attention would be unbalanced. Luka would receive more of it then he would. It would only be fair though. Kaydence was sure her new pet wasn’t used to this life of luxury she was about to introduce him into. She needed to ease him into it, though given his current stance, he already was.

”Maybe I do.” This had to be a joke. That and his towel flinging had to be some elaborate prank that he was pulling on her. It was the only logical explanation that she could think of. No way would a grown man be acting this frivolous. “I think that is unnecessary,” Kaydence responded, now fully convinced that she was going to have to replace the towel. Although she was grateful that he had brought it back for her, she had no idea what may have happened to it in their time away. Someone could have used it as a napkin, or even worse, dried off with it. She had no idea. Paranoia was second nature to her now. Now that she looked at it seeping into the fibers of the cushion Kaydence refused to pick it up without wearing some sort of glove. Turning her attention back to Luka she tried not to laugh as the dog still glared as Ashton, ready to attack at her call. The thought was tempting, just giving him a little nip on the hand, but if the reason for Ashton’s sudden change in behavior was because of the dog then last thing she wanted was for it to be dead because of her. Plus she would be devastated. The thing had already had her wrapped around its little paws.

She threw her hands up in anguish as Ashton threw his soaking wet leather jacket down the hall and towards the door. Water spots trailed towards it. “What is your problem?” she yelled. “What right do you have destroying my home? I’m sorry you can’t afford one of your own, but that’s not my problem.” Kaydence really was beginning to get upset, which she was showing through her words. She could sense the possibility of a fight, but was so distraught over her condo being continuously disrespected that she was ready for one. She also had Luka now and she was sure that if Ashton got to be a bit much the dog would have no problem getting him off of her. Making the mistake of letting her eyes survey the damage Kaydence felt on the verge of tears. He truly didn’t care how long all of this was going to take up. That when he left, she was going to be unable to do anything else until everything had been restored to its original order as it best as she could possibly make it until she went to the apothecary later on. Her eyes begin to water up, but she refused to show any emotion to him. He would probably get off on it. Releasing a very long and irritated sigh, she followed him as he made his way to the counter. ”Well you said that I could have my freedom! This is me taking it!” Kaydence scoffed. “By destroying my home in the process? You must have nothing behind that thick skull of yours. I don’t deserve you doing any of this!”

It was all she could do to refrain from hitting him. Instead, Kaydence tried to figure out something to get him back with. His possessions were ruined due to his stupidity from leaving her door open, so that wasn’t an option. She didn’t want to sick Luka on him unless absolutely necessary. Turning her head towards the kitchen, she decided to do the one thing she had thought about earlier. She sauntered over to it, angrily opening her dish cabinet to grab a large bowl from it. Slamming the door shut, she kneeled down to place the bowl on the floor. Kaydence then opened her fridge door and pulled out the half-eaten carton of strawberries. “Luka! Come here boy!” Moving back towards the boy, she made sure to stare into Ashton’s eyes as she opened it, turned it over and dumped its contents onto the ground. She was unsure of whether or not they had actually landed in the bowl given that she had dropped it from several feet above, but it didn’t matter. He wouldn’t be pleased with her that he was offering his favorite food to her pet. She heard the sound of his nails clicking against the hardwood part of her floor and then into the linoleum of her kitchen. “We’ll start you off there,” Kaydence said, speaking to the dog but still looking at Ashton. “I’ve got plenty of other things you’ll enjoy.”

[Ashton Wentworth]

Grabbing his cell phone off of the counter top he shoved it into his back pocket, not bothering to check and see who all had been contacted at the beginning of the weekend, or if he had any missed phone calls or text messages. There were other more important things right now, like getting the hell out of here and not looking back, like letting her come crawling back to him asking for forgiveness and to be in his arms again. “I think that is unnecessary,” Pausing a curt laugh left his lips. Hanging his head it shook from one side to the other before he lifted it to meet her gaze again. “I think you’re unnecessary” he wanted her to feel even a fraction of how confused and hurt he was feeling. It was just a damned dog, he was not going to make room in his life for even one more living thing, and he could and would cut her out if he was forced to. He didn’t really want to, but he was sure that he could extract her mostly from his life fairly easily, just convince himself that this time spent with her had never even happened with a little help from his friend names Jamison. “What is your problem?” He could feel a vibrating coming from his cheek pocket where his cell phone was located, it had probably been going off all weekend and he had just been too distracted to notice, it was a wonder that the thing hadn’t died by now or fallen victim to her living room. “What right do you have destroying my home? I’m sorry you can’t afford one of your own, but that’s not my problem.” Expressly ignoring her frustrated cries, he didn’t feel like she deserved any of his attention at the moment, pulling his cell phone back out of his pocket and glancing at the screen he was not surprised to see upward of thirty missed calls, likely all from his boss, maybe one or two from Franny but she had probably texted him, checking in to see if he was even still alive or to question him on who the woman that he had left in the care of. Pressing ignore on the current incoming phone call from his boss, he knew that if he answered her now, the blood that was boiling under his skin from implying again that he was homeless. He had a house, it could even be considered to be a manor, mansion, plantation, whatever she wanted to call it. It was older and more spacious than anything that she had lived in, he was almost positive about that. He chose not to live in it, which she would know if she stopped being so full of herself for even a moment to ask why he was still living in a hotel room after a month. She knew that he had money, and never seemed to turn down room service or declined whenever he paid for her clothing or dinners, the fact that he lived in a suite had never seemed to bother her until today, and now apparently it wasn’t good enough for her anymore. Shaking his head at her hypocrisy. Yet, he couldn’t resist the urge to rub salt in the wound “At least I don’t live in a dump” he said, kicking a bit of tree debris that had wandered into her home at some point during the night.

At his freedom comment he could see her frustration in her eyes, try as she might to hide it, he could see the glisten. He hated making girls cry, but sometimes it was just unavoidable. He didn’t dare close the distance between them and scoop her up into his arms, there was no way in hell that he was going to apologize for hurting her whenever she didn’t seem to care in the least that she had hurt him. “By destroying my home in the process? You must have nothing behind that thick skull of yours. I don’t deserve you doing any of this!” Still grasping his phone he pointed at her, his eyes dark “You deserve all of this.” He honestly felt that she did, perhaps she could get the dog to help her clean up this mess since he was so magical and wonderful that she felt the need to abandon him and their nice day to come here and take in some mongrel who didn’t need her. Watching her retreat toward the kitchen, he hoped that the juice container that he had left on the counter would only further irritate her, she just needed to learn that he was not some puppet who was going to do her bidding, last night she had learned that he wasn’t somebody that she needed to be pushing, today she was going to learn that he wasn’t going to spare her feelings or do whatever she wanted just because she wanted it. He was his own man. “Luka! Come here boy!” The dog finally peeled his beady little eyes away from him and the growling stopped, taking a step toward the dog, his foot stomped on the ground, attempting to threaten the little animal to get away from him, a territorial threat display. The thing didn’t seem to care but went on its way anyway, heading toward the sound of Kaydence’s voice in the kitchen. He could hear dishes rattling about in the kitchen, something colliding with the floor with more force than she would have exerted had she been calm. He found it ironic that she was calling the thing Luka; it was so close to the name he had decided to leave the beast with, lump. Smiling he placed the phone back into his pocket after setting it to the silent setting. He didn’t need to be distracted form the task at hand. Turning to look at her, just out of curiosity. She had already ruined his dramatic exit, so he needed to find another way to bring her down before leaving, at this point he didn’t much care if he burned any bridges. She was feeding the thing strawberries, he wanted to assume that they were his strawberries, but in truth it was just a container that he had been stealing from her whenever he had made himself comfortable in her home without her permission. “So this is your grand plan to make me upset?” He scoffed, balking at the nerve she was excluding “Feeding your new boyfriend your own food” he could just as easily head downstairs and purchase fruit of his very own, granted it never seemed to last very long in his presence. The moment that the word boyfriend had left his lips he regretted it, of course that wasn’t a term that he had applied to the two of them, not even in his own head he just didn’t know what else to call the damned thing. Quickly, he corrected himself. “Deciding to add to the wreck of this place?” He wanted to distract her, commenting on the filth was the easiest bet. A few of the pieces had bounced out of the bowl and fallen on her floor, leaving behind a sticky red residue from where they had fallen. No doubt, the dog was going to eat them. Still, it was a shame that such a wonderful fruit had to be wasted on something as lowly as a dog, if he would even eat them at all. He didn’t know if animals liked fruit or if he was only going to eat garbage and his own poop.

Not once did his eyes leave hers, she was trying to make a point, but he didn’t know what she was getting at. “We’ll start you off there,” Smiling, he shoved his hands into his pants pockets, his shoulders lifting toward his ears “Ohh, tough girl” He teased, his facial expression mocking her. Belittling her anger. “I’ve got plenty of other things you’ll enjoy.” His smirk widened “Well that’s true” He looked down at the mutt as he spoke, lifting his eyes to hers only for the punch line “She’s got lots of things any man who comes with a wagging tongue can enjoy” He knew that her look of anger was soon to follow, this time he did mean to imply that she was a whore, as opposed to the first night that they had met whenever she had slept with him only an hour after they had met. She had such a temper. The dog didn’t seem to understand what he was saying and moved toward the bowl of strawberries, sniffing hesitantly. Moving into the kitchen himself he crossed to the bowl, ignoring the warning growls that were coming from lump. He kicked the bowl over in his process, sending strawberries rolling every which way in her kitchen. As he took another step, crushing one berry under the heel of his boot, with any luck the red juices would be carried with him back into her living room, causing yet another unsightly red stain on her carpet, the one that her charms had been working on all morning long. Reaching into the open fridge he grasped a random object, upon extraction he found it to be his other bagel from this morning, he had forgotten that he had put it into the fridge, and couldn’t remember why he had. Taking a bite he dropped the rest to the floor, and not a moment after he had stepped away from the bread and the fridge was the dog growling at the mess that he had left behind him. Watching her carefully he smiled; she looked like a tea kettle about to sing. “I have no desire to be your substitute entertainment until something...” his nose wrinkled “cuter comes along” Heading toward the exit of her kitchen and toward the living room again, he wanted to walk over to his jacket and wring it out onto the floor, just to piss her off “I’m done if your just attempting to fill a hole in your rich bitch little world.”

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence hated babysitting. Although she had no doubt in her mind that she would make a good mother one day, she hated watching other people’s children. Back when she was still in school, her parents would frequently spring friend’s children on her for the night. Unable to decline, she would be forced to watch all ages of them. The worst ones were the Bauer twins. Their mother and father were supporters of her father during his time in the position her brother held now. The pair would frequently go off with him to the ends of the Earth and Kaydence would be left watching them until they came back. So many times she had walked into a room that had been completely and utterly destroyed. They had gotten into her room on one occasion and had wrecked it so bad that she had went to Darren’s room in hysterics. His methods of dealing with children were far more strict then hers, but the children never disobeyed when he was home again. That was why she made every effort possible to keep her older brother at home when she knew she would be watching them. They listened to him, not her. Kaydence may not have hated babysitting so much if it hadn’t been for the little horrors she had to deal with so often.

She felt like she had been sucked back to her youth. Kaydence wasn’t babysitting Ashton, but he was acting like both of the Bauer twins combined. Each thing he did was worse than what he did before. When her strawberry attempt had been rejected, she dropped the carton on the floor and simply stood looking at him with a look of utter bewilderment. It was unattractive, but so was his behavior. She had seen his cruel side before. Not even a day ago. This was a whole new level of him. There was no passion in his eyes, not even light. His usually bright blue eyes had darkened which Kaydence didn’t even know was possible. This was yet another side of him that she had never seen before. If she had been keeping track correctly, this was the fourth personality living in that twisted brain of his. She was becoming numb to the insults he was constantly throwing at her. ”So this is your grand plan to make me upset?” Well it had been. Now she was just embarrassed. She could hear Luka’s nails clicking against the linoleum. Suddenly, she wanted nothing more than to pick him up and carry him off to her bedroom, locking the door behind them so Ashton couldn’t do any more damage than what he had already done. She would make sure that the dog laid down in his ‘spot’, just for her own personal satisfaction. ”Feeding your new boyfriend your own food?” It was that statement that confirmed Kaydence’s suspicions. Ashton was jealous and his tirade was over a dog. A dog.

Her hands moved back down to her hips as she fought the urge to laugh. She was amused with his emphasis on the word boyfriend. She had been so silly to think that Ashton could have potentially filled that role in her life. After the way he was acting now, Kaydence doubted she’d ever see him in that light again. Though he was acting more like a boy now than a man. Biting down on her bottom lip, she couldn’t even try to hold back the smile that was forming. Her laughter would cause him to go off the deep end even more than he was now. His attempts to reword his previous statement didn’t go unnoticed. She just didn’t find it worth her time to answer. She was amazed with how calm she felt all of a sudden. Unsure of whether it was because of his sudden change in age, or knowing the reason why he was so upset, Kaydence couldn’t take anything he said seriously anymore. She brought her left arm up and held the opposite side of her chest, bringing her right hand to her mouth to try and hide the smirk that had grown even bigger. She wished that she had something recording this right now. Anything to let people see what she had agreed to deal with earlier yesterday morning. They would have all thought she was mad, and she probably was. Kaydence had already battled with herself when they were walking on the beach. Maybe her own state of mind was what was causing her to react the way she was. No sane person would allow themselves to be treated this way, especially her not even five years ago. She pondered that maybe Ashton was just as crazy as she was except he hadn’t learned to deal with it, maybe even recognize it.

”Ohh, tough girl.” The light that had briefly ignited from within her had dimmed. This may have been funny to her, but there was something about the way he said those words in particular that struck her nerve again. ”Well, that’s true. She’s got lots of things any man who comes with a wagging tongue can enjoy.” Kaydence would be the first one to admit that when she saw someone she wanted, she went after him. If she had a craving that needed to be fixed, she fixed it. However, calling her a whore was one of the lowest things that she could be called. He had beyond offended her. Her hand dropped from her mouth and curled up into a fist. She pictured her fist sailing right into that big nose of his which she had done only a few weeks earlier. Luka could sense her anger and began growling as Ashton came closer to him. ”I have no desire to be your substitute entertainment until something cuter comes along.” Kaydence’s blood was boiling. She could feel her face getting red, almost afraid to even touch it in fear of getting burnt. She continued to glare at him, inhaling and exhaling slowly. This sense of calm was nowhere near the one she had felt only a few minutes prior. This one she knew would be the most effective form of dealing with the asshole standing a few feet away from her. If she had a gift for anything besides bedroom tactics, it was her way with words. So many times had she made girls cry with her words of such disrespect. So many times had she sent men packing and calling her a bitch after weaving sentences full of sarcasm towards their endowments or self-confidence. Ashton had not yet truly seen why she was one of the most hated people at Galaxia in her school years.

“I’m done if your just attempting to fill a hole in your rich bitch little world.” At this Kaydence chuckled. The words were rising rapidly up her throat. Crossing her arms to her chest, she slowly walked towards him until their noses nearly touched. They were nearly at her tongue now. She kept her lips in a thin line as she studied him. On the outside, he looked like he had been through a thing or two in his lifetime. So had she. If he was using some sort of background motivation, then not only was that unfair because she knew nothing about him to deserve all this hostility, but it really made him look pathetic. Someone who lingered on the past and refused to look into the future was not ideal for her. Kaydence had too much of her own baggage to put up with that of another’s. She wondered how she had ever felt any sort of attraction, and how she still strangely did, towards him. The monster that thrived within him outweighed any positive traits he had. Her mind briefly went back to last night when they had stared at each other in the darkness. The darkness in his eyes now was nothing like it. Yet as she looked closer, she felt like she could see into parts of his soul. He was hurt. For the briefest of seconds, she felt guilt for so quickly replacing him with Luka. The guilt subsided as quickly as it had come. He had done too much to her for her to back out now and attempt to apologize, to make up for hurting him.

Smiling, she raised a brow and shook her head. “Now Ashton, we both know that’s not true.” It was coming. “We both know that I was merely being sympathetic to your situation. As I’ve seen very well these past few days, you probably don’t have very many people in your life, if you have any at all. I felt like maybe I could give you temporary hope that your life isn’t as shitty as you portray it to be. That maybe you really have a reason for waking up in the morning. But, unfortunately for you, you’ve finally shown me your true colors and you’ve actually done me a favor. You’ve made me not feel bad whatsoever for ending whatever this is that you thought we had.” She moved one hand between the both of them. “So for that, I thank you. Because if this had continued, I would be miserable every single second I was forced to be with you. I hope that the next idiot your bedroom charms woo over will be able to handle your jealousy issues. Because if you think about it, being jealous over a dog? That’s just pathetic.” Kaydence didn’t know how he would react, but at this point, he could do no worse than what he had already done. This was not the type of relationship she would allow herself to be in, nor the type of person she would deal with on a day-to-day basis. Continuing to gaze up into his eyes she brought her finger up and pointed it towards the door. “The door is that way.”

[Ashton Wentworth]

He should come with a guidebook; there was no doubt about it. Along with a diagram of conversation topics that should be avoided for a happy Ashton, certain things that were not to be discussed under any circumstances unless one wanted him to go postal. Among those topics, were his smoking habits, most of all from people who knew that his wife had died of lung cancer. His almost son, whenever it was brought up by anybody outside of his family it was a very sore subject, it was always sore but they were the only ones that he deemed worthy to talk about it ever. His past and future. He basically felt that if a person hadn’t been there to experience whatever event they were bringing up, that his name needed to stay out of their mouth. He chose to be alone because of instances just like this; he didn’t like to open up because he got hurt in some way, no matter how lasting it was. Apparently, Kaydence was no exception. She obviously didn’t get the gravity of the situation, he shouldn’t have blamed her for that since there was no possible way of her knowing, and due to her action there was no way that she was ever going to know. The fact that she had been laughing at him just twisted the knife, he chose to glare those daggers right back down at the dog, it was his entire fault. He had no right to come in here and ruin this day. His words finally seem to sink in, and the rage that he had been bracing himself for finally showed its ugly head. Squaring his shoulders and his jaw, he looked down at her, his face mocking, urging her to try harder because he obviously wasn’t hurt enough. Even if she just thought that he was jealous, she should have had some regard for his feelings, even if he had trouble expressing them. She should have been up front with him in the fact that she didn’t really want to share the same air as him in the daylight; he would have gone off and found somebody better who wanted to be around him. He knew that it would take some serious searching, but there had to be somebody out there. He watched with interest as she crossed the gap between them and blocked his method of exit, keeping him half way into the kitchen. She moved closer, he almost doubted her reasoning, thinking that she might for a second try to smooth this over with her wiles. He could not have been more wrong. He studied her face as it changed, from amused to a rapid condescending. “Now Ashton, we both know that’s not true.” Rolling his eyes at whatever comment she was about to spew he folded his arms, appearing all too eager to hear whatever she was about to say, she was going to try to run with the big boys now, and he had absolutely no desire to hear whatever she was going to say. “We both know that I was merely being sympathetic to your situation” Of course she was, nodding along with her he pretended to believe her. He knew a thing about bedroom talk, and there was no way that she could have faked some of the things that he had forced from her body, there was no doubt in his mind about that. “I’ve seen very well these past few days; you probably don’t have very many people in your life, if you have any at all. I felt like maybe I could give you temporary hope that your life isn’t as shitty as you portray it to be. That maybe you really have a reason for waking up in the morning. But, unfortunately for you, you’ve finally shown me your true colors and you’ve actually done me a favor” His smile faltered at the corners, he hadn’t been expecting that. She was taking this homeless thing to far; she was going to make it impossible for him to ever come back to her. Whatever he had been expecting, he hadn’t been expecting that load of dribble to pour out of her mouth. He wanted to shove soap down her mouth for even daring to breathe things as crazy. She was once again presuming that she knew anything about him, and nothing could have been further from the truth.

First off, she knew nothing about his situation, she didn’t know the reason he was in a hotel, she didn’t know whether or not this was a temporary business venture for him or not, or if he actually even lived here since she had never seen him outside of a store or their respective bedrooms. She wouldn’t know anything about whether or not there were people in his life because she never saw him around other than whenever she was summoned, and like a bitch in heat she would come running. He could have people over during the day hours or even be spending the nights that he wasn’t with her with other women. Once again, she would never know because he hadn’t felt that she needed to know. She knew nothing about his true colors, she had seen them the night that he was drunk whether or not she wanted to believe it. He reserved that side of him for the people in his life who had proved themselves worthy, that he trusted and actually didn’t mind having around for longer than a few hours. The kind of people that were still worth something, even with all of their clothing on. He considered telling her this, but retracted the thought almost as quickly as it had come. ” You’ve made me not feel bad whatsoever for ending whatever this is that you thought we had.” The arms that were folded across his chest were starting to shake, his jaw was clenching and he wanted badly to put his fist through a wall or two, which would be a win-win because then she would have just one more thing wrong with her ruined condo. He followed her hand with his eyes as she motioned to the two of them. “So for that, I thank you. Because if this had continued, I would be miserable every single second I was forced to be with you. I hope that the next idiot your bedroom charms woo over will be able to handle your jealousy issues. Because if you think about it, being jealous over a dog? That’s just pathetic.”Nobody was forcing her to be with him. Nobody was forcing her to be with him or keeping her from kicking him out on his behind. She was not forced to come get him from the club that night with her arm twisted behind her back. She couldn’t pretend that she had been unwilling to let him hold her or console her after whatever brief mental breakdown she had had which had led to the reason that her apartment was ruined in the first place. She had nobody but to blame but herself for his presence in her life this weekend. He wanted to point out that she was calling herself one of the idiots that he had managed to win over, but he was confident that he would be able to get just about any girl that he wanted to replace her. With his teeth clenched, he forced a short “Your Welcome” not wanting to elaborate because anything else that left his lips was just going to sound petty. She was missing the point, he wasn’t jealous over the dog, at least, that wasn’t the reason that he was so upset. It was her, leaving their day and abandoning him to spend her time with some animal she had known for all of five seconds. But, she would never understand that and he didn’t have the energy to explain himself. “The door is that way.” Growing angry with her he had about all that he could take.

Grasping her shoulders, much like he had done the other day, he pressed her body up against the doorframe between her kitchen and living room where he had been standing, his eyes on fire. She had no right to talk to him like that, since she had just admitted that she knew nothing about him. He had assumed that she was smart enough to know when to stop; he didn’t need to show her another display of the darkness within. He pressed his body into hers, he was sure that the door frame was pressing into her shoulder blades and he didn’t much care. Rolling his body into hers he slid his hands down her arms softly, grasping her wrists whenever he reached them, and pulling her arms above her head, pinning them there with one hand. Much like he had grasped her arms the other night, but there was a passion exuding from him, whenever he got this worked up, there was usually only two ways to work it out of his system, come out swinging, or a far more enjoyable method. He was fairly certain that she would have bit him if he tried anything too fresh. Leaning his forehead against hers, his breath was heavy, he wanted to kiss her, to show her anything to prove that he was hurt, he wanted her to ask him to stay, to apologize for what she had done but she felt no guilt. A flash of uncertainty flashed across his face as his eyes closed for only a moment. He lingered just a moment too long; she was going to see right through him. A groan left his lips as he grew more frustrated, not sure if it was with her or himself. It was angry nonetheless. Deciding not to cave his eyes opened bitter anger evident and used one hand to trail down her arm, keeping the other on her wrists. “That’s convenient” he breathed, his words full of spite, allowing the crook of his index finger to run down the side seam of her tank top, the fabric moving at his touch. “I was done with you anyway” his finger dropped, hovering over the fabric of her shorts, sliding just lower on her thigh than the hem of her shorts and used his other arm to push him off of the wall. “Pity” he spat, taking a step back, ignoring the yelps from the dog to back off and leave her alone “I had thought that there was more to you than what is under your cloths.” He shrugged, easing his hands into his pockets and shrugging “Guess I was wrong” Staring at her for just a moment longer, he wanted his words to sink in, walking slowly toward her door he picked up his jacket, squeezing the ball of cracked and faded leather, wringing the liquid droplets from their resting place out and to the floor. He didn’t care in the least that he was acting like a child, and he didn’t want to think about the fact that as soon as he slammed her front door behind him, it was likely that he was never going to see her smiling face again. Sure, they were prone to run into each other and just because they were no longer on good terms weren’t going to come in the way of that. She was too expensive for his tastes, he should have known better than to go after her that day when she was shopping. As his back was turned to her, his shoulders stayed ridged and firm, his step didn’t waver but his face crumbled. The sneaking feeling of rejection that he had never really gotten familiar with came creeping back up, overcoming him and dominating his thoughts. He had just ruined the one good thing that he had going for him since he had returned to his forsaken place. Not daring to take a glance over his shoulder he didn’t want to let himself turn around and go back, he didn’t think that he had anything to apologize for except maybe the water and sand. It had been excessive, but gotten a point across. He stopped only for a moment whenever he was about to walk out her door, holding the doorknob in his free hand. Hanging his head he stepped out, yanking the door closed behind him.

Stopping on her doorstep, the traces of anger still lingering in his tissues he flung the putrid jacket up and over his shoulder; he was going to have to wash everything that he was wearing as soon as he got back to his suite anyway. Reaching into his pocket, his fingers wrapped around his cigarette soft pack and the lighter he had bought. Pulling them out and quickly extracting one, the lighter at the end instantly, he didn’t care if her building had no smoking laws, this was an extreme circumstance. Putting the items back into his pocket he left the filter on his lips and reaching into his pocket, scanning his phone contacts was the next order of business. He needed to do it now, while he was still angry or else he would never get around to it. Going to his contacts he deleted her number, moving to incoming and outgoing calls he cleared those lists as well, he didn’t really need to know who had been calling him anyway, they were just going to repeat whatever was on the voice mails as soon as he stepped foot into the office tomorrow morning anyway. Inhaling the chemicals deep into his lungs, and exhaling smoke onto her doorstep, once he was satisfied that her names was no longer anywhere in his phone he slide the thing back into his pocket, there would have been nothing worse at this point than to get back into his suite all by himself, sitting there eating room service for one, letting her words mull over in his head for what was sure to be the thousandth time and then deciding that he was going to need to call her and straighten things out for good, place patches over whatever he had done and calling her to come back, not that she would. Better to spare himself from any further humiliation. Glancing back over his shoulder he placed one hand on her door one last time, as if saying a silent goodbye before pushing off, grabbing the jacket from his shoulder, not caring about the wet spot that it had left behind, discoloring the shoulder of his new jacket, all would be fixed in the wash. Sauntering in the direction of her elevator, he considered taking the stairs just in case she came after him. Although, the likelihood of that happening was slim to none. Pulling the cigarette from his lips he pressed the call button for the elevator, now to wait. Hopefully it would be a short one, he didn’t want her to think that he was hesitating, even if he was.

[Kaydence Morgan]

His smile wavered for only a second, but it was all Kaydence needed for her smile to spread wider across her face. She was looking for any sort of reaction from him. Anything to let her know that she had gotten under his skin just as badly as he had hers. Her finger remained pointed in the air over his shoulder, but she turned her gaze down to his arms that were starting to shake. She was briefly frightened, remembering what had happened last time he had starting doing that. Her stubbornness prevailed over it. Looking back up at him she allowed her other fingers to join her extended index. This time, she waved them towards him as if telling him to shoo. ”Your Welcome.” Rolling her eyes perhaps a little too dramatically she waved him off again. “Fabulous, now off you go. I have to get to work getting rid of any trace of you ever being here.” Kaydence didn’t know how long it would take, but she would work until she had done it, no matter how long it took.

She should have expected his next course of action though it caught her off guard nonetheless. His arms took hold of her shoulders and pushed her up against the door frame, conveniently making sure his body was pressed up against hers. She should have been scared. And she was, but nowhere near the point she was last night. Kaydence was embarrassed at the way she had acted and had to make up for it. Even if it was just a cover. If he got to be too much, she knew Luka would be on him in a heartbeat, doing whatever he needed to protect his owner. It would be enough distraction for her to wiggle free and sock him in the nose so she could cast a spell at him to get him to a point where she could remove him from her apartment. Once her door was locked, she would be rid of him and that would be that. “Still can’t resist me even in the heat of the moment can you?” she commented, feeling his body constraining her against the frame. She was uncomfortable. The frame was in between her shoulders blades and no matter how she wiggled it was a no-win situation. The feel of his hands going down her arms was alluring, even when he had grasped her wrists and pinned them over her head against the wall, Kaydence almost hoped he would kiss her. She was convinced he was going to when he touched her forehead to hers. Yet being as defiant as she was, she had to make him feel like she had no desire for him. “What’s the matter? I think the upper half of my back needs some sort of mark from you to match the bottom. Then maybe we can talk about making up.”

His response nearly made her regret what she had said. His eyes closed and Kaydence could sense the hesitation. He didn’t want to be doing this. Her mouth opened slightly, unsure of what was to come. The fact that he could be genuinely hurt never dawned on her until now. He was such a confusing creature. Her face had to have shown a look of disbelief when his eyes found hers again. The fire was back. She couldn’t read his motions. ”That’s convenient.” There was a tone in his voice that was unwelcome and familiar. It was too calm. ”I was done with you anyway.” The sentence so closely matched the one she had heard five years ago. I’m done with you now.” It sent a shiver down Kaydence’s spine which Ashton was sure to think he had done with his intimidation. Looking away from him, she stared to the side trying to force the feeling she had experienced last night back down to wherever it had been laying, waiting for its next opportunity to rear its ugly head in her direction. It amazed her how such simple words impacted her and how anything remotely resembling them caused that broken feeling to appear from the bottom of her stomach again. Her entire body froze as he moved his hand lower, down to her thighs. The scene was starting to replay. His hands were not his own. Kaydence bit down on her bottom lip, trying her best not to scream as the natural reaction tried to force its way into opening her mouth. “I had thought that there was more to you than what is under your cloths.” She forced herself not to look into his eyes. Not only because she refused to see the man he had morphed into once again, but because she felt that maybe her own hurt and emerging breakdown wouldn’t be as apparent.

Gasping slightly as her wrists were finally released Kaydence’s right hand went to cradle her left wrist. His thumb had found a pressure point before letting go and it throbbed now. ”Guess I was wrong.” Not as much as she was. Fortunately, the scene that had started to unfold had stopped as soon as he stepped away from her. She looked to Luka as she rubbed her wrist. He was still barking up a storm. So much that she was surprised he hadn’t attacked Ashton as he finally began to leave her condo. How had she ever thought that something could come from this? Kaydence could not be in a relationship with someone who the potential to be so violent. She didn’t deserve to be around someone who could snap at any minute just because she looked at him the wrong way. The sound of water hitting her carpet was nothing compared to the overwhelming feeling of wanting him gone. Ashton was not the type of person she needed in her life. Hearing the door open, she went into the kitchen to conceal herself from his view, just in case he tried to look back at her. Her back slid down one of the counters and she stared straight ahead as she landed on the floor. Luka trotted up to her, taking a seat next to her. She could feel his eyes bearing into her, concerned for her well-being as well as hoping she would sick him on the mean man. “Not worth it,” was all she said as she began stroking his head. He whined in response, but laid his head on her lap.

This was the third time he had left her feeling like shit, completely unaware of everything that had compiled together to make her feel this way. He would never even begin to understand, yet she had no intention of trying to explain. Her secret was something she wanted to keep hidden for as long as she possibly could. Kaydence would rather it never be exposed at all. The select few who knew were even too many. She continued to absent-mindedly stroke at Luka’s fur. It was nothing that she had to worry about anymore. He was gone. After she burned the stale clothing he had forgotten Ashton would have been a distant memory. A reminder as to why she didn’t need a relationship, nor a man’s presence in her life longer than a night. Luka was the only thing she needed to care for because he was the only thing that cared about her. Lowering herself down to his head Kaydence gave him a light kiss. In her misery, she had forgotten that the only thing she had fed him had been strawberries. The poor thing’s stomach had to have been growling still. Wiggling her legs to indicate to the dog that she was getting ready to standup, she lifted herself from the floor and walked over to the refrigerator. There was nothing in there remotely dog-friendly so she pulled out some baked chicken she had made the night she had picked up Ashton from Tripp. Uncovering the container , she grabbed a spoon from her utensil drawer and stirred up the stuffing and broccoli to go with it. Not wanting him to wait any longer Kaydence put the bowl down on the floor. Luka didn’t mind one bit as he dived into it as soon as it was set down.

Kaydence had just begun to look into the fridge for something to eat herself as she heard her phone go off. Puzzled, she looked at the area where it was sitting. She had no idea who it could be. Her heart momentarily skipped a beat as she thought of Ashton, but he wouldn’t be so stupid to text her as soon as he had left the way he did. Closing the door slowly, she continued the slow pace as she walked over to her counter. The screen was still lit up with a bright blue color. She pressed a button off to the side, lighting up the whole screen. She was greeted with a text from Demetri Hinsward, a former follower of her brothers. Got some news for you princess. Meet now. “Now, of all times?” she complained, frustrated with the lack of progress being made on her apartment. Kaydence looked over her shoulder to remind herself of how even more filthy the place had gotten since they had come back. She was never going to get the chance to clean this bloody thing. Throwing her hands up in frustration she dropped the phone on the counter and stalked off to her bedroom. As much as she didn’t want to deal with his unwanted advances, a text from Demetri was not one to ignore. She would need to meet up with him as soon as she possibly could. Upon entering her bedroom she went to her closet, grabbing her black trenchcoat from a hanger and quickly sliding her arms into it. When she had begin to fix the sleeves, she noticed a bruise on her wrist as a reminder of a few minutes earlier. “Wonderful,” she said, cursing underneath her breath. Now she had two presents from the jackass on her body. Whenever she got home, she was going to have to find some spells to get rid of these bloody marks.

Grabbing the first pair of boots she could find, she pulled them up to her thigh, and then slid her sunglasses that had been on her head down over her eyes. Kaydence hastily went back to her kitchen, grabbing her phone, keys and kneeling down to grab the bowl that had been kicked over by Ashton. She filled it up with water from her kitchen sink and set it down next to the bowl that Luka was eating from. “Sorry boy, got things to take care of real quick.” She rubbed behind his ears affectionately before heading to her door. Kaydence looked out the peephole to make sure Ashton still wasn’t lingering about. When convinced he wasn’t, she dialed Demetri and opened the door. ”Was beginning to think you were ignoring me doll.” She rolled her eyes, closing the door and locking it behind her. “You make that impossible,” she told him, chuckling lightly as she made sure the doorknob wasn’t turning. “I hope this is good, I have other things that are high on my to-do list.” He laughed on the other end. ”I wouldn’t dream of wasting your time. Then again, this might just be a good excuse to see you. Kaydence began walking down the hall. “Well, I’m all yours then.” She stopped as she reached the elevators, hearing the doors open. Craning her head, she saw that it was simply a woman with arms full of gr0oceries getting off and making her way to her own door. Biting down on her lip, she knew the elevator would be the easiest way to get down. For fear of somehow running into Ashton though, she turned on her heel and went to the stairs.

“Hope you’ve got some goodies for me. I could use all the cheering up I could get right now.” Kaydence used her body to push in the handle. “Alright, I’m on my way. I’ll be there in five.” And with that, she pressed the end button and shoved her phone into the pocket of her coat.

[Ashton Wentworth]

Ashton didn’t remember the elevator taking this long to come to the floor before, but he wasn’t surprised that it seemed to be longer than usual. It was likely just the fact that he was still rattled, that his nerves were still frazzled and he wanted something to take his anger out on. He had been physically harmed too often in order to justify a punch to the elevator doors. Also, it might piss the tenants off even more, he was sure that there had to of been some noise complaints over the weekend, it seemed that no matter what they were doing, they were doing it very loudly. The fact that he was not going to be able to test how limber she is any more was not the only thing that he was going to walk away regretting. Running his hand down his face he heaved a sigh, careful not to burn his skin with the cigarette still in his hands. After what seemed like a year the lift finally stopped and the doors parted, a lady stood directly in the middle, arms full of something or another, he considered stepping to the side to see if she needed out, but the sound of a door opening behind him made him reconsider. His heart quickened, his hands nervous, and he hadn’t even looked to see who it was, turning to look over his shoulder he spotted Kaydence had stepped out of her door, talking on a cell phone. Luckily she was turned to close her door so he took the opportunity to dart onto the elevator, molding his body against the button panel, the woman who shared the small room with him for just a second seemed disgruntled and he didn’t care, she huffed and made her way off the lift as Kaydence’s voice drew closer. He wanted to step out and continue their little spat, but he equally wanted to not have to look at her lying face one more time. “I hope this is good, I have other things that are high on my to-do list.” There was something about her conversation that interested him, what could a girl with no job possibly have to do on a Sunday evening? Most of the shops would be closing soon, she couldn’t be going about getting ready to have her hair or nails done. He was pretty sure that she preferred to have people come to her house to do them anyway.

He wanted to not think about her, he wanted to just forget that she had ever existed, yet, he didn’t seem to be able to press her out of his mind whenever another thought came to light. What if she had pushed him away, and got the dog, caused this whole mess because she was going to run off and be with another man. It was highly unlikely, after all who could hold a candle to him anyway? Then again, a girl like her was capable of anything really. She was close now, he could hear her footsteps almost next to him, and he could imagine her standing there, and wondering whether or not she should take the elevator or the stairs, and taking the stairs in order to keep her privacy for whatever business was so damned important. She seemed fine, like she couldn’t care less how what she had done or who she hurt in the process. He needed to stay the hell away from women for awhile “Well, I’m all yours then.” His eyebrow arched, that comment was a little more strange, perhaps she was a prostitute, that really would just be his luck. Spending time courting a woman that he could just buy and get the same effect. Sure, she might have not changed him her weekend rate and saved him some money, but it would explain why she got so heated anytime he even mentioned that she was a whore. Turning carefully, he didn’t want to make any noise he looked for the open door button; he had every intention of hearing the rest of that conversation. Snooping was no in his normal nature, but if she was soliciting sex, as a Ministry official however, it was his duty to follow her. At least, that was what he was going to tell himself. Never once has he cared whether or not a woman was interested in him, and not many women turned him down in his lifetime, he prided himself on his success record. Never before had he wanted a woman to like him, to want him around. So much that he was willing to be jealous of her attention on other objects. It would be healthiest for him to just back away and never look back, yet he couldn’t.

The doors started to close, darting his hand to stop them since he hadn’t found the button in time he risked being seen. Luckily she was past him in time for him to keep the doors open, looking around the corner he spotted her body, now wearing boots pushing down on the bar that would take her to the staircase. The tails of a trench coat appealed to him, and his mind envisioned her wearing nothing beneath it. Shaking his head a couple times he stepped out of the elevator and followed her at a jog, wanting to catch the door before it shut as well. “Hope you’ve got some goodies for me. I could use all the cheering up I could get right now.” Now, the image of her popping pills and purchasing small bags of drugs came to mind, he had not seen any of the signs of drug usage with her in the least bit, but he had been wrong about every other thing he had thought about her up until this point, perhaps hearing the rest of the conversation would kill any residual feelings that he had for her and move on without ever looking back, if he could slap some charges on her that would be the final nail in the coffin. Smiling his boot caught the door just in time, stepping inside he didn’t see her, but could hear the heel of her boots clicking away down the stairs. The door creaked as he slipped his body inside and he froze, he had no way of knowing if she heard him or not. Holding his breath he waited to see if her pace would quicken or if she was going to come back up the stairs. When neither seemed to be happening he headed down the first flight, stopping on the landing, glancing down the stairwell he looked for her hand, thankful now that his shoes were still dry and worn in to the point that they made almost no noise. “Alright, I’m on my way. I’ll be there in five.” With this, the call seemed to be over and her pace quickened, so he followed suit, no longer caring if she heard him, coming up behind her, he spun her around. “Chasing after more of those wagging tails are we?”

[Kaydence Morgan]

The sound of her clicking heels echoed with every step. So much that it had even began irritating her as she finished the first flight of stairs. Kaydence made a mental note to not take this route ever again especially in heels as high as these ones. Her 5’10 stature had been bumped up to 6’0. Holding on the black strip of rail leading downwards she careful continued walking down the next flight. Although she was a pro when it came to heels, stairs always made her a bit nervous. She had almost forgotten about why this seemed like such a good idea. Though as soon as Ashton’s face came to her mind Kaydence quickly remembered. Huffing, she pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose as they had been shaken loose by her uneven footing. It disgusted her thinking of how this was her building and she was the one having to walk down the stairs. It was her only safe bet. Knowing her luck, if she had taken the elevators Ashton would be right there waiting for her, just for the hell of it, ready to start round sixteen of the never ending fight that was their time spent together. At least by taking the stairs Kaydence would have an advantage. The stairs were on the opposite wall from the elevators. There was a small glass panel that allowed her to see the lobby of the condominiums. From there, she’d be able to see if he was still in the building. If he was, just in spite of her, it would give her time to formulate a new plan. She prayed that he wouldn’t be though. Demetri was not a man to be kept waiting.

She had just taken the last step when she felt the air move from behind her. Before she knew it, a hand had turned her body around and her eyes were staring into the face she had just thought about not wanting to see. Kaydence felt the frown form almost immediately. How did he manage to get down those stairs without her hearing a thing? Her eyes turned to the shoes he was wearing. Old, worn in, not all different from his usual clothing style. She sighed to herself, bringing her hand up to her forehead as if waiting for the headache to start. It was inevitable. Anytime Ashton was around her it seemed to come automatically. It was as if her brain knew how annoying he was and was sending her a warning signal to remove herself from the situation. Yet every time she did, he always seemed to find a way to weasel his way back into the picture. Kaydence would never understand how he was able to do it. All she did understand was that he had picked a very inconvenient time to pop out of the woodworks again. Her appointment was of dire importance, something that he would never be able to comprehend. Crossing her arms, she glared at him through the lenses of her glasses. She briefly worried about the look becoming stuck on her face since she seemed to do it all the time whenever he was around.

”Chasing after more of those wagging tails are we?” Her temple began pulsating. Sure enough. Sighing, she closed her eyes and wrinkled her nose, rubbing at the area with the hand on the arm she had uncrossed from her chest. “My business is none of yours,” she responded, shaking her head at the circumstances, “besides, didn’t you take that freedom you so valiantly declared earlier? Why the hell are you here if you don’t want to have anything to do with me anymore?” Opening her eyes, Kaydence took her hand from her forehead and held it out in front of Ashton. “You know what? Never mind. I’ve got things to do.” Turning on her heel she began to slowly make her way down the stairs again. There were still five more to go after this one. If she wanted to get away from him, she was going to need to quicken her pace to do so. She had managed to successfully finish the second flight of stairs before her heel caught in an open crevasse on the final stair. Before she knew it, Kaydence felt herself falling forward. Her hands hit the hard cement not even two seconds later, bearing the full weight of her body. She felt the skin erode off of her palms as she slid just a centimeter but it was enough to cause another burning sensation like the one she had experienced yesterday.

Kaydence gasped quietly at the pain, pulling herself to a sitting position on the first stair of the next flight. Turning her hands over, she saw small lines of red begin to form in the areas of exposed skin. “Great,” she muttered to herself. Demetri would be sure to question the marks on her hands. She was too prideful to admit any clumsiness. Sighing, she brought her knees together, forming a small triangle with her extended legs. Propping her elbows up on them she continued to inspect the damage. The last thing she needed was another hindrance in her way of getting to her meeting. Yet with every step she took, it seemed impossible. She heard Ashton’s footsteps approaching, no doubt coming down to throw some snide comment about being used to being on her hands and knees. Another fight would yet again provide an obstacle into getting the information that she so desperately craved. It was news when something about her brother had been brought to attention. She did her best to grab the rail, but let out a low hiss as the raw skin touched the metal. She did not like feeling so disabled. Ashton would have to help her up if she had any intention of keeping her promise to the man she had gotten off the phone with earlier. Calmly, she waited for him to come at her side and help her up. It may have been too much to hope for, but she could hope. As soon as he did Kaydence would do her best to send a punch straight to his gut so she could break away and get to where she needed.

[Ashton Wentworth]

He wanted to see her surprised, to be confused. Anything to replace his last mental image of her that was filled with something that he couldn’t quiet place. He hated that he wanted to be around her, that he wanted her to want to impress him, that he wasn’t just some passing ship in the night. Her face contorted instantly into a frown, like she wanted to shove him down the remaining stairs, and it would be a long way to go indeed. Luckily, he outweighed her by a good chunk of change and didn’t have to worry about her overpowering him. “My business is none of yours,” That was a lie, she had made herself his business whenever she picked him up from the club last Friday night. She had chosen to come and get him, clearly giving him some sort of power over her and her actions. She didn’t need to admit it, he had known. Thought that he had known, with all of this dog business he was seriously reconsidering her stake in his life. He was becoming more than frustrated and he wanted answers. Scoffing he had yet to let go of her arm, he wasn’t squeezing, he just didn’t want her bolting down the stairs to another floor to get away from him. He needed answers. “Besides, didn’t you take that freedom you so valiantly declared earlier? Why the hell are you here if you don’t want to have anything to do with me anymore?” He felt her pull out of his grip; he didn’t move to stop her from walking away. He wasn’t the one who decided to give them the boot, which was all her and that mangy animal upstairs.

He studied her face with care, the betrayal bubbling up from within him. He didn’t want it to show, he wanted to stay angry at her. He nodded once, considering whether it had really been a good idea for him to come down here or not. The longer he stood here, feeling like a stalker the less important her business seemed. Then he remembered the phone call! He looked to her hands but the cellular device was long ago and he wasn’t allowed to just frisk people, yet he didn’t think that she was going to oppose. . “You know what? Never mind. I’ve got things to do.” She spun on her heel so fast; the resulting trip was inevitable, his hand reached out to catch her, missing by only seconds. He watched her tumble, suppressing a smile the whole time. He did wait until he was sure that she wasn’t hurt before letting the laughter tumble out of his lips as he started heading down the stairs to where she was a single slow step at a time. It was obvious that she wasn’t going to be able to stand without his help.

“Great,” Whenever he could see the missing skin on her hands he jogged down the last couple steps, his footfalls silent the whole way. He could wait and make her stay where she was to answer his questions, but he had a feeling that would only make her even more upset. Stooping whenever he was within arms distance of her, he slipped his hand around her waist, pulling her gently to her feet. He hoped that she would notice that he did it kindly, whenever he could have yanked her by her arm, or just left here there, stuck. She would have to scoot down the steps like a toddler into the lobby where the doorman would have been forced to help her, it would have been interesting to see her miss her little meeting because she wasn’t able to stand upright like a normal person. He held her for just a moment too long before letting go, he didn’t ask if she needed help down the rest of the stairs like he wanted to, just stood there, leaning up against the handrail of the landing.

His hormones took the better of him; he reached out as she started to continue down the steps and pulled her close to him, holding her against his body. He stared at her lips, his voice came out soft. He knew that she wasn’t going to be able to turn him down “If you think that I’m done with you, you’re very much mistaken” He pulled her closer, if possible, grabbing a handful of her raincoat into his palm, using it to hold her, he smiled, holding his face only an inch from her own, he could feel her breathing. He didn’t want to wait to see what her reaction was going to be, whether or not she was going to try to bite him, he wanted her to know that whenever he had his eyes set on something, he was not afraid of a little hard work. Granted, he had already had her dozens of times, but he assumed he had made it clear the other night in her bathroom that he wanted a little more than that, he could be more clear if forced to be. Using his other hand to brush wisps of hair out of the way he made to kiss her, his lips just brushing hers and pulled his head back “Say it” he muttered, hoping that she would know what he was talking about, he wanted her to verbalize that she was his, “Say that you’re my girl” He needed her to say it, to prove to himself that there were no other men in her life, that he was more important than a dog. He wasn’t sure of her answer, but he was willing to venture a guess, he was expecting to feel her lips on his any time now.

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence knew that he had to have seen her humiliation. Her thoughts were confirmed when she heard his laughing. Rolling her eyes she glared at nothing in particular. Merlin she hated him. She hated his laugh due in large part to how girly it sounded, which made it worse since it made him look as if he were really going all out to make fun of her. She hated that stupid smirk she knew would be on his face when she looked up at him. She hated the inevitable comment that would come at her expense. She hated everything about him. Though as much as she tried to convince herself otherwise, deep down Kaydence knew that she was just making excuses. She was just hurt. He had destroyed her apartment, belittled her to no end and harassed her dog. How that wouldn’t be a breaking point to anyone she didn’t know. She sighed as the image of her disaster of a condo came to mind. She hoped Luka wouldn’t make himself too comfortable. Ashton had been right to question her about that. She had no idea what his inside skills were if he even had any. She had found him down at the beach after all. What if he had always been an outside dog? Kaydence looked up the stairwell, considering going back up to her condo to make sure Luka hadn’t added any surprises to the wreck that awaited her. She hated how Ashton had been right to warn her about that too. All she wanted to do now was go back up to her home, locked the door, bolt the door and cuddle with pup for the rest of the night. The dog was much better company then the man that had finally appeared at her side.

Suddenly, she didn’t want his help anymore. Turning her head to the wall Kaydence avoided his gaze and ignored the remnants of his girly laughing. It might take her five minutes, but she’d get up on her own. She didn’t need him. A second later she felt his arm around her waist. She was puzzled, but continued to avoid looking at him. Her anger had made her forget how her skin tingled when he touched her. Her feelings of annoyance and irritation slowly began to subside whether she liked it or not. If she stayed her any longer, she would wind up being subjected to more of his torturous insults, or worse, yet another mood swing. It felt as if the mood swing option was coming into play given that he had still not let go of her waist. Nothing about it seemed threatening, but knowing him like she did, that didn’t mean anything. He would either take her in his arms for a passionate kiss or throw her down the stairwell because he was mad at himself for showing any signs of affection. Her ability to pick up the craziest men off the streets amazed her sometimes. Yet Kaydence was thankful that they reminded her why she wasn’t a fan of relationships anymore. One stop shop. That’s how her life needed to continue to roll. She didn’t need a man to make her happy. Especially one who didn’t even know how to make himself happy. She had a dog now and that’s all she needed.

When he finally let go of her, Kaydence continued on her way down the stairs, regretting the decision to not punch him in the gut. She wished he would have said or done anything to make her go ahead and go through with it. His ability to make her emotions switch from one minute to the next had prevented that though. Her fingers guided themselves down the hand rail. She didn’t dare to try and exert any extra pressure on her raw palm. The areas began throbbing and she cursed to herself silently. She was going to have to stop at a store along the way to provide some sort of relief to the pulsating pain in her hands. And she really didn’t want to meet up with Demetri looking like a mess. He may have preferred her showing up in nothing at all, but Kaydence found it necessary to look as professional as she could. Just so he would know that she was taking this all seriously and meant every word that came out of her mouth. She could feel Ashton’s eyes peering into her back. She wanted to yell back at him to go back to the pathetic excuse for a hotel suite that he called a home, but she refused to give him any more of the attention that he so desperately wanted. She was done fighting for the day. If he didn’t like it, well, he needed to go find someone else to bother. Her agenda for the night had already been filled and he had no part in it. Nor was she able to let him weasel his way into it.

Kaydence had reached the halfway point of the flight when she heard his footsteps behind her again. Before she could react, his hand had found its way to her waist again, this time turning her around to face him. She inhaled sharply as he forced the distance between them away and made their bodies connect. ”If you think that I’m done with you, you’re very much mistaken.” She looked at him with such confusion. He was mental. Any doubt that may have ever resided in her mind had been erased. There was no possible way for a sane person to have these bad of mood swings. Kaydence knew hers were bad, but his…his took the top prize. “You said you were done with me earlier! Did you forget?!” He ignored her outburst, choosing instead to pull her nearly inside of him. He lowered his face to hers. They were so close that she could bite the edge of his misshapen nose if she really wanted to. But, as usual, she didn’t know if she wanted that or to kiss him more. She was disgusted with herself. Even more so when she didn’t bite his lips as they gingerly traced over hers. ”Say it.” Kaydence looked at him questioningly. “Say what?” she responded as that smile that so easily made her heart melt appeared. ”Say that you’re my girl.” Her lips parted into shock. He was really trying to still get at that. Had he completely forgotten everything that been happening for the past few hours? The urge to punch him was overwhelming, but she kept her right hand to her side. Instead, she lifted her left one, extending her index finger to her temple.

She knew what he wanted her to say. She knew he wanted her to continue playing her part in this little game of his, but she was over it. “No,” she responded lightly, enjoying the expression his face had contorted into. “You’re crazier than I am.” With that, she forced herself out of his grasp and shook her head at him. “Find someone else better suited to deal with you. Because it’s not me…” Kaydence trailed off on her last sentence, knowing full well that it was a lie. Deep down, she was just as messed up as he was, but she wasn’t ready to take on anymore of it. Turning around, she quickened her pace down the stairs. Not only because she should have been in Alzubra by now, but she needed to get away from Ashton. She had enough conflicting feelings for an entire weekend and she didn’t need any more to keep her from the ultimate goal at hand.

[Ashton Wentworth]

He waited, was attempting to be strong and not close the distance himself. He honestly didn’t think that this little plan was going to backfire. He didn’t know if she was the type of girl to respond better to intimidation or his obvious seduction techniques. There wasn’t much that he was going to be able to do standing in the stairway like this, but he was willing to press his luck. He didn’t know how to convince her that she didn’t get to choose a dog over him, he was worth more than that. He thought that he had felt a moment briefly whenever they were still on the beach, and another whenever he had her pinned up against the doorframe where he had almost thought that he had seen regret in her eyes, but he had been wrong again. Her lips never met his; she wasn’t willing to bend even an inch. He frowned as she wrenched her body away from his. He didn’t like being wrong, his fist balled up at his sides, both his hands clenching, his jaw locked shut as he closed his eyes. He wasn’t going to allow her to reject him much more. He should have learned his lesson by now, but he liked her and it wasn’t something that was going to go away any time soon, he knew himself well enough to know that. His head dipped an inch, how could he have been so stupid. He just needed to let her go, if she fell again then so be it. She would just have to wait there, go figure she had already found a replacement for him so quickly she had no emotions at all. “You said you were done with me earlier! Did you forget?!” Yes. He had forgotten, he didn’t want to look at the admonishment in her eyes, she was so condescending. No wonder she was so dead set on being alone, she was obsessed the crushing any attempt to get close to her, and he didn’t care whatever her reasoning was. Whenever he was angry, he didn’t hold himself responsible for whatever came out of his mouth. Whatever he had said to her, he hadn’t meant it. Granted, there was no way for her to know that about him, not that she was even going to make an effort to know him. She refused to take that damn silver spoon out of her mouth, or her nose out of the air.

“No,” He was rapidly growing tired of her attitude. He had enough of a temper to not need to deal with her. His fist hit against the wall behind him once, then twice. “You’re crazier than I am.” While he highly doubted that, since he had a reason for almost every single thing that he did she just wasn’t looking at him as a person, more of an object. His eyes sprung open, enraged. It was far too easy for him to become this way, and there was no way that she was going to reconsider now. . “Find someone else better suited to deal with you. Because it’s not me…” He wondered if she was going to continue speaking or if there was another reason for her to trail off the end of her words. He did know better by now than to ask. She turned away from him, every inch of him wanted to grab her, and bring her back. He knew now what he wanted, and he wasn’t going to stop until he got it. Even if it was for nothing else than to prove to himself that he could make a girl like her fall for him. He didn’t have to keep her, he could just use her and then he would be able to make her feel just like he did now. Disappointed over his rejection. At least, that was what he was going to tell himself. She had no right to talk about who was the best suit of him, that was his business and she was making it very clear that she was none of his business. Dragging his palm down his face dramatically he wanted to shout at her to make his point across. How she expected him to chase her whenever she was working so hard to drive him away at every turn he would never know. Unless she was being sincere? That she really did was him to just go away and never come back, it was unlikely, but possible. All this time he had just assumed that she was playing hard to get. In combination with both of their mood swings it was hard to tell what she really wanted. He was just going to have to put words in her mouth and assume that he knew best. He had not yet forgiven her for casting him out, but just because she was upset with him was not going to keep him from getting that he wanted.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he started to follow her down the stairs, only speeding up his pace to keep her in his direct line of sight at all times. He would just have to annoy her until she was forced to confront him. He was glad that he didn’t make much noise, it might take her a little bit to realize that he was still following her, but when she did the look on her face was going to be worth it. He would just have to follow her to whatever meeting she was going to, at this point he was only a couple steps behind her, he was sure that the paranoid feeling was going to come over her soon and she was bound to look back at him any time now. He was watching, waiting for her to do just that. He could pass this off as the fact that he just had nowhere else to go, and had get down the stairs just to get out of the building. He wasn’t going to go all the way back up to her floor just to ride the elevator and make her happy. He could have stopped off at any floor to ride the elevator, but this was more interesting. He kept a light smile on his face, staring intently at the back of her head; he could only imagine how frustrated she was growing. As they stepped into the lobby he kept closer to her, just in case she decided to apparate, so he could grab onto her and go with her. She was going to deal with him, whether she liked it or not.

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence could hear Demetri’s voice in her head. There wasn’t a single doubt in her mind that he wasn’t going to give her a hard time for being so late. She knew he’d be pissed. He was a busy man who usually didn’t have time to spare for anything than work. After lecturing her on the worth of his time, she was sure he’d continue giving her a hard time by questioning whether or not he should actually give in to her pleas and reveal the information he had asked her to come for. At the thought of that, Kaydence wondered if she was going to be wasting her time by going to him. Her whole night was free, but the last thing she wanted to do was be scolded for fifteen minutes straight over something that wasn’t even her fault. Looking behind her shoulder she still saw Ashton looking down at her from where she had last left him. He looked as unhappy as she was. Good. “Serves him right for being such an asshole,” she said to herself, finishing the flight of stairs and working her way to the next. Demetri would be furious if he knew the real reason why she had been delayed. Like Ashton, he didn’t like others interfering with his women. Although Kaydence was in no way his, Demetri thought that of any woman he did business with, probably all of them in general. She scoffed as the similarities between the two seemed to stack up. She was leaving one prat just to go to another. She really had a type.

Pulling the strap of her purse up further on her shoulder Kaydence continued walking as quickly and carefully as she could down to the lobby. She was on the fourth floor now, only three to go before she’d be scot free. Her hands still throbbed, but with nowhere near the intensity they had earlier. She did her best to keep the blood circulating by flexing her hands as gingerly as she could, not wanting to touch the raw skin and cause the area to burn. She was so tired of her days turning out like this. She was going to be thankful once Ashton was out of the picture so she could get on with her normal routine again. Her ideal day didn’t have a single hint of potentially being ruined. Kaydence knew that the best thing for her at this point in her life was to keep out as much normalcy as she could. Waking up, taking care of Luka, attending her various business meetings, a bit of shopping while out and cleaning when she got home, and then relaxing for the rest of her night with her dog. That was normal. That was what she needed. Not this extraordinary amount of fighting that happened daily. Not the constant mind games. Especially not the unpredictability. It wasn’t fair to either one of them. Deep down, they both knew that. Even if they didn’t want to admit it. What sort of relationship ran on confusion and constant irritation with the other? Not one that Kaydence wanted to be in.

She had finished the next flight of stairs when that familiar feeling of being followed came from her gut. It was possible that she was just being paranoid. Ashton could have very well have left her and returned back up to the elevators to get away from her. It was entirely possible that she was alone in the stairwell and her mind was playing tricks on her. It wouldn’t have been the first time. But this feeling didn’t feel like one she could just ignore. Kaydence frowned as she considered the option that Ashton was stupid enough to still be following her. The curiosity was killing her. She wanted to look back just to see if he actually was. Yet if he was, which he probably was since he was an annoying jerk, she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of giving him the attention that he always seemed to yearn. No. No, she was going to continue on her way like she needed to be. She was two floors away from freedom. Two floors away from being able to yell and scream that some guy was trying to steal her purse. He’d be pissed at her for sure for that one, but he needed to be taught a lesson. Ashton could not expect to get away with everything he did to her. Kaydence deserved having her revenge.

Her phone vibrated against the side of her thigh. Taking her phone out of her pocket Kaydence touched the screen to get to her text messages. ”Where are you? Standing me up?” Literally just like the other one. Rolling her eyes, she responded, telling him she got caught up and would be there in just another five minutes. After pressing the send button she regretted not telling him she’d be there as soon as she could. Demetri kept track of time. In fact, she was sure he was probably staring at his watch until she strolled in through the door so he could tell her exactly how long it took for her to finally grace him with her presence. Kaydence slid the phone back into her pocket. If Ashton was watching, he was sure to be even more displeased that she had the audacity to use her phone in front of him. She smirked, one flight away from the exit door. She could see it from where she stood. She took each step with haste. As she finally put the thin heel of her boot on the even landing she stopped. Why she did it, she didn’t know, but Kaydence put her glasses on top of her head and turned around. Ashton was at the first step of the flight she had just finished. And it made her livid. Crossing her arms to her chest, she waited as he approached her, glaring at him the entire time down. She didn’t know why she was suddenly so angry. He had been following her the whole time and she had known it. She supposed that seeing it for herself had just set her off.

“What?” she asked him, once he had placed himself in front of her again. “Are you deaf? Didn’t I tell you to go find someone else to harass? Or if you were trying to leave, please go ahead.” She extended her left arm in the direction of the door. “Leave. I can wait.”

[Ashton Wentworth]

He was growing infinitely tired of watching her retreating back as they descended the stairs together, while it was amusing to watch her wobble every few steps because her heels were too high and she couldn’t use the hand rail for stability without hissing in pain. He had already lost count of the number of stairs that they had taken; she needed to live on a lower floor. His mind played over this past weekend. He was attempting to pick out the good moments, what could possibly be causing him to be so attracted to her. She wasn’t remarkably funny; she didn’t seem to actually like him very much. She did seem to like his bulk next to her, she liked to cuddle her limbs around him, and she was good for a roll in the hay. Apart from that, he couldn’t put his finger on it, surely there was some other reason for it. He didn’t even know anything about her, so why was he so insistent on being around her, having her want to be around him? He wasn’t sure if he liked that he wanted her attention, never had he had to work this far for a girl before. He wasn’t sure if he should be working this hard to keep her in the picture now, keeping his jaw set to keep from saying something obnoxious to her and setting him even further back into his cause, he didn’t know if this was a game that he was going to win. And merlin did he hate to lose. Easing his hands into his pockets he wanted to quicken his step, but currently there was a chance that she didn’t know he was behind her, and the quick steps would give him away. Following her went against almost everything that he thought that he was. Any relationship that could or between them was bound to be hollow, she didn’t exactly seem to be the type capable of complex feelings, and his were just too complex. Whatever it was, he assumed it was something that he just needed to get out of his system. He would be damned if he was going to let her stand in the way of doing that, he just needed to run through whatever motions he needed to go through to get it over with. He had to of been mistaken earlier on the beach, it was just that he wasn’t done with her yet, that was all, not that he had actual feelings for her, how could he? He had just learned her last name the day before.

The fact that she was text messaging didn’t escape him, he almost wished that she would trip and fall just to make him feel better. He could only be so nice to people, her in particular. Whenever they reached the bottom flight, there was a moment where they were staring at one another, he couldn’t help it, he was still insulted from earlier and wasn’t in the mood to deal with her shit. “What?” For some reason, the simple, four letter word set him on edge. Frowning he wanted to rush down the stairs and demand to know what she was doing running around doing things that he was going to accuse her of being illegal. “Are you deaf? Didn’t I tell you to go find someone else to harass? Or if you were trying to leave, please go ahead.” His hands balled into fists inside of his pockets, making the fabric strain against his hands, it was certainly not comfortable. He wanted her to stop pretending that he was harassing her, he didn’t doubt that she was annoyed with him, but he also didn’t doubt that she was secretly glad that he was following her, she liked the attention, there was no doubt about that. “Leave. I can wait.” This was interesting, since he was fairly certain that just a few moments before she was more than ready to run out of the building, and that he was trying to detain her. She couldn’t seem to make up her mind any more than he could. Half of a smirk came across his lips she was changing he story, he was going to make her miss her little meeting, there was no way she was going to get around it.

“And miss out on your little adventure? I’ll pass” He smiled brightly, knowing that it would irritate her and took the last few steps to close the distance between the two of them, hands for the moment still in his pocket. Standing on the stair above her he towered over her like he normally did, the stair made up for the difference that her high heels were making in her height, so it was almost like they were both barefoot. His expression never faltered, mostly because he knew it would make her angry. Pulling his hand out of his pocket he brought it to the back of her neck, pressing the hair there up against her skin, he lowered his face and kissed her forehead softly, letting his gaze drop to hers. His whole body was tense, his stomach in particular because he was expecting her to punch him any second. Whenever it didn’t come right away, he pressed his lips against hers softly, savoring the brief moment as she was sure to shove him away at any second. If she didn’t, then he must have a far better chance with her than he had originally assumed, and she was far more dark and twisty than he had thought her to be before. His smile faded, but only slightly, he allowed his other hand to slide out of his pocket, placing it on the small of her back, holding her close, he could smell her shampoo, and traces of the beach air on her skin. He didn’t want to let her go, but she was going to have to push him away, and soon if she was going to make it to whatever meeting she was going to have. Yet, he was convinced that he was going to be able to force her to reconsider whatever man she was meeting, and that his face was going to be at the forefront of her mind the entire time. Keeping his hands in the same place he took the step down, now he no longer had to bend at all to kiss her, he backed them up against the wall next to the door that would lead them out of the staircase, but out of view to anybody who chose to walk next to the stairwell. Of course, if somebody decided to come up the stairs, then they would be found out. He was counting on the laziness of most people at this moment, the hand from her back slid down lower, balling the fabric of her trench coat slowly, forcing it to lift higher slowly. He wanted to rub in the fact that she wasn’t walking away, to say something, but no words were going to come out, no doubt in a few moments he was going to be very thankful he reconsidered talking.

[Kaydence Morgan]

”And miss out on your little adventure? I’ll pass.” The want to smack that smile off of Ashton’s face was so overwhelming that Kaydence had to slide her hand into her pocket and grip onto the fabric. It was as she glared into his eyes that she realized just what it was that made him so irritating. In regards to attitude and personality, he was so similar to her that it was like looking in a mirror. He was stubborn, hence why he continued to follow her down the stairs. He got off on getting in her face and using words as his weapon. He had no concern for her feelings. When he saw something he wanted, he went for it. He had no problem belittling her character to make himself feel better when he knew she had a point. He didn’t even bat an eyelash at resorting to violence when he was angry enough. So many parts of him had some sort of connection to her. Frankly, Kaydence didn’t like it. She hated that someone so close to being her equal had wormed his way into her life. She hated even more than she was attracted to it. Before him, Evan had been the one who knew how to put her in her place on occasion. Somehow she had always managed to get the upper hand with him though. Then again, he had treated her the way any girl expected to be treated. He had given her more than enough love and presents to keep her hooked. Ashton had done nothing to that extent. The only gift he had given her was paying for a dress that day in Alzubra. And other various odds and ends in the few shopping excursions she had forced him on, but she figured those had been for his own selfish purpose in getting her to finish what they were doing so he could do what he wanted for a change.

She simply couldn’t stand it. Especially how he was just as contradicting as she was. He had insulted her, swore he never wanted anything to do with her, and yet here he was. From experience, Kaydence knew that if you said something and did the exact opposite, chances were, the opposite of what was said was what one was really feeling in their heart. Like her, Ashton wanted her around him whether he would admit it or not. He would have to be absolutely sick in the head to pursuing her just out of spite. He didn’t seem the type that liked to waste his time simply because she felt the same way. There was a reason for his continued advances and like it or not, she had a strange feeling that she was going to have to get used to seeing him around. If she was what he really wanted, then he was going to stop at nothing to get her to agree to be with him. And even if that’s what Kaydence truly wanted deep down, she was going to have to make him work for it. She deserved having some sort of power over him after putting up with all of the shit he had given her this weekend. A relationship was the last thing she needed. She had spoken too soon when agreeing to his request earlier the previous day. Friends with benefits? That would go over better.

The look on her face didn’t change as his hand wrapped around her neck. Nor did it when his lips kissed her forehead. Kaydence wanted him to see how upset she was. She wanted him to feel like his sweet gestures did nothing to her. However, when his lips moved to hers they seemed to have a mind of their own. They responded with a soft kiss. It was quite possibly the gentlest gesture either had bestowed upon each other since the entire course of their weekend together. As the pulled back Kaydence bit down on her bottom lip as the expression in Ashton’s face changed slightly. She had to look down as his hand moved to her back, pulling her closer into him. She didn’t like this constant mood swinging. She wanted to be mad and punch him straight in his mouth for being so confusing and for wanting more than she knew she needed to give. His lips captured her own, a little more forcefully this time. She allowed him to steer them in the direction of the wall and brought her hands behind his back as hers made contact with the wall. The feel of her coat being lifted caused rather inappropriate thoughts to beginning swimming through her mind. Kaydence slid one hand up to the back of his head, running it through his hair. From the reaction he gave, she knew that he liked it and she pressed herself closer to him. The sexual tension between the two was obvious. And she needed her fix. Judging from the way his free hand roamed along her body, so did he.

The vibration from her phone went off against her leg, but she ignored it. Her mind was focused one thing and one thing only. A ding from the outside of the stairwell broke her lock and her eyebrow arched. Sliding out from underneath him Kaydence grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the door. She opened it and led them towards the elevator that had just opened. Quickly pulling them inside, she pressed the Close button before anyone else could join them. Then, turning around, she pushed him up against the wall and let her body absorb into his. “Don’t make me regret this,” she warned almost in a whisper, before grabbing his head and pulling it down to her level. Kaydence briefly looked into Ashton's eyes hoping he'd understand what she was sacrificing by choosing to stay with him. But as her desire for his lips became too much she closed her eyes and allowed her want to take over.

[Ashton Wentworth]

She was just as damaged as he was. He knew that she liked to play it off like she was better than he was, that he wasn't good enough, or fancy enough for her. That his blood wasn't pure enough, when in reality he had no idea as the the state of his blood. He would not be able to tell her that, or whatever family that she had, given how spoiled she was no doubt they were sticklers for that sort of thing. He squashed the thoughts of her family out of his head as quickly as they came in. He didn't want to know her history, he figured that since he wanted to have her as far away from his own history as he could possibly get her, he had no grounds to be mucking about in hers. It was part of the reason that he didn't think he was going to do a check on her, he was sure that she was bound to have a record of some sort, and that it would be full of juicy information, since he had finally found out her last name, he could do it, and easily given his level of authority. He just didn't want to, it was almost like he was respecting her privacy. The moment that she returned his kiss it was her sealing her own fate. If she thought he was hard to shake before, it was nothing compared to what he was going to do now. He smiled against her face, letting his hand move about her hair. His mind was racing, he was surprised at how easily he had worn down her resolve. Was it possible that she realized she had made a mistake and was just to stubborn to admit it? If that was the case then they were really too fit for one another. Was it that she was just wanting to play a little cat and mouse or was it that she really was wanting this outcome the entire time? Was there even anybody on the phone to begin with or was it just an act?

He hoped that she wouldn't be quiet that deceiving. He didn't like them much, but he was capable of playing the game if he needed to. His thumb brushed the bare skin of her thigh, she was in such an odd outfit, like she was playing dress up, but he couldn't be bothered with it now. Pushing the fabric aside he grasped the back of her thigh, lifting her leg a few inches, making it apparent what he wanted. Whenever her hand went to his hair he decided instantly that he no longer cared if anybody were to walk in on him, he was determined to have his needs met. He heard the ding close to them, but he couldn't have cared less, he didn't hear footsteps, and she should know by now that he didn't much care to their surroundings, given his behavior in the cafe not too long ago. She seemed a tad more reserved, and he was just going to have to change that. He started to protest whenever Kaydence pulled her face away from his, if she was going to turn him down now, she was just going to have to be coerced into reconsidering. He couldn't stop the frustrated sigh that came whenever she moved out from underneath him, his forehead moved to the wall as he attempted to regulate his heart unsuccessfully, his blood was already pumping. His palm hit the wall softly, it would have been much harder had she not grasped at his wrist and started pulling him away. He was having trouble walking at her pace until they got into the elevator, he couldn't help but smile at how modest she was being. The second they were in and the doors closed, the elevator started to move. He didn't much care to wait at all and pulled the stop button as soon as he could locate it. Luckily, it was just in time as his body was pushed up against the wall by her own. He welcomed her weight against his own “Don’t make me regret this,” "Who me?" Her lips found his. "Never" He let his hands slide down her torso, stopping just before he hit thigh and lifted her body up with little effort, helping her legs slide around his waist with his hand, and spun her around so he had better leverage. He wasn't going to pass up on an opportunity like this. X

There were articles of clothing draped over just about every surface in the room, and that wasn't much. There were the handles, which he had always thought to be pointless until now, at one point he had hit his head against the ceiling, dislodging a ceiling panel, his jacket was hanging from it. He wasn't certain why, but somehow with her things tended to get a little out of control. He could only hope that since this was a building in a magical community that they didn't need security cameras. He wouldn't mind giving them a show, but Kaydence had to live with whatever perverts were watching. His eyes scanned the small box for any hint of a camera, he couldn't see one but that didn't mean much. They were laying on the floor, her trench coat serving as a jacket over their naked bodies. Well, that was certainly worth the arguing that they had been doing all weekend off and on, added a little extra spice he thought. Being with her, was difficult, but also so easy at the same time. He didn't want to know why, but he hoped that she felt the same. She might even be good for him. He stayed silent, although he was sure that she still had her meeting to get back to, and her dog to walk, and there had to be people on the various floors that didn't much care for having to take the stairs all the way down to the lobby. Yet, he didn't care. It was easier for them like this, to not have any distractions, no other people talking, no animals causing rifts, just them. Yet it wasn't a realistic idea to keep, there would always be things coming between them. He was no expert on relationships but he was fairly confidant that he could say he knew things were never easy. His marriage certainly hadn't, and that was to somebody that at the time he had been convinced that he loved. Letting his eyes close, he pulled her frame closer to his own, hoping that she was going to reconsider his earlier words, and know that he had been serious whenever he had offered to include her in his life, and that like it or not, he wasn't going anywhere.