Running on Empty//Closed; Kay

[Kaydence Morgan]

She gasped lightly against Ashton’s lips as he lifted her up into the air. Kaydence brought her arms tighter around his neck as he spun her forward and sat her down on one of the elevator handles. She knew how much she was contradicting herself by letting him have her way with him, but she didn’t care. As mad as he always tended to make her, he was just as easily was able to make her forget everything except the moment they were getting themselves caught up. It wasn’t healthy by any means. Forgetting problems as soon as one article of clothing had been removed, but it had been working for them. As her back hit the elevator wall she responded by pulling her face away from his momentarily to take off her tank top and then quickly unzip his hoodie. Once his hands touched her bare skin it was like a rush of adrenaline kicked in. Kaydence’s inability to keep her hands off of him made it difficult for him to unclasp her bra, but he seemed to have welcomed the challenge. She bit down on his bottom lip as it was removed and he took her back in his arms. She tightened her legs around his torso while he turned them to the side and lowered them to the ground. She continued kissing him feverishly as she undid the button of his pants and unzipped them. He was only too eager to get out of them and begin work on doing the same for her shorts. Just as soon as there were no longer any articles of clothing to separate them Kaydence closed her eyes and gripped into the skin of his back.

--

Her face lay on her open palm. A content smile on her lips as she looked around the tiny, clothing-ravaged space. She hadn’t thought that they were wearing that much between them, but the way the items were littered or hanging all over made it seem different. Ashton’s jacket was swaying lightly from the cool air blowing down from the exposed elevator shaft that had resulted from his head dislodging it. There was an imprint from her head on the wall behind her when the back of it had met the fragile plaster after he had picked her up again and pushed her a little too forcefully up against it. The spot was a little tender now that she thought about it, but had been so caught up that it hadn’t hurt at all. It was amazing what they had done in the amount of time they had been in there. Yet that seemed to be the basis of their relationship. Things usually tended to get so heated between them, no matter what the scenario, that their destruction made it look like they had been going at it for hours. Sighing, Kaydence shifted her head lightly as she felt Ashton move from behind her. It was possible that he wasn’t going to let her hear the end of it, but for his sake, she hoped he wouldn’t ruin the moment. They were always constantly at odds that any moment of bliss was welcomed. Though she had a feeling that it wouldn’t be something she had to worry about when he pulled her closer to him. He seemed to be just as content as she was and that was fine with her. Enough fighting had taken place over the weekend to last at least a month.

Kaydence maneuvered her body until it felt like they were two pieces of a puzzle that had been snapped together. She pulled the trench coat closer to them as the air from the exposed ceiling fell down on them. Though truthfully, the way their bodies were fit together gave her enough warmth to not be too concerned whether their limbs were exposed or not. She had almost forgotten how easy this all felt. They had both been ready to kill each other earlier and now she had no problem with lying here as long as he wanted to. He was so damn confusing. He irritated her like no one else had before, and yet there was this other part of him that made him a completely different person. Kaydence liked this one much better. Although the other one certainly kept things more interesting, this one had what she was looking for in a companion. The warmth, the comfort and the security. When Ashton had her in his arms, her worries just seemed to disappear, which was so strange considering that she barely knew him. At the same time though, it wasn’t something she could ignore. Those feelings didn’t come around too often for her and when they did, she felt compelled to listen. However, they weren’t stable. She knew her or Ashton could turn at any moment just because something came up in their minds that they were unable to hold back. It was frightening how alike they were sometimes. That likeness was also the reason why Kaydence couldn’t give him what he wanted, not yet. There was too much going on in her life right now for her to agree. He had no idea what her background was like. He had no idea that she hadn’t been back in the country for more than a month and why she had left in the first place. A relationship with him wouldn’t be possible until she could sort through things and accept how similar they were.

She could hear the footsteps from angry residents on the floor above them. Chuckling, she turned around and found Ashton’s lips again. “I think we can keep them waiting for a bit longer.” Pushing him back over Kaydence crawled on top of him and began planting gentle kisses along his jaw line and then down towards his shoulder blades. Grinning, she moved her body downwards.

---

Sliding her tank top back over her shoulders Kaydence bent down and grabbed her trench coat. They had spent at least two hours in the elevator. As much as she was enjoying the frequent exchanges of passion, the tiny space was starting to get to her and she was ready to get out. Once her clothing was back on and her boots hugging at her legs she stepped forward and pushed the stop button following by the marker for the seventh floor. It was incredible that with how much money her and her fellow residents were paying to live there that the staff had been unable to get their elevator working for as long as they did. She laughed at the thought. Either that or they had been able to hear the raucous they were making and had no desire to interrupt. She was glad that they hadn’t. Kaydence and Ashton needed that time to release the stress they had caused each other. The elevator finally started moving again and she turned on her heel to face him while he was zipping up his hoodie. “I liked it better when it was off,” she flirted, wrapping her arms around him. Raising herself up on her toes she kissed him again, resting her head on her normal position underneath his chin. They remained in silence as the lift continued rising up. She stared off as she waited. She didn’t want their time together to end, but she knew that it was coming closer. Ashton would have to leave to go to work at some point and she doubted he’d want to come back to her condo knowing that Luka was there waiting. However, the poor thing hadn’t been let out and Merlin only knew the state her home was in now.

When the ding finally sounded Kaydence lifted her head from his chest and looked out into her hallway. She was suddenly overcome with sadness at being unsure of his next move. She wanted him to follow, but she also was not in any mood to continue where they had left off. She didn’t want their time in the elevator to be ruined. If this was the only sort of peace she was going to get with him, then she wanted to savor it. Kaydence wondered if he felt the same. Letting go of him she stepped out backwards into the hallway. “Moment of truth,” she said, bringing her arms to her chest. She would be content with whatever his response was, but truthfully would hope that whatever it was it wouldn’t ruin the feelings running amuck within her. Nothing was still going to change in regards to her refusal to succumb to his request and she hoped he wouldn’t bring it up again.

[Ashton Wentworth]

He had never had an issue with small spaces before, and now was not any different. He liked being cooped up in here with her, it was...nice. He could feel her breathing against his body, air leaving her in short warm bursts. The air was cold on his bare legs, it was coming in stronger through the hole in the ceiling than it normally would have. He could feel that exposed skin tightening slightly raising into small bumps. Her own body heat was serving to keep the rest of him nice and warm. A dopey look of satisfaction must be still on his face, even with their constant bickering, whenever they put it aside to partake in activities like they just had, it was more than worth it, it was their yin to their fighting yang. There were a few things that he would say, even rub it in her face that she was giving in so easily, and he was fairly sure that she could get away with just about anything. Before he had a chance to say anything, she spoke first “I think we can keep them waiting for a bit longer.” He smiled against her lips whenever they found his, he wrapped his arms around her body as she pulled herself closer, not bothering at all with the trench coat. Her brazenness was welcome, since she was normally a tad bit more concerned over whether or not they were going to be found out. He knew that she had a tendency to over think things, where he didn't think much about anything at all. He accepted her advances, relishing in the feeling of her lips on his skin as they moved about his jaw and neck. Allowing them to extend their moment longer --

This time, he felt that they had really made the best of the small space, and he was convinced that there had to be a railing imprint somewhere on his body. He might even consider this to last round to make it up into their top ten list. Thinking over the other that comprised the top five specifically, his gaze drifted as he pulled his pants up over one leg, then the other. Stepping into his boots without bothering to replace them because it was a pain in the neck he started to feel around for the sweat shirt hanging from above, realizing quickly that it was going to take some actual concentration he looked up and unhooked it from whatever it was attached to, leaving the ceiling panel displaced. Adjusting the fabric he started to hook the bottom two corners together, assuming that she was just fine getting herself dressed and composed. The fact that as soon as they stepped off of the elevator they were bound to start arguing again was at the front of his mind, sadly squashing all the pleasant memories to the back. The only sound between them was the sound of his zipper being quickly pulled up. He felt the elevator moving again, and didn't look to see if she was going back home, or attempting to resume whatever meeting she had been off to in the first place. He didn't look at her, knowing the fun was over and not wanting to fake anything else “I liked it better when it was off,” He nodded once, smiling, but it didn't meet his eyes.

Whenever she kissed him, it felt hollow. He might be imagining things but he knew she wasn't a fool, he allowed her to move close, and put one arm around her whenever she did so, but he was bracing himself for whatever she was going to throw at him next. Normally, he would have pulled her closer to him and held her tightly, but he didn't feel up to it. The sting of rejection was still lingering in his tissue, even if he had resolved to beat her at her own game. This little outburst meant he was on the winning path, but he still had a long way to go. Whenever the elevator dinged and the doors parted he saw her familiar hallway, his breath was catching in his chest. Whenever she stepped off, he hesitated, not sure of what to do next. He could follow her, and once again be put second to the flea bag waiting behind the door, who no doubt would start barking as soon as he got half way down the hallway. He could just let her go, and go back to his suite and get some good sleep before work tomorrow. There was no doubt in his mind that he was going to have to sleep in his 'own' bed tonight, whether she was there or not. “Moment of truth,” Keeping his eyes trained in his shoes he stepped off of the elevator, letting the doors close behind him. She couldn't actually be expecting him to go back into her house, not with that thing in there. They were just going to have to resume their other practice, of coming to his suite.

Lifting his gaze to meet her eyes, he searched to find some sort of clue as to what she was expecting from him, it was the only peaceful way to get out of this, otherwise it was just going to be more bloodshed. Taking a step closer to her he put one hand in his pocket, and took her hand in the other of his hands. He half smiled, he was going to have to break the tension, and she was just going to have to forgive whatever came out of his mouth. While there was no possible way for her to understand what he was going to mean, he hoped against hope that she was going to understand. He wanted her to give something, she was expecting him to give and give, and he had made the first move, he had expressed some medium of feelings toward him, and then she had pushed him off the deep him, he made her feel warm and safe in the night, and she picked a dog over him. He didn't understand, and he wanted to see something in return for it. She couldn't be so selfish that she expected him to blindly trudge forward without any encouragement from her and not be doing it out of spite. Affection breeds affection. Squeezing her hand softly, he dropped it and stuck it into his other pocket. As was such common practice with him, he pushed his objections down further, and put a smirk on his face "You're going to make this easier than I had expected" he nodded in the direction of the closed elevator doors "A few more sessions like that and you'll be begging to be mine" His words didn't have the same bite that they normally had because he didn't mean them like he normally would, but he sure as hell wasn't going to say what he was really feeling.

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence kept her eyes on Ashton’s as he stepped out of the elevator. His actions would have suggested that he was going to stay here with her, but the look on his face spoke something entirely different. First off, he wasn’t even looking at her. His boots had captured his attention. Like there was actually something special about them. She knew that they were an item of comfort to him. But to her, they were hideous. She was slightly annoyed that his hideous boots were easier for him to look at then she was, but she refrained from saying anything. He probably just felt awkward. Kaydence did. Sighing, she tucked a strand of stray hair behind her head. She wondered how long he expected her to stand here waiting. Luka was waiting for her. If he didn’t say or do anything within a minute or two, she would be forced to make a decision for him and it was probably going to be one that he didn’t like. Meeting up with Demetri was out of the question. As soon as she had chosen to lead Ashton to the elevators she had sealed her fate. She had no doubt that a scathing text awaited her or a howler would be knocking on her window first thing in the morning. Ignoring important meetings for a roll around an elevator was not acceptable if she intended on keeping her eye on the prize. Unfortunately for her, this wasn’t the type of thing that she could explain to Ashton. This was something he couldn’t even begin to understand.

Besides that, Kaydence had a dog to think about now. Looking over her shoulder and in direction of her condo, she bit down on her lower lip. She hoped he was doing alright in there. She felt terrible for leaving him alone around when the poor thing had been relieved to finally have company. Her home was in such a bad state that she pictured the worst happening. It was possible that Luka saw how trashed it was and figured that he could treat it just as he did something similar outside. She prayed that she wouldn’t walk in to find little surprises waiting for her. He seemed obedient from the moment she had met him, but she knew not to always judge straight from first impressions. Looking back to Ashton, Kaydence met his eyes wither own. He was looking for something. She didn’t know what. She brought her arms closer to her chest, hoping he’d say something. She hated the silence. It made her think too much. She wanted to know what he was thinking, what he expected, or if he was remaining silent just to mess with her. She wouldn’t put it past him. He thoroughly enjoyed doing what he could to push her button. She’d be infuriated if that’s what he was doing now. After everything that had happened this weekend, and what had been making up for all of it, as much as she hated to admit it, she’d be hurt if he resorted back to his old ways. This was the longest they had gone without fighting all day. She’d be damned if it was ruined by his usual cheekiness.

As he stepped closer to her to take her hand in his own, Kaydence felt relief instantly wash over her. They weren’t out of the danger zone quite yet, but this was certainly a step in the right direction. She squeezed at his fingers lightly. She turned her gaze down to their hands. It felt natural. They weren’t forcing the other to do this. They were doing this out of their own free will. As much as she enjoyed this though, she hated it. Actions like this made her get closer to Ashton when he was the main distraction in her life. He didn’t need to be with her. He had no idea where she came from and how her life was still affected by it. Kaydence wanted to tell him. If he had any desire to be involved in her life, he needed to know. But she couldn’t. Not yet. She wasn’t comfortable enough with him to expose her deepest darkest secrets. And in her eyes, he didn’t need to know. He was safer not knowing. He was safer not being around her period. Even though she apparently hadn’t been at the forefront of Darren’s mind, whenever he caught wind of her being back in town or even worse, associating with people he considered to be loyal to him, shit was going to hit the fan. If he found out about anyone close to her, their lives would be in jeopardy just like hers would be. Ashton was an asshole, but he didn’t deserve to put his life at risk for dating her. She had already done that with Evan and she still didn’t know what happened to him. Of course this situation was completely different. With Evan, her emotions had been more or less figured out. She saw a life with him. With Ashton, she didn’t even know what the next day would bring.

Kaydence chuckled as he placed her hand in his free pocket. Closing the distance even more between them, she pressed herself against him. ”You’re going to make this easier than I had expected.” Quirking a brow, she made a face. “Oh?” She watched him motion towards the elevators. ”A few more sessions like that and you’ll be begging to be mine.” She couldn’t help but to laugh. There was no hostility in his voice, but as usual, his arrogance continued to amaze her. “I wouldn’t get so excited just yet. A round of good sex is not going to make me fall to my knees begging for your forgiveness for my unwillingness to abide to your request. My answer is still no.” As his face began to react, Kaydence held up her hand. “Don’t force it. You and I both know that we’re better off like this, whatever this is.” She was aware of how he might take her words, but she needed to put everything out in front of her. She didn’t mind fooling around with him, but a relationship was out of the question. Pressing herself even closer to him, she began messing with the strings of his hoodie. “What do you want to do?” Without letting him answer, she continued. “If you want…I can meet you back at your suite.” Not a good idea, but she couldn’t stop the words from coming. “But you need to give me a few minutes.” Kaydence didn’t elaborate. He would know what she meant. Luka needed to be walked whether he liked it or not and she needed to make sure he had food if she wasn’t coming home until later tonight. Ashton could yell at her all he wanted, but it was cruel to make him suffer. Plus if he didn’t want to ruin whatever chances they had of ending the weekend on a good note, he’d keep his mouth shut.

Still absentmindedly playing with the strings, Kaydence looked up at him. She hoped he would appreciate that she was willing to go back to where he was comfortable. She was doing it for him. Teasing him definitely, but even she was surprised to leave Luka by himself even longer just to spend time with Ashton. “I need to know Ashton.”

[Ashton Wentworth]

This was his line in the sand, he wasn't going to take another step toward that door, the broken apartment or the lump contained within it's walls. His words didn't seem to be having the same effect that he had wanted, he had hoped to push her away, make her angry and scream at him some more, but she didn't seem to want to fight again any more than he did. His heart wasn't in his words and she must have picked up on that. It was difficult to maintain eye contact with her, the innocent glance in her eyes pained him, he was sure that she had seen her share of drama in her days, but compared to his baggage he wasn't sure how it would fare. Whenever she pressed her body up against his, it felt so easy, and he had flashbacks to his one and only real relationship, there was no way that he would ever be able to tell her about his life before he had returned to Austria. She didn't even know that he had ever left, while the fact that he was neglecting to tell her that he was a widower would normally be a deal breaker in and of itself, he didn't want to press anything else on her. How much easier this whole thing would be if she would just ban him from her life, and take measures to keep him out. He knew she wouldn't, no more than he would be able to take no as a real answer from her ever again. “I wouldn’t get so excited just yet. A round of good sex is not going to make me fall to my knees begging for your forgiveness for my unwillingness to abide to your request. My answer is still no.” He kept his tone light, even though it was dry "I would say I'm better than just 'good' and you would agree" It might not make her drop to her knees and beg to be his, but it might make her drop to her knees and beg for something else. The image that resulted in his head from that thought was something that he knew that he needed to keep to himself to preserve his physical well being. That thought was confirmed whenever she held up her hand to keep him from speaking again, which was just as well he didn't like keeping up pretense if that wasn't really how he felt.

“Don’t force it. You and I both know that we’re better off like this, whatever this is.” He hadn't wanted to have a life back here. He hadn't wanted to put down roots or get into a relationship with anybody. He hadn't wanted to make friends, he wanted to drink, and do his job just like he had done for the past three years. He wanted to go out and hurt things, he wanted to keep putting off his grieving and stay stuck in the miserable loop he was in. Hell, given his new job he would have been happy just making Tristan's life a living hell for the foreseeable future, but then Kaydence had come in and just messed everything up. He hated that he was concerned for her, he hated even more that she had the power to hurt him, or have any influence over how his day went. He had been so careful about developing feelings for her, he had done everything he could to keep her at arms lenght, shoving her out of his suite, not letting her sleep over, making sure she didn't leave anything in his room, not taking her out on anything that could be considered a date, he didn't buy her presents and he didn't do anything to make her feel better about herself unless her clothing was off. Then this weekend happen, and everything had changed in the course of 48 hours. He was kicking himself for allowing her to take him home, while he would have been forced to either stay up walking all night, or pass out on the street as an alternative to spending this time with her, he could have left the second he had woken up. There was a number of things he could have done to prevent things from turning out the way that they had, but he hadn't. Things happened for a reason, he just had no reason why they did and he certainly didn't like them at this very moment. As much as neither of them wanted to admit, this little dance that they were doing was a relationship of sorts. He knew that she thought about him whenever he wasn't there, and he was pretty sure that she thought about him often too. He was the very last person that any sane woman would want to be involved in any way with, but he was also too stubborn to listen to the inner voice that told him just to walk away, that they didn't deserve to be hurt by him.

For the first time all weekend, he felt like she might actually be honest with him. Really honest. He had only expressed anything even sort of connected to an emotion whenever he had held her in her bathroom. His heart was growing heavy and he couldn't explain it. “What do you want to do?” Well that was the question of the hour wasn't it? He knew that he wanted, and he knew what he should do, and they were two totally different things. He was fairly certain that he knew where she stood, and what she would do if she would only let herself. He didn't want to play games with her anymore. The physical aspects were enough for him for now, but he was going to want more. He had known that from the moment that he had started to look at her like a person instead of just a pair of legs. He liked that she pushed him, and infuriated him and didn't back down whenever he got upset. He liked that she stood her ground. He hated that almost every other second it seemed like she couldn't care less if he was in her presence or on another planet, he didn't like that she was scared of something she didn't want to tell him. Reconsidering her words, he was letting them roll around in his head, the possible meanings. “If you want…I can meet you back at your suite.” He looked down at the top of her head, apparently she was once again only wanting to know where they were going to be meeting up later tonight, and nothing more. His heart dropped another inch into his gut. He had walls too, but she was going to make things impossible. “But you need to give me a few minutes.” He knew what she meant, and he didn't want to think about it any further. On the one hand, if she did show up and had a bag with her then she might be taking a step onto his side for a little while, but if she didn't then they were still standing firmly on square one, no, coming back to his room was not a good idea at all. He wasn't going to stop her if that was what she wanted but he did have to work in the morning.

“I need to know Ashton.” He understood what she was doing, in her own little way she was telling him that she cared, that she was willing to put him before the lump even if only for a little while. It was enough for now. Hugging her tightly before letting her go he shook his head once, they were going to have to compromise, she said she was willing to leave, then he was going to have to be willing to let her stay. He shook his head no, hoping that she would understand that it was for the best when it came to both of them. Then he could sleep enough to be functional for work in the morning, and she would have time to come to her senses and reconsider his offer. He knew in time she would come around to see it his way, if she didn't, then she was seriously underestimating how persistent he could be if he put his mind to it. With her body this close, he pressed a kiss to her temple and pushed her away a step. She would be able to tell that he got her hidden little message "I'm never going to stop asking" All pretense was gone from his voice, he was looking right into her eyes. They didn't have to know each other to be with one another. He half smiled, removing her hand from his pocket and letting it go. "You will say yes" He smiled, winking once "There's no other possible option" No matter what she said in response to this, he would know the truth. He smiled softly, knowing that she was bound to be at least a little upset with him, but he was just going to have to take it and move on. His suite was calling to him, the soft, clean covers were going to feel wonderful on his naked skin once he finished his much wanted shower. He saw the sting in her eyes and it made him want to leave only that much more.

[Kaydence Morgan]

Kaydence hated putting herself out there. Regardless of whether or not she was in a relationship, she did not deal well with rejection. She never had. Her second year at Galaxia had been one of the first and only times she had experienced it with someone of the opposite sex. A fourth year Slytherin had caught her eye, a chaser for the house team. Kaydence, who was very good at getting the boys she wanted, had advanced and he had denied her. He claimed she was no good since she was only a second year even though he knew her last name and he knew her brother. She had been persistent, insisting that her age had nothing to do with experience, which besides making out with other boys, she had none of. He had laughed in her face and attempted to make fun of her in front of a group of his fellow fourth years. Never being one to be publicly humiliated or facing rejection for the first time, Kaydence had used the ferula spell to conjure up a wooden rod. Once doing so, she stepped up to the prat and began beating him over the head with it. She had gotten a month’s worth of detention for the incident, but it had been worth it. After word had traveled of her lack of fear for repercussions, people started taking her seriously more so than before. Also, as a result, she never had to feel the sting of rejection for the rest of her school years, probably due in large part to boy’s fears that she would beat them with wood, but she had gotten her point across.

She had matured enough to not do the same to Ashton if he chose to deny her own request. Kaydence didn’t actually know how she would handle it. Things seemed like they were going in that direction. She had been spoiled with falling asleep next to him for the past two nights. She didn’t want those nights to be the only ones she had with him. He was comfortable and made her feel secure. Besides that, as most of the other things he did, it felt natural. If she slept in her own bed alone tonight, she had no doubt her body would find some way to keep itself on the side of the bed she had claimed as her own in his time with her. Of course Luka would probably help by taking the side Ashton had slept on, but it wouldn’t feel the same. Her dog couldn’t completely fill the void he would leave behind. Even she wasn’t stupid enough to think it would. Kaydence was fighting a war with herself. She knew she shouldn’t have been thinking about how sad she’d be sleeping without Ashton’s warmth next to her. She should have been relieved if he wanted her to stay here. It would make things easier. She needed him to push her away, to tell her that he only wanted her when he needed his fix. She yearned for him to not show any affection for her whatsoever. The two of them together was not a good idea. Kaydence could see that from his own mental battles with himself and obviously from her secrets she wasn’t ready to reveal. They were too screwed up to be with each other. However, they were also screwed up enough to potentially understand each other on a deeper level.

His hug gave her the answer to her question. Before he had even said anything, Kaydence knew. His head shake confirmed it. Her gaze lowered to the floor. There it was. That stinging sense of rejection again. It had been so long since she had felt it that she almost forgotten what it was like. His kiss to her temple was nice, but her confusion at her inability to get what she wanted was looming. His behavior hadn’t changed so she was thankful he had given her that much. She would have flipped out if he had been a jerk about it. ”I’m never going to stop asking.” She didn’t doubt it. That should have been enough to alleviate some of his denial, but it wasn’t. Whether she liked it or not, Ashton found his way into the cold abyss that housed the muscle that had seemed to start beating again when she had met him. Kaydence allowed her eyes to look from the floor back to his. She hoped he wouldn’t be able to tell how she was feeling. She didn’t need to give him any more confirmation then she had already. She half-smiled as he eased her hand from his pocket. ”You will say yes. There’s no other possible option.” His light-hearted attitude shook some of the sadness away. Little did he know that there was another possible option. If he ever found out about Darren and the life she had left behind so many years ago, he’d be able to see it. If he was as persistent as he had been this weekend, Kaydence would have no choice but to tell him to finally drive that wedge she knew, for his safety, had to be between them. She was fine with him not knowing the sacrifice of her happiness she was willing to make to make sure he never appeared on her brother’s radar.

Shaking her head no, she began walking backwards. “No I won’t,” she finally said, “you can ask all you want, but my answer is not going to change. You know I was right by what I said earlier. Don’t let your pride get in the way of your sensibility.” Upon reaching the intersection of the waiting space for the elevator and the hallway, Kaydence stopped. “And for the record, if you call me tonight because you changed your mind, I’m not picking up.” Though she was playful, she meant every word. Ashton had his chance. She would not give him the satisfaction of coming to him at his every beck and call as she had before. If he wanted to play this game with her, then she was going to play it to the best of her ability. Bringing her hand up, she wiggled her fingers in his direction. “Goodnight Ash.” It was the first time she had ever used a nickname for him and that was significant in itself. With one last parting look, she disappeared behind the wall and quickly made her way to her door. Luka barked from behind it as she approached. Taking her keys from her purse she placed her house key in the lock and turned it. The smell of wet carpet instantly floated into her nostrils. “Great,” she said to herself, sliding in between the door and locking it instantly behind her. Kaydence turned the light switch on next to the door and made her way towards the living room. The hallway and living room had been just how she left it. “Good boy,” she cooed to the dog, stroking his head as she put her purse on the floor next to her couch. The cleaning spells had managed to get rid of a significant amount of discoloration, but not so much the smell. She would have to go to Alzubra Alley tomorrow and make her own cleaning potion if she couldn’t find one strong enough.

Falling back into the comforts of her couch, Luka quickly joined her. Jumping up and sitting on her stomach as Kaydence laid her head back on the cushion of the arm rest. Chuckling, she scratched lovingly as the dog placed his head on her chest and stared at her. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere else tonight,” she promised, giving him a small smile. This was for the best. She had to keep telling herself that. The only man she needed in her life was the dog. There were no strings attached with him and he would love her unconditionally. Kaydence wouldn’t need to fight for his affections or deal with jealous rages that came from him not being the center of her attention for even a minute. He would always be there for her and his perception of her would never change. Sighing, she wrapped her arms around the dog and stared out into the open hole of her sliding glass door. This was what she needed to get used to. No third party interruptions. Her eyelids began feeling heavy and fluttered as she fought to stay awake. Though as she closed her eyes in hopes of just resting them, she and Luka were not the vision she fell asleep to. It was of her and Ashton in her bed. She had leaned over to turn off the light from her nightstand and he quickly pulled her back to him. With a kiss to the back of her head, he settled in next to her and she followed suit, darkness fully consuming them as they fell asleep.