by Caitlyn Dare
How free.
I’ve never let anyone touch me the way Ace touched me, not since him.
I shudder, locking the memories away. He doesn’t have power over me anymore. I fight day in, day out, to make sure of it. But it’s exhausting, dragging around the sins of your past with you.
Ace made it all go away.
I’m more messed up than I thought, if Ace’s rough treatment of me actually made me feel... good.
I suppress another shudder. I need to stay out of his way, because something tells me he’d chew me up and spit me out before I even knew what was happening.
Mom is sitting in wait downstairs. “So,” she fights a smile as I enter the kitchen. “How was it?”
“How was what?” I reply, making a beeline for the coffee maker.
“Really?” Her brow lifts.
“Fine. I survived.”
“Remi...” Sadness creeps into her expression. “It’s senior year, baby. Don’t you think it’s time to put all that behind you? Make some new friends, rekindle friendships with old ones... go on a date or two, maybe?”
Coffee poured, I sit down at the table. “Do you have any idea what it’s like for me there?”
“Sweetheart, it’s a good school. One of the best in—“
“State. Yeah, I know that, Mom. But I’m not one of them anymore.” Michaela made sure of that after she stole my life.
At first, I thought getting a new step-sister would be fun. I mean, Mom and Dad’s separation sucked, but I was getting a sister. Until I walked into Surf’s and saw Michaela sitting there with my dad’s arm slung around her shoulder.
That day, I gained a step-sister and lost my best friend.
“She knew, Mom,” I say, swallowing down the betrayal. It still hurts even after five years. “All along she knew and never said a word. Then she acted like our friendship meant nothing.” Pain rages inside me, but I refuse to let it out. My hands tremble as I grip the mug of coffee tighter.
Michaela stole everything from me, and she did it with a saccharine smile and cold heart.
“It’s been five years, Remi. You need to let it go. I don’t want you to look back one day and see how much time you wasted being angry and bitter.” Her smile weakens. “I know things were hard, and I know I wasn’t always the mom you needed, but I’m trying, baby. I am.”
“I know, Mom. I just can’t pretend to be someone I’m not.”
She gets up and comes over to me, placing her hand against my cheek. “I’m not asking you to be someone you’re not, Remi. All I’m asking is that you embrace senior year. Make new friends. Try new things. You’re almost eighteen; it’s time to start living, sweetheart.”
I offer her a small nod. It’s the best I can do. She doesn’t get it. How could she when she doesn’t know the whole story?
“I should probably get a move on, James will be here any minute.” Mom smooths her hair down and grabs her purse off the counter.
James seems to genuinely care about my mom, and I’m pleased for them. I am. But I can’t help but wonder if she feels the same or if she’s out to prove something.
“Oh, and sweetheart,” she says as she reaches the door, “the boys offered to give you a ride this morning, isn’t that sweet of them?”
“Boys?” I choke out.
“Yes, Conner and Cole. I might have let it slip that you walked to school yesterday.”
“Mom,” I grumble, unimpressed at her attempt to railroad me.
“I know they’re a little rough around the edges, Remi, but they’re James’ nephews and I’d really like for us all to try and get along.”
“I enjoy the walk, and it’s such a beautiful—“ Wind howls at the French doors, and Mom shoots me a victorious smile.
“Looks like a storm is blowing in. Gotta run, love you.” She blows me a kiss before spinning on her heel and disappearing into the hall, but I hear her final words loud and clear.
“Tell the boys I said hello.”
“Princess, your chariot awaits.” Conner grins as I close the door behind me. He’s leaning against the rust bucket of a car he and his brother share. Cole hasn’t bothered to get out, but I’m hardly surprised.
I let out a groan, but the sound of rain hitting the asphalt drowns it out. Pulling up my hoodie, I jog over to the car. Conner yanks open the back door and I slide inside.
“Hey,” I greet Cole.
“Hey.”
Okay then.
Conner climbs inside, shaking out his hair and sending water droplets flying everywhere. “We wondered if you’d show.”
“Didn’t have much choice, did I?” I say.
“You don’t drive?”
“I got my license, I just don’t have a car yet.” It’s an expense we don’t need right now, and no way am I going to accept one from my dad.
“Well, she isn’t much,” Conner runs his hands around the cracked leather steering wheel, “but she’s ours, and she’s never let us down yet.” He fires up the engine and the thing splutters to life, a cloud of black smoke rising into the air.
“Good to know.” I stare out of the window, watching the storm lash down over the Bay, as Conner takes the coastal road to school.
Sterling Bay is such a cliché, a quintessential Californian coastal town, with its palm tree-lined streets and beautiful mix of Spanish colonial, Art Deco, and beach houses. But it’s a cutthroat community wrapped up in a pretty bow. Wealth, money, and power are the driving forces behind some of the most influential families in the state.
I try to imagine what Conner and Cole must see. Do they see a rich man’s paradise or something else entirely?
Maybe they don’t care.
Ace sure as hell doesn’t seem to.
Sterling Prep looms up ahead. Back in sixth grade, I’d been so excited to start here. Me and Michaela were going to take on the world together. Then everything changed.
She changed.
And as a result of her betrayal and my father’s treachery, somewhere along the way, I changed too.
“So where’s good to get fucked up in this place?” Conner asks as he pulls into the parking lot. “Ace said something about Shark’s?”
“You mean Surf’s?” Jealousy licks my insides. Did he go there and meet Lylah after all?
“Yeah, that’s the one. What’s the deal?”
“It’s just a diner down by the beach, but they have pool tables and some arcade games. And they have a surf rental shop. A lot of the kids from school hang out down there.”
“But not you?” He cuts the engine and twists around to face me.
“It’s not really my scene,” I say, grabbing the door handle. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll catch you later.”
“Don’t be a stranger, Princess,” he says as I climb out. I hate the nickname, but it sounds nowhere near as dirty on his tongue.
I swing my bag over my shoulder and hurry toward the building. The rain is lifting, thank god, so hopefully I can walk home later without getting soaked.
I’m almost across the parking lot when a car skids into a bay, sending a gigantic spray of water into the air and right. Over. Me.
“Fuck,” I hiss, my uniform sticking to my body like a second skin. Fat droplets of water drip from my hair and down my face.
“Oh my god, Remi,” a familiar voice says. “I totally didn’t see you there.”
I turn slowly to meet Michaela’s wicked smirk. “You didn’t....” I stop myself. “Of course you didn’t.”
“You really should go get dried off. Poor drowned rat is so last season.”
Anger wells inside me, making tears burn the backs of my eyes. I smash my lips together, biting the inside of my cheek to stop myself from screaming... or trying to rip her pretty, vicious head off her shoulders.
Michaela and her friends step around me, their laughter lingering long after they’ve reached the building.
“What the fuck, Princess?” Conner jogs over to me, barely able to contain his amusement.
> “Just go away,” I snap.
“Come on, Remi, I think—“
“Just go!” My eyes widen. “Please.”
I hate that he sees me like this, but when I turn around and start toward the building, I realize he isn’t the only one watching.
Everyone is.
Chapter Nine
Ace
Remi’s eyes are wide and full of unshed tears as she looks around the parking lot. Water drips from her hair and uniform. Her shirt is wet through and clings to her body in the most incredible way, showing off her pink bra beneath.
Wrapping her blazer around herself, she sets off to the sound of catcalls and wolf whistles. Anger burns within me that anyone else has the audacity to hurt her.
I glance around the crowd before my eyes land on the cheerleaders. And who should be front and center but the blonde she was with last night. My eyes narrow in her direction, but she’s too busy mocking Remi and gesturing to the giant ass puddle she drove through in order to drench her.
That bitch needs to be taught a fucking lesson.
With everyone distracted, I take off running in the direction Remi disappeared in. I step into the hallway just as the door to the girls’ locker room shuts.
Bingo.
As I slam the door back against the wall, every set of eyes turns on me.
“Out,” I bark.
Girls in varying arrays of dress scream, all running for the door once they’ve covered themselves up.
Good.
At least some got the message that I’m not to be messed with.
Stalking through the now empty space, I look for evidence of where she’s hiding. A hand dryer starts up and I follow the sound. I come to a stop in the doorway and find a crying Remi standing in her pink bra, holding her shirt under the hand dryer.
I lean my hip against the doorframe and watch her for a few moments. Her hair has been pulled over one shoulder, the milky skin of her back on full display until it’s cut off at the smallest part of her waist by her skirt. Unlike most of the other girls here, it’s not rolled up to expose as much skin as possible, and while I’m happy that she’s not showing every other guy more of her body, right now I can’t help wishing that it was.
I’ve had a taste of her now, and I only want more.
I remember how compliant, how eager she was beneath my hands last night. Fuck, my cock stirs just remembering the little moans that rumbled at the back of her throat as I kissed her. I can only imagine the noises she might make when I push her over the edge.
Remi still has no idea that I’m here—she’s too lost in her misery. As much as I want to stand here and just watch, my need to touch her gets the better of me.
She startles the second I press the length of my body against her back, her scream filling the room. But it soon falters when she registers that it’s me.
“It’s okay, Princess. It’s just me.” I’m sure to most people, having me sneak up behind them and whisper in their ear would be anything but okay. I take pride in my ability to strike when people least expect it. It earned me somewhat of a reputation back in the Heights.
My hands land on her waist and she trembles beneath them. “They’re going to pay for that, Princess.”
She sniffles. “It-it’s okay. I’m used to it.”
Every muscle in my body tenses.
“Bullshit. You shouldn’t have to get used to that kind of treatment.”
She tries to move away, but my fingers grip her waist tighter to keep her in place.
“It’s just Michaela trying to be the Queen Bee, trying to impress her pathetic friends.” She shrugs like it’s no big deal.
She’s wrong.
It’s a really big fucking deal.
Reaching out, I take her shirt from her hands and place it on the basins beside us.
“Ace, what are you—?”
A gasp falls from her lips as I spin her and press her back up against the cold tiles.
Her tears have stopped, thank fuck. I’m not sure I could cope with seeing her crying again because of someone else.
If I make her cry, then that’s a whole other ballgame.
I close the space between us. My eyes drop from hers in favor of the bite mark I left behind last night. My semi hard cock goes full mast at the sight of my brand on her pale skin.
“Ace?” she whispers, her voice unsure and weak.
Those motherfuckers shouldn’t have the power to make her feel less than she is.
Reaching out, I run my fingertip over the bruise. Her skin breaks out in goosebumps as she whimpers.
Fuck.
Flattening my hand against her chest, I run it up to her neck and wrap my fingers around gently.
I’m the only one who holds the power to break her, and she needs to learn that.
Those cunts out there are nothing. Fucking nothing compared to me.
To what I’m capable of.
“You don’t need to worry about Michaela. I’ll take care of her.”
“N-no. I don’t want you fighting my battles for me.”
“That’s the thing though, Princess.” My eyes bounce between hers, trying to figure out if she understands the strength behind what I’m about to say. “It’s not just your battle now. They hurt you, then they hurt me. And no motherfucker hurts me.”
Her lips part as if she’s going to argue, and I use it to my advantage.
I crash my lips to hers and plunge my tongue into her mouth, searching hers out and encouraging her to join me.
It takes her all of two seconds before she sags against me and her tongue tangles with mine. My left hand squeezes her throat gently, and it’s the final push she needs to lose control. She sucks my tongue into her mouth before gently biting down and making me groan.
So that’s how it’s going to be between us, is it?
My other hand skims up her waist until I take her breast in my palm. She moans, thrusting them forward, and I’m powerless but to give in to her silent demands. Slipping the cup down, I pinch her already hard nipple between my thumb and forefinger.
Her entire body tenses as the sensation races through her.
“Good?” I mumble against her jaw as I kiss across her soft skin. Her scent drives me fucking crazy to the point that I’m not sure I’m ever going to get what I need from her.
Sucking on the sensitive skin beneath her ear, I bite down gently.
“Ace,” she cries, her head falling back against the wall with a thud.
The bell rings out, signaling the start of school.
“Fuck. Ace. We can’t do this.”
She attempts to push my hands from her body, but I’m having none of it. I’ve only just fucking started.
“Says who? We’ve got twenty minutes before our first class. Live on the wild side.”
“I don’t know what that is,” she admits so quietly that I’m not sure if I’m meant to hear it or not.
“Let me show you.”
I kiss down her neck before grazing her collarbone with my teeth.
“Fuck,” she moans, spurring me on.
Slipping down her other bra cup, I stare down at her almost bare breasts. My mouth waters, and, before I even have a chance to think about it, my lips wrap around one perfectly pink nipple and I suck. Hard.
“Oh fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.” Her head bangs with each word and I smile around the dusky bud, knowing exactly how much power I have right now.
I could take anything, and I’ve no doubt she’d allow it to happen. She’s like fucking putty in my hands. Just like I knew she would be. I saw that glint in her eye that first night at James’, and it seems I wasn’t wrong.
She might think she’s weak, running away from Michaela and her bunch of bitches, but she’s wrong. This girl has the power to get whatever it is she wants. She just needs to learn to stand up for herself.
I kiss across to the other side as her fingers slide into my hair and grip tightly. The pinch of pain is exactly what I need. For someone who wanted
me to stop only a few moments ago, she sure seems keen to continue all of a sudden.
Finding the bare skin of her thigh, I run my hand up the inside. “Oh god,” she whimpers as I draw closer to where she needs me.
Her heat is incredible, and the desire to find out just how tight she might be as I slide into her has my cock weeping.
It’s been too fucking long since I saw some action. I’ve had offers—more than I can count from the rich sluts who attend this school. But one look at Remi the day we moved here, and I knew no one else could come close to giving me what I needed.
“Are you wet for me, Princess?”
A groan is all I get in response.
“Answer me, or I’ll stop.” I’m pretty sure it’s an empty threat, because I’m not sure I could stop right now even if Principal Vager walked in and caught us. I’d have to kill the motherfucker after for watching my girl fall apart, mind you.
My girl.
What the fuck, Jagger?
“Yes. Yes,” she cries. “Yes, Ace. Please.”
Her words are my undoing. Reaching up, I rip her panties from her body, the sound of the fabric tearing filling the room. I let them fall to the floor, and Remi gasps, But to my surprise, she doesn’t say anything. Instead, she shocks the fuck out of me by parting her feet a little.
Standing to full height once again, I rest my forearm against the wall beside her head and look into her eyes. I want to see them dark with lust, full of hunger for me as I make her fall apart. As I show her exactly who she belongs to. Who owns her body.
Her lips are parted as her increased breaths race past. Her eyes are almost black with desire and her cheeks rosy red.
She looks fucking incredible.
And all mine for the taking.
“I need you to do something for me.”
“Y-yes, anything.”
A wicked smile plays on my lips.
“Make sure you scream my name when you come all over my fingers.”
Her cheeks only get redder at my words, and I love that I can make her blush.