____
T H E O N
FUCK! THAT WOMAN is so goddamn stubborn. I head for my office, loosening my tie, fingers raking through my hair as I fight the urge to turn back, to walk in there and kiss the fight right out of her.
Did I make a mistake by lying to Eli? Maybe.
Do I regret it? Fuck no.
Sometimes, I swear the only way to keep Ashling safe is to erase my entire fucking existence, gut myself out of her world before I ruin it again.
But I can't. I try to cut her out, and somehow, I still crawl right back to her like a goddamn addict.
I'm fucking obsessed with Ashling Monroe.
Dad always used to say, "When you love someone, you don't let them go. No matter what." and that's exactly what I'm doing, not letting go. The only way I'd ever stop is if I stopped breathing.
The smell of cigars hung in the room, mixed with the scent that always followed my dad.
I sat on the couch in his office, playing with a toy train. Two men in suits sat across from his desk, both stiff while he spoke. The way dad leaned back in that chair, fingers tapping slowly on the desk, was enough to make anyone listen.
"You have two options," his voice came out rough. "Fix the mistake... or this will be the last deal you ever make."
The men nodded quickly and they left within minutes.
The moment the door shut behind them, my father sighed, rubbing his face for a second like the whole meeting had bored him. Then my mother walked in and everything about him shifted.
His posture straightened. The cold edge in his expression disappeared like someone had flipped a switch.
"There you are." He opened his arms and pulled her into his lap. He kissed her deeply and she laughed softly and slapped his chest. "Behave Victor." She said, nodding toward me. He pulled her closer, the corner of his mouth lifting.
"You're working too much again,"
"Everything I do is for you," He buried his face in my mum's neck, his eyes closed, worn out. She rested her head against his, running her fingers through his hair.
My father, the man who made grown businessmen tremble, looked at my mother like she was the only thing in the world that mattered.
I remember once a maid accidentally dropped a plate, and a shard cut my mum's ankle. Dad lost his temper and fired her on the spot.
"Dinner's ready."
Dad groaned, rubbing his forehead on her shoulder. "Theon, darling, come on." Mum said and she left the room.
I followed her but Dad stopped me. "Son."
"Yes Dad."
"Come here." He patted his knee. I ran toward him, and he smiled, picking me up and settling me on his lap.
"See your mother's smile?"
I nodded.
"When you grow up and find your woman, you make sure she smiles like that too "
I frowned a little, not fully understanding.
"When you love someone," he paused. "You don't let them go. No matter what."
My little fists curled without me even noticing. "Even if they're mad at you?"
He let out a low laugh and ruffled my hair. "Especially then." His gaze drifted toward the doorway where my mother had gone.
"Women feel everything deeply. When they're upset or angry, they'll push you away. They'll cry, they'll fight you when they're hurting. But a man—" He leaned his cheek against mine.
"—a man holds on to what's his and never lets go. He keeps trying until she forgives him."
"But what if she doesn't want to forgive you?"
Something in him changed. I turned to look at him, confused by the sudden silence. He looked like he'd drifted somewhere else in his thoughts.
"Dad."
He looked at me.
"What if she doesn't want to stay?" I asked. His eyes darkened.
"Then you make her."
My old man's just as fucked up about my mum as I am about Ashling. Maybe even worse, guess it runs in the blood.
We don't let go of our women. We fight. We fuck up. We grovel till our knees give out.
I exhaled hard, dropped into the chair, and leaned back, closing my eyes.
The door suddenly banged open, loud enough to rattle the walls.
"What's up, Romeo?" Rowan's voice cut through the silence, cocky and way too loud. He leaned against the doorframe, smirking like the asshole he is, a wink tossed my way just to piss me off.
I sighed and sat up "Don't start."
He walked inside, smirking widely. "You look like you finally got laid huh?"
Rhys walked in behind him, already laughing. "Jesus, Rowan, give it a break."
Rowan raised a brow, his grin only widening. "What's crawled up your arse today?"
"Fuck off," I muttered, rubbing a hand over my face. He snorted. "You're in a mood. What happened, Romeo? Ashling give you the cold shoulder again or are you just sexually frustrated?"
I grabbed the pen off my desk and chucked it at Rowan's head. He ducked just in time, the pen smacking against the wall with a thunk.
He burst out laughing. "Jeez, easy there, Romeo. Didn't know heartbreak came with a throwing arm."
"Call me that again and I'll aim for your throat next time," I growled.
"What's wrong, Romeo? Didn't get your goodnight kiss?"
Rhys sighed, muttering, "Here we go again,"
Rowan leaned back against the desk. "Man, I swear, you need to get laid before you explode. Might even loosen that stick you've got jammed up your ass."
"Or," I said dryly, "I could start with breaking your nose. That might loosen you up."
He laughed harder, and I couldn't stop the smirk that tugged at my lips.
I met Rhys and Rowan back in New York. Rhys was a real estate agent and Rowan's a model with a sex drive of a stray dog. Bastard flirts with anything that blinks.
We met during a bar fight.
I broke some prick's nose, I was drunk as hell and he wouldn't shut the fuck up. Rowan tried to jump in and break it up, all heroic and shit... and the idiot got punched instead.
Rowan just froze, hand flying to his cheek. "The fuck was that?" he yelped, already poking at the bruise forming. "Mate, my face? This is the face of the whole fucking campaign."
He wasn't even looking at the guy anymore, he was just spiraling over his reflection in the back of a spoon he grabbed off the table.
Then, mid-whine, he snapped. Lowered the spoon, squared up, and socked the bastard right back. He cracked the guy so hard you'd think he'd trained for it.
Rhys dove in next, the only sensible one between us, dragging us apart before security dragged us to jail instead.
They've been stuck with me ever since. They're always in and out, flying back and forth between London and New York for work.
Ever since those two found out what happened between me and Ashling, Rowan's been calling me Romeo.
Fucker thinks he's hilarious. It's annoying as hell, but I can't even blame him. I am crazy when it comes to Ashling.
Still, Romeo?
Romeo died for love. Dude, took one look at a sleeping girl and said, 'yeah, time to die.' Peak stupidity, I say.
Dumb fuck didn't even wait to see if Juliet woke up, just chugged poison like a clueless little shit.
Knock knock.
Both of them snapped upright like fucking schoolboys caught stealing. Rhys smoothed his shirt and Rowan cleared his throat.
"Come in," I said. The door opened and Ashling stepped in.
I swear to God, a breeze followed her in, or my fucked-up brain made it up, because her thick hair strands moved like some dramatic movie entrance, and I just... froze, staring like some hypnotized arsehole.
Her black skirt hugged her hips like it had been stitched onto her skin, tight enough to highlight every curve. It ended just below her knees, teasing just enough to make my imagination run wild.
Her white blouse was tucked in neatly, sleeves rolled up a little, exposing the lean lines of her forearms.
The gold belt cinched her waist, and I swear I could feel my pulse quicken in places.
Her heels added a couple inches, but she was still smaller than me. I'd have to tilt my head down to kiss her. My cock stirred, thickening against my zipper.
Oh God.
To fuck her naked with just those heels on.
Her hair was pulled into a messy bun. A few strands escaped to frame her face.
Her hazel eyes, lethally captivating, scanned the room once before landing on me and my body reacted.
I didn't need to look down to know the truth. She walked in, and my dick did what it always does around her...went rigid, like it had a mind of its own.
She was beautiful.
A sight that ruined me every time she breathed in my direction.
God, my cock was so hard I tried shifting subtly, hoping she wouldn't notice the bulge in my pants. Her breasts were perfect, and I wanted to —
No, stop it, Theon. Behave yourself.
I coughed, trying to play it off. From the corner of my eye, I caught Rowan trying not to laugh. I shot him a look that could kill.
He shuts up fast.
"Ashling," I managed, trying to drag some sanity back into my voice. Inside, I'm already yelling at myself and my cock.
Down, idiot. DOWN.
She's in a blouse, not lingerie. Get your shit together.
"Everything okay?"
She nodded, then glanced at the two idiots beside her. Rhys gives her a polite smile and Rowan grinned like a devil.
"Hi, Juliet," he waved.
My eyes widened as I snapped my eyes at him.
"I'm sorry, who?" She looked confused.
I glared at him and cleared my throat. I swear one day I'm gonna duct-tape his mouth shut. "Right, sorry — Ashling. I meant Ashling. How ya doing?"
She blinked. "...Fine..." She handed me a folder. "These need your signature. I'll send Alice to collect them later."
I took the folder from her and flipped it open, pretending to read a single word, though my head was still stuck on the curve of her hips and those damn heels.
Stop. STOP. Not now. Not in front of her. Pull your shit together, Knight.
She nodded again, took one last glance at Rhys and Rowan and walked out. The second the door clicked shut, both of them lost it.
Rowan nearly doubled over in laughter and Rhys actually wiped a tear from his eye.
I slammed the folder on my desk. "Do you two ever shut the fuck up?"
"Mate, you're so pussy whipped"
Rowan choked on his own laugh. "Oh man... you should've seen your face. Mouth hanging open like you were starving for something."
"Get the fuck out of my office, both of you." They froze and trade a look.
"Alright, but hey, if you start jerking off to Ashling again, just put it on mute this time, yeah?"
"Motherfucker!" I barked, standing.
They bolted out the door before I could grab the nearest object to throw, laughter echoing down the hall.
The sound of my keyboard was driving me insane. There was too much to do, and I wasn't the kind of person who left work unfinished.
Dad had been on my ass for months with expectations stacked so high I could barely breathe under them. Six months in New York and somehow it still wasn't enough.
I paused and looked at my phone beside my laptop, my gaze lingering longer than it should have.
Ash and I talked every day. New York was supposed to be exciting, with better weather than London, bigger and more opportunities. Didn't mean shit when the one person I actually wanted wasn't here.
I leaned back in my chair and grabbed my phone, opening one of her old voice notes.
Her laugh filled the room, teasing, like she was right next to me instead of thousands of miles away.
"Oh God, I just had my driving lesson and I was terrible. Roundabouts make absolutely no sense." A car horn went off somewhere behind her as she kept walking, a little out of breath.
"I'm pretty sure the instructor prayed at one point. I'm walking home now. Call me when you're free, yeah? Love you." A smile pulled at my mouth. She never needed to worry about driving.
Whether she learned or not... she would always be my passenger princess.
My gaze dropped to the polaroids scattered across the desk. I'd been staring at them before work dragged me back into reality. Ash loved those stupid cameras. I picked one up between my fingers.
She stuck her tongue out at the camera. My cheek was pressed against hers, a smile tugging at my lips.
I let out a small laugh.
God... I miss her.
A sudden knock hit the door.
I slid the Polaroids into the top drawer just as Caleb stepped inside, his posture as stiff and professional as ever.
"Sir, someone's here to see you."
I wasn't expecting anyone today. Nothing had been scheduled either.
Before I could say anything, the door pushed open.
"THEON!" a girly voice squealed. Surprised, I stood up and walked around the table.
"Hey, Elle."
She rushed toward me, wrapping her arms around me so tightly it forced an "uff" out of my mouth.
I was a little startled at first, but I hugged her back lightly. "What's got you so happy today?"
She stepped back and tucked her dark hair behind her ear. "Nothing... just happy to see you."
Her cheeks flushed slightly, and I narrowed my eyes at her in playful suspicion.
"I had a get-together at campus. There were loads of desserts left over, so they were handing them out. I brought some for us to share." She raised the bag in her hand.
"Thanks, Elle. You're settling in well, aren't you?" I walked to my desk.
She sat in the chair opposite me, pulling out a box and opening it.
Fresh chocolate donuts sat inside, and the smell alone made my stomach rumble.
"Yeah, it's going good. Made a few friends."
"Look at you, getting popular now, huh?" I took a bite of the donut.
The chocolate melted instantly in my mouth, warm and soft, the sweetness rich without being too much. It tasted... really good.
Elle watched me for a second, her chin resting lightly on her palm.
"Did you manage to speak to Ashling then?"
"Yeah, I called her back a few hours ago." I rubbed the back of my neck, exhaustion sitting heavy in my bones.
With my busy schedule and time difference, it's hard to catch her, but I still do. No matter what.
"She misses you a lot." Her gaze dropped briefly before lifting again. "She's been telling me to take good care of you." Something in my chest eased at that.
"I miss her more." I said.
"She wasn't happy you cancelled your flight last week. She hasn't seen you in months."
My flight had been booked for Tuesday. I was ready, packed, already halfway out the door, then an urgent meeting dragged me back and I had to cancel.
Ash wasn't happy and honestly...neither was I.
I was pissed off the whole meeting and probably rude to people who didn't deserve it.
"I gotta give it to you, though. Most people don't last this long."
I wiped my hand with the tissue beside me, looking at her with furrowed brows. "What do you mean?"
"I mean...most people don't make it this far in a long distance relationship. You seem to be handling it well."
I could feel the muscles in my face tighten.
"We're not 'most people,' Elle, and it's been six months, not six years." My voice lost its edge of humour.
"I know. I'm just saying... couples drift apart. Meet new people. Break—"
I loosened my tie, tension tightening in my chest. What the hell was she trying to get at?
"Hey, relax." she said, noticing my expression change. "I'm just saying you're both perfect. I'm praising you, take the compliment."
I held her gaze.
Her smile slowly faded, the corners of her lips dropping. She gave a small shrug, like it had all just been a joke.
"Whether it's six months, six years, or sixty... my love for Ash won't fade. And I trust her enough to know she feels the same. If a bond can break that easily, it was never love to begin with. I could wait a lifetime and still love her just the same,"
She blinked at me, caught off guard.
I looked away, the raw honesty of my words dragging me back to my senses.
"Wow." She whispered.
"It's not like I'm staying here forever. I'll be done by the end of the year. Dad should be happy with my work by then."
"Yeah," she mumbled, the smile fading as her gaze dropped to the table.
"Hey... you okay?"
Her head snapped up, a wide smile forced onto her face. "Yeah... yeah," she said quickly. "I'm just happy she has someone like you... someone who loves her to death."
Something flickered in her eyes, like she was trying to hold something back.
A flicker of unease pressed against my chest. I crushed it before it could grow.
I trusted Ash and the longer I stayed away, the more it felt like something inside me was pulling back toward her.
I needed to see her, soon.
Write a comment ...