After the Maserati pulled away, Ashton closed his eyes to feel her in his arms at last. It had been four long years since he last held her. Unconsciously, he embedded his face in her neck, inhaling her sweet addictive smell, feeling her soft skin against his features. He didn’t want this embrace to end. He could spend his life holding her this way!
Maybe he was doomed to not get what he wanted! His life had turned upside down since the day she left for Cornell. At first, he had been too upset that she moved near Jason, but he tried to reason with himself that it was for the best. His heart couldn’t accept it and it had been an intense mental struggle for him to stay away from her, but not anymore. After Kingsley’s threat, he couldn’t ignore her any longer. She was his and he would fight everyone who came his way!
He had paid off the entire debt two years ago, but Gambino slapped fifteen years of interest on him. It was a tremendous blow to Ashton. He had finally expected to be free, but now he had another lump sum amount to pay off. All his dreams of buying himself a home crumbled to dust, and he started saving up again to pay off Gambino. He could have resorted to an easier way by taking a loan from Daniel Van Every and repaying him later, but Ashton didn’t want to take anyone’s help. He would face the new hurdle with courage and free himself and his dad if he was alive. The last time he went to pay his last debt amount, Gambino still refused to give him any clue about his dad. Ashton’s frustration reached sky-high, and he had wanted to murder the man at that moment. He had expected to see his dad after paying off the last installment.
“Ashton, thank you for saving me,” whispered Hayley into his chest, bringing him back to the present. He raised his head reluctantly and gazed into her wide eyes, feeling the curiosity bubbling inside her.
“Let’s get you back to the party,” he said, controlling the overwhelming emotions ready to burst out. Hayley released him slowly, totally confused by everything going around her. His words echoed in her head.
She’ll always be mine!
Her heart thumped faster realizing what it meant. Did he really call her his girl? Was it just to save her from a criminal, or did he really mean it? More questions followed, swirling across her head, driving her crazy. Did the Don threaten him to stay away from her? Why would he do so? What debt was Ashton talking about? Lost in her curiosity, she followed Ashton inside the club, back to the upper deck.
“Don’t go anywhere alone. Have you understood?” barked Ashton, raising his voice above the blasting music.
“Yes,” said Hayley, watching him nod at her and disappear into the crowds, leaving her disappointed and bursting with curiosity. She saw her friends approach their table with a delicious cake and squealed with delight, rushing towards them.
“Time to celebrate, birthday girl!” said Alyssa in a sing-song tone. The girls sang the birthday song for Sienna and she blew out the candles and cut the cake. Later, they stuffed pieces of cake into everyone’s mouth while they fed her, too. Alyssa forced her to finish two glasses of vodka, just as she had, and at the end of it all, Hayley was as drunk as they all were. She hadn’t intended to drink so much and her head swam with euphoria. She couldn’t help the feeling of lightheaded bliss that spread all over her, drinking so much for the first time.
“I think I’ll dance with that cute bartender, hic!” slurred Skylar.
“I’m coming with you,” said Alyssa.
“Me too,” said Eva.
“Me three,” giggled Hayley. They all turned towards Sienna.
“Me four,” Sienna giggled as well.
“Yay, that’s the spirit. Let’s go,” said Alyssa, leading them downstairs to the dance floor, but Sienna couldn’t find her mobile phone and she started looking for it.
“You’ll go. I’ll join you in a minute,” said Sienna.
“I need to pee. You guys go ahead. I’ll join you later,” said Eva, staggering towards the washrooms at the back.
Hayley followed Alyssa and Skylar down to the dance floor, totally forgetting about Ashton’s warning. Her heart felt light and happy watching the couples sway to the music. It was so much fun to loosen herself for once and dance to her heart’s content.
“This is my favourite number. Let’s go,” said Skylar, grabbing her hand and pulling her right into the crowd, gyrating to the beats of a peppy dance number. The three friends started dancing with one another, but soon Skylar found someone to dance with, and so did Alyssa.
A guy winked and came up behind Hayley.
“You’re hot as f*ck!” he breathed in her ear, swaying a little on his feet. It was obvious he was more drunk than she was.
“F*ck off,” she yelled back, moving away to collide with another guy!
“Dance with me?” asked the guy with a charming smile on his face. He didn’t look so bad, and Hayley smiled back. The DJ changed the music to a mushy romantic number, and she danced to her heart’s content. She lost sight of her friends and geared up to dance to the next song when the guy handed a drink to her. She gulped it in one go, her head feeling light and dizzier than before. Her dance partner moved an inch closer to her, oblivious to Hayley, who danced without a care in the world, tasting freedom for the first time.
“Come this way, babe! I’ll get you a drink,” said the man, his fingers clamping onto her arm.
“I really need one!” giggled Hayley as the man led her towards the exit. “Hey, I’m not going home!” she slurred, watching where he led her to.
“You don’t have to. You can come over to my place. It’s nearby,” coaxed the man with a charming smile. Hayley stopped, coming to her senses. What was she doing with a random stranger?
“No, I’m not going anywhere with you,” she slurred, refusing to go a step forward.
“Don’t be shy! I’ll give you the best night of your life!” said the man, his eyes glittering with lust.
“Get lost! I’m not going with you,” yelled Hayley, holding on to her head, which swooned wildly. She couldn’t focus much on anything, and a sense of panic gripped her heart. The man snaked an arm around the waist to lead her quickly away with him, but someone grabbed his collars from behind.
“Leave the girl or I’ll murder you right here, right now!” growled Ashton, his eyes red with fury. The man froze and released Hayley, turning around to face his opponent. His face paled at seeing Ashton, who was flanked by Alexander, and a few of the guys at the club.
“She wanted to go with me!” said the man lamely, but Ashton punched him in the face. The bouncers came rushing in to stop the fight. They were all thrown out. Alexander went inside to get the girls while Ashton grabbed Hayley’s hand and pulled her towards the parking area.
“I told you to stay at your table, didn’t I?” he yelled at her angrily. Hayley’s head swooned, and she faltered. Ashton turned to look at her.
“Hayley? What’s wrong?” Before he could utter another word, she closed her eyes and swayed dangerously, as if on the verge of losing her consciousness. Ashton grabbed her around the shoulders, but her body went limp in his arms.
“Shit!” he swore, picking her up in his arms and striding towards his car. He unlocked the door and placed her on the passenger side. It was clear she had overdone it tonight. There was a possibility that the man might have spiked her drink to have his way with her! Anger boiled inside him at her naivety. Was it so difficult to listen to him when she couldn’t look after herself?
He called Alexander to tell him he was leaving with her.
“I’m taking her home, bro. The bast*rd spiked her drink and now she’s out.”
“Yeah, fine. The rest are in no better condition. I feel like shit! Shouldn’t have agreed to this in the first place.”
“Yeah, man! This was such a bad idea!”
Ashton grimaced at the situation at hand after he disconnected the call. He knew she had planned to stay the night at Alyssa’s apartment, but with all the girls in a similar condition, he thought against it. He couldn’t afford to have Knightley return for his prey.
Driving out of the nightclub, he sped towards his beach-facing apartment. Last year, he had shifted out of the cottage in the resort. Madison always created a scene whenever she came over to his workplace and he felt inconvenienced. The accommodation came as a perk with his post as the General Manager of Silver Spring Resorts. He had reached this position by his immense dedication and hard work within a brief span of four years. It was an achievement that made his foster parents proud, but Ashton wasn’t happy. He wanted only one thing! Hayley’s presence in his life! So could he hope now?