“It wasn’t your fault.”
“I shouldn’t have been walking in that alley, Ashton. Of all the stupid things to do!”
I frown slightly at the way she berates herself like that makes me feel like I should do something, say something to soothe her, so she knows it’s not her fault. I step closer to her, I feel an urge to hug her when she says my name with such vulnerability. I don’t know why, this girl is slowly edging her way into my head, but something stops me from doing what I feel. At the moment, I know that feeling is guilt and betrayal - for April.
I watch her fingers wipe away the stray tear that is on the cusp of falling, the urge to wipe it away myself is there, but I stop myself by clenching my fist at my side.
“And that asshole shouldn’t have done what he did. You’re free to walk wherever you want. Animals like that shouldn’t take away your freedom.” She looks down at the floor, avoiding my gaze.
Fuck it, I can’t stop something that feels so natural.
I place my hands back on her shoulders and pull her into me gently. She rests her cheek against my chest awkwardly, but she loosens and leans into me with a sigh. Acacia places her hands just above my hips, so I wrap her in with one arm. She finds comfort in me as I try to be some kind of comfort to her, but that fact made me uncomfortable. I remove my hands from her and go out to start my truck. I hear her faint steps just behind me.
~*~
“Where is the Audi?” she asks.
“At the mechanic in the city. It doesn’t fit here, anyway.”
“Well, I like this one better if you ask me, but I still need to pay for the damage I caused.” She jumps into the passenger seat as I get into the driver seat.
“Just leave it. I don’t want you to pay for it - I’ve got it covered!” I answer sharply. She drops her eyes from mine and turns to look out of the window.
Shit, I didn’t mean to answer like that, but I don’t want her money.
“No more talking about the money, okay?” She looks my way cautiously and nods.
I need to control my temper more, but I’m unsure how to so I keep driving in silence. The rain starts again, tapping the car with a soft thud, I clear my mind so I can focus on the road.
“So, Ashton, what’s your story?” Acacia asks out of the blue, breaking the awkward silence.
“Huh?” I look at her from the corner of my eye, “What do you mean?”
“You’re new here, living in the mountains all by yourself. You must have run away from something, or someone?” she asks curiously.
“People.”
It’s her turn to be confused now, “Huh?” she asks. A cute little ‘v’ forms between her eyes.
“I ran away from people,” I say, giving her a quick sideways glance.
“I don’t think you did a very good job of it.”
“I was doing just fine ‘til I met you,” I say and can’t help the smile forming on my face, causing her to laugh.
Hearing her laugh is like music to my ears, something else to ring out in my mind about her. I watch as the smile lights her whole face and makes her eyes sparkle, she is breathtakingly beautiful.
Fuck, what’s wrong with me? How can I think like that about someone after April?!
April… for the first time since I lost her, I haven’t thought about her in hours.
Silence falls on us after our laughter dies down, in creeps my foul mood again. Acacia places her forehead to the window and watches outside.
“Fuck!” I let out under my breath.
“What? What happened?”
“The road is blocked, seems like a tree has fallen down. We need to go back until it’s cleared.”