Nothing Left to Lose (Guarded Hearts 1)

“I had my dad pull a few strings. He’s old friends with someone who works for Sony,” she answered happily. “I knew your face would look like that!” she grinned smugly. “Open the other box. They go together.”

Still in shock, I unwrapped the other gift, tearing the tape off the cardboard box, seeing an extra controller and six games inside. She settled herself against my side and waved her hand at the box. “I didn’t know what games to get, so I asked the guy what a twenty-two year old male would like, and these are what he came up with. I hope they’re alright,” she winced, looking a little worried.

I grabbed her waist and pushed her down onto the bed, pinning her underneath me. Could I tell her that I loved her? Would it ruin everything? I couldn’t risk it, she’d undoubtedly freak out. “You are the sweetest, kindest and most thoughtful girl I’ve ever met, Anna. Thank you so much for everything, and for coming to LA, and for just being with me. I really, really appreciate it.”

She grinned. “You’re welcome. Happy birthday.”

I kissed her again, setting my body on fire as I pressed against her tightly, relishing in the feel of her curves. When I pulled away, we were both breathless. I sat up, looking back at the PS4. “I can’t believe you got me this,” I breathed, shaking my head in awe. I was already itching to play it and eyed the soccer game on the top of the pile.

“Actually, I didn’t buy these for you,” she replied, shrugging and pointing to the console and games.

“Oh yeah? Did you get it for yourself?” I grinned. I’d love to play against her. Girls playing videogames was sexy!

She shook her head. “No, I got this for Nate,” she answered, grinning smugly.

I raised one eyebrow. “For Nate? I don’t understand.”

She smiled and reached for the box that had contained the games. She tipped it up and a little headset thing fell out onto my lap. “You miss your friends, so I got this for Nate. The games are interactive which means you can play against other people. This little headset means you can talk to each other while you’re playing. I got one for Nate, which is this one, and I left your one at home. They’re exactly the same,” she explained.

Oh my freaking God! Not only did she buy me this, but she bought the same for my best friend so we could play against each other because she knew I missed him? Damn it, I need to marry this girl! Please let her fall in love with me, I promise I’ll make her happy, please! I begged silently.

“Anna, this is incredible. So thoughtful. I’m kinda speechless.”

She grinned and shrugged as if it was nothing. “I wanted to do something for you. I owe you more than I could ever give you for what you do for me. I just wanted to make up for that in some small way so you know I appreciate you.”

“You don’t owe me anything,” I countered, frowning. Everything I did for her, I did because I wanted to. I wanted to be there for her and make her happy; I knew deep down inside that was what I was made for.

“I feel like I do,” she shrugged.

I sighed and looked deeply into her chocolate brown eyes, wishing I could make her see that we were made for each other. “Well you don’t,” I dismissed.

She smiled and shrugged, reaching for my book. “Let’s just agree to disagree.” She flopped back against the pillows, flicking through the pages.

I shook my head, wondering if she’d ever see how special she was. I didn’t think she would. I settled back against the pillows too, looking through the games with a huge grin on my face. They were all things that I would choose for myself, and I couldn’t wait to play them. After a couple of minutes, I rolled on to my side, resting my arm over her stomach, just taking her in.

“Thank you,” I whispered, snuggling closer to her.

She turned her head to the side and smiled that mesmerising smile that melted my heart every time. “You’re welcome, Pretty Boy.”

Closing the distance between us, I pressed my lips to hers, kissing her softly.

Chapter Twenty-Two

~ Anna ~

After a couple of minutes of kissing, I pulled away. He looked so incredibly happy and heart-stoppingly handsome this morning. Twenty-two certainly suited him.

“I’m gonna go make some coffee. Maybe we could get some breakfast out or something?” I suggested.

“Sure,” he agreed, before looking down at the items in his lap. “What the hell am I gonna tell Nate?”

I smiled. “Well, I thought about that a bit, and figured maybe you could say that you won two in some competition. Tell him that you’re giving him one so you could play against each other.” That was the only thing I could come up with that fitted; he couldn’t exactly tell him that the Senator’s daughter bought it.

He laughed, his green eyes sparkling with happiness that made my heart soar. “You’ve covered all bases here. You’re a devious planner, huh?”

I nodded, rolling my eyes. “Oh yeah, I’m pretty sneaky, you need to keep your eyes on me.”

“Oh, I plan to keep my eyes and anything else that I can on you, don’t worry,” he flirted. I laughed and pushed him away from me playfully before jumping out of the bed and running across the room before he could stop me. At the door, I turned and blew him a kiss, grinning.

I practically skipped to the kitchen. As I flicked on the kettle, I let my eyes wander around his apartment. The place was actually extremely sweet. It was a total guys’ place though. The furniture didn’t match, and was all designed for practicality and not for how it looked, as with any bachelor pad. I smiled as I looked through his cupboards, finally finding what I was after and grinned as I pulled out two mismatched oversized mugs. I loved it here; his apartment made me feel safe and calm. This place was Ashton all over.