Chapter 20
Axel's POV
My fingers brush through her soft silky black hair, as I try to memorize how this feels. How she feels. Tucked in my arms fast sleep at 3 o'clock in the morning.
Her cheek pressed to my chest as one of my arms wraps around her, pulling her closer to me. I just needed her close even if it's testing me.
She is wearing nothing but my shirt and a pair of lace panties that I discovered brush against my thumb as I rub circles on her porcelain skin. Her chest pressed into my side with a flimsy shirt as a barrier. I clench my jaw as the shirt slides up her side again as she moves gently in her sleep.
God this is the devil's work. Tempting me. Waving something in front of me that I cannot have, not yet at least.
I sign and ignore the instinct to swoop down and kiss her awake. She needs the sleep, even if I don't get a wink. There is no way I can calm down enough to sleep much tonight anyways. I had said it didn't matter. That I was okay because she was here now with me and safe.
I lied.
Every time I am about to close my eyes, right before the fade, I jolt awake. My hands immediately searching for the spot next to me. Expecting it to be cold and empty like that morning when my heart ran out of my chest to follow her. It's like ice water is thrown onto me every time.
So instead of sleeping, I am memorizing this. In case she slips away again and it might be some time until she is back.
I will always find her, always follow her, but she is used to running and I am unfamiliar with the chase. Meaning if she wanted to, she could make it very difficult to find her again. But I would. Somehow.
She murmurs something in her sleep and I watch as her eyebrows furrow before she pushes herself even further into me. I smile at the hands down most adorable thing I have ever seen.
I glance at the clock debating if it was close enough to dawn to kiss her awake without it being too early. I groan as the clock shines back not even 3:30 am.
It's officially Saturday, meaning the bills are due tomorrow and if the checks bounce or the card gets declined we are screwed. Mason has picked up the slack too often nowadays. I know mom has the money, but she doesn't seem to be in the real world half the time. Due dates aren't on her radar.
She freaked out when I threatened to call him, knowing it will end in a brawl between the two of us, but it usually made him feel guilty enough to pay the bills for this month and next.
"What are you thinking about?" I hear the soft hum of her voice. It's like a siren and I could never turn away or ignore it.
I glance down to see her chin now resting on my chest so she could look at me, but her eyes are still heavy with sleep. I can tell she is fighting it.
"You're awake," I comment and she shrugs.
"You stopped playing with my hair," she says as if it was an obvious reason.
"And that woke you up?" I ask with a smile teasing at the corner of my lip.
She shakes her head slowly, "no but it means you were thinking. You only space out when it's something serious. Must be important," she says and for some reason, my chest squeezes.
"It's nothing baby," I mumble kissing her forehead, "I'll talk to you about it one day," and I knew I would.
She grins at me, "I know. You got all my secrets, Axel, it's only fair I find yours out."
I can't resist the smile any longer as I wordlessly run my fingers gently through her hair once more and it takes only minutes for her to fall back asleep.
Sometimes I feel as if I have aged faster than my peers. There is only so much to me and my family than high schoolers can under stand. So much more depth and these people swim in shallow waters.
But she, like me, knew what real world struggles meant. Not that mom and dad were mad at us, but how we were going to pay the bills this week or where is the next place to live.
Therefore this thing, whatever it is between us, feels heavier than kids our age could comprehend. This feeling is as mature as we are. It's intensity speaks volumes and when I hold her, my mind wonders to things I know I am too young for, but with her... god I want them so bad with her
But my mind flashes to Eric.
He stopped me the morning she was gone. I was racing around calling Hazel when he grabbed onto me before I could leave.
His eyes hold a hard gaze, almost a glare as he eases his words out, giving not hint to his emotions.
"She won't be able to love you," he tells me watching, gaging my reacting.
"What?" I snap ripping my arm out of his grip. My fist was itching to smack against his jaw repeatedly.
"She can't give you what you want from her," he explains the only hint I get towards his intentions where the heavy weight of his words.
He wanted to hurt me? Scare me away?
"Who says I want anything from her," I retort guarding myself, but he gives me a look that makes it clear I'm not fooling anyone.
"She's just... she's just not capable of letting go and falling into love. Even before it all started, she was just so scared and controlling," he says and for the first time I hear frustration in his voice.
"What would you know?" I snap feeling the green monster coming of in my voice.
"Just wanted to warn you. She'll do a number on you," he says cautiously, as if he knew it wasn't time to deal with my rage.
I didn't give him another second of my time before I races to her. I needed to stop her. To keep her. Even beg her if I had to, but I still couldn't begin to explain why at the time.
Not until I saw the packed apartment did I understand the sweaty-quaking feeling that crawled up my spine. Fear.
I was so scared to lose the women I knew Ioved. Damn I only gave her a glimpse at how hard I was falling because I knew that night I fell. Without a doubt. Her here and being so vulnerable with the people I consider family, being so honest. It's like watching Pandora's box open- and just at the end when everyone starts to give up- Hope crawls out and promises moments and chances.
I saw the demons, the dark and scary, but at that moment I saw that light in her eyes as she teased me. My world shifted.
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I'm not sure when I fell asleep but I wake up to the sound of a car honking loudly. I bolt up and immediately search next to me. She's gone. I feel the cold of the bed slowly lifting sending goosebumps across my skin.
After a wave of panic I pull on a shirt and run out the room. I hear some voices and then the door open. Without hesitating I run down stairs to see the front door wide open. I move past the living room where the TV was still running and the couch is covered in blankets. I ignore the steaming coffee on the kitchen counter knowing my roommate must have woken up before me.
The minute I'm out the door I see everyone on the porch lining the rail but no one steps off the steps. I search the line of people till I spot her silk black hair and her fair skin poking out from my shirt and one of Hazels sweatpants.
I breath out a sign of pure relief before slowly making my way over to her, without warning I wrap my arms around her and place my palms on the railing. Trapping her to my chest loving how she leans backwards automatically. She knew it was me without looking.
"Hey," I whisper against her ear and she shivers leaning into me more. I smile and she turns her head up at me, "you weren't in bed this morning."
"Don't like waking up alone, huh?" she murmures and although I can tell she is trying to smile which sets alarms off in my head.
"What's wrong?" I ask immediately on edge.
She sighs before looking back out onto the clearing. I follow her gaze to see what they were looking at.
They were all watching a slick black car comes racing down the almost abandoned street and up the long driveway. It's then I am thankful for not having any close neighbors.
My body tenses since I don't recognize the car and I feel her hands run down the length of my forearm and back before removing my grip from the rail as she places my arms around her waist. A part of me hopes that was because she felt safe in my arms, that she knows just how far I am wiling to go to protect her.
"Who is it?" I ask as we wait for the SUV to finish the drive towards the house. We are all eerily calm as we watch the unfold.
"Should we start listing your enemies or mine first?" She says and I feel Hazel glance our way her eyes glancing at my arms around Blaze for a moment.
"I'm just glad Mo and Jackson aren't here right now," Hazel mumbles looking over at her remaining roommates, "this could get messy and that's the last thing they need right now."
"So glad you're concerned about me," Mason mumbles.
"Don't worry," Jax calls on the other side of Hazel, "they can't hurt us."
"Why not?" Blaze asks curiously.
My body tense at her question and I feel my brothers eye on me. He expected me to tell her already, and I probably should have. But damnit what if she gets scared? Then again what more can scare her?
"I'll tell you soon," I mumble into her hair before kissing her temple and looking forward ignoring her curious gaze.
The SUV comes to a screeching halt and all of us hold our breaths as we wait and watch. Whoever steps out of that car could change everything and it's a heavy feeling.
What if we can't win?
Before I could continue with that kind of thinking the driver steps out and everyone freezes.
Her red hair cascades down her back and around shoulders in firey waves. Her slim frame is wrapped in a pair of jeans and a black coat blocking out the wind with a pair of boots on her feet. She looks to be our age or maybe older, but there's one problem. I don't recognize her or even know who she is. Her eyes scan the group before they find the women in my arms.
Blaze breaks out of my hold while I'm still in shock at the anticlimactic scene unfolding. This little women doesn't look like the Aunt described to us last night or the kind of men my father would know.
Blaze slowly makes her way down the stairs and we all watch as she stops at the bottom with a look of disbelief spread across her face.
"Scarlett?" Blaze croaks out and that seems to break the redhead's trance as she starts makes her way towards us, "What the-"
Suddenly there is a smacking sound as her hand slaps across Blaze's cheek.
While we all stand there too stunned to even breathe.
No one hits Blaze.
Unless they have a death wish.
"Don't you ever," The redhead hisses and I can hear her thick southern accent, "and I mean ever Snow Blaze White, leave me behind again."
Then the girl wraps her arms around Blaze hugging her tight, shaking off her stun Blaze slowly wraps her arms around the girl.
"I'm sorry," she says and the girl lets out a sob.
"You fucking should be!" She says pulling away.
"After finally figuring out where you went and flying my ass ACROSS THE COUNTRY to California! I found out you already high tailed it out of there!" the girl shriek wiping the tear off her cheeks.
"She's hot," Jax whispers from beside me and I glance up to glare at him but Mason catches my eye.
He is staring at her and I mean staring like she is the first girl he's seen in his life. "You good Mason?" I ask smirking, knowing what he is feeling. I resist the urge to tease him because I know what it's like for the whole world to just stop and all you see is her. I remember seeing Blaze on the first day of school, they had to pull me away so I would stop staring.
"Great," Mason said absent-minded still staring at the redhead as she yells at Blaze.
I smirk and slap my hand on his back successfully pulling him out of his daze as he hisses out a complaint before I walk over towards my girl.
"Why California?" I ask surprising them both and Blaze looks up at me.
"I knew someone there," The redhead says crossing her arms and watching me with a guarded look, as if unsure.
"Who don't you know," Blaze adds with a corked smile.
"Well for starters..." she says glancing at the porch. Her eyes taking each person in and gaging them before she eyes me suspiciously taking a longer time to analyze me and my hand on Blaze.
"Scarlett," Blaze starts ignoring her comment, "this is Axel and our friends, I live with them."
Scarlett's eyebrows shot up, "damn never thought you would call anyone your friends after Georgia."
Blaze winces and I can feel my body tense, "what happened in Georgia?" I ask.
"Nothing-"
"They burnt her house down and it almost killed one of our friends, put him in the hospital. Next day she's gone," Scarlett answers and Blaze just glared at her before looking up at me.
"Is that why you tried to separate yourself?" Hazel asks from behind me but our eyes stay glued to each other.
The things my girl must have gone through, "it made sense to leave," she mumbles to no one in particular.
"Well, you broke that boys heart. Always knew he had a crush," Scarlett says casually and again my body tenses.
Of course, there were guys that liked her, I mean look at her, but doesn't mean I need to know about it. My fists tighten and my jaw clicks as I try not to think of the boys that were after her. All the idiots that never treated her the way I did, never loved her like I do.
"But looks like you finally found one you fancy back," Scarlett adds and just like that the jealous disbands. All the rage I was feeling gone because she loved me, I knew that.
"Axel was is?" I finally take my eyes away from Blaze towards her friend.
"Yeah," I say and shake her outstretched hand.
"Axel this is Scarlett she..." Blaze pauses looking at the redhead, "Well she's been on the run with me for about 5 years now."
"Going on 6," Scarlett adds proudly, with a smirk, "and it would have been a successful 6 years if someone didn't ditch my ass back in Georgia!"
"Wait you're on the run too?" Mason asks stepping off the stairs still staring at her with that same look.
"What's it to ya," she snaps and I can't help but grin. Fate picked a sassy one.
He gives her his playboy smile and says, "well they say that the truth is the foundation to any relationship and I think we are bound to have something," he says as she raises an eyebrow at him.
"It that supposed to impress me?" She asks genuinely confused.
Mason looks taken back, with furrowed eyebrows and an open mouth trying to think of something to say. He doesn't get this from most girls.
Scarlett smiles sweetly before patting his arm, "you'll have to be real clever to compare to cheesy southern boy pick up lines. I've heard them all hun," she says.
"Play nice," Blaze warns almost like a mother, and she rolls her eyes as Scarlett flicks her off.
Then as if seeing them for the first time Scarlett glances at the people lined on the porch.
"and y'all are?"
Hazel step off of the porch slowly still unsure of the stranger, "I'm Hazel."
Jax follows right behind her, sticking as close as her shadow. "Jax," he says simple with a small nod.
Scarlett nods back at him before focusing on Blaze once again, "as much as I love the reunion, that's not why I'm here."
Blaze tenses in my arms but nods her head and wish I could just pick her up and whisk her away. Away from all the scary, mean people and we would never leave that house. Yeah I would give anything to do that right now.
"I figured," Blaze mumbles grabbing onto my hand while slipping out of my hold, "come on in. We were just making coffee."
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