The Trap Of Ace

Read The Trap Of Ace [by Eva Zahan] Chapter 41 – Fuming, I strode to the door and tried to open it. But his pair of strong arms snaked around my midriff and hauled me to the middle of the cabin.

A shriek left my mouth. “What the h**l, Valencian! Leave me right now!”

“I will. Once you hear everything I’ve to say.”

His calm tone made me boil. I didn’t let him explain things, so he would literally keep me captive in his cabin, in his arms?

I can’t believe this man!

“No! I won’t hear anything! You’ll do what I want, and then let me go!” I said, putting on the scariest face I could manage on my face with a stern voice.

But he ignored me. Because he was too busy roaming his grey eyes across my every single feature. As if he hadn’t seen me for years. Not tolerating being disregarded like that, I stepped on his feet. With my five inches heel.

A hiss left his mouth, his filled with adoration orbs now watched me in shock and confusion. But I didn’t see any anger in there. Nor did his arms loosened a bit around me.

“Do not ignore me when I’m talking!”

His one rough palm caressed my cheek with the gentlest touch. “I could never ignore my Rosebud. But I won’t let you go anywhere until you hear everything and forgive me.”

“That would never happen!” My eyes narrowed. I wiggled into his hold, but as always, I failed to escape. My gaze flickered to those stupid bulging muscles underneath his sleeves.

“It will. I’ll make it happen. Now what my Rosebud wanted from me?” Leaning in, he took a desperate sniff of my hair. His heady scent was messing up with my senses.

Leaning back from him, I said, “I want you to terminate the contract. I want to leave.”

The mention of leaving had him tensed. His arms tightened around my waist and jaw clenched. Then the old Achilles Valencian came back in full force as his features hardened as stone. I saw the storm swirling inside him through the windows of his soul. Those stormy grey eyes.

“You’ll never leave me, Rosebud. Never again. I won’t let you.” The coolness of his voice sent shivers down my spine.

“Well, it was you who let me go. I didn’t leave on my own wish. I was pushed away,” I said, holding his gaze.

Now his stony features softened up a bit. “I didn’t want to, Rosebud. No sane person would push the only light away from their life. But…”

“But you’d to.” I completed for him, gulping the thickness of my throat. “Tobias told me everything.”

Surprise etched into his face.

“I had no choice, Rosebud. Trust me, I kept meeting you and spending time with you even after knowing how I would affect your life in a bad way. I was too selfish to let you go.” Pain flashed across his eyes.

“But you did,” I whispered. My heart clenched. “You left me.”

Shaking his head, he pressed his forehead against mine, letting out a shaky breath. “I never left you, Rosebud. I could never.”

“What do you mean?”

“Yes, I separated you from me. But I was always around. Though I couldn’t touch you from up close, my eyes always did from afar,” he said, stopping my heart at my chest. Then raising my left hand, he kissed my wrist, gazing at my bracelet. A soft smile tugged at the edge of his lips. “This looks more beautiful on you than I imagined.”

A gasp slipped through my lips. Eyes wide, mouth agape.

So, t-the anonymous person who gifted it to me was… him?

“I-it was you?”

kissing

I didn’t even have any idea it

a congratulation gift to my Rosebud on her

saw my graduation?” My voice came out

I was always there for my rose.” He cupped my cheeks. “I always had my eyes on you even if I was far away from you here in California most of the time. But I was there on your every special day. I was there whenever I thought you needed me. And trust me, it wasn’t for you. It was for

means, that means you were there all these years?” I asked, tears rolling down my cheeks. He didn’t abandon me? He was there all the time when I

never left you alone. I could never leave my Rosebud

suffered! And yet you didn’t consider confronting me. Didn’t once come before me. Why did you do that?

struggle began again but he held

you’ve no idea how much agony I went through staying away from you, Rosebud. Especially when…” A muscle of his jaw ticked as his nostrils flared. “Especially when I had to see my girl dating other

crept up my neck remembering those guys I dated back then only for some days. I couldn’t even stretch them to a week. Because all I felt towards them was, nothing. Not even a bit of

gritted out. “Do you know how guilty I felt to date them? Even after I thought you’d nothing to do with me. Even after I was single. Do you know how much it hurt me to feel like playing with others? Just to get a little distraction. Just to forget my headache for some time! And all because you were being too great by keeping me away from you! And now that I’m finally with

good. And I didn’t just appear out of nowhere.” His greek accent dense. “You were

be worthy of

inside my chest at

wouldn’t fall for

need to know that you wouldn’t fall for anyone else. Because my Rosebud loved me enough to keep me in her

my chest. I let

you wouldn’t forgive me so easily. But I couldn’t give up. After all, I’d waited seven f*****g years to have

let me stay with you. You pushed me away when you needed me the most. I… hate you! I hate you Achilles Valencian for that! I hate you!” Pushing at his chest, I tried to get

wasn’t my fault, I didn’t know anything about his condition. But still, I felt guilty. For not being there for him when he needed me. It tormented my

those stormy grey eyes, he

a tingling sensation spread across my veins. My knees wobbled at his declaration. The intense

said those words again. The words that haunted my dreams. The words that ran into my head twenty-four hours. The words I hated myself for feeling

I love you…

hear those words again.

trembled. I had no words. I

the chess matches.” He kissed my nose, followed by my eyelids. “I loved you when you were away from me. I loved even your annoying habit of eating garlic prawns

into a scorching kiss. A whimper left

my rose. So much that without you, I deny to even breath,” murmuring against my lips, he claimed my mouth again. The way he moulded our lips around each other, the intoxicating strokes

I kissed him back with equal urgency.

With both of our breathing harsh, we couldn’t move our gazes away from each

still mad at me, Rosebud?” he asked, grey pools filled with hope.

Would I?

opened my mouth to give him my answer, a knock landed on the door. I tried to pull away from him but he

need. Whoever it is, will go

wiggled out and opened the door much to his

open it was, I

before I could even pull the door wide, it

so great to see…” Her ear-splitting grin fell into a half not so happy smile when her eyes landed on me

clenched,

Red freaking witch!

was she

I could feel fumes coming

if I interrupted anything,” she said, planting an extra sweet and fake mask on her face.