Ace Of Spades (Complete Raw First Draft, Unedited)

Fourty- Three: Free

It was sweet relief to climb out of the car and follow Ace inside, after we were dropped home by Axe and Marcus.

Robert, who was a doctor, and a member of Ace's club, had examined my injuries. He assured me that, miraculously, my ribs weren't actually broken, but I would be incredibly sore for the next week or so. Every part of me hurt, especially when I moved, and so, I was slow, but Ace never left my side, supporting me all the way into the house.

"Do you want a shower?" He asked me, reaching to brush my hair away, but dropped his hand back to his side. "Or do you want to go straight to bed?"

Ace and Amity had cleaned the majority of the blood off me, but, still, I felt filthy, and all I wanted to do was plunge myself into the ocean and wash away the filth of what Lucas had done to me.

A shower sounded amazing, right at that moment.

He helped me to undress, sucking in a sharp breath at the discoloration of the bruises that were covering the majority of me already. I waited, wrapping my arms around my body as he turned on the water, adjusting the temperature, then, he turned to me.

"Here," he held his hand out to me. "Come tell me if this is warm enough."

The water was perfect, and I quickly nodded, stepping into the torrent, gasping at how good it felt.

"I'll leave the door open," he told me. "Just yell if you need me for anything."

I nodded and he left, leaving the door open behind him as he'd promised.

I painfully reached for the bottle of shampoo, and washed my hair twice, scrubbing the rest of myself afterwards, not caring about how much it hurt to do so. I told myself that I was numb, I couldn't feel any of it. The pain didn't exist, I felt nothing.

After maybe twenty minutes, barely aware of my skin stinging and my whole body aching, I turned off the water, wrapping myself in a towel. Then, taking as deep a breath as I could manage, I stepped out of the shower, and made my way to my room.

Painfully, I struggled into the clothes I slept in, then perched on the side of the bed, listening to Ace's footsteps as he approached. He knocked on the door, waiting till I called him in.

"Hey, darlin' do you need me to do anything for you?" He was looking at me with so much concern, that it actually broke through the numbness I'd forced myself to feel, the carefully guarded barriers I'd built up around my mind, and my heart crumbled. I quickly shook my head, hoping he would leave me there.

"I'm going to go get clean," he told me as I stared at my feet, "then I'll be right back, okay?"

I nodded, and he hesitated in the doorway, watching me. When I said nothing, he finally left, and I laid down on the bed, staring at the roof.

I don't know how long he was, but sleep still hadn't come to claim me when I heard the water go off, and Ace make his way to his room.

I let my legs fall off the side of the bed, and sat up, hearing him moving around. Slowly, I walked through the hallway, and knocked on his door.

"Come in," he answered immediately, and I pushed it open, and stared at him from the doorway, his hair still damp from the water. I studied the ink decorating his body, avoiding his eyes, focusing, in particular, on the serpent like creature that snaked down his ribs, dipping below the waist of his track pants.

He took a step forward, then stopped himself, and I was actually able to meet his eye.

What I saw there, I didn't understand. It wasn't anything I'd seen before, a mix of so many different things; such tenderness and affection and sympathy and so many other emotions that I didn't recognise.

I was supposed to thank him, to express my gratitude for everything he'd done for me, not just tonight, but, for as long as we'd known each other. I wanted him to know that I wasn't afraid to be close to him, because he'd proven time and time again, that he wouldn't hurt me.

I could tell he wanted to touch me to be sure I was really there. He wanted to ask me how I was, but we both knew the question was as obviously stupid as the answer.

Instead of saying any of the things I wanted to say, I just stared. And then, I burst into tears.

My sobs racked through my body, the pain in my side almost unbearable. It felt as though I was being kicked in my ribs again, like before, but, suddenly, Ace was there, holding me in his arms, crooning softly. I buried my face against his chest, trying to regain my composure as he smoothed his hand over my hair, soothing me.

"He's gone," he was whispering, gently rocking us from side to side. "He'll never hurt you again. You're free from him, forever, Jenna."

I nodded, my sobs finally dying down to sniffling, and he sat me down on the edge of the bed, kneeling in front of me. He had a small bruise forming over his cheekbone, below his left eye, and I carefully touched my fingertips to it.

He didn't even flinch, he just gently took my hand, pressing my palm to his mouth, then to the side of his face, watching me carefully.

"What do I do now?" I asked him

Now that I was safe from Lucas, fearing that he could come and take me back at any moment, I could go where ever I wanted, do anything I wanted to do. I was free to live my life anyway I wanted to.

Lucas was gone, and so was Amelia, for good. Now, I could be whoever I wanted to be. I could be Jenna, the girl who loved Ace, and I could kiss him and hug him and sleep beside him whenever I wanted to, and not just because he could protect me.

I could have my own things, nice things. I could have him, and the idea excited me.

But, I was afraid. Much more than I ever thought I'd be, because, now that I had that, I had so much to lose.

"You can do anything you want, now," Ace assured me, gazing up at me.

"Where do I go?" I asked, even more softly.

Ace looked crestfallen for a moment, glancing away, then shrugged and looked back up at me.

"Where do you want to go?" He wondered, but I shook my head.

"I don't know," I admitted.

He hesitated for a second, working his jaw as he glanced away again, seeming apprehensive before meeting my eye once more.

"Stay with me?" he asked hopefully, his eyes pleading. "For as long as you want, or, at least until you figure out what you need to do."

He entwinded his fingers with mine, pressing them to his mouth again as he looked up. I looked down at our hands, how small his made mine look, how strong they were, yet, also how gentle, at the same time.

I nodded, and Ace smiled, relief sparkling in his eyes as he bent his head and kissed my knee, then leaned his forehead against them as I tangled my fingers into his sandy coloured hair, sighing.

"Ace, I don't want to be alone, tonight," I confessed, my voice hitching in my throat, and he nodded, climbing to his feet to sit beside to me, holding onto me.

"Sleep in here, with me," he said quietly, almost a whisper, his breath stirring my hair, tickling my face, and I nodded, breathing him in.

After a few moments, he helped me into the bed, smiling down at me as he brushed my hair back.

My breathing was shallow, and it still hurt so much, but Ace was so careful, slowly lulling me to sleep with his soft touch, holding me the entire night.