Ace (Book 1)

Chapter 4. Possessive

Kimmy had drug me out to a concert in the heart of Los Angeles. All of Luis's friends and a few of Kimmy's friends had come. We all came in different vehicles.

It was a great experience, and we managed to stay together–up until the end of the concert. People had rushed to get out the door to their vehicles. The crowd was so bad that I lost Kimmy.

I searched for her vehicle in the parking lot and couldn't find it. My phone was in her car in my purse. After I spent an hour searching for Kimmy, I gave up. I started walking with no idea of where to go.

The streets were packed with people and traffic from the concert. The street lamps lit up the streets. I tried hard to remember which turns we took that got us to the arena.

I started to cross a street but stopped when a vehicle came to a halt in my path. It wasn't a vehicle I recognized. The car was a classic black GTO. My pulse quickened, and I stumbled back.

The driver's side door opened.

Ace rose out of the car. "Aria, we've been looking all over for you," he said. His forehead creased.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Get in. I'll take you home," Ace said. He nodded his head toward the passenger side of the car.

The wind blew and sent a shiver down my spine. I walked around the front of the car and climbed into the passenger seat beside him. The car pulled away from the curb.

"What were you thinking? You don't know Los Angeles enough to be walking around. Especially at night," Ace scolded.

"I lost Kimmy," I said defensively. "I went to look for her car in the parking lot–"

"Which parking lot?" Ace raised a brow.

"Apparently, not the right fucking one!" I snapped. I crossed my arms over my chest. "Kimmy didn't tell me there was more than one."

"That arena has three parking lots and two parking ramps. It's the biggest arena in the city," Ace said. The way he said it was as if the fact should be obvious. Ace lit a cigarette and threw the pack of Marlboros onto his dash. "Are you okay?" Ace's gaze flickered to mine. The cigarette hung out between his lips. The smell made me wrinkle my nose.

"What am I five?" I asked rudely. "I'm fine." Why did he care?

"Sorry, I was just asking," Ace scoffed. "This isn't exactly the side of Los Angeles that you want to get lost in."

"Is the boogeyman going to get me?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, but some crazy asshole might. People get raped and killed all the time in this area. You make for a bit of an easy target," he retorted.

I rolled my eyes and looked away. The town flashed by. The street lamps lit up the streets almost well enough to not need the headlights.

"I'm just being honest," Ace said.

"You might be a little too honest," I muttered.

Ace sighed and grabbed his phone. He dialed a number and placed the phone to his ear.

After a few moments, whoever he called answered. The person on the other end was only a murmur to my ears.

"Hey, I found her. Let the others know," Ace said. "Be there soon." He hung the phone up and looked back down at me.