Broken Bonds (Unbreakable Bonds #1)

Chapter Six

chapter six

CELINE

“HELP! Aidan, help!” I woke up in the darkness, covered in sweat as the accident played over and over in my mind like a horror movie. The flames licking at my skin and the weight of the bike crushing my legs felt all too real.

Wiggling my toes, I made sure it really was a dream. That I wasn’t still trapped under that burning bike. That I had use of my legs still.

Because a year ago, I couldn’t wiggle my toes.

The bathroom door swung open, and a shirtless Ace barged into the room, frightening me. He was wearing my brother’s sweats, and they were too small for his long legs, riding a couple of inches above his ankles. “What’s wrong?” he rasped, his eyes darting around the room, looking for the source of my scream.

“Nothing.” I hated how strangled my voice sounded. I clenched the blanket in my trembling fingers to hide their shaking. “Go back to bed.”

He looked confused, a frown pulling at his lips. “You were screaming. I heard you scream for help.”

I swallowed thickly. “The thunder scared me,” I lied. He shook his head. I was hoping he wouldn’t question me anymore. He didn’t need to know anything about me—certainly not the worst thing that’d ever happened to me. We were just two strangers trapped in a house, waiting out a hurricane. There was no need to share any past stories.

There was no need to get to know each other, especially not that deeply.

Besides, his comment about me not being his type still stung. His words had cut deep, but I also didn’t want to fall in love again. I didn’t want to be with someone who reminded me of Aidan. I didn’t need to be with another person who loved a bike more than a person.

But hadn’t his actions yesterday proven he may not be like Aidan? He’d forgotten about his bike, too focused on calming me down. Aidan would never do that. There was nothing in the world Aidan loved more than his stupid bike.

How fitting they’d both crashed and burned together, just like Romeo and Juliet.

“Whatever you say, princess.” Shaking his head, he backed out of the room and closed the door, leaving me alone once again. I heard him stumble back to bed, stubbing his toe on the wall. He cursed, and then everything went silent.

I was left to my thoughts and memories. Some memories I wished I could erase, but more than that, I wished they would just stop haunting me.

Aidan had been perfect.

He had the curliest brown locks, and my fingers used to get lost in them all the time. His skin was tan from spending hours in the sun working on his bike. Eyes like liquid pools of honey shone every time he looked at me and his bike—the two things in the world he’d cared about.

He hadn’t been a stereotypical biker. He never wore those God-awful boots and black jeans. No—he wore protective gear. He did everything he was supposed to. He wore the best helmet money could buy, and the fireproof jacket, pants, and shoes. He looked ridiculous when he did, but he was safe . He even bought me a matching suit so we would look ridiculous together.

But it didn’t save him. It didn’t save us .

I closed my eyes, seeing the accident happen in slow motion behind my eyelids. Why did he have to race that guy? Why did he have to die? Why did I survive the accident?

Those questions had burned in my mind for so long now—always on constant repeat. For two years, I had questioned myself every single day. For two years, every fucking day, I wished I had died right along with him.

I closed my eyes, curling the blanket around me. His smiling face filled my mind, becoming the only thing I could see.

When I woke up, the sun was streaming into my room, and it was hot—too hot. I was sweating again, but I hadn’t had another flashback. Something was wrong.

Getting out of bed quickly, I raced out of my room to check the thermostat, grimacing when I saw it was eighty degrees. We’d lost power. Just great.

I went into Ryan’s room, frowning at the sight of Ace. He was sprawled on Ryan’s bed, his foot sticking out of the covers, which were pulled over his head, and the pants he was wearing last night had been discarded near the bed. He was breathing deeply, completely unbothered by the heat. How

the fuck did he sleep while it was so damn hot?

“Wake up!” I threw a pillow at what I imagined would be his head.

“Go away,” he grunted, his voice husky with sleep. My belly tightened, hating the arousal I felt at his sleep-soaked voice.

“We’ve lost power.”

“Shit.” He stuck his head out of the covers. His eyes were darker than I had ever seen them before, and my heart skipped a beat in my chest at the sight of them. “You sure?” His voice was thick with sleep—in the sexy kind of way—melting my heart with the two words.

“It’s eighty degrees in the house, and the lights won’t turn on.” I threw my arms up into the air. “Yes, I’m sure!”

“Is it still raining?” We heard a huge rumble of thunder, and his question was answered. I grimaced and looked toward the slightly open curtains. The sun was still shining, but rain was pouring down and thunder was rumbling overhead—a sure sign it would be raining again tomorrow, or so the old wives tales said.

“Let’s do the sandbags before it’s too late, then we can figure out what to do about breakfast.” He nodded, stretching, yawning, and reaching for the sky before getting out of bed. In the morning light, I could see his chest was covered in light hair, and tattoos covered his bare skin. He wasn’t fat, but he didn’t have a six-pack either. He was toned but not in a body builder kind of way.

Just my type.

I fucking hated it.

Black lines danced along his skin in alluring patterns, over his shoulders, down his back, and down his biceps. I wanted to see what the words said on his rib cage, but I was interrupted by his annoyingly hot voice.

“I don’t think Ryan would approve.” I snapped my eyes up to his. He bent down to pick up the discarded sweatpants, and I realized he was only in his boxers. I quickly left the room, my cheeks growing warm in embarrassment.

Damn him.

Ace wasn’t anything like Aidan. He was the complete opposite. Where Aidan had the perfect washboard abs, Ace did not. Where Aidan had a bare chest, Ace certainly did not. Ace was pure man, whereas Aidan had still been a boy.

Slipping into our shared bathroom, I quickly brushed my teeth and slid my brush through my knotted hair. Ace knocked on the door right as I was considering swiping some gloss onto my lips. But for what? I wasn’t trying to impress him. Nope. I definitely was not.

“Don’t make me wait too long.” I looked at him, seeing he had only put on the sweatpants. He couldn’t find a freaking shirt?

“Sure thing, Princess. I’ll meet you downstairs.” I didn’t know if I should like the nickname that he had given me or to take it as an insult. So, I just kept my mouth shut and left the bathroom, choosing to ignore him altogether like the mature adult I was.

I didn’t get a chance to wait for him downstairs because he was already racing down the stairs when I reached the last step. We both paused in front of the huge, living room window and winced. It was pouring, the sun now gone, and the waves had reached the wall around my house. Things were not looking good for us, and my gut tightened with trepidation.

I didn’t survive the accident just to die in a hurricane. There was no way. How could this happen to me?

“Let’s get those sandbags,” Ace said, jerking me out of my spiraling thoughts. “We don’t have much time before the water comes over the wall.” He headed for the garage, but I couldn’t make my feet move. “Hey, princess, I know I’m strong and all, but some help would be nice.” I blinked, then nodded, quickly following him into the humid garage.

“Have you done this before?” I asked, staring at the huge pile of bags before us.

“No, but I’m sure the main idea is to cover all the holes so water can’t come in. Do you think you can pick this up?” He handed me a bag, looking unsure. It was heavy, but I was strong and could manage.

“No problem. I’m stronger than I look, Asshole.” I loved the laugh that burst through his lips.

“Let’s do this!” He was way too excited to go outside, but we braced the crazy weather together, covering all the holes and getting soaked in the process. Two hours later, I was cold and hungry. I wanted dry clothes and food, in that order.

My hair kept getting into my face as we worked, and my clothes were stuck to me. Ace was carrying the last bag to put in front of the front door. He hadn’t complained once. Aidan would have bitched and moaned the entire time, but Ace just worked, focused on getting the job done so we would be safe.

I hated the way it made my heart stick in my throat.

“Go change quick, princess. I’ll get breakfast started.” He was so selfless. I wanted to hate him for it.

“I’ll be five minutes.” Once I was in my room, I quickly changed into a t-shirt and pants, wishing that my legs weren’t scarred, wishing that they were long, tan, and beautiful like they used to be. I didn’t want Ace to see them, but it was too hot for pants.

Grabbing my phone, I rushed back down the stairs to help Ace, keeping true to my word of five minutes.

“I’ve never met a girl who can actually get changed in five minutes.” He made us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches—two each—and I was surprised at how excited I was to sink my teeth into them. I was ravenous.

“Go change quick,” I told him after swallowing a mouthful of food. “I’ll be waiting.” He laughed and shook his head, water drops falling down his cheeks from his wet hair.

“As you wish, your majesty.” He laughed even harder at the scowl on my face, then darted up the stairs. I heard him fumbling around a few seconds later.

While I was changing, he’d found some battery-operated candles and turned them on, giving some light to the gloomy, mostly dark kitchen. I just hoped Mom had more batteries lying around, or we would be in darkness soon. My phone rang then, and my mom’s face appeared on the screen. Speak of the devil, and she shall appear.

“Celine, are you okay?” she asked as soon as I answered the call.

“Oh, Mom, we lost power.” I waited as she passed the news on to my father and Ryan.

“Oh, my God! I was so worried when you didn’t call this morning, and I thought the worst.” Guilt churned in my stomach for worrying her. “Dad wants to know if you did the sandbags?”

“Yes, we did them first thing this morning, which is why I didn’t call. The water has reached the wall, and Ace thinks it won’t be long before it rises above it.” My throat began closing up. “I’m so scared. I don’t want to die here. I didn’t survive the accident just to die in a hurricane.” My voice shook, my throat growing even tighter, and I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting the tears threatening to escape.

“You won’t die, Honey,” Mom soothed. “You’re going to survive this. The worst of the storm should be going over you soon, and then, this will all be over, and we can laugh about it later. I’m sure you’ll have so many stories to tell us. What are you doing about food?”

“Ace made some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast. I don’t know how long the bread will last, but for once in my life, I’m not worried about food.” I heard Ryan and Dad laugh.

“Check the freezer in the garage for more bread,” Mom instructed, “and the chest in the lounge has board games. Why don’t you and Ace play some games to pass the time? We need to get off the phone so I can call you later. Don’t go using yours for games or anything. You need to keep whatever battery you have.”

“I won’t, but worst case, we have Ace’s phone, too,” I assured her.

“I’m glad to hear you’ve stopped calling him ‘Asshole’,” she said, sounding a bit exasperated. My cheeks warmed a little. “I was starting to think you lost your manners.”

I scoffed. “Please, Mom, he’s still an arrogant asshole. I’m just being polite.” She laughed. At that moment, I wished I could hug her. I wished she was here with me so she could hug me and assure me everything was okay.

“I love you. I love you so much. I don’t tell you enough, and I’m sorry. Tell Dad and Ryan I love them, too, just in case.”

“You aren’t going to die, Celine.” She paused, clearing her throat, then continued. “I love you with all my heart, darling. Never forget that. Dad and Ryan love you, too. Be strong, my angel. You’re a fighter. Never forget that.” I ended the call, swallowing the giant lump in my throat, and a lone tear rolled down my cheek. I quickly swiped the traitorous tear away.

Be strong, Celine. You are strong .

“Princesses aren’t supposed to cry.” Ace said, suddenly appearing in front of me. I wondered how much he had heard, but from the sorrowful look in his blue eyes, I knew he had heard enough. I forced a smile to my face that I definitely didn’t feel.

“Please—as if I would let you see me cry.” A small smile graced his lips before he turned away to reach for a sandwich, taking a huge bite and moaning in delight.

“This is amazing.” I reached for a sandwich and took an equally huge bite, surprised at how hungry I still was. I nodded in agreement and took another bite. We finished the two sandwiches in a few minutes, then headed to the lounge to watch the turmoil outside. Remembering the games my mom mentioned, I dug through the chest and found my favorite board game, placing it on the coffee table.

“You any good at Monopoly?” I held up the lid of the box, which was battered from years of use.

He smirked. “You bet, princess. I’m about to whoop your ass!” he exclaimed, getting up from the couch to help me set up the game on the coffee table.

“Please,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him, “I’m a champ at this game. I always win.”

He winked at me, his smirk widening. “You’ve never played me before.”