Ashton picked up almost instantly. “You’re awake?” he said casually as though nothing was out of the ordinary.
“Where did you take Summer to?” I asked with much restraint, for I was still fuming at how he acted as he pleased. “I suppose you took my phone as well. Ashton, this is a new low for you.”
I had expected Ashton to fly into a rage at my words, but he acted as if he did not hear me. “A bodyguard will inspect the house every hour,” he said, in an attempt to divert the conversation. “If there’s anything you need, let them know. But do not for a moment imagine you can borrow their phones. If you do, I will make sure that they will not be able to speak again for as long as they live. I’d advise you to consider their wellbeing before you make any rash decisions.”
I knew from experience that he was in an aggressive mood, it was one that would not allow any room for compromise or reasoning. I gritted my teeth in resentment and tried again. “How about Summer? You could at least let her stay with me. She wouldn’t affect you in any way.”
“She’s at Emery’s. Summer is fond of the boy and wouldn’t miss you and I have fulfilled her wish too. This time you are not allowed to go anywhere.”
With that, Ashton slammed the phone down before I could react. It was just me and the solitude of a large empty house.
I was in a serious enough rage to fling the phone against the wall, but as it was my only mode of communication with the outside world. Having no choice, I was forced to replace the receiver with care.
It was one thing to be on your own but another to be forced into it. I was the latter. I spent the entire morning reading, but with the high anxiety level over my situation, not a sentence entered my mind. As a result, my temper only worsened.
As Ashton had mentioned, a bodyguard made his rounds every hour. They peered down at me through the length of the corridor and left promptly. It was at this moment that I felt rather sick of studying. When I heard his footsteps coming upstairs, I gazed in its direction reproachfully.
The men were dressed in similar suits. They were actually uncouth thugs clad in refined clothing. In a fit of mischief, I wanted to scare whoever was on his rounds with a fierce expression.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: In Love, Never Say Never (Ashton Fuller and Scarlett Stovall)