33. Ace
THIRTY-THREE
ACE
“Where’s my girl?” I yell, barely making it inside the door before kicking off my shoes and heading toward the living room in search of Lark. After spending entirely too long away, I need to get her in my arms.
“In here!” she calls out, and I round the corner to see her snuggled up, watching one of the reality shows she said she wanted to binge while I was on the road. She looks all cozy and warm, and I can’t stop from launching myself onto the couch, enveloping her in my arms. She giggles, cuddling into me as I press kisses all over her face like I haven’t seen her in years.
“Fuck, I missed you,” I say, continuing my assault. “I’m sneaking you into my luggage next time.”
“I missed you too, but you couldn’t pay me to live in random hotels for half the year. I don’t know how you do it.”
I sit up, lifting her into my lap. “Okay, fine. But can we at least make it so you’re always here when I come home?” Better yet—just never leave. I know it's fast, and I’m sure she isn’t ready to move in with me yet, but if she was, I’d absolutely want her to. Now that we're moving things forward in our relationship, it's only a matter of time before we take that step. In a perfect world, we’d live together while she went back to school, so she wouldn't have to worry about extra bills and could focus on her classes. It's definitely something we'll need to discuss, but I want to support her in every way I can as she works to achieve her dream.
“That can be arranged,” she says, and my heart does somersaults in my chest at the thought of never having to walk into an empty apartment after a road trip. If I have to be away, knowing I'm coming home to her sweet smile will make it a hell of a lot easier.
“Anything interesting happen while I was gone?” I ask, and I can tell immediately that something is bothering her. She takes a deep breath, exhaling slowly before settling her eyes on mine.
“Actually, yeah.” Her expression is full of worry, and without even knowing what she's going to say, I want to fix it. Her shoulders are hunched forward, and her hands are wrung together in her lap as she stares down at them like they have all the answers to her questions.
“Baby, talk to me,” I say softly, lifting her chin with my pointer finger. “What’s going on?”
She sighs, dragging a hand through her blonde waves. “I really wanted you to be able to come home and get settled in before I told you everything, but since you're asking, we may as well just get it over with.
“Hailey called me from work the other day. She wanted to give me a heads-up because she heard Dean Dawson talking about her plan to open an investigation on you for cheating. I knew this was all part of her vendetta against me, since there's no way they could prove that you did something you didn't do. Even if they wanted to compare my work in the class to yours, they would see how different it all was. There were absolutely zero red flags, other than my involvement in tutoring you, that would make them think you didn't do the work on your own.” My blood begins to boil inside my veins, rage bubbling up to the surface as I try to remain calm so she can continue.
“At first, I told myself I would wait until you got back so we could make a plan together. Even though I knew the investigation would prove that you did the work yourself, I was worried that word might get out and it would ruin your image. So, I decided to go to the university myself, and I confronted her.”
“Lark, you shouldn’t have done that,” I say firmly. “That woman has been nothing but a cause of stress for you. The last thing you need is to open yourself up to more of that because of me. I don't give a fuck what she thinks. She can investigate and tell the media whatever she wants. At the end of the day, we know we did everything right and never had to compromise our morals in the process. If she wants to sink to that level because she's mad that you're carrying on her last name, let her. Karma always has a way of finding people like that.”
She shakes her head, her brows pulling tight with worry. “We don't know who she knows or what she's truly willing to do. What if she figures out a way to make it look like you cheated? Your reputation would be ruined—maybe even your career. I couldn't let that happen without doing everything in my power to stop it.” She looks up at me. “I told her I'd go back to using my maiden name. I just want her to leave you out of it.”
My eyes go wide. “Baby, no. You’re not doing that. You've been fighting against that tyrant for so long. I'm not going to let you give in to her because of me.”
Her expression softens as she takes my hand, linking our fingers together. “I’m not giving in , Ace. I’m setting myself free . All this time, I just wanted to give her a big fuck you for never hearing me when I spoke. I thought having this kind of control over something she wanted would make me feel fulfilled. But the truth is, it didn’t. It just kept me connected to the people who caused me so much pain. In order to really move on and be happy, I know I need to let go of that chapter of my story so I can start a new one with you.”
I lean forward, pressing my mouth to hers in a soft kiss. Any protests I had about her decision died on my lips the moment she mentioned our future, and I’m glad she feels secure enough in what we have to let go of the things that no longer serve her. I’m ready to do whatever it takes to fill her life with all the love and happiness she needs. She’ll never feel like her voice isn’t heard, because it’s the only one that truly matters to me.
“I love you,” I say.
“I love you too. I’m the luckiest girl in the world.” She sits up, straddling my lap and pressing into me like she can’t get close enough before kissing me passionately. I reach around, splaying my large hand across her lower back and pulling her even tighter to me, because there’s absolutely nothing I want more than to be connected to her in any way I can. We make out, breathing each other in as we revel in another monumental moment that I doubt either of us will forget as long as we live.
I couldn’t be prouder to call this smart, strong, resilient woman mine, and I’m excited to hold her hand wherever life brings us.
Realization dawns on me, and I pull away, my eyes going wide. “What?” she says, a blanket of worry slipping over her lust-filled gaze. She’s breathing heavily, her swollen lips parted as she waits for me to speak.
“Is it bad that I don’t know my girlfriend’s last name?” I ask, trying to look concerned as she reaches out and slaps my shoulder playfully.
“It’s Whitlock,” she replies, rolling her gorgeous blue eyes.
“Whitlock,” I echo with a shrug. “It’ll do…for now.”