Chapter 35
ACE
I’d waited until Xavier checked in to let me know he and Noah were safely at their Hot Falcon shoot before heading to my bedroom to sleep.
I’d spent all night working on the editing for our next episode and was kind of hoping Noah would come to take a look at what I’d done.
She didn’t show up, though, and I tried to convince myself I wasn’t disappointed by it.
Once I knew they were at their location, I took a shower and drew the blackout blinds before climbing into bed.
I could smell Noah everywhere in this fucking room now, and it was pure torture.
It’d been a stroke of genius and madness all rolled into one that made me swap her and Xavier for bedroom assignments, but I definitely hadn’t anticipated she’d agree.
Now, I was stuck with the consequences of my own rash decision, which was the constant and desperate need to jerk off before I could sleep each morning. I was starting to feel like a creep, especially when I tucked one of her dirty T--shirts under my pillow so I could smell her while I came.
Once I was done fantasizing about wrapping my hand around her throat and watching her pupils blow out as she came all over my cock, I cleaned up, took a sleeping pill, and grabbed my phone to set an alarm.
Xavier had sent me a message about Hot Falcon trying to put Noah shirtless in a pool, and alarm shot through me like a whip.
Before I could call him, Xavier texted again to assure me he’d handled it but suggested it’d be good to let Jared know.
I wholeheartedly agreed, sent the message to Noah’s manager, then crashed out asleep for the next six hours without stirring.
Medication was the only way I could guarantee a decent sleep these days, and I was fully aware how much of a hypocrite that made me when it came to lecturing Noah about her lack of sleep.
As always, I woke groggy and with a nasty chemical taste in my mouth, so it took a hot minute to shower and brush my teeth before checking my phone.
Xavier had sent me two messages. One to let me know they were done and heading home, and one with a GPS screenshot and a caption. “LD asked me to drop him here but he’s acting weird.”
What the hell? I put the address into my search engine, and it gave me nothing. Then I checked what time Xavier sent that message and realized it was twenty minutes ago.
I had a really bad feeling about what that address might be, so I ran downstairs to grab my car keys while dialing Jared’s number.
The damn phone rang through to voicemail and I cursed, hanging up before trying Xavier. Of course, he’d be driving his bike and couldn’t answer, so I cursed again and texted him to tell him not to drop Noah off alone and that I was on my way.
I was in my car and speeding down our driveway when Jared called back, and I frantically accepted the call on my handsfree.
“Sorry, Hart. I was putting Isla down,” Jared said in a quiet voice, clearly trying not to wake his baby. “What do you need? Is Noah okay?”
“I hope so,” I replied, trying not to panic and hoping my suspicion was wrong. “Do you and Kelly happen to live at 2868 Wayne King Way?”
There was a distinct pause on the line before Jared replied. “No, we don’t. We’re in Valley Heights. Why are you asking?”
I drew a deep breath, exhaling hard as I took a corner far too fast. “By any chance, is that where Rich lives?”
“Ace, where’s Noah?” Jared asked in a sharper voice, clearly alarmed now.
“You fucking tell me, Jared! Is that Rich’s address? Because she asked Xavier to drop her off there and—-”
“Fuck!” he exploded, and baby Isla started crying in the background. “Shit! Shit, fuck, shit! Yes, that’s Rich’s place. Please don’t tell me that stubborn, overconfident pain in my ass went to see him alone?”
Okay. Now I was properly worried. “Not if I can get there first, she’s not. What am I getting myself into here, Jared? Who is Rich?”
“Noah’s ex--boyfriend. They were together starting when she was sixteen, but she basically grew up idolizing him. You probably know him; he’s been Miles’s best friend since they were kids. Richard Dixon. Real arrogant son of a bitch.”
I frowned, trying to focus on the road while casting my mind back to high school. Miles was not a fan of mine and the feeling was mutual, but Richard wasn’t ringing any bells. Then it hit me.
“You mean Dicky? Real spoiled, entitled little shit that followed Miles around like a bad smell?” I couldn’t even remember the dude’s face, just that he was an insufferable asshole. “Why the fuck did Noah date that loser?”
Jared sighed heavily. “I asked the same, but she was barely sixteen and had a bad case of brother’s--best--friend crush, and then he got his claws in, manipulated her to the point of abuse, and well…now look where she’s ended up.”
“He’s the asshole behind Peaches?” I nearly gagged on the question. It made me sick every time I thought about how cold and cruel I’d been when I confronted her, never even considering that she’d been a victim all along.
Hell, even if she’d willingly posted that content, it was still no excuse for the way I’d treated her. I’d forever regret throwing money at her feet, but nothing could make me truly regret wrapping my hand around her neck and—-
“Yeah, he is,” Jared replied, bringing my train of thought back on track. “Noah found out about it not long after she broke up with him, back when Miles had his accident. The same accident your company used to extort her into joining your team.”
My heart sank and my guts twisted into knots. I knew Olympus Corp had something on her—-they’d alluded to it enough during our meeting when she tried to quit—-but I hadn’t known anything about Miles being in an accident.
“Fucking hell,” I said out loud. All the red flags had been there, and I’d ignored them all because it suited me and my team.
Isla started screaming in the background, and I winced.
“I need to—-” Jared began.
“Yeah, of course. Go. I’ve got this handled.”
“Let me know when you find her, and for the love of fuck, do not kill him.” With that advice, he ended the call and I checked my GPS estimation. I was still way too freaking far away, and why the hell had Xavier not called me back?
Every minute that passed as I sped toward Noah’s ex--boyfriend’s house was a minute too long. What did he want from her? Why go to such extreme lengths to get her to meet with him?
I felt physically nauseated as all the scenarios ran through my head. I imagined what state she might be in when I finally got there and how much damage he might do in whatever time he had. Would he hurt her? Touch her? Abduct her?
The possibilities were endless, and none of them were good. None.
When I finally reached the address, I immediately spotted Xavier’s bike parked out front, and that in itself gave me a moment of whiplash. Xavier was still here? Did Noah ask him to go in with her?
Part of me really hoped she did, so she would be safe. Xavier was a bit of a dick, but he would never let anything hurt Noah, regardless of whether he knew she was Peaches or not.
Part of me was incredibly jealous at the idea that she trusted him and not me.
As it turned out, that wasn’t the case after all because I found Xavier flirting with some pretty blond with big tits just inside the lobby of the building.
“Xavi, where’s Noah?” I asked, my gaze frantically scanning the area as though she might be hiding behind an artificial fern or something.
Xavier shrugged. “Upstairs. He went to visit a friend or some shit.”
I inhaled deeply, shaking my head. “Why didn’t you call me back? Which apartment is sh— What apartment does Noah’s friend live in?”
Xavier pulled his phone out with a confused frown, then winced when he saw my message. “Fuck, sorry, Ace. I didn’t see your reply.”
“What apartment?” I roared, losing my tenuous grip on my temper.
Xavier glanced at the girl with an apologetic smile. “Sorry, babe. I’ll text you later.” He shot her a wink, then watched her ass as she left before sighing heavily. “I don’t know, but he was acting nervous as fuck, so I figured I’d wait for him down here.”
“And he was okay with that?” I asked, bewildered and trying to understand what the fuck was happening.
Xavier shook his head. “Shit no, but what was he going to do? Make me leave?” He scoffed a laugh. “Dude weighs roughly the same as a wet cat. Anyway, I figure it’s probably just his first random fan hookup. He’s been getting a fucking lot of thirst comments on his content lately. Have you noticed?”
Unfortunately, yes.
“That’s not what this is,” I growled, already texting Jared to ask which apartment belonged to Rich. “You don’t know which apartment?”
“No, but why don’t you just call him and ask?” Xavier quirked a brow at me, and I just stared back for the longest moment.
Why didn’t I just…call? Why hadn’t I called? Did I just assume she wouldn’t pick up if she was with Rich? But what if she did?
Dumbstruck, I searched Eight in my contacts and hit dial.
“Hey,” she answered after only a couple of rings, sounding tense and breathless, shocking the hell out of me. “What’s up?”
For a moment, I was too stunned to speak.
“I’m in the lobby,” I finally gritted out, so many emotions swimming through me I couldn’t decide what I was feeling. “Which apartment are you in?”
There was a long pause, and I could almost hear the gears churning in her brain. “I’m fine, Ace. I don’t need you riding in to save me right now. Just go home. I’ll be back later. Tell Xavier to go home, too. I can handle this myself.”
She spoke in a low, hushed voice, like she didn’t want to be overheard, and a man’s voice asked something in the background. It was muffled and indistinct but definitely a man. There was a sound like she was covering the phone before yelling back, “No thanks!”
“Eight, I swear to fuck, if you don’t—-” I started to threaten, losing all grip on whatever calm I had up till now.
“Oh, stop it, Ace,” she hissed back, cutting me off. “Rich is an attention whore, not an abuser. If this is what I need to do to get the profile deleted permanently, then this is what I do. Go home. I’m fine.”
Panic nearly choked me at the idea of leaving. “I’m not going to—-”
“I can’t talk. Just go home. I’ll be there later.” She ended the call, and I stared at my phone in shock for a moment.
Xavier cleared his throat, reminding me I wasn’t alone. “Ace…what’s going on? I haven’t seen you this tightly strung in forever. What shit has Little Dude got himself mixed up in?”
I bit my lip. The urge to tell my best friend everything was almost overwhelming.
I desperately needed to vent about Noah and all the confusing emotions she’d caused, but Torin, Minho, and Skye were barely speaking to me as it was.
They definitely didn’t want to hear that I had anything more than platonic, team--leader feelings for our little stowaway.
Still, it wasn’t my secret, and I swore I wouldn’t betray her like that, so I swallowed the words back with a tight smile. “It’s fine. It’s just shit from his past that I hoped he would let me handle.”
Maintaining the masculine disguise for Noah when I knew how she looked with my fingers inside her cunt was almost comical. The fact that I never suspected she was a woman before? Actually embarrassing. It was so obvious now.
Before I could start door knocking on literally every apartment in the building, my phone buzzed with a text from Jared, providing the information I needed. The relief that ran through me was astounding, and I rushed for the elevators.
“I’ll come too,” Xavier said, following.
I put my hand out to stop him as I got in, shaking my head. “No, I’ve got this.” I was too stressed out to bullshit a reason, but I also couldn’t risk exposing Noah if Rich had her in a compromising position. Thankfully, though, Xavier trusted me and didn’t argue as the elevator doors slid shut.
All the horrible scenarios of what might await me played out in lightning speed as I approached Rich’s apartment door, but nothing could quite prepare me for what I found.
I didn’t knock, just opened the door and barged right in, only to find a six--foot man curled up on the sofa with his head in Noah’s lap, sobbing his eyes out.
“Ace, what the fuck?” she exclaimed, eyes wide in shock.
The big baby looked up from her lap, wiping his eyes with a tissue, then blowing his nose dramatically before frowning my way. “Ace Hart. Why are you in my apartment?”
Words failed me. What in the world was happening here?