Chapter Eleven

It was the day before Marion's lavished party, and you could feel her dreadful energy in every room of the house. She had gone around the entire morning, to rearrange and decorate everything for when the party planners arrived in the evening to set everything up. I was amazed at how fast she moved, it was hard for my eyes to keep up with her, as I sat in the living room with Ashton and Lucas, watching care-free cartoons on television.

Since I was no longer keeping up the act of 'fake girlfriend', but was still a hostage, I now needed someone else guarding me besides Ashton, whenever I left my room. Lucien was still worried that with Ashton by my side, he would try and sneak me away before any deal was made with my father, now that I knew what was also at stake for myself. He was right to be a little worried; the thought had crossed my mind, since Ashton and I admitted to our feelings – not only to each other, but to ourselves.

Out of Charles and Lucas, anyone could guess who agreed to take the job to guard me along with Ashton. As soon as the idea was mentioned, Charles had apparently left the room without saying anything. I wondered if there was a specific reason he didn't like being around me, or if he just thought the job was tiring, and wasn't up for it. He had barely spoken to me since we first met, and I never saw him after that, except the one time in the living room, when I was looking for Ashton.

Even then, he didn't even bother to point me in the direction of where Ashton was, let alone bother to show me. He seemed to care less about my presence, but also be unnerved by it. He was impossible to figure out, much like his brother when I first met him. Now that I was spending more time with him a little, I was starting to see through him more and more.

"I can't wait for this weekend to be over," Ashton muttered when Marion finally left the room. Lucas chuckled under his breath, knowing exactly how Ashton was feeling. Hell, even I could relate to how they felt. I wanted this party to be over just as much as them, and this entire weekend.

I missed my home. I never thought I would say that. Though it has been nice to be away from my father's strict way of living, and suffering through watching my mother bend to his will to try and please him in any way she can. No doubt, if we lost everything we had, he would force her to get some minimum-wage job to make us money. He would probably make me do the same, though I could handle it better than my mother, who I couldn't see cooking at a McDonalds or even trying to remember someone's orders.

I loved my mother, but she could be a flake at times. Either that, or she was choosing to turn a blind eye to everything, and act oblivious. I much preferred my mother to Marion, however. My mother gave me plenty of affection when I was a child – it was my father that lacked in that department. My mother used to always read me stories before bed when I was younger, and when my father told me a couldn't have any ice cream after dinner because it was full of sugar, my mother would always sneak me a little after he had locked himself in his offices for the night.

She was my best friend, since the schools I was sent too when I was a kid were private and prestigious, only meant for the wealthy and therefore, stuck up. It was hard for me to make friends, everyone thought I was either weird, or boring. So, my mother became my best friend, as stupid and typical that sounds.

I looked towards Ashton, his eyes focused on the television in front of us. I suddenly had the urge to scoot over and cuddle up with him, to wrap my arms around his and feel their toned muscles. The feeling was overwhelming, I felt slightly feverish. I saw his gaze shift over to me through the corner of his eyes, causing me to quickly avert my gaze back to the television. I could still feel his eyes on the side of my face, making my cheek even hotter than they already were.

I almost jumped out of my skin when I felt his warm hand on my leg, prompting me to move closer. He slid his hand across my lap to grasp mine, entangling our fingers together, and brought our clasped hands to rest in his lap instead. I looked up at him, but he was no longer looking at me, but there was a small smile on his lips. I felt him give my hand a tight squeeze, making my heart leap in my chest. I no longer ignored the urge to cuddle up to him, and wrapped my other arm around his and rested my head on his shoulder as we continued to watch mindless television.

"Ah, there you two are," Marion said and bustled her way into the room. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at her; she had just left this very room no less than a half hour ago. She had a way of popping up when she was least wanted, which to me was always. I heard Ashton groan quietly and squeeze my hand again, his fingers tense between mine.

"What do you want, mother?" he asked, and I could tell he was fighting to hide the irritation in his tone.

"I was just thinking; does Ava have anything to wear for tomorrow?" she asked and looked to me. That made me realize, I in fact didn't. What I had been wearing for the past week, was all I had. Which was just a pair of plain, blue jeans, and a white t-shirt that had a cute mandala pattern on the front in black. I didn't even have proper footwear, just my beat-up pair of Vans slip on shoes.

Ashton was silent for once, not having a come-back for his mother. Instead, he was looking at me for an answer. He knew very well that I didn't have anything to wear.

"Well, your silence tells me that you don't have anything. So, that brings me to my next topic, I was going to propose I take you out shopping." I could feel the shock that spread through the room like wildfire, even Lucas had his mouth hung open slightly, like he couldn't believe what he just heard. That was an extremely nice gesture of her, unless she expected me to pay. It was still nice.

"I have to get a few things for myself before the party as well, I thought I mind as well ask if there was anything you needed as well before your big day." There it was. I didn't have to look at Ashton, to know he was rolling his eyes.

"Ava and I can go shopping ourselves, thank you, mother."

"Oh nonsense, we can all go together. Get your things, we're leaving in 15 minutes." She left the room before Ashton could protest further, like I knew he wanted too. He let out a frustrated breath and fell back against the couch, running a hand down his face.

"Do I really have to go with you guys on this?" Lucas asked quietly. "I signed up to help you guard Ava, because I knew it was going to be easy, and maybe a little fun. I did not sign up to spend time with your mother, and shop around with her. That is my worst nightmare."

I couldn't help but let out a small laugh, but Lucas gave me an exasperated serious look, and I quickly tried to hide my laughter.

"No, I'm sure Lucien will understand why you stayed behind this time. Even he wouldn't put himself through this hell."

"Is shopping with your mother really that bad? She said she just needed a few things." I clamped my mouth shut when they both looked at me with wide eyes, giving me the silent answer I needed.

Lucas made himself comfy on the couch when Ashton and I left to join his mother out front. There was a car waiting for us, and I wasn't surprised to see that neither of us were driving, and we were going to be chauffeured around. I tried to smile politely at the driver, but he just gave me a stiff nod of the head. Was everyone terrified of Ashton's mother?

Marion had us taken to the heart of downtown Los Angeles, to walk along the strip at all the high-end designer stores. I was familiar with all of them, having been to many with my mother for parties, such as the one Marion was throwing, but for other occasions, therefore needing various outfits and accessories. It was always tiring and a bore for me, though at the end of it, my mother always promised that we could visit the book store, and I could choose a few new books and comics.

"What are you thinking about?" Ashton asked me softly, looking at his mother through the corner of his eye. She was too busy looking around to hear anything we were saying, trying to find a place to park with the driver.

"I was just thinking about the many times I had to do this with my mother."

"I imagine that must have been a bit better than this," he teased, trying to joke lightly.

"A little, only because she let me go to the bookstore every time, as a reward for putting up with shopping. My father never let me whenever we were out, so when it was just my mother and I, she let me spend a little time at the end of our shopping trip, and let me pick out whatever books I wanted. It was our little secret." I smiled gently at the memories.

Ashton was quiet after that, his attention focused out the window. The driver soon found a place along the sidewalk to let us out. Marion quickly rushed down the street, pointing out all the different stores, and giving us a whole backstory on the artists of the designs and shops. Ashton and I dragged our feet behind her, not trying our best to keep up.

My chest felt heavy with dread for having to be in this situation. It reminded me of shopping with my mother, which made me miss her even more than I already did. My heart fluttered gently when I felt Ashton slip his hand into mine, and squeeze it lightly. I looked up at him, and found him smiling down at me, his blue eyes sparkling.

I couldn't resist smiling back, giving his hand a squeeze as well. We continued down the street slowly, hand in hand, admiring the view around us. Though the streets were piled with people and tourists stopping to take pictures, blocking the streets and other views, it was still a beautiful sight to see. It was soon interrupted by, of course, Marion. She called out to us from halfway down the street, an irritated frown on her face.

Ashton and I both heaved heavy breaths, before we hurried to catch up to her.

She took us from store to store, having me try on expensive, gorgeous looking dresses, claiming I had to look 'perfect' on my big night. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at her the entire time, thinking she was being ridiculous for wanting to make such a big fuss over this. I could understand going all out for a birthday like my 21st, where I would become legal to drink and go clubbing. Turning 18 was no big deal, it was like turning 16. I was still a teenager, I wasn't exactly halfway to something, and I still wasn't legal to do anything.

But I felt like arguing the fact with Marion would be just as exhausting as shopping with her, and I didn't want to find out. I went with whatever she through at me, of course not liking any of it.

By the time we were nearing the end of the shopping strip, I could tell there was something bothering Ashton. While his mother and I were yet again, looking at more dresses, this time a more ball gown style of dress, he suddenly disappeared. I tried to go after him, but Marion distracted me with trying on another outfit. One look at the overly puffy, Cinderella blue dress, and I knew I wasn't going to like it.

I smiled and took it none the less, disappointed that Ashton left me alone to deal with her. I hoped he had just disappeared to find the bathroom, but when I came out of the change room, he still wasn't there. I frowned and turned back to his mother, immediately handing her the dress and suggesting we tried something in a section closer to where Ashton had gone.

She was all for anything that involved shopping, so she quickly bounded over. Before we could reach the opposite side, Ashton reappeared, with a piece of clothing in his hands. His mother had already gone ahead and was looking at other dresses, and hadn't noticed that Ashton was even missing in the first place.

He walked up to me and handed me the dress. It was a simple dark red dress, with a V-neck dip in the front, spaghetti straps and a knee-length, flowing bottom skirt. The material was smooth and silky, and when I held it up to myself, it looked like it was going to fit perfectly.

"Where did you find this?" I asked. He just smiled and gestured to the change rooms for me to try it on. I gave him a wide smile and rushed off, slipping on the dress with ease. I turned to the mirror to admire it, and instantly fell in love with it. It was perfect for me, and didn't make me feel uncomfortable at all. Though the neck was a little low, it was just high enough for my level of comfort.

I took the dress off, already deciding I was going to get it, though I was going to have to figure out how I was going to pay for it, since I didn't have any of my personal belongings; like my wallet. I contemplated my options as I stepped out of the change room. Before I could approach the front desk, the dress was taken from my hands, and I looked up to meet Ashton's determined eyes.

He was ready to argue with me, before I even knew what was going on. I rolled my eyes at him, also hating out easy it was to predict me. He walked up to the counter and paid for the dress before I could stop him, already having his credit card out. I was still frowning when he came back and handed me the dress, but he simply shrugged, a playful smile on his face.

"You don't think I know that you have absolutely no way of getting a hold of your money? As much of it as you may have, you don't have current access to it." He got me there. I stopped frowning and pouted instead, reminded of the situation I am in.

"I didn't mean to upset you," Ashton said gently, touching my cheek. "If you really want, the receipt is in my wallet, in case anything happens to it. You can pay me back when this is all over." He offered me a small smile. Any smile from him was hard to resist.

I looked into his eyes, leaning my face into his hand more, as we seemed to share a silent moment, a moment I never wanted to end. But I had forgot who we were also with.

Marion soon realized we were gone, and came barrelling down the aisle toward us, angered that we had wandered off on her for so long. I let out a frustrated breath, something I seem to do a lot when she is around. I turned to her and tried to put on my best smile, holding out the bag to her.

As soon as she looked inside, her eyes lit up and she completely forgot what she was angry about. She pulled out the dress and started gushing over it, telling me I had great taste.

"It was Ashton who picked it out," I said. Ashton's eyes widened, and so did his mother's.

"Really? You picked this out?"

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Years of shopping with you has taught me a few things," he muttered. Marion went on to chat about how she needed to find something as well, and rushed off to another store. I heard Ashton let out a quiet breath of relief behind me as we exited the store. I wanted to ask if he meant what he said, but there were now too many people on the street for us to walk side by side and talk.

***

After Marion had taken us to practically every clothing store in sight, she finally settled on a few things, and asked if we wanted to stop somewhere for lunch. We picked out a fancy, but cozy restaurant that offered an outside patio. Marion was, for once in a shocking blue moon, kind enough to pay for everything, saying this trip was her treat. To Ashton and I, the definition of 'her treat' probably meant something different than what she thought.

I was thankful when we finally called the driver and started back to the manor. I noticed that after we had left the restaurant, Ashton was on his phone a lot. A brief strike of jealousy ran through me, and I remembered that I barely knew nothing of Ashton's past, or to be more specific; past girlfriend's. I wasn't even sure if he was completely straight, though something told me there was a high chance he was.

But when I got a good look at his face in the car, I noticed he didn't look too happy. His brows were furrowed slightly, and his body was tense and stiff.

"Is everything alright?" I asked. He looked at me in shock, as if he forgot there was anyone with him. I saw something pass through his eyes, before he quickly looked away to tuck his phone back in his pocket. When he gazed up at me again, the look was gone.

"It's just Lucien. He saw that Lucas was alone, and found out that you and I had left with my mother, and he didn't go with us. He is just upset that he wasn't informed, and wants to speak with me when we get back," he explained, but there was an edge to his tone. I frowned, but brushed the feeling off, occupying myself with the view outside as we drove further away from the busy streets of downtown.

I realized this was my first time actually looking at where the manor was. My very first time arriving, I didn't have the greatest view, and I wasn't paying attention that well when we left the manor. I recognized a few of the streets we passed, and got a good sense of where we were going.

But once we reached the edge of downtown and continued driving, I started losing track of where we were, until I recognized nothing but open road, and trees. I didn't realize how far out Lucien's place was, and how isolated it was, until we turned down a nicely paved, hidden driveway, that winded up and further into the trees. Lucien's house was located on a slight hill, that dipped down into a lush forest, before it hit the two-lane road below.

I was glad I had never tried to escape this place before. It would have been worse than the forest by the cabin, where I was first taken. In the middle of the night, I couldn't imagine running through this forest, was any better.

As soon as we got in the front door, Ashton handed me the bag with my dress, and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, before he rushed off towards Lucien's office. As I watched him run off, I got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, and excused myself from Marion to go to my room. Once inside, I unpacked my dress and put it away neatly, so it wasn't creased or ruined before tomorrow.

I walked over to the bathroom, and decided on taking a bath to try and pass the time, hoping Ashton would be done and waiting for me afterwards, so I could ask how much trouble we were in, and maybe help settle my stomach. I tried my best to relax, thinking about what was going to happen when I got out. I thought of all the things I wanted to do; the first one was to tell Sebastian everything, and then swear him to secrecy. He was going to be the only one I trusted with knowing who Ashton really was. He was probably going to think I'm crazy; then realize he already knew that.

The more I thought about him, the more my mind wandered towards my family, and I started to become homesick, on top of the unnerving feeling I had about what Ashton was texting about on his phone earlier. I wasn't sure if it was just jealousy, or a gut feeling. I had never really felt this way before.

I groaned and dipped my head under water, wanting to banish all the feelings and thoughts swirling in my head and stomach. I held my breath under water for as long as I could, focusing on trying not to suffocate, before I came up. The homesick feeling I had before was slightly gone, but the gut feeling from before remained.

I slowly got out and changed into an over-sized shirt I found in the dresser. I hoped Ashton would figure out I was in my bedroom, and I could ask him to get my clothes washed. To my luck, he was sitting on my bed when I exited the bathroom, waiting for me with a grim expression on his face.

The feeling in my stomach deepened, and I suddenly felt sick. He was going to tell me something bad, I could already tell.

"What's wrong?" I asked quietly, my voice cracking a little. Ashton ran a hand down his face, something I was realizing he did when he was nervous or frustrated about something. I had a feeling this time; it was both. He took a deep breath, before he lifted his head to meet my gaze.

"I lied about why Lucien had to speak with me, I'm sorry. I didn't want to ruin our outing, at least until I spoke with him and got more information. I hope you can forgive me," he said, his eyes pleading slightly.

"What was the real reason?"

He looked extremely nervous, which only made me even more nervous as well. All sorts of feelings were hitting my stomach and head at once.

"Your father called." I sucked in a sharp breath, anticipating what he was going to say next. "He isn't going to agree to Lucien's terms."

A million thoughts ran through my mind.

Does that mean, I wasn't going home?