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and I nodded meekly and followed her into the hall, closing the door tightly behind me. I followed Chandra to the common room and was immediately assaulted by the noise and laughter. It was crowded. The sharp crack of pool balls from over at the table made me jump but I don’t think anyone noticed.
    Chandra led me out the front door. A group of men stood to one side smoking and talking softly and I stopped short. The Sacred Heart emb lem emblazoned on the back of Ethan’s vest seemed larger than life against his broad back. Chandra called out to him…
    “ Yo Trig!” and he turned but his eyes weren’t on her, they landed immediately on me and something feral and frightening passed through them before being swallowed up into their depths. I’d seen looks like that before from men, from Chadwick even, but where the look from Chadwick had caused a slow curl of dread to constrict my heart the look from Ethan did something entirely different.
    Butterflies swirled in my stomach and my hand unconsciously went there, smoothing down the front of my dress. Ethan looked me over from head to toe and back again and all conversati on had ceased between the men. Chandra dragged me forward and my legs felt leaden but they went. I drew even with Ethan and looked up at him.
    “You keep a close eye on her Trigger, now I mean it.” Chandra admonished.
    “Yes Ma’am.” He said and took my hand in his much larger one. “Ashton you look great.” He added.
    “Thank you.” I murmured, he turned back to the men and they resumed talking in low tones and so I did what I was best at, I stood at Ethan’s side as a decoration with no mind of her own. I listened of course. I couldn’t help that. They were speaking on details about a run. Where they would stop, how long it would take but were carefully neutral on where or what they would be doing exactly.
    Ethan kept stealing looks at me and finally turned to me.
    “I’m doing it aren’t I?” he asked.
    “What?” I asked startled.
    “Guys, I’m gonna catch you later.” He said over his shoulder, “Ashton’s feet are a mess and I don’t want her standing here.” He took me gently by the elbow and led us slowly inside out of the growing chill.The music was loud and the laughter louder. He found us a pair of chairs at a smaller table and asked me what I’d like to drink. I asked for water and he came back with one and a beer. He settled across from me.
    “What did you think you were doing?” I asked genuinely curious.
    “Treating you like the fuckwit.” He said and I arched a brow.
    “You’re worth more than simply standing there looking pretty on my arm while the grownups talk.” He grinned and I was struck by how straight and white his teeth were.
    “That’s all right…” I said and he took a pull off his beer.
    “Bullshit.” He said and I fell quiescent.
    “What?” he asked.
    “I’m sorry for arguing.” I said, “Of course you were right I…” he laughed and shook his head incredulously.
    “Don’t fucking apologize to me for having an opinion Sunshine, you’re fine.” He leaned back in his seat and I nodded staring vacantly at the scarred wooden table top.
    He sat across from me watching me and I took a sip of my water.
    “Ask me something.” He said finally and I looked up startled.
    “What do you want me to ask you?” I asked and he laughed.
    “I want you to ask me something you want to know about me.” He said.
    “Why did you stop?” I asked. His eyes softened and he looked over my face.
    “Because I had to… I couldn’t just let you keep walking. You were going to freeze to death, or worse… Couldn’t let it happen Babe.” He took another drink of his beer.
    I closed my eyes and allowed myself just a sliver of a moment of self-pity, just a millisecond of wishing that he could have driven right by and that I froze… Chadwick was still out there and I would be a fool to think he wasn’t looking for me. That he wouldn’t do