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Here we go again. How did it matter how I looked? Looks could change in a minute.
A girl I was with in the home when I was sixteen was absolutely gorgeous, until her boyfriend slashed her face when she tried to dump him. She'd been so distraught about her scars that she died by suicide. That was when I learned that beauty was surface deep, and you couldn't rely on how you looked to survive.
"You have to treat me with respect, Ace," I urged softly. It wasn't my style to yell and scream. I mean, no one gives a crap that you're upset. If you want to get through to someone, you use your words carefully and push your message out.
"I will. I promise." He took my hands in his. "Come on, isn't this place lovely? Aren't you having a good vacation?"
"Not if it means I have to sit through another dinner like last night. But…all in all, Ace, I'm cutting my vacation short," I told him.
"But you don't have a place in London, Isha."
Apparently, I didn't have a place here, either, and I was afraid, terrified that, if I stayed, I'd fall into bed or, worse, in love with Rowan. I didn't have experience with the kind of chemistry that was detonating between us—I didn't know where it would lead.
"I'll give you another five days, and then I'm out of here." I'd find a bedsit or sleep on Yasmine's sofa, if need be.
“Thanks, Isha.” He leaned down to kiss my forehead. “You’re my godsend, you know that?”
I shrugged. What had possessed me to say yes to this madcap scheme? I didn’t even know this man, and here I was, thousands of miles away from home in the middle of nowhere.
“Ace, just make sure I’m not treated the way I was. I don’t deserve that. Alright?”
“I promise.”
After he left my room, I put the suitcase away, and sent Yasmine a message.
Me: Coming home earlier than planned. Montana air is not suiting me, and Ace is a little bit of a shallow git.
Yasmine: What a pity! He seemed like one of the good ones. Well, no harm. Just come home.
Me: I need a place to stay.
Yasmine: No worries, luv. Come home! You can sleep on the sofa. Derek and I'll try not to shag too loudly.
Me: Yeah, no one needs to hear that.
Yasmine: So, no Rip-like cowboys for you to shag?
Me: Afraid not. There's Ace's brother, but too many danger signs.
Yasmine and I had used our premonition about danger to protect ourselves while we'd lived in the home. There would be a teacher or another kid who'd give us those vibes, and we'd steer clear. Getting sexually abused in a home was exactly as common as people thought it was.
Yasmine: Stay away from him, then. Do you have money for the ticket back?
Ace had promised to buy my ticket home, but now I didn't feel right about taking money from him. It made me feel filthy. I had my savings, but they were going toward my last year of school. I needed nine thousand pounds for tuition, and I had that plus a thousand in my checking account. I'd just work more shifts until I had to start school, I planned. The bar manager where I worked enjoyed having me around because men stayed longer and bought more drinks, hoping to get with me, according to him.
I looked at the cost of tickets from Billings to London and gasped at the prices. I set up alerts for price drops so I'd book as soon as I could get a good price or when my days were up here, which I suspected were sooner than later. This holiday—which was supposed to be respite from working and studying twelve-fourteen hours a day with no weekends off—was turning into a nightmare.
I decided that I'd just not have any meals with the Ledgers. I didn't care that it would be rude. I'd go into the kitchen and get something to eat when I was hungry. Otherwise, I'd find a way to avoid them.
I felt trapped. I was very disciplined about my tuition money, but maybe I'd have to tap into it if that was the only way for me to get home. And then hope to God I could fill that hole quickly.
I had made a mistake by coming here, falling for Ace's sweet talk. I'd been clear with him that I wasn't interested in him sexually, and he'd seemed so accepting about it that I'd trusted him. I'd never ever taken a chance as I had coming here, and I'd never ever do it again.
I slept in the next day. And since I skipped breakfast, I was hungry but decided to not venture into the house where I could meet Rowan or Deb, or even Ace. I just couldn't deal with any of the Ledgers right now. It was later afternoon when I caved and went to the kitchen. The cook took pity on me and made me a sandwich, which I ate with a glass of iced tea.
"You sure you don't want to have a proper lunch? I made a roast chicken with the best garlic mash you've ever eaten," the cook, a Scotswoman in her forties with a gruff voice and gentle demeanor, asked.
"I am sure. Thank you so much for this. I don't feel well, so I'll just keep to myself for a bit."
