Forever Black (Nightwalkers 2) (4 page)

He laughed as he pulled away, staring into Mr. Castle’s
blank expression. “Understand?” Mr. Castle slowly nodded, his eyes gazing
distantly ahead. “Good.” Slamming his open palm into the Mr. Castle’s forehead,
Aiden shoved him backward in the chair. He then walked around to the front of
the desk and sat down. “Now wake.”

Shaking his head as if he had just dozed off, Mr. Castle
licked his lips nervously. He then turned to Aiden as he blinked several times.
“Take care of my company, Mr. Bristol.” He stood and extended a hand to Aiden.
“I never thought I’d sell it, but…" Looking very confused, Mr. Castle's
expression was stressed. “I’m glad it was to you."

“Thank you, Mr. Castle.” Aiden nodded politely. “I’ll expect
your office cleaned out tomorrow.” He then turned and left with his bodyguard.

Aiden beamed triumphantly as he strolled down the hallway.
There was a great confidence to his stride, and he made sure to smile at
everyone he passed. This was his company now, and he was one step closer to
finding Ashleigh.

Soon, she would have no choice but to be his, and he loved
the idea. His mind kept wandering back to the day he had seen her
last—flashbacks of her naked body making his smile grow. As far as Aiden was
concerned, she was no longer Caleb’s fiancé and was free game. He would woo
her, and she'd fall at his feet. Caleb had had his chance, and now it was
Aiden’s turn.

The next day Aiden returned to the office. His first visit
was with Hannah, Ashleigh’s publicist. She was sitting at her desk when he came
in, talking happily to one of the writers.

Leisurely putting down her phone, Hannah spoke, “Okay, my
dear. All right. Bye
bye
now. I’ll see you at the
signing.” She smiled at Aiden, her sunny personality showing through. “Mr.
Bristol.” She stood and held out her hand. “It’s wonderful to meet the new
owner of New Castle.”

“There’s something I need to speak to you about.” Aiden
snubbed her friendly gesture and sat down.

Hannah's desk was messy. There were several piles of papers
tossed about that she quickly tried to straighten. She threw some in a drawer
near her. Everyone knew Aiden was single, and many women held a dream of
capturing the millionaire. He could see her happiness. That dumb look of a
love-struck teenager. And Hannah was no teenager. She was in her late forties.

“Sure.” Hannah let out a playful giggle as she ignored a
call. “What is it?”

“I want Ashleigh Brown’s contact information.” His voice was
cool, but demanding. He gave a half smile to cover the anger beneath.

“Umm…” Hannah tried to smile but couldn’t, a falseness in
her warm tone, "What do you need that for? I’ve always been Ashleigh’s
representative for New Castle.
She only works through me.”

“You still are. I just want the information.”

“Are you a fan?” Hannah grabbed a piece of paper near her.
Then, she cycled through her phone for Ashleigh’s information. “She has—"

“That’s irrelevant.” His words were cold and quickly melted
her expression.

“Oh.” Hannah laughed nervously as she wrote down Ashleigh’s
address and phone number. “Ashleigh’s a private person, so she can be hard to
get a hold of. In the last year, I swear that girl became a hermit or
something. She's dating that singer from—"

"I know." Aiden glared at her, not wanting to
speak of Caleb.

"All right." Her tone turned more serious, her
expression changing as well. “This is her business number, so sometimes it
takes her a while to get her messages.” She handed the paper to Aiden. “That
sneaky little girl.” Hannah laughed. “She gave me a sneak peek at her new book
and said she was going to kill off one of her characters, but I told her…"
She raised a finger and waved it at him. “No, no, dear. No doing that. I made
her rewrite it.”

“Who was she going to kill off?”

“Nicolas.”

“Interesting.”

“She’s writing a revision now.”

He studied the paper. Ashleigh's address was the same as the
one he already had. “Is this her recent address?”

“Yes.” Hannah nodded her head as she regarded him with
confusion. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“It’s nothing.” Aiden smiled, but it was a sarcastic one.

“Okay.” Her grin returned. “Is there anything else I can
help you with?”

“No.” He walked briskly out of her office.

“It was nice to meet you, Mr. Bristol!” Hannah stood as she
waved goodbye.

* * * *

Wearing earphones, Ashleigh was typing quickly at her
laptop. She was in the zone, her tongue peeking from her mouth as her fingers
moved at lightning speed. She was leaning close to the screen with wide eyes.
Her ears were filled with the pounding sound of Armageddon's dark lyrics. Caleb
screamed in her ears, his voice perfectly pitched even at this volume.

Even before she met had Caleb, his music had inspired her
writing. She had once been a crazy fan that had drooled over the handsome
singer. She felt his music set the perfect mood, especially for writing death
scenes.

The romantic scenes? They were inspired by the picture of
him that was set as a background for her desktop. The shot was cropped below
those perfect indents in his pelvis that rested above the prize. It was
actually not one she had taken, but one she found on the internet. But still—it
was inspirational, though at times, distracting.

She typed.

…dark and damp. The feeling made her shrivel backward. Her
hand was now covered in cold, wet blood. This was not a normal party, and she
was not a guest but—

Suddenly, she felt her phone vibrate against her leg.
Groaning, she pulled it out. She glanced at the number, but didn’t know it, so
she ignored it. Her eyes narrowed on the screen as she tried to get back into
the story.

…
was definitely invited for dinner. They
would find her soon. The wound on her arm dripped, leaving a trail of fresh
blood in her wake. The flesh was torn beyond repair, and the pain was
unbearable, but somehow she was able to press on. Then, she saw her—the lady
of—

Her phone began to vibrate again. Ashleigh stuck out her
tongue at the incoming call. It was the same number as before. Instead of
answering it, she looked it up on web. It was an extension belonging to New
Castle. She exited out of the search window and went back to writing.

…
the house. She was beautiful. Her hair shone
under the bad lightening of the dark tunnel under the basement. Veronica
couldn’t help but stare at this gorgeous demon with the face of an angel.
Paralyzed when Lady
Sasson
walked toward her,
Veronica’s heavy breath was not able to cover up the sound of—

Her phone started ringing again. Growling, Ashleigh ripped
off her headphones and tossed them away. She glanced down at her phone. It was
the same number. Making a scowl, she answered it. “Hello?”

“Ashleigh. Hello.” Aiden’s voice made her frown deepen.

“
Oh
, so now you’re
getting creative.” She slammed the lid of her laptop and laid against the
headboard. The bottom of the computer was hot, and she could feel it spreading
across the surface of the blanket. “I didn’t think you were that smart.”

“
Ooo
…feisty tonight, are we?”

“Not in the way your tone is referring.” Despite her
irritation, she had been in a good mood before he had called. She had wanted to
use her high from dinner to whip through another chapter of her
Nightwalkers
novel. “So, what do you
want?”

“I was—"

“Can’t do that.”

“I—"

“Or that.”

“Will you—"

“No.” She laughed when she heard him let out a very
frustrated grunt. Playfulness crept into her voice. “Jeez, Aiden. Lighten up.”

“Someone’s riding the wave I see.” He let out an annoyed
sigh. “With who? Caleb?”

“Caleb’s in
Markston
.” She stared
up at the ceiling. It was painted a soft black, just like the rest of the room.
The bed she was laying on was king size, a manly black and white stripped
comforter covering the black sheets.

“Keeping track of him?”

“Not as much as I should you.” Ashleigh glanced over at a
picture on the nightstand, frowning as she sat up in bed. She picked up her
laptop and stood. “He’s a good boy. You’re not.”

“Sleeping with the enemy sounds quite fun.”

“I’m not your enemy.” She set the
computer on the dresser then took in her reflection in the mirror. She picked
at her hair as she made a sour face. “So, anyway…” Letting out a small sigh,
Ashleigh made her way to the window and peered outside. There was a small
acreage of land below and a large pool to her right. This was a very expensive
house, one that she could never afford on her own. “What do you want?”

“Can I apologize?”

“Sure.” It was empty outside, the lawn perfectly manicured.
Red roses freshly planted in the pots greeted her gaze.

“I’m—"

She continued, “But I’m not accepting it.” Turning up her
nose, she went back to the bed. She sat down, unnecessary forcefulness in her
action. She grabbed the remote and turned on the big screen television. She
began circling through the menus as she searched for some music.

“I still want to say it.”

“Okay.” She turned on one of Armageddon's songs. The sound
quality was awesome, and though she had it turned down, the beat still pulsed
through her.

“I’m sorry.”

“And?"

“What’s the
and
? I don’t understand.”

“Don’t ever do it again, Aiden!” Speaking through her teeth,
she glared at the screen. “I mean it! I’m not some puppet you can control to
act out some sick fantasy you have.” She angrily tossed the remote onto the
mattress and focused more on the conversation. “Being a fan is one thing, but
trying to rape me with your magic is another. That’s way creepy, Aiden!
Disturbing and sick!”

“I’m sorry.” Aiden’s voice was calm, but annoyed. “I thought
we were joking around—like you do with Caleb—acting out fantasies from your
books.”

“What? Are you serious?” Shaking her head, her jaw dropped.
She was fuming. Her nostrils flared as she breathed heavily. “Acting out
fantasies, Aiden! Seriously?”

“Yeah. Caleb’s your Drake, and I’m your Nicolas. Don’t say
you didn’t want it too.”

“I did not! My God, Aiden—those are just characters! Those
aren’t my fantasies!”

“Then, why the obsession with Caleb? Wasn't sleeping with
him your
fantasy
?”

“You want to act out a
fantasy,
Aiden?” Pushing her lips together tightly, Ashleigh glared out the window. Her
eyes narrowed on the gardener tending to the roses. “Then, let me suck you dry,
you fucking prick!” She quickly hung up the phone then dialed another number.
Her chest rose and fell quickly as she tried to calm herself. The phone rang
several times then went to voicemail. "Damn it!" She angrily tossed
it away.

Then, the calls started to come in. Aiden wasn’t giving up.
She grabbed her cell and blocked his number. After a few minutes of silence,
Ashleigh picked up her laptop and started writing again.

But then, he called using another number. She’d had it.
Growling, she quickly stormed out of the room. She yelled down the hallway,
“Nathan! Get up here, right now!” He was there before she realized it, and his
sudden appearance made her fall back a step. Licking her lips nervously, she
tried to pretend he hadn't scared her. “Hi.”

“Where’s the fire, lady?” Nathan scratched his nose, his
actions jumpy as he observed her angry expression.

“Tell this stalker to fuck off." She shoved her phone
into his hand. "He won’t leave me alone, and it's driving me nuts.”

“Who is it?” Nathan glanced down at the cell.

“Does it matter?” Crossing her arms over her chest, Ashleigh
sent him a dirty look. “Just tell him to stop calling me.”

“Okay.” Nathan answered, “Stop calling here. Miss Brown says
to fuck off.” He laughed. “Just a sec.” Glancing over at Ashleigh, he
delivered, “He said, he would but he’s busy tonight.”

Narrowing her eyes on Nathan’s cocky smile, Ashleigh spoke.
“This isn’t a joke Nathan.”

“He also said call him at this number instead. It’s Master
Ma—"

Ashleigh ripped the phone from him and put it to her ear
quickly. “Caleb? Is that you?”

“Hey, babe.” Caleb laughed.

Ashleigh motioned for Nathan to leave. Then, she talked into
the cell. “I didn’t really want you to fuck off. I thought you were someone
else.”

“Like?”

“Aiden.”

“
Naw
, I’m way sexier than him.”

“You are? I didn't notice.” Ashleigh giggled as she closed
the door and strolled back into the bedroom.