The drive to the party was just as quiet as William figured it would be, if not quieter. Once he parked the car, he killed the engine and turned his gaze towards her.
“Jace would be there,” he said softly. “And so would Savannah, most probably. If you want to turn back, we can turn back.”
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Amber stared at the house as William spoke.
Jace…
Savannah…
Her ex-boyfriend and ex-friend, the former of which had cheated on her with the latter. Of course they would be there.
“I’ll be fine,” she said with quiet determination, her voice and eyes calm. “Let’s head inside.”
William looked at her for a while longer before he nodded, unlocking the car, removing his seatbelt and getting out. He waited for Amber to follow him out before he locked his car and walked inside the loud party.
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Amber stuck her hands in her jacket pockets, forcing a grin onto her face as she stepped inside. Soon enough, she knew, that smile would be real. She’d have fun. She had to have fun.
The second he slipped inside and Drew and the others saw him, they bombarded him with questions.
“We thought you weren’t coming!” Parker exclaimed. “What changed your mind?”
William rolled his eyes and looked beside him, expecting to see Amber. He did not. The reason he was even at this party had disappeared.
William growled.
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“Amber! Hey, Amber! Amber, I’ve been trying to get a hold of you,” a familiar voice called.
Why? Why did she have to ruin her night?
Amber sighed and turned bored eyes to Savannah, the blonde almost seeming to deflate under her former friend’s harsh look. “What do you want, Savannah?”
“I just wanted to apologize,” the woman said softly, making her way to stand in front of Amber, who narrowed her eyes. “We shouldn’t have done that to you.”
“Well, it’s done. I’m over it,” Amber declared as she brushed past Savannah.
I need a drink…
William brushed past his teammates, ignoring their alarmed words. What had gotten into him? William growled again, pushing past the mass of bodies. Where was that woman? He took his eyes off of her for one second and she slipped away from him. Once he found her, he was…
His eyes finally found the familiar hair and he made his way towards her, eyes flaming. She wasn’t alone, though. There was a male in front of her, and it burned him to the core.
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Amber had made her way over to the drinks and had just gotten a glass of punch when she felt someone wrap their hands around her waist. Well, less of her waist, and more of her lower hips…
She froze, her cup halfway to her lips to take another drink. “Get your hands off of me.”
“Aw, c’mon, beautiful… Dance with me,” a low, male voice chuckled, his hands tightening as he tried to tug her closer against him.
“No. I told you to let go of me, now let go,” she said, her voice sounding almost dangerous.
William saw red. His mind was spinning dangerously and in that moment, the little control he had established over his anger slipped away. He heard nothing, felt nothing except his hand around the throat of the man bothering his Blue, slowly squeezing. He bared his teeth, forgetting everything he had told himself before.
Losing control means back to therapy.
Losing control means back to therapy.
I want to beat the living hell out of him.
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The man turned her around, though she fought against it. “Oh, come now. Surely you can spare one moment,” he drawled with a cocky grin.
Amber pulled away, but that only ended up with her backing against a wall. Great. “No, in fact, I cannot ‘spare a moment.’ I should actually be leaving.”
The man chuckled and stepped closer to her, his hands pressed against the wall on either side of her waist. “C’mon, lovely. If not dancing, I’m sure we can find something more… special to do. I know your reputation, dear. Word gets around.”
Amber cringed at his words. Of course he knew. How did some random guy know what she used to do, while even her own dormmate was clueless?
“I don’t do that anymore. So back. Off.”
”She said back off,” William snarled, grabbing the back of the guy’s collar, pulling him back and slamming him against the wall. He let his hand do whatever it wanted, and it did. His ears began to ring, hot blood rushing through as his hand wrapped itself around the man’s throat. How dare he. It wasn’t even the fact that he was sexually harassing a woman. It was Amber. His dormmate. His a-few-days-dormmate-with-benefits.
The crimson dying William’s vision didn’t fade away. It only darkened and William lifted his other hand, really to strike.
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As soon as the man was torn away from her, Amber’s eyes widened. She pushed herself off the wall and between him and William, pressing her hands against the latter’s chest.
“William. I’m fine. Okay?” she murmured, pushing against him to get him to back off. “Let’s just go home, Will…”
William let out a growl, darkened eyes falling on Amber. Her soft voice filled his ears and his hold on the man’s neck loosened until he let go, watching him crumble down. He wished he could have snapped that neck. Broken his bones so he would never be able to touch another woman again. Rip out his eyeballs so he could never see. But he didn’t do any of that, not when Amber was around. So he backed off, breathing harshly, trying to establish control over himself.
He wrapped an arm around Amber’s waist and pulled her behind him before he stepped closer to the man, bent down, neared his ear and whispered chilling words only for him to hear.
”Touch her again and I will rip you to shreds.”
William pullef himself to his feet, firmly clasped his hand around Amber’s wrist before he dragged her out, ears still ringing.
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“William. Geez… William, slow down,” Amber said as hey walked, trying to pull her wrist from his grip. His ridiculously tight grip that was beginning to hurt. “Ouch. Geez, let go. I can walk on my own…”
It was when they were out of the house did William finally stopped. He took a deep, harsh breath before he whirled towards Amber, his grip on her wrist not loosening.
“I told you to stay near me,” he hissed, eyes blazing. “I took my eyes off of you for less than a minute and you disappeared.”
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Amber froze, fire and ice battling for space in her veins. She blinked up at William, blood pounding in her ears.
“I don’t recall you ever saying that,” she said calmly, her eyes the only things betraying her slight irritation at his words and the flash of fear from the look on his face. He looked about ready to kill something… Or someone…
William recognized the fear in her eyes. He’d seen it so many times, especially in Caroline. Now Amber. She feared him, just like they all did. His fury didn’t die out even then. He let go of her wrist and stepped back from her, pocketing his hands. Force of habit.
“Get in the car,” he forced out through gritted teeth. “We’re leaving.”
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Amber swiftly stepped past him, making her way to his car. She opened the door and slid inside, closing her eyes with a sigh as she leaned her head back against the headrest.
Tonight was supposed to be fun. She was supposed to have fun, talk with some friends, maybe make some new ones… And instead she’d had an encounter with the boyfriend stealer, a guy who somehow knew about her old life, and a very angry William… This was just awesome…
The whole ride home was suffocating. William’s anger hadn’t dispelled, but thankfully he hadn’t lost all of his senses.
Once they got home, William stepped out of the car and instead of waiting for Amber like he’d done last time, he stalked over to the dorm to unlock it. When Amber got out of the car, he locked it before stepping inside.
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Amber slowly made her way inside, pulling her shoes off once she’d stepped through the door. She shrugged her jacket off and let it hand over her arm as she watched William closely.
“Why are you so upset?” she questioned softly.
“I don’t know,” William breathed out, running a hand through his hair. Why was he so upset? Why did he lose control like that? He just knew he couldn’t stand that man’s hands on her. It numbed his senses. Just the thought of it made his blood boil. William leaned against the table, taking harsh breaths, feeling like breaking something. In. Out. In. Out. “I saw his hands on you and—ah, shit.”
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“Oh.”
Amber’s face morphed into one of confusion, then realization, then slight surprise. There were two reasons he might hate that: one, he just hated the thought of a guy touching a girl without her permission, or, two… he liked her… But he couldn’t like her. Right?
Men shouldn’t touch women without their permission, William told himself. That’s why he was angry. Because Amber had said no and the guy still harassed her. It was not because he hated the thought of another man’s hands touching her. It was not because he hated anyone else touching Blue.
“I’m sorry,” he forced out. “You were meant to have fun today.”
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(Jekshdjfjfjdjdjdjdjdjsksolaksjehfbbcnkziah)
Amber sighed and glanced away, willing the blush off of her cheeks. She couldn’t think like that. He didn’t like her, and she knew it.
“Yeah… I’m sorry I dragged you into my mess,” she murmured, rubbing at her face. “I should have just stayed home.”
William cast his eyes away, missing the blush on her cheeks. He shook his head. He wanted to cheer her up. Why?
“I’ll be right back,” he breathed out, squeezing his eyes shut. “Just… stay, okay?”
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“Stay…? Stay here, or stay in the dorm?” Amber asked, her eyebrows drawing together as she looked over at him. What…?
“Here,” William responded, folding his arms so he woudn’t pull her into a hug. “I need fresh air. I’ll be right back.”
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Amber stared at him, incredibly confused. “Okay… Can I at least sit on the couch, or do I literally have to stand right here?”
William looked at her for a while before his face broke out into a smile and he laughed, shaking his head. He immediately forced it down.
“Sit on the couch,” he looked away, trying to keep his smile at bay.
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Amber blinked at his laughter, an involuntary smile making her lips twitch. She shook her head and made her way over.
“Yes, sir,” she chuckled, plopping diwnninto the couch.
