ECSTASY | CRIME PRINCE SERIES | BOOK 0.5 FIRST EDITION

| 𝟏𝟏.| 𝗔 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 ♤

Ash

Three days. Three fucking days since the 'incident' and Aria has been ignoring me ever since. It only makes it worse than she is two doors down from my bedroom, and I can't talk to her. the whole weekend she didn't allow me to train her, her excuse being that I have too much on my plate. Fuck yeah, I have too much on my plate which is why I want to spend time with her, I'm pretty certain she's the only fucking person who can keep me sane. She didn't fight over the radio station in the morning, I didn't even have to wake her up in the morning. These past few days I've found her in my kitchen already dressed, on her phone. I'm surprised she didn't just leave without me at this point.

At the base, she would completely ignore my existence, only during breaks and when I convinced her to wrap my hands if I was about to spar. She was right, training was consuming sometimes, I'd gathered enough information to know who was stealing our shipments. Still, that was only because she gave me a tip when Aiden hacked into our systems to check who exactly had enough power or connections to pull off the heist. The amount of time she was spending with Jacob annoyed me to the core, seldom finding them in a brief hug or a very tempting position. I don't recall exactly how many times I've almost shot Jacob but River pinned me down every time.

My pettiness truly surfaced when she tried to speak to me on Monday, I either ignored her or acted like I'm on a call. It was an immature act on many levels, but frankly, I could care less. I did regret it when she stopped trying altogether by noon and sat in the backseat on our way home. I hated every second of it, her not fighting over a seat or whether she should shoot me for waking her up. She never returned my pranks when I threw her ice-cold water, she just stared at me dumbfounded and she smiled. Which made me think why the fuck did she only smile?

Irritated, I walk out of my room with a plan to confront her. I don't know why I thought she would be awake at midnight but it was worth a shot. As I was to knock, I noticed her door was partially open and her room was still lit and slightly dim. I peeked to see if she was awake and she stepped out of the bathroom humming silently while untangling her hair. I agree this is very creepy and slightly perverted of me but I didn't care. She stood in front of the large mirror in the corner of her room, combing her hair, her natural curls were threatening to return and I mentally prayed she wouldn't straighten them out again. When she finished she threw the comb onto the bed and stared into the mirror for a short while, the tower clung to her body and showed a slight cleavage.

She suddenly flipped the mirror and groaned as she irritatedly ran her fingers through her hair. I don't understand why she was so upset about her body when I loved every part of her, from her plump lips to her curved hips and legs. She was absolute perfection. And her hair, God, her dark black hair which I always restricted myself from pulling. Suddenly she turned her head to the door and I immediately back away from her door and walked back to my room.

I need a distraction. I already know I'm going to regret this.

Desperate for a distraction of some sort, I call one of my 'many associates' to come over. Not really giving a shit what time it is, I tell her not to waste any time. When she finally arrives, I lead her to the guest room. She wastes time by trying to talk dirty but it only annoys me more. I haven't even fucked her yet when I tell her to leave mainly because I kept thinking of Aria. Still, I decide to not withhold the agreed amount and ask her to take her time in leaving. I leave to go get my wallet in my room and I'm stunned to see a very tired Aria at my door.

''Ash, I've been looking for you.'' She whispers while rubbing her eyes, her eyes trail my shirtless upper body and down to my sweatpants and I'm happy she's checking me out.

I smile at the adorable sight, her hair is still wet and she's wearing a varsity college hoodie from Harvard. She's yawning but quickly hides it under her palm as she shies away from looking at my abs.