Free Ash by Julieanne Lynch Page A

you.”
    Conflict swarmed through me. Sweat spread across the palms of my hands. My neck burned. Embarrassment was a new thing to me. I hated being put on the spot, especially in a setting that was completely alien to me.
    Andrés waited for me to move.
    For the first time since I’d gotten involved with his gang, I found myself unable to listen to him.
    “I have to stay, man,” I replied. “If I don’t, I’m going to wind up inside.”
    Andrés grinned and shook his head. “Ash, I don’t think you heard me right.” His face went serious. “That wasn’t an offer. It was a command.”
    Silence descended upon us. I didn’t know what to do or say. Aware of the repercussions if I left, a part of me wanted to stay with Connie. It was a fucked-up situation.
    Danny soon appeared. “Hey, Andrés,” he said. “I didn’t realize you had come back to school.”
    Andrés eyes burned with rage and stepped up to Danny. “I’d fuck you up now, only you might get pissy when I fuck your mom,” Andrés whispered loud enough for Connie and me to hear.
    Connie did the unthinkable. She scraped the chair back and walked over to where Andrés stood.
    “Listen, you arrogant piece of shit,” she said. “You don’t come into my school, pushing your weight around like you own the joint. Ash is here because he has no choice, and from what I gather, it’s all on you. So why don’t you and your lapdogs move on? Go rob a bank or score some whores down South Side.”
    Andrés sniggered before pointing a finger at her face. “Oooooh, I like you. Just know that you’re marked, puta.”
    “Andrés, she’s just a girl. Don’t be doing anything stupid,” I said, trying to smooth the whole thing over.
    He sneered at me before nodding at his boys to follow him. Andrés turned and walked to the exit, tugging the door open.
    Connie stepped out in front of me and shouted, “Nos vemos en el infierno, cabrón!” Her voice echoed throughout the building.
    Andrés stared at her and blew her a kiss.
    I grabbed her arm and glared at her. “What the fuck did you just say to him?”
    She looked up at me, shrugged, and giggled. “Oh, just a little, ‘See you in hell, asshole.’”
    That was the moment Connie Fletcher stole my heart.

    Danny let out a long breath before opening his door. “Right, you need some sleep, I need more beer, and your couch is mine for the night.
    There was no way of getting rid of him. To be honest, I was glad to have his company. He’d keep me from hanging off the edge, and I needed that in my life.
     

 
The morning after the night before was always something I dreaded. I lay on my side and stared at the window. The flashbacks of my encounter with Sophia plagued my mind. Her sweet scent had imprinted itself on me, and it was hard to think of anything other than her.
    The door to my room opened, and Jake ran in, jumping on my bed. “Daddy, when are you getting up?”
    I pulled the covers back, and he climbed in beside me. “Soon,” I replied, kissing the top of his head. “Let me rest my eyes for five minutes.”
    “Grandma told me to leave you alone,” he said.
    “Hmmm, Grandma is just making sure I’m getting my beauty sleep.” I hugged him. “But I’m never too tired for you.”
    “Uncle Danny is snoring,” he remarked, and giggled.
    “Yup, Uncle Danny and his big nose would give a pig a run for their money, huh?”
    Jake threw his head back and laughed hard. He was the best cure for a hangover.
    Still worse for wear, I got up and sat on the edge of my bed.
    Jake climbed under the covers, making animal noises as I nursed my sore head. It had been a while since I last felt like this.
    “Daddy.” Jake growled.
    I looked under the covers and peered at him. “Yup?”
    “When I grow up, I wanna be like you,” he said with a huge grin.
    Sometimes, the kid choked me up and left me in awe of his sweet, innocent mind.
    “And why is that?” I asked.
    “Because you’re my hero.”
    It took all