Free RECKLESS - Part 1 by Alice Ward Page A

couldn’t trust myself around Jace Richardson.
    I’d just avoid him. I could do that. I had my column to work on, exams to study for, a full social life—well, as full as it got for me—and internships to apply for. All I had to do was steer clear from him for the next three months, and then I’d be on my way home, back in the arms of the man I loved.
    Things would blow over between us. My life would go back to normal. And never again would I have to think about sexy rocker gods, or the way their hands could play more than just instruments, or how their voices could create unimaginable sensations in every part of your body.
    Oh, dear God, I was in some serious trouble.
    Right then, my phone rang. I was almost afraid to see who it might be, but with my heart in my throat, I pulled the ringing device out of my purse anyway. I was relieved to find Becca’s name clearly displayed on the caller ID.
    “Hey,” I answered, hoping that my voice didn’t sound as high-pitched to her as it did to me.
    “Uh, hey,” she said on the other end of the line, but I could barely hear her above all the racket in the background. “I’m picking up a shift at the pub tonight. I just got here. But I’ll be home in time for a chick flick, if you’re up for it.”
    “Oh, yeah. Sure.”
    “Great, see you later then?”
    “Yep.” I hung up the phone and then tossed it onto my bed.
    I wasn’t excited about having the dorm all to myself that night, not when I had so much on my mind. But since I wasn’t about to chance a run-in with Jace at the coffee shop, I didn’t have much of a choice but to stay put for the evening. Maybe I could knock out some of my studying early.
    Grabbing my books, I spread out on my bed. For a good thirty minutes, I tried to break through the haze in my brain, but it just wasn’t working. Finally, I gave up and decided to take a warm bath. Maybe that would break up the bundle of nerves twisting and turning in my gut.
    No sooner than I’d gotten undressed and filled the tub, my cell phone rang. Again, I was filled with dread when I went to pick it up to see who was calling. My heart fell into the pit of my stomach when I caught sight of Sean’s name. I stared at it, letting it ring until it went over to voice mail. But no sooner than the ringing stopped, it started up again.
    I should have known he wouldn’t let it go that easily.
    Still staring at my phone, conflicted about whether or not to answer, I sat down on the closed lid of the toilet and rested my elbows on my knees, the phone just inches from my face. I could continue to ignore his calls, let him squirm a little… but something deep inside me said it wasn’t my anger but my feelings for Jace that had me hesitant to answer.
    It was that same little voice that pushed me into finally raising the phone to my ear.
    “Andrea?” Sean said, voice raspy and broken.
    “Hi, Sean.” I did my best to sound warm and forgiving. Still mad or not, the sooner I could put things back on track with us, the sooner I could move past this infatuation with Jace.
    “Oh, thank God.” He breathed heavily into the phone. “I—I thought I’d lost you forever. You weren’t answering and—I—I’m so, so fucking sorry. I don’t know what got into me. I just—I lost it. Please, you have to know that.”
    “I know, Sean,” I said, softly. And I truly, truly did. He’d never meant to hurt me. And he certainly wasn’t the guy to go all cave man; we never would have lasted as long as we had if that’d been the case. But it didn’t mean I was letting him off the hook completely. “But what in the world possessed you to come here in the first place?”
    “I don’t know. I was just so damn worried, and scared. I just wanted to protect you.” Silence hung thick on both sides of the line for a minute before he continued. “I didn’t mean anything I said. You know I support you, I want to see you follow your passions. I was just so… scared.”
    I released a