Children of Fire (Complete)

sixteen

Emerson

"I told you, you can't ignore me forever." Gideon said, smirking down at me. I had really planned on avoiding him for the rest of the night, although I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that he had hung out waiting for me to finish counting my money.

"Maybe not, but I can ignore you for tonight." I said harshly, trying to push my way past him. He reached out and grabbed my arm before I could get too far from him, and I felt my body tense up. My heart started racing, and I could feel my breathing accelerate. My eyes grew wide as I remembered the last time someone grabbed me like this. My vision was starting to blur around the edges.

No! Not here. I refused to have a panic attack right here in front of Gideon. I couldn't.

I stood frozen, my breathing erratic. "Please..." I managed to croak out. My voice was small, and for the first time, I let my walls crumble for a second. For a split second, I was the girl I used to be. For that moment in time, I wasn't Emerson June, the badass bitch that didn't take shit from anybody; I was Emmy June, the scared girl who allowed herself to be knocked around by people that were supposed to love her.

"Please, let me go." I asked, my voice still small. I refused to meet his gaze. I refused to be weak. I had to be strong. He couldn't see me like this. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and stood tall. I felt him release me and turned to meet his gaze, his head was tilted slightly to the side and his eyebrows were furrowed in confusion. I couldn't quite pinpoint what he was thinking, and before he had the chance to ask me what was wrong, I started walking towards the exit. I needed air. I needed space. I needed to get away from him.

"Emerson, please. I need to speak with you." Gideon called out to me. "It's about the gala you agreed to attend with me." His voice was softer than usual, and I stopped dead in my tracks. Shit, I had completely forgotten about the gala. Ha! Like I was going to that with him now.

"Like hell I'm still going with you to that stupid gala." I told him, my hands planted firmly on my hips. I was glaring at him, trying my best to look as menacing as possible. "Maybe you should ask Crystal. You have no problem fucking her, I'm sure she would love to be your date."

Gideon's face turned pale for the briefest moment, he probably didn't expect me to find out about their little rendezvous, but I'm not sure what he was thinking. Crystal wasn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box, and she craved attention. Why would she keep that a secret?

"Fuck Crystal," Gideon began. I laughed loudly.

"Funny you should say that--"

"She isn't my date. I don't trust her. You already told me you were attending." Gideon said, his words becoming more harsh. I was hitting a nerve, obviously. Good. Serves him right.

"I'm not going." I told him, putting a cigarette to my mouth and lighting it. "I don't know how many times you want me to say it."

"If you don't come with me to this stupid gala, I'll have you fired from your job. I will shut this shit-hole down and make sure nobody in this town hires you. You will be forced to leave town, and I have a feeling you don't have as much money saved up as you once did. You need this job. I need you to attend this gala. Don't forget, Emerson. You owe me. You almost killed my men." His voice was like venom, and I found my anger bubbling to the surface again.

"You're kidding. You're not serious." I told him, trying to call his bluff. He couldn't just shut down the only bar in this town because he was being childish that I wouldn't attend a stupid fancy event with him.

"Try me." He said, that stupid fucking smirk was on his face. I didn't want to test him, because he was right. He was completely right. I had blown through my emergency stash, and I couldn't leave. I needed to work at least a few more weeks before I could build that money back up again, and I desperately needed this job. I let my shoulders slump in defeat and looked down at the floor. He had won this round.