The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn

Chapter 27

The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn Chapter 27 Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“How can they possibly be missing?” I ask. How does anyone go missing from a yacht? We’ve never had an incident like that in the past. People don’t just fall out of a boat as big as that one.

“Griffin was the last person to see them on board.” He tells me. “We’re not sure what happened after he spoke with them, but they never made it to the island with the rest of us. Chances are they fell off the boat, but none of us know how it happened.”

Fell off the f*****g boat? Again, that didn’t just happen. Were they drinking or did something else happen?

I ran a hand through my wet hair; I was already not f*****g thinking right after Autumn literally just spread her legs and mesmerized me with the view of her beautiful and tempting body. I’m unsure if I can even walk with how much I wanted her. The fact that I couldn’t have her was torture and it was only about to get worse for me.

“Are you listening to me?” He demands. No, I wasn’t. I hadn’t heard a word he’d said. “We need to help Arthur with the search. It has already started, but they can’t search this island on their own, they will need us.”

I nod, I knew we had to help. But there was something I had to see about first.

“I have to get Autumn back to the house,” I tell him. “I can meet up with the others after.”

“She can come with us.” He offers. “We can’t waste any time. We’re not even sure that they’re still alive. Can you imagine the headlines if that happens?”

Yes I can, I knew how brutal the article headlines were when our family was concerned. They were always waiting for a new story concerning our lives.

But I was still not okay with Autumn joining us.

I immediately disagreed, “She’s drunk, Dante. She’s in no state to join us on a search and rescue. As soon as I get her back home, I will join the others on the search.”

He nods, “I’ll inform Damon that you’ll be joining us in half an hour or less.”

It was good that he had agreed to this, I didn’t want us to start a damn argument over Autumn in the middle of the woods.

This was f*****g serious. Where were those two? What caused them to fall out of a moving boat? Is that even what happened to begin with? How much of this incident were we not aware of?

I walk back to the spring and pause when I see Autumn. She’s lying on the ground with the robe partially covering her body. Her hair is soaking wet and sticking to her face. I clutch my heart and feel a sudden stabbing pain while staring at her. I wince, unsure of what the hell this pain means. It isn’t the first time it’s happened to me. It’s been happening ever since that first day we kissed. Anytime I got closer to her, the pain got more excruciatingly painful. This time was no exception and I wasn’t even standing close to her.

She senses my presence and immediately lifts herself off the ground to a sitting position, “you’re back.” She says with a bright smile.

She had a beautiful smile, one that could brighten up anyone’s day. It was innocent and pure, something you didn’t see every day. I realize I’ve only ever seen her smile like this when drunk. Does that mean that she’s never been genuinely happy around me unless she was intoxicated?

That sudden realization makes me feel uneasy. I was bothered by the idea of Autumn being unhappy especially around me. But there was still plenty that I didn’t know about her. Things that I wish she

would trust me enough to tell me. I asked her earlier if not wanting to marry me was the reason she’d suddenly started drinking. I never got the answer I was waiting for.

I walk towards her and stoop down on the ground next to her, “we need to get you back to the house. There is something that I need to get done in the meantime. I’ll feel better if I knew you were safe and getting your rest. You’re not in a good state to be anywhere with me at least for the rest of tonight.”

Her smile immediately faded, making me want to kick myself. I didn’t want her ever to stop smiling. What had I said that was so wrong? I only wanted to keep her safe. I knew that she didn’t want to leave the spring earlier, was that why she was so angry with what I’d said?

She attempts to move, but I stop her, “I’ll carry you.”

She still wasn’t in her best state even though she’d improved a little. I was also using any excuse to have her close to me again. If she would let me.

She pushes my hand away and walks to the jeep herself. I frown at her reaction. What the hell just happened? Her mood completely switched from happy to angry.

What did I do to piss her off in a few minutes? I follow her to the jeep and rush to open her door before she could lock it.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

She folds her arms and refuses to look my way. It’s bothering me; I don’t think I’ve ever seen her this upset with me before. Has she ever been upset with me in the past? This feels like the first time. And I’m not liking it. Autumn has always been calm and loving, seeing her like this was making me anxious.

“We’re getting late!” Dante shouts from his jeep. I look away from her to glare at him, he’s not helping but I know there are more important things to focus on now. Though, I know it will bother me the entire

time not knowing why she’s suddenly so angry with me.

I gently close the door and rush over to the driver’s side. I glance at Autumn one last time before starting the jeep and racing through the forest. She’s still trying to avoid me; now she’s looking out of the window and pretending that I didn’t exist.

My grip tightens on the steering wheel; why the f**k was this bothering me so much? I never thought that her behavior would ever affect me like this but as it turns out, I was learning new things about myself every damn day, especially when it involved her.

“Autumn,” I growl. “Tell me what’s wrong. What did I say or do to upset you?”

Nothing. She says nothing at all. In fact, inside this jeep has never been this damn quiet since it was created!

I tried to remain calm, but it was becoming difficult to do. Eventually, we’re back at the beach house and still I’ve heard nothing from her. She’s making it her business to not speak to me.

I can see search parties still forming in front of me. It reminded me of the gravity of the situation.

Autumn opens the door before I can even stop the jeep, and it comes to an abrupt halt when I mash down on the brakes to prevent her from harming herself.

I jump out of the vehicle and trap her on the other side before she can try to walk away from me. She was swaying on her feet just earlier today, but somehow to get away from me, she seems much steadier. How the hell was that possible?

“I’m not letting you leave until you tell me what is wrong,” I warn her.

I meant it. I didn’t care that I had more important things to do anymore. I didn’t care about anything else but finding out why she was so damn upset with me. Seeing Autumn like this was more troubling for me than anything else that was going on around me. She had my full attention and I was not letting this go until she gave in and told me what the hell had caused this weird behavior.

Her lips pout almost stubbornly, and f**k me; it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. How does she make even that look so good? Anything looks good on this woman. And it’s beginning to irritate me. I couldn’t look at her once without wanting to kiss her or hold her in my arms.

Why? Why was this happening to me? What did Autumn have on me?

These questions were buzzing in my ear but I still was not giving up until she answered me.

“What’s wrong?” I ask but in a gentler tone this time. “You have to tell me what’s wrong for me to fix it.”

I frown as her forehead creases, and I swear it looks like she’s about to cry. Did I hurt her this much by what I’d said?

f**k.

“Please don’t go to Anya tonight.” She whispers, shocking me to the core.