Page 35 of Shiver

Even as I buckle Gia into her car seat, just minutes from getting to see her mother for the first time in weeks, I’mstillin shock that Samara agreed to this. I’m even more shocked that she agreed to let me drive.

With that thought, I see her pull into my driveway.

I finish clicking Gia in, pressing a kiss to the top of her head before closing her door and heading to the driver’s side.

Samara heads toward me wearing the most casual outfit I’ve seen her in to date, and she’s still fucking stunning.

She’s wearing light-wash jeans that hug every delicious curve, paired with a sunny yellow crop top that shows off a sliver of the glowing mahogany skin between the waist of her jeans and the bottom of the top. I suppress a groan but don’t manage to keep my thoughts at bay.I’d like to take a bite out of her.

I clear my throat and call over to her. “Hey,” I say as she gets closer.

“Luca,” she says, dipping her chin and all but ignoring me as she gets into the passenger seat.

Still not a fan, I see.

The thought almost makes me laugh. Or itwouldif it weren’t for the fact that I, not so secretly, want her to like me. Although I’m done pretending, I don’t know why. I find it unbelievably attractive that she doesn’t humor me when I say something that annoys her. I also love making her squirm, and frankly, I have a fear of being unlikable. As someone with seemingly perfect siblings who everyone adores, it’s been more difficult than I care to admit growing up as the resident fuckup. For the longest time, I found myself taking on the role of a people pleaser, but in recent years, I’ve gotten a kick out of people underestimating me, but with Samara, I don’t feel that same thrill.

I climb in, fastening my seatbelt and turning to make sure Gia’s where I left her.

I know she’s a baby and can’t go anywhere, but I’m maybe just a little paranoid.

We drive in mostly silence for the seven minutes it takes for us to get to the public park I chose for this reunion. It feels dumb picking a park when Gia can’t do much of anything right now, but it’s neutral, and there will be other children around, so hopefully, that’ll make it less awkward.

Once we’re parked, I look over to see Samara stuck in her thoughts and unaware that we’ve arrived. She’s staring out the window, resting her chin on her hand. I take a moment to just breathe her in.

She comes across as such a badass, unfazed by everyone and everything, but I get the feeling that there’s more than meets the eye with her. Coming from such a big family and grappling with so many personalities, I’m usually able to get a decent read on people. And Samara? This woman is definitely hiding a soft side that I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to dig down and find.

I unbuckle myself as quietly as I can, getting out and walking along the back, over to Samara’s side. Pulling the door open, she falls forward from the loss of contact with the door. A small screech leaves her lips, and it takes everything in me not to laugh when she finally loses her composure as her hands grapple for my chest so she can steady herself.

“Luca, what the ever-loving fuck was that about?” she shouts at me, her glossy lips pinching.

I give her a cheesy grin. “Hey now, don’t cuss around my daughter,” I say jokingly.

She rolls her eyes at me, turning to unfasten her seatbelt, but I stop her, grabbing her hand and placing it back in her lap as I lean into her.

I slide my hand along her thigh, then her hip, and as I bring my lips so close to hers, I can almost taste them. “Thank you for coming,” I tell her, keeping my voice low despite the way my breath seizes in my lungs as I draw in her heady, warm fragrance.

Satisfaction rolls through me as I watch her pupils dilate and hear her breath catch in her throat. She doesn’t speak as I angle myself even more closely, taking in the way her rapid breathing makes her chest heave against the thin yellow fabric of her top. Her eyes flicker to my lips before finding their way back to my eyes.

I glide my hand farther over her hip, landing on the buckle. I click the button, successfully unclipping her. Pulling back and opening the door wide for her, I straighten as a crease pulls between her brows. She practically throws herself out of the vehicle, and it solidifies what I already know.

Samara may notlikeme, but shedefinitelywants me to fuck her.

I try not to focus on the fact that she also seems incredibly embarrassed and repulsed by her own response to me. Instead, I let the satisfaction that this stubborn-as-hell woman may be starting to change her mind aboutpartsof me spur me on.

Chapter thirty-one

Samara

“When did she say she’d be here?” I ask Luca as he sits beside me on this hard-ass bench, waiting for Cecily to arrive.

“She said five,” he answers quietly. I look down at the screen of my cell phone, and just as I’d thought,she’s late.

“It’s ten after five. Are you sure she’s coming?” I ask, annoyance slipping free. Though, for once, it’s not aimed at Luca. It’s Cecily who’s been putting this man through the wringer, andI don’t like it.

“I don’t know,” he whispers, sounding upset. It finally hits me that this is a monumental step for himandGia.

Of coursehe wants things to go well with Cecily. She’s the mother of his child, and as he’s mentioned before, he fully believes that Gia having both of her parents involved in her life is what’s best for her, and I can’t help but agree.

---