Page 17 of Filthy and Fierce

He groans and leans his head back on the seat. When he lifts his head, he adjusts himself. “This is going to be a long ride.”

I bite my lip. “It’s only an hour.”

He opens his mouth and then slams it shut. I haven’t been paying attention, but my dad is passing us, beeping the horn and waving.

I sit back in my seat, and I don’t even have to ask Dixon because his face is filled with guilt. He brings his hand back to the steering wheel, and the warmth of his touch now feels cold and bare. “I shouldn’t be doing this, Faith. It’s going to kill him when he finds out about us.”

I can hear the pain in his voice, and I hate it, so I say the first thing that comes to mind. “It’s okay. He’ll never know.”

He turns his head to look at me. I’m wishing that he’d say to hell with that or that’s not going to work for him, but all he does is nod his head and then turn to watch the road in front of us. The rest of the trip is filled with silence, and even though I want to figure this out now, I know he needs to focus. Bulldogging is dangerous, and he doesn’t need to be thinking about anything but his job today. The rest can wait.

CHAPTER 11

DIXON

I won. It’s the first round, but I did it.

And as they call my name, the first person I look for is Faith Allen.

She’s waving her hands over her head, cheering and going wild. I want to run to her, pick her up, swing her around, and make sure every cowboy here knows she’s mine.

But I can’t do that.

Hell, I’ll never be able to do that.

As people gather around me, I lose sight of Faith. Kids are shoving posters into my hand for me to sign, women are shoving their breasts in my face, and some of them are even stuffing their phone numbers in my pocket.

But I’m not interested. What I want more than anything is to go back to my room and curl up in bed with Faith by my side. Maybe order takeout and talk and laugh. It’s crazy the thoughts I’m having, but they feel like a dream.

“Good job, son.”

I wince as Charlie Allen slaps me on the back. I can’t even look him in the eye. “Thank you, sir.”

Charlie is smiling ear to ear. “Now I know you’re going to celebrate tonight, but take it easy. Finals are tomorrow, and you need to be well rested.”

Karla, a woman I used to hook up with, is coming toward me, and I cringe thinking about the last time we got together. She comes toward me, putting her hand at my waist. I back away from her touch, but it doesn’t slow her down. “Congratulations, Dixon. You wanna celebrate?”

I avoid Charlie’s gaze. “I think I’m going to rest tonight.”

Charlie’s smile drops for a second, but I turn to Karla. “Sorry, but I need to talk to my boss.”

Karla nods her head. “Call me later, cowboy.”

She walks away, and I find Faith across the room. She’s talking to some cowboys, but her eyes are on me. When she sees me looking at her, she jerks her eyes away.Too late, princess. I saw you looking. But that’s okay, cause I’m looking too.

“Are you okay?” Charlie asks. He’s looking at me worriedly.

“I’m fine. I just didn’t sleep good. Plus, I’m getting old.”

Charlie’s forehead creases. “Old? I never thought I’d hear Dixon Chase talk about getting old, turning down dates, and?—”

Before he can finish, Faith walks up. “Congratulations, Dixon.”

She hugs me, and it’s awkward as fuck because I’m yearning to hold her against me, kiss her, and not let her go. “Thanks, uh, Faith.”

I almost called her princess. If her dad heard me call her a nickname, there’d be no hiding the way I feel about her.

Faith looks at her dad. “So what are you doing tonight?”

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