Page 58 of Crash
Appearing once more with an armful of clothes, she smiled sheepishly at me and darted into the bathroom. A moment later, the door closed, and the sound of running water echoed through the wall.
The natural guy thing to do was think about her naked in the shower, and just thinking about it had me sporting a semi. Last thing I needed was her to come out and find me jerking off, so I got up and began pulling on my clothes from last night.
God, I really wanted her, but we had to do this the right way. Slow and steady.
Do we have time?
Remembering her question, I sighed heavily. I’d told her yes, but I didn’t know what that meant when I had to go back to Sydney. The AUFC was everything, and I wasn’t in the position of just quitting. I had sponsorships and contracts to deal with. Violet was fast becoming a part of my life, as much as fighting was, and I couldn’t just ignore that. I wanted her there, but would she want to come with me? Would she leave her safe haven here with her brother, the man who had saved her? It was way too early to tell.
Sitting back on the edge of the bed, I placed my head in my hands. Fuck, that woman had me in a spin. Everything I thought I knew… Shit, I didn’t know anything.
**
We rode in my car to Pulse as soon as Violet was ready to go.
She slipped into the front passenger seat and clipped herself in, placing her bag on the floor in front of her. Truthfully, she looked hot sitting there all dressed up against the black leather. She had on this black blazer over a little maroon jumper that dipped low over her cleavage and wore these tight little gray jeans. Her hair was loose and long, all wavy and wild.Fuck.
She caught me looking and smiled. “What?”
“Did I tell you how beautiful you look today?”
She shook her head. “I could get used to you saying shit like that.”
“She likes superhero movies and swears like a sailor. How did I luck out?”
Slipping on her sunglasses, she shook her head again and laughed. That was my cue to gun the engine and get moving. Otherwise, we’d be stuck in traffic.
Along the way, I asked her questions to keep her from slipping into silence. I knew that when she did that, she was overthinking things. She didn’t need to think, she just had to do.
I asked her about her favorite superhero movie, her favorite color, what books she liked to read and anything else I could think of. Before long, I was pulling up into her usual spot behind Pulse and turning off the engine.
Glancing at her, I asked, “So, what do we say?”
“About what?” She held her bag against her chest like a shield.
“Us.”
She shrugged. “Are we…”
“Together?Yeah, Vee.We are as far as I’m concerned.”
She smiled then, this wide toothy grin that made her eyes come alive. These things might be obvious to me, but she needed to be told. So, I’d tell her everything she needed to hear and then some.
“I don’t care who knows,” I said. “Ash and Ren are clued in, that’s all that matters.”
“Public displays of affection?” she asked coyly.
“Anytime, anywhere,” I replied with a wink, and I chuckled as her cheeks began to turn pink. “Coffee?”
She nodded and undid her seatbelt. Sliding out of the car, I met her on the footpath, and we went into Pulse together.
Unfortunately, we weren’t quite early enough to miss the a.m. gym junkie crowd, and my gaze crossed Andrea’s as we walked across the floor to the kitchen. I’d have to keep an eye on her, but I already knew she could be trouble. I instantly began to regret the handful of times I’d selfishly fucked her out back. That was my own stupid fault, and I’d dragged Violet into her crosshairs because of it.
If Andrea got the message and kept her distance, then we wouldn’t have a problem. I hoped she was smart enough to get over it and move on to her next conquest. Narrowing my eyes, I stepped into the kitchen and out of her line of vision.
I could hear Bobby bashing about in the storeroom, and Violet had gone straight for the coffee machine, like I knew she would.
“Do you want one?” she asked as the smell of roasting beans filled the kitchen.
