Page 86 of Sweet Hate
“Hurricane, what the hell are you doing?”
“Verona, I’m fine,” she says, turning toward me with a glare. “I’m a big girl, and I’ve dealt with far worse injuries on my own.”
What injuries?
I swallow what I really want to say next because I don’t want us to fall back into the dynamic we’ve had since she came back. Especially not when I’m hoping to convince her to spend the spare time she has left here with me.
“Ready to head home?”
She sighs heavily before nodding her agreement and grabbing her purse.
“It really isn’t necessareeee—” she squeals in my ear as I sweep her up off the floor into my arms again and stroll out toward my truck. Opening the door, I place her carefully inside, pushing back the seat to give her ample room to stretch out her foot.
“You're ridiculous, you know that?”
I turn, catching her aqua stare. Without breaking eye contact, I slowly pull the seat belt around her and click the latch into place.
She sucks in a sharp breath at my proximity. The air thickens with tension, neither of us wanting to be the first to break eye contact, until her tongue peeks out to wet her bottom lip, and I can’t help but track the movement with rapt fascination.
I want to bite that lip.
When my cock twitches, I’m forced to move away before I do something I shouldn’t. I don’t need this dick rearing his horny head, when I’m already doing an outstandingly shitty job of giving her space.
“You make me ridiculous,” I shout over my shoulder as I jog back to lock the bakery, the sound of her laughter making me feel lighter than I have in hours.
I pull the truck to the exit of the parking lot before realizing I don’t know where she’s staying.
“Where am I headed? Grams’s place?”
“Oh, no. I rented a little Airbnb in Harbor Flats.”
She rented a place? Why isn’t she staying with Grams?I ponder over that fact but decide it’s probably best if I don’t ask. She’d tell me if she wanted to.
Pulling up outside the house, I look over at her and rest my hand over the one currently undoing her seatbelt.
“Keys?” I hold out my palm expectantly as she smirks, placing the keys there. Attached to them is a furry pink thing. Of course. “What is this? A rabbit’s foot?”
She bursts out laughing, her entire face lighting up, making my lips kick up in response.
“No, you idiot, it’s a pom-pom.”
“A what now?”
“A fuzzy little pink ball that looks cute.”
“That sounds a little like you.”
“Hey!” She smacks her palm onto my pecs, and I grab and hold it there for a second, the contact easing the unease inside me.
Bad Axel.
“Wait here.” I jump out of the truck and jog to her door before my stubborn girl tries to follow and injure herself even more. Surprisingly, she doesn’t argue with me this time, wrapping her arms silently around my neck as I lift her off the seat and carry her inside.
She rented a ground-floor apartment with big open windows overlooking the water. Sleek gray furniture and white walls give the place a modern, clean look, but it’s…soulless. Nothing in here suits my girl. Apart from the iridescent pink sequined fuzzy blanket tossed over the sectional. That’s 100% hers.
I carry her over there and set her down gently, lifting one foot at a time to remove her sparkly Chucks and socks. I rub my thumb over the soles of her feet to give her the briefest massage until she lets out a husky moan.
Rookie move, Axel. Rookie move.Now I have an uncomfortable situation in my pants again, and because I’m crouching beside her, there’s no way of getting out of here without bringing the little asshole up to her eye level. She has me popping more boners than a teenager with his first dirty mag. This is ridiculous.
