Page 129 of Infatuated as They Come
“You like it then?” he asked against my lips.
“I love it. And I love you.”
“I love you too. And I meant what I said: that now that I’m done with all of this, things will be different. No more late hours. No more me being stuck in the studio after work and weekends.”
“But what about your art? You can’t give that up.”
“And I won’t. I’ll still be down there, but it won’t be like before. I was only down there so long because I was working on your gift. I wanted to make sure I made you something special.”
“He broke it,” I whispered.
“It’s okay.” He brushed a hand against my hair. “At least there’s one, right? You can keep that one…”
“I will. I’ll keep it forever. It’s so beautiful. Thank you for making me something so special.”
“I’m gonna show you how much I’ve been missing you. Saying it all the time isn’t enough; I have to actuallyshowyou that I miss you. And from now on, I will. No more standing you up, no more missing you cheer. None of that.”
“I just want us to spend more time together,” I said softly. “But… I haven’t exactly been…understandingof how things feel for you. About you wanting to work and having your own money. I know I’ve never had to deal with the problems you have. I guess I’m kind of ignorant about what it feels like to struggle with money. I kept pushing you to do things you didn’t wanna do. Maybe I really am a dumb spoiled rich girl…”
Chuckling, he pressed a kiss to my forehead. “You’re not dumb. You’re my smart, sweet girl. I know your heart was in the right place.”
“But I messed up too. I kept pushing you about quitting, but I shouldhave realized that working is important to you. You like your job. You told me a hundred times. I need to respect that.”
He nodded, pulling me to him before he gave the top of my head a kiss. “I do like it and I don’t wanna quit, but maybe it’s a good idea if I’m down there less. Maybe what you said before about me working part time would be better, and I guess it’d be okay since I don’t have to pay rent anymore. I still can’t believe you bought the apartment. You gotta stay away from your damn credit card when you’re drunk.”
“It’s ours now.” I smiled. “I like that it’s ours.”
“Ours does sound nice…” His eyes stayed fused to mine, all green and deep and beautiful. “How ‘bout we get outta here? Where do you wanna go? I’ll take you wherever you want.”
Tongue clicking, I thought about it for a second. “Can we go to that motel we stayed at for my birthday?”
His brows raised. “You could go anywhere you want, and you wanna go to a crummy motel?”
“I like crummy motels. I like everywhere as long as you’re there.”
“Yeah, I really like everywhere with you too. If that’s where you wanna go, I’ll take you there right now. I told you things were gonna be different, and I guess a cheap motel is how it starts. If that’s what you want, then that’s what I’ll give you.” He pecked my lips before hopping off the car, his hand digging into his pants pocket and pulling out a box of cigarettes. “I really fuckin’ need one of these after last night.”
“I think you’ve definitely earned one after what happened,” I said, watching as he stuck a cigarette between his teeth. “I can’t believe you were inprisonon Christmas.”
He chuckled, cupping the cigarette with one hand while he lit it with the other. “Jail, princess. Not prison. And it was only for a night.”
“Just one night in jail sounds like a nightmare.”
“It could have been worse. Guess I’m used to it. It wasn’t my first rodeo.”
“Well, don’t tell my dad,” I said, legs swinging back and forth as I took in Sawyer’s messy hair and disheveled suit, “but I think it’s kind of hot that you’ve been arrested so many times.”
“You got a thing for bad guys, huh?”
“There’s one I find particularly fascinating.”
Crooked little grin on his face and cigarette hanging loosely from his lips, his eyes met mine. “Next time, I’ll rob a bank for you.”
Chapter 32
Sawyer
The Satellite Budget Motel was cheap, old, and run down, but for whatever reason, Holly seemed to like it. There were a whole bunch of forms to fill out, so I had taken Holly and our bags back to the room while I dealt with them. I leaned against the desk, scribbling down all my details as fast as I could, eager to get back to her.
