Page 51 of Sweet as Sin (Bad Habit 1)
Good question. She was behind me, gripping my right hand as tightly as Nico held my left. Grace, ever stalwart, brought up the rear. The four of us stumbled through the crowd to the cars, getting bumped, shouted at, harassed. Camera shutters sounded like gunfire. I held my breath, heart pounding wildly, adrenaline pumping through my veins, until finally we made it to the car.
Barney had apparently had enough of tasering people, because he helped Chloe and Grace into one Escalade, and me into the other. The minute he slammed the door shut, I sank low into the seat and clicked the Lock button. Then I tried to remember how to breathe.
A moment later—it could have been seconds or minutes, I was so terrified I couldn’t tell—the driver door opened with a chirp of a remote, and Nico got in.
“Seat belt.”
His voice was so rough he might have been swallowing rocks. He shut the door and revved the engine. A siren barked three times, and we began to move. We crept along for a while, until the sound of the crowd faded and we picked up speed. We kept picking up speed, until we were moving so fast I got even more scared than I was before. I stayed quiet as long as I could, until I couldn’t stand it anymore.
“Are we being chased?”
Silence. The sound of Nico’s ragged breathing. Then, curtly, “No. Had an escort from the cops, but they dropped off a few blocks back.”
“So can I take this jacket off my head now?”
Nico exhaled hard. I peeked out from under the jacket. He had a death grip on the steering wheel. His hands were curled so tightly around it his knuckles showed white.
I took his nonanswer as a “yes.” I pulled the jacket off, but kept it on my lap just in case. My heartbeat was beginning to slow to prefreakout levels, but I was still hungover, and not operating on all cylinders. I needed a shower, and about ten more hours of sleep.
“You got to my house really fast.”
Nico didn’t take his eyes off the road. “Not fast enough. You sure you’re okay?”
The mirrored aviators he wore reflected back harsh glints of sunlight over the dashboard and windshield. I closed my eyes, and rested a shaking hand on my forehead. “Other than feeling like death, I’m fine.”
I felt his sharp gaze examining me. “Birthday party hangover?”
I nodded. He reached out and took my hand, rubbing his thumb against mine. I heard his hard exhalation again, followed by a muttered curse.
I glanced at him. A muscle in his jaw flexed, over and over. He stomped on the gas, and we barreled through a yellow light, narrowly missing a Prius trying to make a left turn.
“I’m okay, Nico,” I reassured him softly, squeezing his hand. “Really. Just a little weirded out.” Hello, understatement of the year.
“Those fuckin’ jackals!” The words were snarled from between his clenched teeth. His pulse was pounding wildly in a vein in his neck. On impulse, I reached out and stroked it. He looked over at me, his jaw tight.
“Thank you for rescuing me.”
He cut his gaze back to the road. “Yeah, I’m a real knight in shinin’ armor.”
I realized he was as mad at himself as he was at the paparazzi. He really did think this whole thing was his fault. I suddenly felt very protective of him, and angry at them. But considering his mood, I didn’t want to say anything that could be misinterpreted as blame. So I just kept my tone soft and sweet.
“Okay, maybe not armor.” I glanced at his jean-clad thighs. “You’re my knight in shining denim.”
This earned me a small, wry smile. It looked more like a grimace, but I’d take it. Leaning over the console between our seats, I pressed my lips to that angry pulse in his neck. He wound an arm tightly around my shoulders, kissing my temple. I tucked my face in between his neck and shoulder, breathing him in. I loved the way he smelled: purely masculine.
“Do you smoke?”
It took a while before he answered. “Only when I’m really stressed out. It’s bad for my voice.”
I’d only smelled smoke on him twice. Now, and that first night at Lula’s, when he’d been waiting outside as he called. It gave me a little thrill to think he might have been worried about calling me. Maybe I hadn’t been such a foregone conclusion after all.
We drove a while in silence, until we hit Sunset Boulevard and started into the hills.
“So. Your house.” I sat back in my seat, but Nico kept his hand on the nape of my neck, gently squeezing. It was big and warm, and made me feel better.
“Yep. My house.”
“Where your bedroom is.”
