My back knots. “What are you saying?”
“That I’m another pet project, but I’m not actually good enough for you.”
“That’s not true! I was stuck at the club, but I’m here now.”
He snorts. “The club? That snob-hub was more important than being here?”
“Of course not! My mother wouldn’t let me leave.”
He rolls his eyes. “Good lord. Just hang up on her when she calls.”
“I can’t hang up when she’s standing right in front of me.”
Dax loses grip on his helmet, and it falls onto the ground. “She’s here?”
I swallow hard and nod.
He blinks hard, wincing. “Wait. Your mom came home? Today?”
I tug at my bracelet. “I’m so sorry. I couldn’t get away from her.”
His eyes dart from left to right as he comprehends the new information. “You had no idea she was coming home, right?”
“None. If I’d known, I would’ve left the manor with you.” I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Every time I tried to leave, she had another reason for me to stay. It’s sickening how easily she had me under her control.”
Dax sighs. “Whoa. This is big.”
I look into his stormy gray eyes, and my vision blurs. “If I could’ve contacted you, I would’ve. You have to believe me.”
Dax lifts his hands onto my shoulders and smooths them down my arms. “She was already living rent-free in your head. I get that her return had you spooked.”
“Shell-shocked, more like it,” I reply bluntly.
Dax gets off the motorcycle and pulls me into his arms.
I bury my face against his shoulder and mumble, “All I want to do is spend another night under the stars with you.”
“If you think I’ll go back to sleeping outside after the pool house mattress, you’re crazy,” Dax jokes.
“So you’ll come home with me?”
“Will your mom be on your case? I don’t want to make things more complicated.”
“All I want is you.”
He nods, holding me tighter. “I just want to be with you too.”
I motion in the direction of the hospital. “We could still meet up with Dr. Harris before we leave.”
Dax’s Adam’s apple bobs, and a frown stretches his lips. “No, I’m done.”
My heart squeezes. “What?”
“No hospital. I don’t need a doctor.”
“But, Dax…”
His eyes flare with determination. “I’ve made up my mind, Vanessa. Don’t push me on this.”
