“Fine,” he says. “But for future reference,neverget into a car with a man you barely know. Men are the worst people on this planet. Don’t trust them until you’re certain they’re one of the good ones.”
I can’t bite back my smile. “For once, I agree with you.”
“Alright, Red.” He sighs, but makes no move to retake my hand or put his arm around me. He just does this little nod toward the street. “Your chariot awaits.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
carter
It’slike I put an idea out into the universe, the notion of a life I don’t actually live, and it rose to the challenge. Like the stars aligned or something. The woman who I desperately need to publicly act like my girlfriend kissed me in a crowded room, asked me to take her home, and is now in my passenger seat.
I can work with this.
I glance at her on the way to her place. “So, you kissed me.”
She rolls her eyes. Still doesn’t look at me, though.
“Does that mean you’re agreeing to my favour?”
Her head snaps in my direction. “Absolutely not. That was just me getting you out of trouble. Reimbursement for getting you into it the other night.”
I adjust my grip on the steering wheel, my hope deflating a bit. I look at the road instead of her, because she’s wrong. Dead wrong. “You know it wasn’t your fault, right?”
All she does is shrug. Fiery little thing, she is. A bit snappy for no good reason, but I can see the size of that heart from a mile off. Even if she tries to hide it. It’s bleeding all over my G-Wagon, so I know it’s there. She saved my ass, didn’t she?
She feels bad that I got in trouble for throwing a punch over her. Like she’s the one who folded my fist and smashed it into Collin’s nose. That’s his name, by the way. Suit Guy. Collin Donahue. It was written in all the documents that had my pending assault charges attached.
She still says nothing.
“It wasn’t, Red.”
“I know,” she mutters, but by the way she’s back to glaring out the window, I’m not sure she does. “I just don’t want you to lose your job, alright? Sue me.”
“Spoken like a true, fake girlfriend.”
“Which I am not,” she reminds me, leaning her head against the seat to glare at me.
“Could be, though.”
“Won’t be,” she says, flashing me the fakest smile on this planet. It’s kind of hot. Not sure what that says about me. Looks like she’d destroy me and have fun doing it, and something in me wants to face that challenge.
I sniff a laugh, shaking my head. I pull my focus back to the road, letting a pocket of silence stretch between us. I like seeing how people do in silence. I am not good at it, myself. Not in the slightest. I think my head’s too loud to enjoy quiet. I have to fight not to keep talking in moments like the one we’re in right now. It makes my skin crawl.
Arden seems comfortable in the silence. Acts like she belongs there. She doesn’t fidget or talk, doesn't ask to turn the music up, she just exists.
“The next right, up here,” she says about five minutes later, pointing out the window.
I was hoping she wouldn’t say that. I was hoping we’d drive straight through this part of town to another part. A different part. Literally any other part.
I don’t love this area. I’m not particularly comfortable dropping a lady off somewhere like this, especially on her own.
Can’t say that though. It’s not polite.
“Left at the blue house.”
I follow her directions, my hand tightening on the steering wheel a bit with each turn.
Fuck, I hate this area. I wouldn’t even like parking my car here, and I’m supposed to drop her off? Leave her to it? Hope that nobody breaks in and hurts her in the middle of the night?
