Page 111 of Tell Me Something

We walked out in silence while I tried to get a handle on my emotions over having real friends for the very first time.

“My car is over here.”

“It’s okay. I don’t want for people to see. I’ll take a cab.”

“I don’t give a fuck if someone sees us. Get in my car, Haylee.”

My feet thankfully decided to follow the direction of my brain which was screaming that he was being a complete jerk at the moment. I didn’t budge.

We were in a standoff in the middle of the sidewalk. Finally, his eyes softened.

“Please get in the car,” he relented.

That was better, and I knew we shouldn’t do this publicly. After Josh opened the door, I scooted into the back seat and stared out the window.

We stayed silent during the entire ride and up until we arrived at our floor in the building.

“Get your bags packed, please. We’re leaving for the airport,” he finally said.

“Right now?”

“Remember, we have plans for a weekend in Charlotte. We’re going now.”

“I haven’t heard from you all week long, and suddenly we have plans for the weekend?”

“It’s not sudden; we discussed it in Vegas. Look, it’s been a lousy week, and I thought I’d be worthless company.” He paused and then closed the distance between us. “I didn’t grasp that I was making you have a shitty week, too, when you should be nothing but smiles.”

“You’re making the wrong excuses. You shut me out completely; I want you to tell me why.”

He sighed and hugged me closer. “I know I did. Can we talk about it tomorrow? We can fly down tonight, and we’ll have the whole weekend, just the two of us, okay?”

I thought about insisting on hashing it out here, but between my drinking and the lateness of the hour, I agreed to wait. “All right. But we’ll talk about it tonight, when we get there,” I compromised.

He looked instantly relieved and kissed my forehead. “We’ll leave in fifteen minutes. Do you need help packing?”

“No, I’m okay.” I went inside my apartment and got ready for the trip.

THE CAR RIDE to the airport was quiet, but I was grateful when Josh handed me a large bottle of water. His hand curled around mine. For now, I let my mind let go of my anger. The flight gave me the opportunity for a couple hours of sleep. I barely registered when we left the plane for the drive to the house, but woke as the driver pulled up to Josh’s beautiful mansion.

“Home sweet home. Come on, sleepyhead.”

He led me into his spacious foyer and then straight up the spiral staircase to what must have been the master bedroom. “Let’s get you in bed. It’s really late, so I’ll give you a tour in the morning.” He undressed me slowly and then crawled in beside me.

I sighed, loving the feel of him naked beside me.

“You seemed emotional when we were leaving the bar. What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking about the fact that Brian went out of his way to ensure I had a good night. That Sasha, Will, and Mark all dropped their plans because of me. I’ve never had that before,” I whispered, feeling his arms come around me.

“They all adore you, Haylee. I just wish I would’ve checked in this week. You should get some sleep, baby. We’ll talk more in the morning.”

“I’m not tired yet,” I whispered.

“Hmm, I’m sure I can think of something to pass the time.”

I felt his hips cradle my backside and the start of his erection.

“You promised we could discuss your week tonight.”