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“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Going from a girl who’s safe but entirely wrong for you to a guy who’s fucking dangerous as hell. And also wrong for you.”
“He’s not dangerous as hell, Rig. Come on.That’sextreme.”
“Really.” He dips his head and quirks a brow.
“Have you met us?” I wiggle a finger between us.
When he pinches his lips and turns his back to me, I know he’s mad. Still, I take a bite of pizza and play my feelings down. “All I know is that I feel something for him. My gut is rarely wrong, Rigger. You know this. And according to my gut and the way he behaved this weekend, he’s not one of the bad guys.”
He turns back to me, softening his gaze a bit as he studies me. “I know you have this whole gut thing you rely on but hormones can get in the way of that.”
“I’m aware of hormones, Rig. I’m not a child.”
He glances at my chest, and I feel my cheeks flush pink. “I know you’re not a child. But you don’t really have the experience needed to recognize the red flags.”
“I know I don’t have experience, for fuck’s sake.” Anger flares inside of me. “God, why do you do this? Why can’t you just be supportive for once? Encourage me to go for it?”
His jaw hitches and he grips the edge of the counter on either side of me, trapping me in place. My heartbeat quickens and a familiar heat courses through my veins as Rigger licks his lips.
“If it were the right guy, Tove,” he growls through clenched teeth, “Iwould.”
I take a few breaths. “And who might that right guy be?”
He holds my stare for a moment. All I can feel is his body heat, his frustration, and all this confusion building inside of me.
“Someone who’s willing to love and protect you at all costs,” he finally says, a slight hopelessness in his voice. “Who won’t walk away from you when shit gets hard.”
“And what makes you think Ben isn’t the type to do that?”
“Oh, just a gut feeling. I have those too, you know.” He pushes off the counter, goes to the fridge and grabs a beer, twisting the cap. And suddenly all this tension that was there between us is gone.
“Well, the only way to get all this experience I need is to jump into the dating world. But you don’t have to worry about me dating Ben.”
“Change your mind that fast?”
“No. I’m sure he’ll have nothing to do with me. Not after all that’s happened.”
Rigger gulps down half his beer, bobs his head a few times. “If not, it’s probably for the best. I know you don’t want to hear that but I’m not going to stop telling you what I think just because you have gut feelings that say otherwise.”
I turn around and roll my eyes.
“And you can roll your eyes all you want, act pissed off, but you know you love this side of me.”
I chew on my cheek, holding back another eye roll as I realize how right he is. Sometimes Rigger is so damn right that it hurts. He walks up next to me and peers over the counter, forcing me to look at him. All he gets is a glare.
“Now, are you going to share your pizza with me or not?” I shove the box his way and he smiles. “Thank you.”
I mutter a ‘welcome’ and grab a beer from the fridge, wondering who Rigger is turning into. I mean, he’s the same, but different. Seems like everyone is different ever since Devin dumped me. Like it opened up some portal that changed everyone around me. Maybe it’s not them.
Maybe it’s me.
Maybe my wings are finally eager to spread. Wanting them to take me to new places, away from familiar people. And if Ben does give me a second chance, I might be willing to let him take me to those new places.
Daddy finally calls when Rigger leaves. First thing out of his mouth is, “Greer and I have decided to head up to the lake house in Sedona. Is this something that can wait, kitten?”
I huff, my childish impatience wanting to scream at him that no it cannot wait. Daddy should know when I say something is important I mean it. He doesn’t even ask if it’s work-related. What if I had a client who wanted a special order?
