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"I already told you, kitten," he murmurs, glancing over at me with a lifted brow as he pulls out onto the road, "you haven't seen bossy yet."
The dark promise in his tone sends a shiver through me. I wrap my arms around myself, trying to hide the way my nipples harden in response to the threat. I think he knows, though. His lips lift at the corners in a tiny, satisfied smirk that leaves him looking far too sinfully delicious.
Oh, who am I trying to kid? Everything about him is sinfully delicious. I've had the opportunity to date before him but never the desire. Anytime anyone asked me out, I politely declined. I just wasn't interested. But I feel a pull to him that's undeniable. When I heard him behind me in the parking lot this morning, I wasn't disappointed or annoyed. My immediate response was happiness.
The simple fact is, I like him. That worries me. He's a literal millionaire. I'm…well, I'm not even sure what I am right now. Just a disaster, I guess. Someone who tries to do the right thing but tends to get in over her head and do all the wrong things instead.
"Are you close to your sisters?" he asks as we speed down the highway leading back toward town. Even though the backend is messed up, Betty still purrs beneath us.
"Yeah, we are," I say, leaning back against the headrest. "We're not just sisters. We're best friends. We know everything about each other."
"Are you the youngest?"
"Nope. Gemma is a year and a half younger than I am. Adalynn just turned twenty-four, Leia is twenty-two, and Heidi is twenty-one."
"How old are you?"
"Twenty."
"Jesus. Your parents had five girls in six years?" He looks at me with wide eyes. "Your father probably lost his mind when he found out you were all girls."
"Um, I wouldn't know," I glance out of the window at the trees. "We were mostly in and out of foster care until our biological parents decided they didn't want us anymore. We were in for about a year before we were finally adopted when I was seven."
He's quiet for a minute, and then he slips his hand into mine, linking our fingers together. He squeezes gently, pulling my gaze back to him. "You deserved better," he says softly, his seafoam eyes somber. "I'm sorry."
I pop my eyes open wide against the rush of emotion his simple statement sends flooding through me and paste a bright smile on my face. "It's okay. I mean, foster care wasn't great, but our adoptive parents are amazing. We got to be together again, and no one separated us anymore. It worked out for us in the end."
His brows pull down, his lips pursing. "They separated you in foster care?"
"Yeah," I whisper. "It's hard to place sibling groups together, especially large sibling groups like ours. Most people don't have room to take in five little girls. Sometimes, two or three of us would get placed together, which wasn't so bad. Gemma, Heidi, and Leia spent the last year together. Adalynn and I were placed individually. I'll always be grateful three of my sisters weren't alone. But I still remember exactly how it feels to miss them every day."
"Jesus," Xavier growls. The car weaves as he whips to the shoulder of the road. Gravel pops beneath the tires.
"What...?"
One look at his stark expression silences me. My stomach quivers with anxiety. I revealed way too much, I think. He's pissed.
He throws Betty into park and turns the hazards on before reaching for my seatbelt. Before I can find words, he's lifting me over the console into his lap.
"Tell me why you're running," he growls, cupping my cheeks gently between his palms. His implacable eyes hold me captive. "What could possibly be so bad that you'd put yourself through that again, kitten?"
"I'm not p-putting myself through anything."
"Liar," he whispers, leaning forward to brush his lips across mine in a kiss so sweet it brings tears to my eyes. "You're miserable and trying like hell to hide it. But I see it, kitten. You're afraid. I want to know why. I can't fix it until I do."
"What if it can't be fixed?" That's my greatest fear. That it can't be fixed this time. That I went too far in my quest to solve the world's problems and blew up my own in the process.
"I'm very resourceful."
He's been amazing so far. Even if he can't help, I owe him the truth. I can't keep lying to him forever. I don't want to lie to him at all. I'm falling for him. Maybe I already fell. I'm not sure. All I know is that I've messed up enough this month. I don't want to mess this up too. He's sitting in front of me right now because he wants to be here. Because, for some reason, this grumpy, bossy, gorgeous man thinks I'm worth chasing.
