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“We should be overly cautious until I know it’s safe,” Brian says huskily.
Like when I was a kid, in my crush-fueled years, I’m analyzing every sound he makes, the deepness of his voice, and its breathiness.
“What does that mean?” Dad asks. “She can’t stay at her friend’s house?”
Talk about feeling like a kid. I mean, I get it, the need for caution. I remember the brick at the studio, and Brian went to Never Say Never to defend me.
“She can,” Brian says.
“I’m right here, you know,” I snap.
Mom and Dad both look at me sharply. They’ve got no clue why I’m reacting like this, why there’s so much passion in my voice.
“Sorry,” I say a moment later. “This is just so stressful.”
“I could take you there,” Brian says, finally looking at me, his intense eyes giving nothing away except how serious he seems. “Make sure you’re safe, that we haven’t been followed. Keith isn’t big-time. I doubt he’s even thought about you since his little brick stunt.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Dad says. “How does that sound, kiddo? Are you okay with Uncle Brian taking you?”
Oh, hell. That’s a double whammy right there.
Uncle Brian and kiddo.
Brian flinches twice, once on each word.
“I’m fine with that,” I say, “if you are, Brian.”
He nods shortly. “Of course. I’ll get my shoes.”
“I’ll need to get changed and pack a bag.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Kelly beams when I give her the news. “Awesome, see you soon.”
After packing my bag and changing into jeans and a hoodie, I go downstairs to find Brian leaning against his car. He’s wearing a polo shirt, meaning that with his arms folded, I can see the swelling muscles, how intensely they bulge, as if he’s angry at me for leaving him tonight.
“You don’t have to do this,” I tell him.
“I do,” he says gruffly. “If he’s watching the house, he might follow you.”
“Careful, you almost sound like you care.”
He roughly pulls the driver’s side door open, dropping into the seat, staring straight ahead as I walk around and open the passenger door.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “That was petty.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he grunts.
With the car door closed, my body sizzles with the closeness. I keep waiting for him to touch me, lean across, and kiss me, which would be stupid, considering we’re in view of the house, but I need a sign he’s as obsessed as he seemed before.
He’s closed off again, cold, starting the engine and focusing on the road.
“How will you make sure it’s safe?” I ask.
“Search the area. Make sure nobody’s followed us, and we’ll take a windy route to her house, just to be sure. I don’t think Keith is following us, but if something happened to you…”
He glances at me, emotion cracking through the fierce shield of his eyes.
“I can’t let that happen.”
“I thought we were done,” I whisper.
No, we’re never going to be done, I wait for him to say. Me and you, Evie, we’re forever.
“I care about you,” he says. “Just because it’s complicated doesn’t mean I can let that go. Anyway, I’ve got to make sure you’re around long enough to give me this tattoo.”
I grin, somehow able to banter with him, even if I hate his comment. It’s complicated. I hate it because it’s true, and I’m the source of it. Why couldn’t I have burned those notebooks? But heck, I’d have to tell him eventually.
“Ah, the doomed tattoo,” I joke. “I’m sure we’ll get to it… in a couple of years.”
He grins tightly, remembering his comment from earlier—the figure of speech. It’s true. I’m fishing. As he guides us through the dark suburbs, I pray he tells me it wasn’t just a figure of speech.
“A couple of years ago, I was training Marines to go into combat. I’d already served several tours. I’d already had a life, Evie. A couple of years ago, for you, you were a kid with braces and a crush on an older man. Doesn’t that put it into perspective?”
“It sounds like I knew what I wanted, and you were waiting for somebody to show you.”
I’m shocked at my forwardness, but it’s out there now. He glances at me again, more emotion in his eyes. “Show me how to be a Marine?”
“As if you’d need somebody to show you that,” I say. “No, maybe I was…”
Suddenly, my confidence fails. It’s like all the times I rehearsed the things I’d say to my crush, knowing deep down I’d get tongue-tied before I could. He places his hand on my leg, triggering instant tingling heat.
“What, Evie?”
“It doesn—”
“What. Evie.”
He growls the words, my beast, my protector.
“Maybe I was talking about me, Brian. You were waiting for me to show you that it’s okay. You don’t have to be so grumpy all the time. When you’ve got me, you can finally smile.”
