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“Who are you to say what she wants?”
“Juliette,” Adrian says my name, but his icy gaze doesn’t leave Kyle. “Do you want this man to contact you again?”
“No,” I whisper and Kyle turns his head to glare at me. Adrian presses him into the wall harder in response.
“Then it’s settled. You’re going to leave without so much as a glance at her, or you’ll have to deal with me.”
Kyle stumbles when Adrian lets him go, but he keeps his head down and doesn’t look back at me as he walks to his truck. My heart is pounding in my chest and my hands are shaking.
“My car is by the market. I’ll drive you home.” Adrian’s voice is still hard and unyielding, but I know without a doubt I’m safe with him. Even with all his gruffness, he’s never given any cues that would make me feel less than secure.
We walk to his sleek sports car in silence. There’s a grocery cart with a few bags inside of it near the car, and his trunk is open. He dropped what he was doing to come to my aid. My chest warms. I murmur a quiet thanks when he opens the passenger door for me.
Once he’s back in the car, I assess him. His jaw is tight and his hold on the steering wheel is too tense. He’s trying not to show his frustration, but it’s easy to see he’s angry.
“When did you know?” he asks as he backs out.
“What?”
“When did you know that he wasn’t a good guy? I know you saw through him.”
I tense, not liking what he’s implying. “When I met him,” I admit, unable to lie to him after he just saved me.
“Then why did you go out with him?”
I frown. “I didn’t meet him in person until tonight. We met on a dating app. I thought I should at least give him one date before making a decision about his character.”
“He could have followed you home. You shouldn’t have invited him to Peach Hollow.” I grit my teeth at his admonishment. He turns onto our road.
“I had a plan. I was going to go to Peaches and Cream if things went bad and wait until he left. I’m not stupid, Adrian.”
“I know you’re not, which is why it’s baffling to me that you of all people would join a dating app. Don’t you know that most of the guys on there are terrible?”
“For your information, my best friend met herhusbandon a dating app.”
Usually, I would try to quell this rising tension. I’d say something appeasing and get Adrian to cool down. But knowing I’m safe to speak my mind has removed that filter.
“Your best friend is the exception, not the rule.”
He pulls into his driveway and I immediately get out of the car, frustration rolling off me in waves. I was so relieved when I saw him, but now all I can see is red.
“I didn’t ask for your opinion on my dating life. Thank you for helping me, but I don’t need a lecture,” I say when he gets out of the car.
“Juliette, you could have been hurt tonight.” Childhood memories push their way into my mind like bile up my throat. I swallow them down and focus on Adrian. “I’m not trying to lecture you, I just want you safe.”
“Why do you care?” The question comes out before I can stop to think.
“It’s my job to protect people,” he says in a cool tone. I try to read his expression in the dark, but it’s hard when he’s standing on the other side of the car.
“So it’s not because you care about me.”
He rakes a hand through his hair, the first noticeable sign that there might be something more going on. Dreadful hope rises once more. “I would have helped anyone in that situation.”
It’s freezing out, but even if it wasn’t I’d be cold after that.
“Of course.” I let out a weird, high-pitched laugh and take a step back. “You were just being a good Samaritan. I don’t know why I thought any different.” My foot slips off the edge of his driveway, making me wobble.
I pause, waiting for him to deny it. Or to apologize for lecturing me. But neither of those things happens, so I turn and storm across my yard without looking back.
