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I tucked the chair under the table then yanked the leash away from my ex. Right as I was about to exit the library, Garrick walked up from behind me and gently tugged on my wrist.
“Wait, before you leave…” He paused, eyeing Wes at my back.
Hauling me to the side so we had a tiny bit of privacy, he asked, “Can I get your number?”
Oh crap.
I had flirted with Garrick and now he wanted to call me? Date me? Garrick was hot in a way that would at least distract me for a while, but just like every other date I’d been on since Wes, it would burn out quicker than it started.
Beaming at him, I was about to deliver a polite rejection that would leave his feelings intact when Wes took up the space behind me, pulling me flush against his chest.
“You can have my number, Jerod. You can call it and see if Callie wants to chat, seeing as she’ll be staying with me.”
Wait…what?
I tried to turn around, but Garrick was already walking away, and I felt like shit. We were finally outside when I slapped his chest. “Why did you do that?”
Wes caught my belt loop once more and steered me toward the car.
“Like fuck is another man going to date you while you’re here. If you leave, then that’s one thing. I can’t control who you’re with. But in this town, you’re mine. It’s me you’ll date. Me you’ll call. Me you’ll fuck. You need romance, then read one of those books you love so much. When you go back to DC, you’ll have your fuck buddies again, but here, there’s not a chance I’ll stand by and let you be with anyone else.”
He didn’t even wait for me to respond. He moved past me, opening the back door of the car for Max to jump in. “Come on, let’s eat,” he said casually while I was still trying to wrap my brain around what he’d just said.
Wes had done a one-eighty spin on me, and I had whiplash. Or heart flash. God, that was a stupid thing to call it, but why else did it feel like my heart had just been tossed inside a furnace, only to be snatched and thrown into a freezer?
“It’s getting late. I know of a few spots along Main Street that have outdoor seating, so we can bring the horse.” Wes held my door open for me.
Max tilted his head from inside, as if he were piecing together what we were doing.
Why was he asking me to dinner? He was so mean to me in the cabin, and then every encounter after… This had to be a trick.
“Well—” I started but Wes cut me off once more by grabbing my laptop bag and gently packing it away in the passenger side of the car.
Once it was put away, he straightened and moved so he was holding the frame of my door. It was a silent prompt for me to get in, but my feet were frozen. The heat-soaked asphalt at our feet made sweat trickle down my neck. Wesley’s brows constricted to a point on his forehead, and I knew he was confused as to why I wasn’t moving. Max barked from his spot in the back, as if he was wondering too.
“I’m hungry, River, and if you don’t move soon, I doubt you’ll appreciate the meal I select.” His gaze flicked down my body in a slow, measured way, slowing at my waist until he was boldly staring at the space between my thighs.
This entire thing was scrambling my brain, but I finally slid inside, still feeling dazed and at a loss. Wes rounded the car, folding into the driver’s seat, looking at odds with my vehicular aesthetic with his brooding stare and set jaw. Not to mention his leather cut, denim jeans, and boots.
As I buckled, I asked, “How did you get here with Max? Where’s your bike?”
Wesley gripped the steering wheel as he guided us down Main Street, pausing at a red light.
“Got dropped off. Figured we’d take your car back home.”
Hearing the word home come from his lips took me back to when we were fifteen and he’d placed that star-embellished key in my palm, promising a future he had no business swearing.
The reminder had my lips smashing shut instead of asking him what he meant by the term. Was he referring to the cabin, or was he saying that I was going to be staying with him?
Before I knew it, we were parking across the street from a cute restaurant with red awnings and stringed lights crossing over the patio seating. Music played from the interior of the restaurant, giving off a slow, summer evening vibe. Instantly I wanted to cocoon myself in the feeling.
Wes was already out, helping Max while I exited the car. We crossed the street side by side, and I took a moment to admire the area. The strip had changed since I’d lived here. There were a few more restaurants, a beauty salon, a home decor shop, bookstore, and a—ohmygosh!
My feet moved on their own, even as Wes was almost to the front door of the restaurant. I briskly moved down the sidewalk, passing glass window after glass window, keeping my sights on the one at the very end. I had no idea if Wes was following or if he’d grabbed a seat in the restaurant, and I didn’t care.
The shop was highlighted with teal trim and a trendy sign swaying overhead with the outline of a skull with flowers growing from the top of the empty skull.
Dead Roses.
