Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Shutting the engine off, Drake sighed and sat back in his seat. He then grabbed my hand, guiding me closer to him. He did all of this quietly. I expected him to speak—ask questions about my behavior, but then I remembered what he said when I saw him again for the first time at the horrible Dark Side.
He wasn’t a nosy person. He didn’t ask a lot of questions. Not that he didn’t care, it just wasn’t how he was. I knew he’d rather me tell him when I was ready, than to force it out of me.
“Thank you for picking me up,” I whispered, breaking the silence.
“No problem.”
I looked up at him, sliding closer. “Sorry I’m being so weird.” My lips twisted, my throat suddenly dry as I quietly said, “I just said something to my mom tonight that made me miss my brother. A lot.”
“I figured it was something like that.” He stared ahead, watching the water ripple. “I get the same way when I think about my Mom. Easier to cope with now, but still hard to think about.” His head dropped, jaw fixed.
“You’d give anything to see her again, right?”
“Wouldn’t you give anything to see your brother again?”
“Yeah,” I blurted out without thinking.
I dropped my head but felt him watching me. “Besides Kylie, who else can you talk to about your personal problems?”
I shrugged. “No one.”
“Hmm.” He grunted.
“I think it’s good you have the twins and your grandma. People to understand and not judge.”
He scoffed. “The twins are judgmental as fuck, but they understand, for the most part. They wouldn’t tell any of my secrets. I trust them. My grandma is who I tell all to. She listens and gives great advice—wisdom to live by. If it weren’t for her, I’m sure I’d have killed Flex by now. I’d probably be dead… or in jail.”
Oh.
“I hate knowing that I’m going to lose her too. I don’t know how the hell I’ll cope then.” He tried to laugh it off, but I heard the pain in his laughter.
We were both quiet for a few long seconds.
“I think as long as you take her words to the heart, you’ll be okay,” I murmured.
He shrugged. “Maybe.” Then he sat up, blowing out a breath. “I don’t want to talk about that right now. Let’s talk about something else.”
I sat up straight. “Like what?”
“Like why the hell you’re still putting up with a guy like me.”
I twisted my body and perched on my knees to face him. Leaning forward, I placed a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back against his door.
“I already told you,” I murmured. “I like you, Drake. I think you’re an interesting person who just so happens to be very misunderstood.”
“Possibly,” he panted as my hand touched his thigh, close to his growing arousal.
I paused for a second, pulling back. He watched my lips with a hard face. “Do you like me?”
His eyes flashed up to mine and we held gazes for what felt like an eternity. Drake’s arm shot out and wrapped around me. He crushed me against his chiseled body, and I settled on top of his lap.
His eyes focused on my mouth, and before I knew it, his lips found mine, and he kissed me—kissed me like he meant it. Like he actually liked me. All done without words.
Just action.
I grinned behind our kiss, and he groaned as I straddled his lap. “We really gotta get outta this fucking truck,” he groaned when our kiss broke, but he didn’t stop. His lips went down to the crook of my neck and I sighed as I craned my head back.
“You should take me to your place then,” I breathed.
“Wouldn’t be a good idea.”
“Why not? Afraid of me meeting grandma too soon?”
“It’s not that.” He pushed away, gripping my upper arms with flared nostrils.
“Then what is it?” I asked, confused by his aggression.
His lips smashed together, jaw locking. “If I take you back to my place, Jenny—to my bedroom and on my bed—I’m afraid of what will happen. I’m afraid I’ll hurt you in more ways than one. I’m afraid we’ll move too fucking fast. I know I will get carried away with you. I won’t hold back. I’m trying my damn hardest right now to keep some restraint—and I am, but that’s only because we’re in my truck and I don’t wanna take so much from you in a place so shallow.”
I watched his eyes—his face—and my cheeks lit up like a burning furnace. “I get it,” I whispered. “We can stay here then, in your macho manly truck if that’s what you’re really afraid of.” I cupped his face in my hands, allowing our lips to press and mold. “But, like I said before, don’t make me wait too long, Doomsday. I’m an impatient girl.”