“That sounds great.” I smiled. “Do you know where you’re going?”
“This map here says there’s a strip of restaurants and a liquor store about two miles down the road.”
“Alright. I think I’ll take a shower while you’re gone.”
“Okay. Any special requests for dinner?”
“Surprise me.”
He left, and I retreated to the luxurious bathroom. As the hot water poured down on me, all of the emotions I’d been struggling with the past few days seemed to pummel me all at once. It hit me that we were on the final leg of this trip now. I still had no clue if Chance and I would simply go our separate ways once we got to his stop or if he was interested in more. Based on that phone call I’d overheard, clearly, there was something he was keeping from me. I never flat out asked him if there was currently someone else when he admitted to a “complicated” situation. Even knowing that was a possibility, I couldn’t help my feelings for him. Chance was the only thing that felt right about my life right now—the only thing that felt like home for as long as I could remember.
I threw a t-shirt on along with some cotton shorts and tried to watch a little HBO while I waited for Chance. Esmerelda Snowflake hopped on the bed next to me. An hour went by, but Chance hadn’t returned. With each passing minute, an uneasy feeling grew in my gut.
What if he never came back?
It was a foolish thought. He’d given me no reason to believe that. Still, my reaction was one of slight panic suddenly. Maybe I was just exhausted from the trip, a little delusional. When another half-hour passed, I called his phone. There was no answer.
With each minute, the panic grew, and my eyes started to swell. I couldn’t help it. I knew it was probably an overreaction, but I’d already lost control of my emotions in the shower, and his not returning was adding fuel to the fire.
The door suddenly opened, and I rushed to wipe my tears.
“My God, that was a cluster fuck,” he groaned.
Chance was holding two bags and dropped them down on the desk in my room when he noticed me frantically wiping my eyes.
“Aubrey, are you crying? Did something happen?”
“No. No, I’m fine. It’s nothing.”
He walked toward me. “It doesn’t look like nothing. What the hell is going on?”
“You were gone so long. I called your phone, and there was no answer. I started to think maybe…”
Shit.
He blinked repeatedly. “You thought I wasn’t coming back?”
“It was just a fleeting thought. Deep down, I knew it was ridiculous but couldn’t seem to help it. It’s been a long trip, and I think I’m just tired.”
Chance gently wiped the tears from my eyes with his thumb. “I’m sorry you got scared.” He took my chin in his hands and turned my face to meet his eyes. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
My heart raced as he pulled me into him. My body seemed to melt into his solid, warm frame. His heart thundered against mine as he hugged me tightly. I never wanted him to let me go. Don’t let me go.
When he pulled back, cold air replaced the warmth of his body. “Can we please erase this from memory? I asked. “It was a lapse in sanity.” I wiped the last of my tears and sniffled. “What took you so long, though?”
He didn’t answer. He was still just looking at me with a serious expression as he examined my face. He seemed to be contemplating something. I couldn’t recall him ever looking that serious before. Finally, he said, “I had to go to two different restaurants. The first one told me it would be an hour wait, and the second was no better.” He lifted his phone out of his pocket and connected it to a charger. “My phone died. That’s why you couldn’t reach me.”
I shook my head, muttering to myself, feeling so stupid for overreacting.
He handed me a cup. “Let’s forget this and have a nice dinner, eh?”
Trying my best attempt at a genuine smile, I said, “That sounds good.”
We sat across from each other at the small table in my room as we ate in silence. Chance had ordered three entrees from an Italian restaurant: eggplant lasagna, chicken parmesan and pasta primavera.
He poured wine into the two paper cups. “I know it’s a lot of food, but I figured he’d want to eat as well,” he said, placing a plate of food on the ground for Esmerelda Snowflake.
The tension in the air never let up all throughout dinner. I just kept pouring more Chardonnay to numb my feelings.
Chance went straight back to his room after we cleaned up. That left me feeling empty and confused, like maybe I’d freaked him out with my crying episode. Having had too much wine, I lay on my bed and stared up at the ceiling, which seemed to be slightly spinning. With my buzz granting me false courage, I got up and opened the adjoining door.
The shower was running while the goat waited outside the closed bathroom door. Lying down on Chance’s bed, I curled into the thick down-feathered pillow. When he emerged from the bathroom, he stopped short of the bed. He was wrapped in nothing but a white towel. His thick hair was wet and slicked back. Droplets of water slowly ran down his chest. So overcome with pent up desire, I licked my lips. My heart was beating out of my chest.
“What are you doing in here, Aubrey?”
I sat up suddenly. “Do you not want me here?”
He closed his eyes briefly then said, “It’s late. I think it’s better if you go back to your room.”
That was not like him.
My stomach dropped. Humiliated couldn’t even begin to describe how I felt as I said, “Oh. Yeah. You’re right. I didn’t realize how late it was.”
He just stood there, towering over me with his large hands gripping his sides as I walked past him.
I returned to my room alone, tossing and turning as I ruminated over why all of a sudden he’d turned cold. Chance had sent me so many signals today that he wanted me. We’d opened up to each other. We’d laughed. He’d told me I was pretty. Maybe I misread everything. Maybe he was just being nice. Maybe he was attracted to me but didn’t really want me for himself. Maybe the crying freaked him out. I was more confused than ever. The only thing that seemed certain: by the end of this trip, I was going to end up hurt.
Chapter Seven
The next morning was awkward, but not the type of exciting awkward we’d encountered yesterday in the tent. I’d slept like crap, and last night’s rejection that left me feeling sad had morphed into anger. We sat at a Waffle House filled with truckers and retirees. I stirred my coffee and let the spoon clank loudly on the table.
“Everything okay, Princess?”
“Fine.” I avoided eye contact and stared out the window as I sipped my coffee. It was bitter…and so was I.
Chance leaned back against the booth and splayed his arms along the top of the seat. “I may not be an expert in women, but I know enough about them to know that fine means definitely not fucking fine.”
“Well, apparently you don’t know me. Because fine means fine.”
He ignored me and continued with his analysis of one simple word. “And the speed at which the fine is delivered is directly proportional to the level of pissed off.” He drank his coffee and tipped the mug in my direction. “And your fine came pretty damn quick.”
The waitress interrupted as we glared at each other. “Everything okay here?”
“Fine,” I snapped. My response came so fast and sharp, the waitress was taken aback.
“Sorry. It’s her time of the month, and she gets like this.” He shrugged, and the waitress looked at him apologetically. I think she actually felt sorry for him.
I waited until she walked away. “Could you not do that?”
“Do what?”
“Make up stories about me.”
“I’m not sure it actually was a made up story. You’re quite the fucking bitch this morning. Maybe that’s your problem. Is it your time of the month, Aubrey? Is that what’s bothering you?”
“I’m not a bitch and no…that�
�s not what’s bothering me.”
“So you admit something is bothering you then?”
“What is this, a deposition? Are you a lawyer now? I thought you were an ass model.”
Chance glared at me; I glared right back. At least I’d sufficiently pissed him off enough to shut him up for the rest of our meal. We ate in unhappy silence and then Chance took the goat for a walk before we started back on the road.
He took the first shift driving. Five minutes into the trip, my phone was buzzing. Harrison’s name flashed on the screen. “Aren’t you going to talk to loverboy?” He asked facetiously, but I answered with honesty.
“No. I make it a point to only be an idiot once. He showed me who he truly was with his actions. It doesn’t matter what he says with words now.”
His eyes flashed to mine and then back to the road. We were quiet for another hour after that.
“What do you think about another detour? Sin City for a night or two?”
It made me sad to answer, but spending two more nights with him wasn’t a smart idea. I was already feeling something he wasn’t; putting some distance between the two of us was the right thing to do. “I should probably just get to California.”
He actually looked sad about my answer, which confused me even more. “Okay. If that’s what you want.”
Hours later, knowing it would be our last full day together, a feeling of melancholy settled in. We stopped to fill up and, as usual, Chance was sucking on a Pixy stick when he returned to the car.
“Want one to suck on?” He whipped a fistful of long purple sticks from his back pocket.
“No thanks.”
“You sure? You look like you could use a good suck.” He winked at me.
“Why do you do that?”
“Eat sugar?” We loaded back in the car. Chance was driving again.
“No. Make remarks with sexual innuendo to them all the time.”
“Guess my head is always in the gutter when I’m around you.” He pulled away from the pump and navigated out of the parking lot.
“Except last night.” I mumbled under my breath, apparently louder than I intended.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Can we not rehash last night? I felt like an idiot enough. You don’t have to pretend to be attracted to me to make me feel better today. I’m a big girl.”
“What?” His brows drew together. “Is that what you think? That I’m not attracted to you?”
I shrugged and rolled my eyes.
Chance muttered a string of curses and pulled off to the shoulder of the road. We hadn’t even made it a mile since the gas station stop. At this rate, I’d never get away from him. He threw the car into park and got out, slamming the door hard behind him. The whole car shook with the strength of his anger. I watched from inside as he paced. He tugged at his hair as he walked back and forth on the dirt, grumbling something to himself. I couldn’t make out what he was saying, but I didn’t need to in order to be sure it was a whole lot of four letter words.
What the hell was he angry for? Because I called him on his crap? Because I’d made him feel bad for rejecting me? I was glad he was pissed…because so was I. After a few minutes, I got out of the car, too.
“You know what, get over yourself. Someone finally called you on the little game you play. Being rejected sucks,” I scoffed. “Although, I’m sure you don’t know the feeling at all.”
Chance stopped pacing and stared at me. The muscle in his jaw ticked and he looked like he was near blowing. I wanted him to blow.
“You know what else? Plenty of men find me attractive. I don’t even care that you don’t. You’re no different than Harrison. Saying one thing and doing another.”
Well that did it. The explosion came. Although, it definitely wasn’t the one I saw coming. Chance stalked to me. He looked so angry. I backed up until I was against the car with nowhere else to go. Then he invaded my personal space. One arm reached out on either side of me, caging me in between him and the car. He lowered his face to mine and spoke with our noses only inches apart.
“You’re right about one thing, Princess. I’m not attracted to you.”
I refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing tears, although inside my heart was slowly breaking. Then he continued.
“Attracted was what I was when I saw you that first day in the store. Playing with that little bobblehead. I thought you were beautiful. Gorgeous even. But now, I’m not attracted to you anymore. Now that I’ve gotten to know you, it’s not attraction.”
I wanted to tell him to go screw himself. But even as he was saying terrible things to me, I was mesmerized by him. The way his eyes turned from blue with a hint of gray to gray with a hint of blue when he was angry. The way his chest heaved up and down and damn if he didn’t smell good, too. I stood there and waited for the rest of his rant. Because, let’s face it, I wasn’t capable of doing anything else.
“Now that I see what’s really behind that bitchy façade—a woman who was hurt badly yet still willing to put herself out there because deep down she’s a romantic—attraction doesn’t come close to what I feel when I look at you. You really want to know what I feel when I look at you now?”
Somehow, I managed to nod my head.
“Attraction is way too tame for what happens when I look at you. I want to fucking conquer you. Watch your beautiful face as I sink deep inside of you so hard it borders on pain. I want to bury myself so far that you won’t be able to walk for days. The only thing that could possibly be more beautiful than your face when you smile at me, is your face with me inside of you.”
He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against mine. “So yeah, you’re right. I’m not attracted to you. It’s more like I’m captivated by you.”
I was pretty sure he had to feel my heart thundering in my chest, even though our chests weren’t touching. “I don’t understand then.”
Chance lifted one hand to my face and cupped my cheek. He caressed my face tenderly before his hand slid down to my throat. A long moment silently ticked by. My heartbeat was under his thumb when he finally spoke. “I wish things were different.”
The next few hours of the drive, my emotions were in turmoil. We were both quiet, although there was no longer an angry tension in the air. I was confused, to say the least. When we started to see the signs for Las Vegas, the only thing that was clear in my jumbled head was that I wasn’t ready for this trip to be over.
“If the offer is still open, I’d like to take the detour.” My voice was quiet, almost hesitant.
Chance glanced over at me, a solemn look on his face at first, then a slow grin spread wide. “You want to sin with me, Princess?”
Did I ever.
I couldn’t believe we’d found an animal boarding facility to take a goat. The woman at the front desk didn’t even bat an eyelash when we’d asked if she could keep our passenger for a night or two. Something told me they’d seen a heck of a lot stranger stuff in Vegas.
We parked at the end of the strip and decided to walk along Las Vegas Boulevard until we found a hotel that jumped out at us. The sun was scorching hot as we walked along the pathway that traveled from one end of the infamous strip to the other. I pulled off my white t-shirt, leaving only a very tight nude colored tank top. I didn’t usually walk around that exposed, but the sweat was already beading down my back. Laughing, I draped the t-shirt around my neck and walked ahead of Chance, glancing at him backward over my shoulder.
“Remind you of anything?” I teased, posing exactly how he was positioned in the poster I’d found for sale all over the internet.
“Cute.” He shook his head and chuckled. My mood was growing better as we walked. A street mime surprised me as we passed and took my hand. He pulled a flower out from up his sleeve and presented it to me, holding my hand up to his mouth for a kiss. Chance grabbed my hand and tugged me away before his lips could reach my skin.
“Hey. What did you do that for?”
“We’re in Vegas, not Kansas. You don’t let strange guys put their lips on you.” My initial reaction was to be annoyed. Then I realized Chance hadn’t let go of my hand after grabbing it. We were walking hand in hand, so I figured why argue if you like the end result.
At the Mirage, we visited the white tigers, at the Bellagio, we watched the water show set to music. We walked for what felt like miles in the hot sun before we stumbled upon the Monte Carlo. A huge sign for the The Pub at Monte Carlo hung from the side of the towering hotel.
Arrogant Bastard.
It was a beer, and we were hot and thirsty. What other sign did we really need to know we’d found where we should stay?
The cold air conditioning inside The Pub hit my sweaty skin causing a chill that shook its way through my body, leaving a small tremor behind. Goosebumps broke out on my arms and legs, and I didn’t have to look down to know they weren’t the only thing protruding from my skin.
Chance’s eyes lingered on my pebbled nipples for a moment but then rose to meet mine. I arched an eyebrow but said nothing.
“Can you put those things away?” He shook his head and forced his eyes down to the bar menu.
“I can’t help it. They have a mind of their own. They stand at attention whenever they want.”
“I know the feeling,” he grumbled while shifting in his seat.
“What can I get you two?” the scantily clad waitress asked. Chance didn’t look up but responded quickly.
“Two arrogant bastards, please.”
I liked that he didn’t even notice the waitress. “So. What do you want to do tonight?”
“The usual. Blackjack, boobs and booze.”
“Pardon?”
“When you come to Vegas, you come for three things: playing cards, half-naked women and partying like a rockstar.”
A busboy brought us utensils and smiled at me. Chance noticed.
“We already got the half-naked woman covered,” he grumbled.
“So, let me get this straight. You like half-naked women. Just not when one of them is me?”
The waitress brought our beer, and Chance chugged half of the oversized mug in one long gulp. God, what is it with me and that Adam’s Apple? Watching it, I felt it bobbing in the pit of my stomach.
Cocky Bastard Page 6
