Page 22 of Shattered

I take a sip and place the cap back on the bottle. “I thought you had left.”

He stops buttering the rolls and looks up at me through his thick eyelashes. “What kind of person sneaks out of bed and leaves without warning?”

I shrug. “Maybe the same kind of person who runs away as soon as the other turns their back to dress.”

He points the butter knife in my direction. “I’ll let that one slide. You didn’t know I was the man of your dreams then.” His cocky grin makes me laugh and shake my head.

“So, what are you making?” I ask to change the subject. The food smells wonderful and I can’t help but feel hungry.

He places the rolls into the bread basket and covers them with a cloth napkin. “I made chicken parmesan.”

“Really? That sounds fancy.” I stand and pull down two plates from the cabinet and hand each of them to him to serve the food.

“It’s nothing. I couldn’t make much. Do you ever go shopping?”

“Not unless I have to. I usually order pizza or Chinese.” I take the plates and carry them over to the table. He follows behind me with the basket of rolls.

We sit down, and I cut into my chicken and take a bite. “Wow! This is great. Where’d you learn to cook like this?”

“My mom for the most part. And just living on my own and having to figure things out.”

“I’ve lived on my own for four years now and I still haven’t figured out how to cook.”

He smiles and it makes my heart flutter. “So this trip, where are you going?”

My eyes fall to my plate. I don’t like talking about Katie. It makes a spot deep inside me hurt. “Um, to Miami,” I finally answer.

“When do you leave?” he asks, not looking up at me.

“I reserved a car for tomorrow.”

He sets his fork and knife down and glares at me, completely unmoving. “You mean you plan on driving across the country by yourself?” His voice is full of alarm.

I scoff. “Yeah. Why not?”

“I’m coming with you,” he says, jaw twitching and eyes growing darker by the second.

My fork clatters to my plate. “What?”

“There’s no fucking way you’re driving across the country alone. What are you even thinking?”

“I’m thinking that I need to take this trip and getting on a plane isn’t an option right now.” I can feel the anger leaving my body in thick waves. I’m sure he can feel it too because it’s all directed at him.

The anger lines between his eyes are starting to smooth out, like he understands the underlined meaning there. “Why isn’t a plane an option?”

I squint my eyes at him, slightly incredulous. “You know why.”

He blinks and slowly nods his head, understanding. “I get it, I do. But do you know how dangerous driving across the country is? You’ll be stopping at truck stops all alone for gas. You’ll be staying in shady motels by yourself.”

“I don’t even know you!”

He rolls his blue eyes. “So it’s okay for you to sleep with someone you don’t know, but you can’t take a trip with me?”

A laugh escapes me. “I don’t know.” I shake my head and rub my temples. “This is all fucked up. You were meant to be a one-time thing.” I stand and place my plate in the sink before turning to lean against the counter, no longer hungry.

He stands and his gaze locks on mine. “It’s all about trying something new and dealing with the consequences, remember?”

I’m holding onto the counter behind me for dear life as my breathing picks up. I don’t know why, but suddenly, I’m nervous. It may be the way his blue eyes darken with this intense conversation. It may be the way his jaw is cocked or the bobbing of his Adam’s apple. Or, it could be the way he’s slowly closing in on me.

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