Page 69 of Love or Tequila in Unexpected Places

But when the moment arrived, it felt too sudden, unnecessary. He knew he was thirty-two and not getting any younger, but his father still had many good years left.

Still, Angelo packed up his life practically overnight, moving from Athens to Seattle, feeling suffocated. He couldn’t say no with the board behind it. It wasn’t his choice anymore, and that made him resent his father a little.

“Angelo?”

A strange calm washed over him. He didn’t know how she did it, but Allison made him lose control in a very different way.

She made him lose control of his body—his dick seemed to have a mind of its own nowadays. But more importantly, she made him lose control of his mind.

His carefully constructed mind, filled with meticulously archived memories, fortified with steel. No one could enter his mind. It was his own.

Or at least, it had been.

Now, it was constantly in shambles, wrecked by the pink hurricane that was Allison Lockwood.

Angelo loved his daughter already. He knew he did. But if he could have predicted what his next five years would look like, a child wouldn’t have been part of the plan.

“Angelo,” Allison spoke again, her voice soft, her face painted with alarm and confusion. Yet, he’d never seen anything more beautiful than her eyes.

Fuck, I’m going insane.

“I’m fine,” he replied curtly. He wanted to leave. But he needed her. And that scared the hell out of him.

She flinched at his tone, and Angelo was instantly filled with regret. It wasn’t her fault he couldn’t keep himself in check. He knew he shouldn’t take out his frustration on her. But before he could say anything, Allison spoke first.

“Take me home, please.” Her voice was cold, chilling him to the bone. He hated it. She was always warm, like sunlight personified, and now he felt like a dark, rainy cloud smothering her light. It felt wrong.

“No.”

“Excuse me?” Allison sounded offended.

“No, I’m not taking you home, Allison. I won’t leave you to stew over everything that just happened, consumed by your own thoughts. I know how your mind works.” Angelo gripped her hand again, his other fist clenched in his lap.

He meant what he said. Whatever Allison made him feel, the one thing he could control was his behavior. His father had taught him to respect people first and foremost, and snapping at her like that was inexcusable.

Especially when it came to Allison.

She huffed, pulling her palm away and crossing her arms over her chest. “Just take me home, Angelo.”

“Stubborn woman,” he muttered under his breath.

“What the hell did you just say?” Allison hissed, her sharp tone cutting through the air.

“I called you stubborn, Pinkie,” he snapped back, though his tone had softened.

“You don’t get to call me stubborn after snapping at me for no reason, Angelo.” She turned away, staring out the windshield, and he immediately missed the intensity of her gaze. She spoke again before he could respond. “I need space, and since you insisted on driving me this morning, take me home. Now.”

“And I said no. Don’t test me, Allison,” Angelo growled, his eyes still on her, desperate for her to look his way.

She’s right. I didn’t even apologize.

The thought calmed him, but only for a moment, before Allison’s voice broke through again.

“Angelo, if you don’t take me home right now—”

“You’ll what, Allison? Walk all the way home in rush hour, in the cold,pregnant?” He couldn’t help teasing her, even though he knew he shouldn’t. He needed her eyes on his, and his control slipped further with every second she denied him that like a brat.

“I might as well.”

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