Page 23 of Rage's Heart

Goddamn.

Her long, tanned legs seemed to go on forever.

“Hope you don’t mind,” she whispered, tugging at the hem of the shirt.

I swallowed hard, forcing my eyes back up to her face. “You look good in my clothes, babe.”

Lame. Totally fucking lame.

Thankfully, before I could say any more stupid shit, the oven timer beeped.

“God, that smells amazing,” she sighed, moving closer. Her stomach growled again, making her laugh. “Sorry. I’m starving.”

I cut her a generous slice, sliding it onto a plate. “Sit. Eat.”

She hopped up onto one of the barstools, tucking one leg underneath her as she took a big bite. Her eyes closed momentarily, a small moan escaping her lips. “Mmm, so good.”

She didn’t have a fucking clue what she was doing to me.

Swallowing the knot in my throat, I took the stool across from her and stared at her mouth as she devoured half the slice in record time.

Shaking my head, I teased, “I promise nobody’s going to take it from you.”

She shot me a sheepish grin. “Sorry.”

Well now I felt like an asshole for making her feel uncomfortable. “Don’t apologize, babe. Just meant you can have as much as you want.”

Her face softened, but she didn’t say anything else.

We both stayed silent, lost in our own thoughts as we ate. A few minutes passed before I finally asked what had been bothering me since I’d picked her up. “So, tell me more about your roommates boyfriend.”

Mac’s nose wrinkled adorably. “Chad is Sarah’s on-again, off-again boyfriend. They’ve been doing, whatever it is they do, since college. But he’s…” She hesitated, searching for the right word.

“A piece of shit?” I offered.

That got a laugh out of her. “Yeah, basically. He doesn’t work, mooches off Sarah, and whenever she’s not around, he makes these gross comments.”

“Like what?” I pressed, my teeth grinding.

She shifted uncomfortably. “Just... suggestive stuff. Asking if I need help in the shower. Or stuff like, if I ever get lonely at night he can sneak into my room. One time, he cornered me in the kitchen and said Sarah wouldn’t mind if we had some ‘fun’ while she was at work.” She stuck out her tongue and fake gagged. Mac may be trying to joke it off, but I wasn’t amused.

My knuckles went white around my beer bottle. “And your roommate still keeps him around?”

“Sarah is convinced he’s just goofing around,” she sighed. “Say’s he’s always been a big flirt, but he doesn’t mean anything by it.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ve known her forever, and she’s usually so smart, but when it comes to Chad…”

“She’s dick-blind,“ I finished for her.

Mac nearly choked on her pizza, covering her mouth as she laughed. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”

I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the counter. “And those friends of his? They give you trouble before today?”

She shook her head. “No, this was the first time he’s brought them over. But the way they looked at me…” She shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself.

Without thinking, I reached across the counter and covered her hand with mine. “He tries that shit again; you call me. I don’t care what time it is. I’ll be there.”

Her eyes met mine, something softer and uncertain passing through them. “Why are you being so nice to me? I mean, I basically accused you of trying to hurt Diesel when we met.”

I pulled my hand back, suddenly uncomfortable with how much I wanted to keep touching her. “Who says I’m being nice?”

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