Page 106 of Rush of Jealousy

Graham catches up to me, but I ignore his directives and just keep moving along the path. Collins follows beside us in the vehicle. With the headlights, I can see the main road in sight. I don’t know where I am going or what exactly I am trying to prove. However, my ego is hurt, and being locked inside the backseat with Graham sounds stifling right now.

“Get in the damn car.”

I remove my coat and throw it at him. “No.”

“What did you say?”

“You heard me.”

I make it another couple of yards before his hand grips my elbow, spinning me around. I want to hit him. I am that mad. Collins is out of the car and is standing on the sidelines. Graham gives him a look that says so much more than a dissertation ever could. Problem is, I have no idea what information has transferred in the three second “look.” And these silentlooksare driving me up a wall.

Within seconds, I am escorted into the backseat by both men. There’s no amount of fighting that will allow me to win this battle, so I just submit and settle into the leather.

“Quit treating me like a toddler!”

“Quit acting like one.”

I buckle myself in and insist on shutting my own door, with my own trembling hands. The flash of amusement reflected in Graham’s eyes is fleeting, and his always polished appearance shines brightly once again. But I saw it. He is entertained by me.

Damn him.

This isn’t some dog and pony show. I stare out of the window at the moon over the lake and close myself off to the possibility of being anything more to Graham thannumber thirteen. I need to protect my heart, and I have not done a very good job of that thus far.

The touch of his cool fingers on my arms makes me jump. “Look at me.” His even tone masks his emotion. “Please, sweetheart,” he coaxes.

I refuse to meet his gaze and continue my blind staring at the passing foliage in the night. I can feel the snap break in his resolve, frustration reaching a boiling point, long before his words start.Not so intrigued now, are you? It’s hard not to feel that the two of us keep taking two steps forward and ten steps back on a daily basis.

“Look at me, dammit,” he demands with his low baritone—intent on making me succumb to his will. I’m sure in the business world, this strategy would work ninety-nine percent of the time. With me, not so much. Even I can admit that I am too damn stubborn.

“What?” I snarl, giving him the attention he wants, but not in the form he wants it. From his ticking jaw, I am irritating him with my attitude. “What is it, Graham?”

“You are pissed, I get that.”

“Do you?” My eyes study his features. “Because you seem pretty clueless on the art of an apology.”

“But I haven’t done anything wrong. Perhaps you are a bit envious?”

How dare he!“Screw you and your double standards, you hypocrite.” But he is right. Every time I think of Graham with someone other than myself, I feel a rush of jealousy flood my entire body, making me not see reason. I know he has a sexual past. I’m just not sure I want to be reminded about it at every bend in the road.

He sighs, bends his right leg onto the leather seat, and softens his voice. “Explain why you are mad.Please.”

No. “I shouldn’t have to.”

He lets out the air from his lungs, pulling at his hair. I go back to looking out the window, just to keep myself from getting angry again.

“Do it anyway. Spell it out for me. I don’t want you mad at me, and I need to know so I don’t have a repeat experience again. Are you mad because I was talking to another woman? Because we used to go out a few times? She doesn’t mean anything to me. Nothing. I already know having her deliver the coat was a bad idea. I see that now. But I needed to make sure you weren’t going to get sick because I didn’t think ahead at how cold it would be up here in November.”

I turn to look at him—so he can see just how truly affected I am. “You let her put in snarky digs about my body. You let her sit in my seat. And you let her touch you. You didn’t even remove her hand. You were laughing and smiling. It made my blood boil. Imagine if the roles were reversed, and I had a guy who I used to fuck—who knew my body intimately—sit down in your place and touch me?”

“I would cause him bodily harm.” His answer is clear, concise, and predictable.

From everything I have been learning about him and seeing with my own eyes, I don’t doubt a single one of his words. “Don’t you think that I would feel the same way?”

“But you are a girl, and things are different for girls. Your gender needs protection from my asshole gender. Guys are perverts. It’s a given.” He gives a casual shrug that speaks greater volume than his words.

I stifle a laugh at his explanation, but only because it is kind of true. “Well, girls can be vindictive petty hussies.”

“What Ria and I were doing was completely innocent.”

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