Page 116 of Fear of Intimacy

I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to control myselfaround her parents. Hearing about Tasha’s childhood and how they treated her made my blood boil. They treated her like shit, and then expected her to show up acting like the perfect family. Like they weren’t using her as some pawn in a game to further their company’s success.

There was a lot I wanted to say to them, but I knew Tasha wouldn’t appreciate it if I snapped at her parents. Because despite all of that, she still loved them, and I completely understood. Even after everything my own parents did, there was still a part of me that loved them.

If biting my tongue made Tasha happy, then I’d try my hardest not to say something to her parents. But if themanthey were trying to marry her off to showed his face, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back.

Ready to see my girl, I took a deep breath and stepped into the ballroom.

Almost immediately, eyes snapped in my direction. All around me stood well-dressed men and women. Their gazes assessed me, but I paid them no attention, my eyes already searching the crowd looking for the only person I cared about.

Chatter rose around me as people moved to the side and I walked farther into the room. As the crowd parted for me, my eyes finally fell on the girl I was looking for.

My attention flickered to the people standing on either side of Tasha, but they became nonexistent the moment my eyes met Tasha’s. My heart stopped and restarted at the sight of her.

She was wearing the most gorgeous dress I'd ever seen. The red dress hugged her waist before flaring down to the floor, a high slit up on side showing her long, toned legs. Legs that I wanted wrapped around my waist.

She was the most beautiful woman in the room. And she was all mine.

33

TASHA

Trevor looked insanely attractive in an all-black suit. I’d never seen him in that style before, but it fit him perfectly. I swear the suit was glued to his body. The jacket fit his upper body so well, hugging his muscular arms. He left the collar open, a tiny bit of his tattoo peeking out. The black slacks showed off those powerful legs.

It had been the longest week of my life. I knew it was healthy for us to have time apart and not spend every waking moment together, but that didn’t mean I didn’t hate it. Waking up beside Trevor was one of my favorite things.

I had to force myself to stay where I was so I didn’t run to him. But with each step toward me, all I wanted to do was launch myself at my boyfriend. Claim him in front of everyone in this room. My parents included.

When he was only a foot away, I lost the little bit of control I had. Not giving a rat’s ass about who was watching, I ate the distance between us and grabbed the front of his suit, yanking him down to my level. Even in my six-inch heels, he had to bend over some.

The moment my lips landed on his, all my doubts and worries vanished. When he wasn’t answering my texts, my first thought was that something bad happened. But seeing him here in one piece eased all those fears.

The amount of intensity that Trevor kissed me back with let me know he missed me just as much as I did. No matter how bad I wanted to make out with him, it probably wasn’t the best time. Pulling back, Trevor softly cupped my cheeks, tilting my head back a little so I could look at him.

“You’re here.”

“I’m sorry I’m late. I’ll explain later, but I’m sorry,” Trevor spoke softly.

“I’m just glad you’re here.” For some reason, tears pricked the corners of my eyes as his thumbs brushed along my cheeks.

“You look absolutely breathtaking, Sunshine.” The way his eyes roamed over my face made my body light up. “Can’t wait to peel you out of this dress later.”

“I look forward to it.” The look that passed over his face had my lower belly tightening. Maybe we could leave right now. That thought flew out the window when I heard my mother say my name from behind me.

Trevor sent me an encouraging smile as he grabbed my hand.It won’t be that bad, Tasha.With a deep breath, I turned and squeezed Trevor’s hand, facing my parents.

“Mom, Dad. This is Trevor Hall. Trevor, these are my parents—Robert and Jennifer Davis.”

“Nice to meet you.” Trevor reached out to shake my parents’ hands. The way they hesitated had me gritting my teeth. Trevor didn’t seem fazed, though.

“Nice to meet you as well.” My father shook his hand, at least looking somewhat friendly. Unlike my mother, who shook his hand like he was going to give her rabies.

“My daughter hasn’t told us much about you.” My mother noted.

“We’ve kept our relationship pretty private,” Trevor swooped in to say before I could open my mouth. “Neither of us like outside forces trying to get in the way.”

I had to fight my hardest to keep the proud smile off my face. His comment might’ve come off as innocent, but it was clearly a jab at my parents. A jab my mother definitely heard as her eyes narrowed at him.

“Tasha tells us you had a hockey game today, and you still made it here,” my father butted in. For the first time, I wanted to reach out and hug my dad for changing the subject.

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