Page 42 of Fear of Intimacy

I knew it took time to get over traumatic experiences. Hell, I preached that to my own patients, yet sometimes, I couldn’t seem to take my own advice.

“Hey.” Josie’s voice snapped me out of my head. “Can I talk to Tasha for a second?” she asked Trevor, who nodded and went to walk by Wyatt.

Looping her arm through mine, she spoke softly. “You okay?”

“I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me.” I squeezed her arm and sent her a smile. It was her night, and I wasn’t going to take the moment from her.

“I’ll always worry. But if at any point you want to go, just let me know and we can leave.” And she meant it. I knew if I looked uncomfortable, she would haul me out of there with no hesitation.

“I will,” I promised, even though if it came down to it, I wouldn’t. Not tonight. “Let's celebrate your engagement!” I grinned, changing the subject.

Josie looked at me with worry and hesitation on her face, but I gave her a little nudge. I was going to be just fine. She didn’t seem convinced, but she eventually left my side and walked back over to Wyatt.

As the others reached the door to the club, I lingered back a second.

Don’t think about it, Tasha. You are okay. Nothing will happen.

I knew I would be fine, I just needed to convince my mind of that. I was going to let loose and have fun tonight.

“Hey,” a voice said softly next to me. Swallowing, I looked up at Trevor. “I got you.”

Those three words seemed to settle into my bones, easing the tension in my shoulders. I don’t know if it was the way Trevor said them or the look on his face, but I knew he meant them. He wasn’t going to let anything happen to me when he was around.

“Okay?” His eyes never left mine.

“Okay.”

With an encouraging smile, Trevor put a hand on my lower back and steered me into the club.

14

TASHA

“God, that burns.”

I coughed as I took another shot of tequila. I was already three shots in and each one seemed to sting worse than the last. Yet when Mila slid another shot in front of me, I knocked it back.

I looked around the club, still pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. It was bigger than it looked on the outside and despite it being the only club here on the island. Cleaner than any I'd ever been to, and while it was packed with people, it didn’t feel like we were sardines on top of each other.

The dark red walls gave the place a more moody vibes, paired with the low lights hanging above us. It wasn’t too dark that you couldn’t see in front of you, but dark enough it set the mood to something sexier.

“I’ll be right back!” I yelled over the loud music as the others got ready to go on the dance floor in the middle of the room.

“Want me to—” Josie started to say, but Trevor interrupted her.

“I got her.” I shivered as Trevor came up behind me, hischest grazing my shoulder blades. With a firm hand on my back, he helped guide me across the room toward the bathroom.

From the moment we entered the club, Trevor has stayed by my side. He went up to the bar with the others to get us drinks, making sure I stayed in the booth but kept his eyes on me the whole time. Just like he promised.

Trevor was a wall of pure muscle and towered over almost everyone. He easily paved a way for us through the crowd.

“Are you doing okay?” Trevor leaned down and whispered in my ear. Surprisingly, I was. We’d only been here a little bit, but I felt good. No panic attacks yet. I knew I had Trevor to thank. His words and the fact he stayed by my side so far had eased the tension inside of me. I knew nothing was going to happen as long as he was there. I was already too tipsy to think too hard about that.

“I am.” I tilted my head back and smiled up at him. Even in the dark club, his eyes seemed to shine at my words.

“I’ll be right here when you’re done.”

I had to physically force myself to walk through the bathroom doors because if I stayed there for another moment I would have done something incredibly stupid. The alcohol running through my system slowly made my logic fade to the background.

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