Page 22 of Tempting Promises
If she wasn’t drunk, she’d never say that out loud.
“Hold on, okay?”
“Okay.” She breathes the word and then rests her head on my chest. “I wish you didn’t smell so good and you weren’t hot. That would be nice too. You could be ugly and smell bad.”
I pull her tight to my chest as Faye and Margot follow behind. When I see the bartender approaching with concern, I stop. “Hey, Carmen,” I say. “There were a group of guys, and one of them pinned Charlotte against the wall. I stepped in, threatened them, and told them to leave, but you may want to let Asher know.”
“Of course,” Carmen says quickly. “I’ll keep a watch out for any other girls too.”
“Thanks.”
When we get to the parking lot, Charlotte shivers. “I’m c-c-cold.”
“Just a minute,” I reassure her.
Faye unlocks her tiny sports car and curses. “Shit, I should’ve brought my truck. I drove Charlotte here, but Margot is drunk tooand she can’t drive. This car is a two-seater and I can’t bring them both. Damn it.”
“Someone has to stay with her,” I say, concerned she’ll be getting sick and need help.
“I was planning to sleep at her house, but I need to drive Margot back to her place.”
“I’ll take Charlotte home and wait until you get there,” I say without pause.
“Rowan . . . you shouldn’t have to . . .”
I shift Charlotte higher. “Go drop her off, I’ll stay with her.”
“Okay.”
Faye follows me to my truck and helps me get her in. Once buckled, she curves into the heated seat and snuggles into my coat.
“I’ll meet you in an hour. Thank you,” Faye says quickly.
“Not a problem.”
I get in my truck, blare the heat since the temperature is dropping, and look over at Charlotte. She’s shivering, so I turn the heat up a little more. Seeing her like this is not normal. While this quiet version of her is great, it’s not what I enjoy. I like when she’s spitting fire. She makes me crazy, and I push every button.
Whatever caused her to get this drunk must be bad. She’s never been the party girl.
The drive to Charlotte’s house takes fifteen minutes, and when we get there, everything is locked and she’s passed out.
“Great.”
I grab my phone and call Faye. “Her house is locked, and I have no idea where her keys are.”
“Oh my God! I have her purse. I’m so sorry, Rowan. I’ll be at least an hour. Can you wait there?”
This night is going great. “I’ll bring her to my house.”
“What?” Faye practically screams.
“I’m not waiting here for another hour until you get here. She needs to drink water and probably empty her stomach. I’ll take her to my house, and you can come there.”
There’s a long pause, which I’m sure is shock, but regardless ofmy tumultuous relationship with her, I’m not the kind of guy to walk away from a woman in this condition.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
I turn around and head to my house, calling Asher to tell him about the assholes at the bar who I’ve never seen before.
