Page 10 of Reckless and Rooted
They look at me hesitantly but thankfully don’t push, and I take my stance, throwing the darts all over the fucking board during my turn because fuck, the jeans that City has on are hugging her ass way too perfectly, and my eyes are having a really hard time focusing on what I need to be doing.
I turn my head away and catch sight of the crowd. Damn near every eye is on her tonight, excitement thrumming through their veins at the idea that someone famous is in their midst.
Why the hell is she here without some sort of protection? Doesn’t she realize how reckless that is?
I want to say something. To reach over and grab her, tucking her safely under my arm away from prying eyes.
I growl under my breath, frustrated with myself. That wasn’t my job anymore.
I hand the darts over to CT and resume my place at the table, focusing intently on the beer I was nursing, not the woman whose eyes I could feel on the side of my face.
Twelve years. Twelve years and she could still get under my skin without even saying a word.
She’s always been able to do it. It was just that now it pissed me off instead of turning me on and making me want to find a wall to press her against.
Fuck.
Why is this happening? I’d come home to find peace, to get to know my family again. Not deal with my ex who, although I would never admit it, is engrained in my soul like a bad splinter I can’t ever seem to remove.
She kept to herself with the girls, but I knew she was watching me. Just like the people in this bar were taking pictures of her and pissing me right off. It didn’t seem to bother her, but I was about ready to go break every cell phone I saw.
I’m able to ignore her for a good portion of the night until she starts to say goodbye, and my heart thumps loudly—just once—in my chest. Something regretful slithers in, coiling tightly around my chest until my mouth opens, and I can’t hold back the words.
“I can walk you out.”
The entire bar freezes at my words. Okay, the entire bar is partying too hard for that kind of statement, but our surrounding friends do briefly pause, glancing back and forth between the two of us, awaiting Felicity’s response.
“Uh…” Her mouth opens, and her tongue sneaks out to lick her lips. Damn it, woman. “It’s okay, Jax. I didn’t park far.”
“Don’t be stupid,” I grumble, ignoring the hurt look on her face at my words. “I’m walking you to the car.”
She gives me a nod and hugs Dani one more time, saying bye with a big smile on her face. Dammit. Why the hell was she still so fucking beautiful?
Weaving our way through the crowd, I push through them, clearing a path for her only to glance back and see people have started to swarm her.
“Dammit, back off!” I raise my voice, demanding the crowd move out of the way and reach back for her hand. Her fingers slide easily into mine, and our eyes meet for a brief second before I pull her to me, keeping her close.
I ignore everything but getting her out of this bar. I ignore her sweet scent, I ignore her soft hair, I ignore the way her hand—her soft as butter hand—feels against my roughly calloused one.
I ignore it all because if I think about it too hard, if I let myself fall into this woman again, she won’t disappear with my heart again—she’ll crush it into a million pieces.
The fresh air hits us, and we start our walk down the sidewalk. I glance over at her, and my eyes track down to where our hands are still together.
I clear my throat and take my hand out of hers, awkwardly swiping at my mouth and turning away again. There are several people still milling about, given that there’s still a sliver of sun in the sky, and since the end of summer was nearing, people were soaking up their last few days. I smile at the florist, wave to MaeBelle at the bakery, then turn back to see Felicity doing the same.
She doesn’t speak as we walk up the road, maybe unsure of what to say or do.
Kind of like me right now.
What the hell do I even say to her?
After all these years, I expect to be able to make polite conversation. But there was still something strong lingering under the surface when it came to her, something that prevented me from speaking the truth about how I felt.
“Thank you for walking me. I didn’t think it would get too crazy in there.” Finally, her soft but strong voice says, jolting me from my overworked thoughts.
“No problem,” I reply with a hoarse voice, clearing my throat before I glance back over to her. “You should be careful. You’re well known enough that it could cause problems.”
Felicity clicks her tongue. “That was nothing.”
