Page 35 of Brighter than the Boss
My face flamed again and I laid my head on his shoulder while he laughed.
Ivan hung up and spun around. "We got the all clear to leave!"
We all jumped up and cheered, ready to see whether our vehicles survived the flood and to get back to our homes after an exhausting day. We gathered our belongings and trickled out the door.
Cain nuzzled up against my ear, his arm around my waist, pulling me into his hard body. "We'll check out your Vespa tomorrow. You're coming home with me."
The boy was awfully demanding, but I was too happy to be joining him at his home, and hopefully his bed, to put up an argument. I was worried about my Vespa, but the damage was already done and it totally could wait.
"I just want to state that I object to your non-invitation. But yes, I'm coming home with you." I gave him a stern look while he just flashed his pearly whites at me, the grin that turned my insides to mush, and steered me toward his truck that he'd parked up on PCH in hopes the water wouldn't flood that high.
The day had started the worst I could ever remember, but it was certainly ending on a high. The Beach Squad had it right: a hottie lifeguard really could rock your world.
18
Cain
"Any chance we could go to my place instead?"
We were in my truck, picking our way down PCH, trying to get to my place before a permanent case of blue balls settled in. It was like a war zone on the highway, cars abandoned in the middle of the road when people had left them to get to higher ground on foot. Pedestrians were starting to come back out to claim belongings and vehicles, not particularly paying attention to cars that were trying to get through.
I gritted my teeth and kept the swear words inside. Usually, I let them run free, not afraid to lob verbal grenades left and right, but with Sunny in the truck, I was trying to rein it in. The worst I'd ever heard her say was “heck,” though I knew she'd heard me say much worse over the last month. If I wanted to change things around and deserve her, and I did, I needed to start by cleaning up my language.
I glanced over at her. She looked nervous suddenly and I was afraid she'd changed her mind. "Yeah, we can go over to your place. Everything okay?"
"Oh yeah, fine! It's just Chili's been cooped up at home all day and he needs to be fed and let out. I almost forgot in all the craziness that happened today."
I exhaled, happy to hear she hadn't changed her mind, then slammed on the brakes when a guy walked out onto the road without looking. He looked startled when I barely missed hitting him, like he was surprised to see a car out on the fucking highway.
"What the fuck, asshole?" Sunny yelled out the open window. She was leaning halfway out of the car, shaking her fist in the air.
All my anger dissipated and my jaw hit the floor.
"What did you just say?"
She looked over at me, having to pull herself back into the truck a bit just to see me, her face scrunched up and her cheeks pink. "What? He's an idiot."
A laugh was bubbling up and I wasn't sure I wanted to try to hold it in. "Did you just drop the f-bomb, Sunshine?"
She slumped in her seat and started picking at a thread on her shorts, not looking me in the eye any longer. "Um, yeah, so, here's something you didn't know about me. I really can't stand traffic. It's like I just get so angry and people are just so stupid and I end up saying things I don't normally say. I can't help myself!"
She glanced up at me through her lashes, like she wasn't sure how I'd react. Splitting my attention between the road and her gorgeous face while we crept forward, I let the chuckle out, which expanded to a weird warming sensation in my chest. This girl was something else.
I grabbed her hand, the one picking at her shorts, threading my fingers through hers and squeezing tight. I wasn't letting this one go. We had some things to work out, but there was no way in hell I was passing on exploring this relationship with her. Yeah, I wanted her beneath me, her curves pressed up tight to my body. I'd envisioned what she'd say while I explored her body, imagined what it would take to get her to let the obscenities fly when I was inside her. Come to find out, all we had to do was get cut off on the highway and she'd let 'er rip.
But beyond all that, I just wantedher. I wanted to be the reason she smiled so often, the one who was there for her when life got tough. I wanted to protect her from all the people and situations that would try to beat her down.
Hell, I wanted to get her home so I could peel off those clothes and see the body that had haunted my every waking (and sleeping) thought since I'd seen her in that damn locker room.
What felt like forever later, we pulled into her apartment complex. We both jumped out of the truck and rushed to her door. I could hear her little mutt scratching at the door while she wrestled with the lock and key. When the door swung open, Chili shot out and lifted his leg right next to my foot, barely hitting the bushes that lined the walkway. I jumped out of the way, certain he'd done that near miss on purpose. The string of curses died on my lips when Sunny's laughter rang out into the night air.
"Come here, Chili! Leave my human alone, huh?" She was bent over, clapping her hands to get Chili to come over to her in the doorway.
I liked the sound of that. I was her human. Damn right I was.
We all entered her apartment and I had Sunny show me where she kept the dog food, saying I'd feed him while she jumped in the shower. She only hesitated a second entrusting me with her precious dog. Offering to take care of him so she could get ready for bed seemed sweet on the surface, but I had ulterior motives. As much as I intended to get to know her canine better, tonight was not that night.
Tonight was all about getting to knowherbetter.
