Page 133 of Show Me How
“I’m not taking her.”
“Like hell you aren’t!”
“I’m going on my own, Dad. And you can either accept that or refuse to. Either way, I’m going. It’s up to you whether this is the end of our relationship or if we can speak again someday.”
That finally gets a reaction out of him that isn’t lined with rage. “Someday?”
“I don’t think any of us are going to be making amends in the near future.”
“You’re offering us an ultimatum,” he barks, but there’s something in the way he does it that gives him away.
The smallest tinge of fear.
“There’s no ultimatum. I’m just offering the potential to speak again once things have settled down. Trying right now isn’t going to do any good. You refuse to see my side of things,” I say.
Mom scoffs coldly. “You’re making a mistake. This is the move of a teenager who doesn’t know better.”
“I do know better, though,” I murmur, glancing beside me. Shade’s already looking at me, his hands twitching at his sides. “It’s where I’m going.”
There’s no need to wait for more arguments. I watch Shade open the door for me and go to him without looking back. Hekeeps dark eyes on my face as I move, and I smile, reassuring him that I’m okay.
Once I’m in the car, he shuts the door and stands outside for a moment. His body is facing my parents, and in the side mirror, I catch the loosening of my father’s features following the low rumble of his voice. The tight line of Dad’s mouth parts as he speaks, the words too quiet for me to hear inside the car.
They don’t speak further. At least, not from what I can tell when Shade pulls open the driver’s door and slides into the car beside me. I sigh at the relief of having him beside me again and snag his hand before he so much as has the chance to turn the ignition.
He flips it and slides his fingers between mine, clasping them tight. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
Snow fallsin thick flakes as Shade grips my bag and ushers me into the motel.
My heels slip on the ice, and I flail around, leaning into him for balance. He grunts when my elbow digs into his ribs, stopping the both of us.
“I’m buying you winter boots,” he declares.
I scrunch my nose, ready to complain before he’s suddenly tossing my bag over his shoulder and crouching beside me. In one smooth motion, he tucks a single arm beneath my legs and sweeps me off the ground. My feet swing in the air, and I curl my toes in my heels to keep them from flying off.
Curling an arm around his neck, I stare up at him and groan dramatically. “Really?”
“Really what?”
“You make it utterly impossible not to want to climb you all the freaking time.”
His laugh is rough and deep as he pulls open the lobby door and stalks right past the front desk, already having checked us in. He eyes the sign with a section of room numbers that’s hung on the wall for a second before turning right, his hold on me strong.
“I didn’t know that was a bad thing,” he says.
“Oh, you didn’t? God, you know exactly how hot you are and love to use it to your advantage.”
“Don’t pout, princess.”
“I’m not pouting.”
In reality, I’m so turned on it’s criminal. For the entire six-hour drive here, he kept his hand on my thigh, massaging and stroking it in a way that didn’t look overly sexual but still had that effect. I know better than to think for even a second that he didn’t plan on that either. Shade knows my body too well, and he knew exactly what that would do to me.
“Yes, you are.”
“I’m going to make you sleep in the snow,” I threaten weakly.
