Page 27 of In Love and War
What the fuck is going on today? Why aren’t we at each other’s throats right now?
“Just get in, Amelia.” His stupid, wide, beautiful, dimpled grin was back.
The whiskey was now mixing in my stomach, making it feel weird. At the same time, my heart palpitations decided to make a reappearance.
Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to have that many drinks, I thought as I reluctantly walked over and got into the passenger seat.
The car smelled exactly like him, with some leather mixed in, making my head spin. Not to mention I could literally feel the heat coming off his body when he sat down beside me.
I was drowning, and I didn’t want to think about why.
One thing to be thankful for was that the ride was short, and we were parked again not ten minutes later.
“Okay, well, thanks for the ride. I’ll see you on Monday.” I had my seat belt off and was opening the door before the car had even come to a full stop.
I could feel him look over at me, confused, but I didn’t care. This whole thing was fucking with me, and I needed to get out.
It wasn’t the best idea to try and rush out the way I did though, apparently. I got up way too quickly, and the dizziness caught up with me as soon as my second shoe was on the ground. The heel twisted as I attempted to regain balance, and I fell. On my ass. Hard.
That. Was. So. Embarrassing.
I could feel my entire face turn red as I held it in my hands, wishing so hard for the ground to open up and swallow me whole right then and there.
Zac was out of the car and around to my side before I could will myself to move.
“You okay?”
Oh God.
I put my arms down and glanced up at him. “Yeah, I’m fine. Apparently Louboutins and alcohol don’t really mix,” I said as I looked at my shoes. “They should really come with a disclaimer letting you know, considering how much they cost. They’ll be getting a strongly worded email from a very dissatisfied customer tomorrow morning.”
He watched me babble on before offering me a hand, clearly entertained by the whole thing. Every single atom in my body woke up the second I took it. A small jolt of electricity shot up through my fingers and into my chest.
He pulled me up with ease, but the twist and fall had cracked the base of my heel, and I lost balance again. Except this time, two large hands came up to grab my arms and steady me before I went down.
“How much did you have to drink tonight?” he chuckled as he held me up with my back against the car for extra support.
“Shut up. It’s not me—I think I cracked my heel.” The words came out the tiniest bit slurred, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
It was also me. I was more drunk than I was willing to admit. Though obviously I wasn’t doing a good job of disguising it very well either.
“Right, I’m sure that’s what it is.” He didn’t let go of me, and I realized my hands were up on his chest, clinging onto the lapels of his suit jacket. Apparently, I’d reached for them when I’d started to go down again.
And then, I became aware ofhim.Aware of his warm, hard body that was almost entirely pressed up against mine. Aware of every last detail of his painfully flawless face, including the different shades of deep blue that darkened his eyes as he gazed into mine. Aware that he would forever be etched into my memory, exactly as is, with every detail intact, and there was nothing I could do about it.
The alcohol was swirling in my head, and I knew I was staring, but I couldn’t look away. I didn’twantto look away.
I don’t know how long we stood there before he broke the silence.
“Amelia…” he started to say, his breathing more shallow now and his voice deepening with a tinge of warning. But I couldn’t put my finger on why.
Stop.
“Stop.” My mouth moved on its own and echoed the thought without my permission, interrupting him.
“What?” Hesitation reached his eyes, and his body stiffened, slightly lifting away from mine and taking the warmth with it.
Come back.
