Page 99 of Heartless
I shrug, keeping my eyes on the gravel road ahead of me. “Yeah. Definitely.”
“Why?”
I glance at her now. Her eyes are narrowed, and I can see the insecurity written all over her face. Goddamn, but this girl puts on a good show.
“Because I like you, Willa.”
She points at me and tries to correct my statement. “You like to have sex with me.”
I stop the truck in the middle of the road. There’s no traffic so it doesn’t matter. And honestly, even if there were, they could all just fucking wait while I set this woman straight.
I turn to face her, one hand slung over the wheel. My posture might seem casual but my expression is not. She must take notice because I watch her shoulders shimmy as she sits up straighter and scans my face.
“No, Willa. I likeyou.I care aboutyou. I didn’t go without sex for years just to start it back up randomly. I had opportunities, and I turned them down because I wasn’t interested. We don’t need to make a show of it, and with Luke around, we probably shouldn’t. But I’m interested inyou. I don’t know where that leaves us or what it all means. All I know is that it’s going to fucking wreck me when you leave at the end of this summer, but I’m too far gone to care.”
Her lips pop open like she’s about to say something, but she closes them again. I can see her processing. She’s so expressive, nothing is locked up with a face like that. I can read her far too easily.
She doesn’t say it, but she looks happy with my response.
What she says is, “Thank you.”
I give her a firm nod, put the truck in drive, and reach across the console, palm open. Within seconds she slides her slender fingers between mine, and I wrap her hand up, giving her a quick squeeze as we drive to the main farmhouse in a stunned but companionable silence.
“Dad!” Luke flies around the corner of my father’s house like a bat out of hell as I stride around the front of my truck to open Willa’s door. I swear this kid never stops running...jumping...climbing. He’s taken years off my life for sure. “Willa!” he cries, when he sees her step out of the vehicle.
“You’re not my chauffeur, you know,” she murmurs as she takes my hand to hop down.
“I’ll add not opening your car door to the list of offenses—that includes not eating your pussy—from past men.”
She blushes and drops my hand, stepping away.
Keeping our hands off each other is going to be fucking torture. I can tell by the way her fingers trailed over my palm, like she wanted to hold contact for as long as possible.
Luckily for my ego, Luke launches himself at me first. I pull him up against me, noting how much heavier he’s grown. How much taller. He’s getting bigger faster than I care for. Growing up way too damn fast.
“Hey, pal. You have a good sleepover?”
“The best!” He smacks a loud kiss on my cheek, and I wonder what age he’ll stop doing that.
He pops down and does the same to Willa, except he wraps his arms around her waist. She doubles over, hair fanning around him as she hugs him back and whispers something private to him. Luke giggles, and Willa rubs a hand across the back of his head before dropping a quick kiss to his crown.
I stare at them like a lovesick fool, imagining something I’ve never let myself imagine. Luke’s had plenty of caretakers over the years—teachers, friends—but he’s never been as taken with a single person as he is with Willa. He’s needed someone like her in his life so badly.
And I guess that makes two of us because I can’t take my eyes off them.
“You having a stroke, son?” My dickhead dad calls from the front porch, actually making me jump.
I prop my hands on my hips, giving him my best say-nothing glare.
He’s not a stupid man. He’s grinning at me like he knows something. And I’m sure he does. I just don’t need him making it weird by making some joke about us giving the lawn a blow job or whatever shit he comes up with for entertainment.
I can’t wait to be old and retired and say things just to see how people will react to get my kicks. That’s the dream right there.
“Just tired,” is what I opt to respond with.
Harvey props himself against the post on the front porch with a knowing grin. “That’s what happens when you stay up too late partying at your age.”
Willa stands up straight now, arm slung around Luke, who is still clinging to her. “I was the one out partying. Cade stayed home to, uh, clean the house. He’s very tidy. You did well in that department.”
