“Nice” was all he said before leading me out.
He was a force at my back as we made our way out of the theater and into the hall. Would he stay for the last show? I’d always wanted to do a marathon rewatch for a blockbuster like tonight, but I’d been so focused on saving money. Having him next to me again, drinking in his presence like I’d been on a sugar-free diet for months and he was my personal box of Hot Tamales, I was afraid that if he cocked his head, I’d ditch the show to be with him.
“You were planning to go again?” he asked as if reading my mind. Or was it the needy and desperate look I probably had?
“Yep. I bought all the tickets when I got here.” The cashier hadn’t even batted an eye. I wasn’t in full costume, but my outfit must’ve said it all.
We reached the hall and held hands to keep from getting separated in the crowd. I was about to break away for the restrooms when a young woman walked up to Flynn, looking at him like he was a full-sized chocolate bunny. He tensed, his shoulders rigid.
A saucy grin formed on her lips. “Heard you were trying to get ahold of me. My sister was so pissed.” The woman reminded me of the mean-girl crowd. They all wore the latest trends to perfection, and their cold, haughty stares could drain a girl of self-esteem from twenty paces. It was their superpower.
Wait. Flynn had been trying to call this girl?
I refused to be hurt until I knew the story.
“I, uh. It was resolved.” He didn’t look at me but scanned the crowd like he was searching for the first exit.
The woman laughed, tossing her long, glossy hair. My next hair appointment should be with a stylist and not at the punch-card place, but not until after I earned my free cut. I was halfway there.
The girl’s hip cocked out more. “She said you got stuck with the crazy lady you wanted her to save you from, but I told her I’d make it up to you.”
Save him from the crazy lady? Flynn’s shoulders drooped and he exhaled. The woman finally noticed me, did a once-over of my outfit, and quirked a brow, as if to ask, Are you for real? She turned the wattage of her flirtatious smile up and drifted closer to Flynn.
I still didn’t know the whole story, but I wasn’t going to stand around and wait for my self-respect to be trampled. I wasn’t on this bitch’s payroll. “Would that have been Crazy J, Flynn?”
His shoulders hunched more and he dipped his forehead. “Yep. I was trying to save myself from Crazy J.” He lifted his gaze but still didn’t meet mine. He gripped my hand instead and pulled me closer to him. I went reluctantly, interested to see what he was doing. “You know what, Becky? Thank your sister for doing me a solid and bailing on our deal. Best thing that could’ve happened.” He wrapped his arm around my waist, gave Becky a nod, and hauled me away with him.
To be hurt or not to be hurt? “I need to hear the story. How upset should I be?”
He sighed but held me tighter. “I won’t blame you if you hate me. It was a douche move. After you said you were going to bid on me, I called who I thought was Becky, but was her sister, Samantha.”
He gave me a sidelong look like he was gauging my reaction.
“I asked her to bid up until she won and I’d cover the cost, no matter the amount. It’s understandable, then, that when I kept calling her by her sister’s name, she stayed quiet and let you win.” He stopped and faced me, his expression serious. “Which I’m grateful for.”
“That was such a douche move.”
“I know. I’m not proud of my ‘genius’ plan.”
“Not that. Well, that was a douche move, too, but calling her by her sister’s name? Ugh. Did you sleep with both of them?”
His face darkened with shame. “Not at the same time.”
People flowed around us. Were Becky and her crew part of the crowd? I didn’t care. Hurt roiled under my skin, but he seemed genuinely ashamed of himself. I still wasn’t sure what to think now that I had the details.
Why do I always stutter around you? He’d said that out of frustration one day at the cabin. He must’ve been so desperate to keep out of Crazy J’s reach. This whole time I’d been wrapped up in my nightmare at home as a kid, I hadn’t dwelled on my effect on Flynn. I’d downright terrified him. So much that ten years later, he’d been willing to fork over as much cash as necessary to save himself from me.
“I’m so sorry.”
He recoiled. “For what? I’m the asshole.”
“But you wouldn’t have been if I hadn’t scared you so bad.”
“Tilly.” His voice dropped to the low rumble that always sent shock waves through my body. When he talked like that, I usually orgasmed hard soon after. “If I hadn’t been such a selfish dick, I would’ve taken the time to get to know you instead of running the other direction. Or doing something stupid like calling an old hookup I never should’ve led on in the first place.”
I licked my lower lip, my skin on fire where he touched. His gaze darted to my tongue, the heat in his eyes matching my own.
Another question pushed to the front of my mind. “Why’d you call? It’s been three weeks. I know if you want to get laid, you don’t need me.” Dare I hope for more? I’d finally pried myself away from my phone after nursing my splintered heart.
His frame went rigid for a heartbeat. “I missed you, and I don’t want to have sex with anyone else.”
It was a stark confession. The realization bothered him.
