At the end of the night, I leave, while he is taking care of the cash drawer again. It’s best to avoid any more awkward situations.
I stand at my car and try to unlock the door that has iced over due to the storm that came through a few hours ago. I chip at it a little bit and have the key just about in when I swear I hear my name.
I hear his voice, I think.
Bryce.
I jump and drop my keys, looking around me then into the dark night sky. My breathing escalates as I hear footsteps quickening and coming toward me. I feel a hand on my shoulder and immediately jump again and scream.
I start to run as an arm wraps around my waist from behind, stopping me.
“Please don’t,” I yell. “Oh, God, please.”
“Livi? What the hell is going on?”
Chapter Thirteen
Hendrix
She starts to shake as her hands fist my jacket, and she pulls me closer.
“Jesus, Livi,” I whisper as I look down to see tears are falling down her cheek. I can’t help pulling her against my chest. “It’s okay, girl.”
After a few moments, she stops shaking, and then I feel her start to pull away. I don’t want that to happen. It feels good to hold her, to be near her, but I let her go anyway.
She wipes her eyes and sniffs then bends down and looks for something.
“What did you lose?”
“My keys.” Her voice quivers.
“Okay, let’s find them.” I bend down to help her and notice the sewer grate near where she was looking. I pull my keys out, and using my keychain flashlight, turning the light down the drain. “Uh, Livi?”
“Yeah?”
“I think we may have a problem.”
She steps over and looks down. “Awe, pickles.”
“Your spare key is back under your fender. I can call a friend and get those ones tomorrow. No big deal.”
“My apartment keys are on it.”
“You have a super who lives in your building?”
She shakes her head as her lip quivers. “And I don’t have my spare, either.”
“You do. It’s under—”
“I took it out this morning.”
“Why would you of all people do that?” I laugh, trying to ease her worry, because apparently, now I want do that for her, too.
“I thought someone was following me last night.” She scowls as she rubs her ass. “It’s not at all funny.”
“Okay, tell me why you would think that.”
She looks up into my eyes. Her mouth starts to open, but she quickly snaps it shut and shakes her head.
“What do you mean, no? If you have a problem, then I need to know about it.”
She tilts her head and again looks at me. She is about ready to say something when her brows knit, and her jaw clamps shut again.
Now I get pissed.
“Not something to fuck around with. If you have someone who is fucking with you, I can take care of it.”
“It’s my problem.” She starts to shake again, and her teeth chatter. “I am a grown adult, and I—”
“Okay, well, get your grown ass in my ride, and you can stay with me tonight.”
“I can’t stay with you.” Her teeth are now chattering so loud I not only hear it, but see it.
“Then where you gonna go, Liv?”
As she shrugs, her eyes begin to glass over, but she is trying her damndest to look pissed. “Fine, but … but—”
“Let’s go.” I grab her hand and drag her behind me. She’s cold, scared, and defiant as hell, but she will damn well listen to me.
She tugs on my hand, so I hold tighter as I pick up my pace. “You walk with me, or I carry you.”
I hear her gasp, but it doesn’t stop me.
She doesn’t say a damn thing the whole time we drive to my place. Not a word when we pull in the garage, and I kill the engine. There’s still nothing as she gets out of the car and is greeted by Floyd.
We get upstairs where she takes off her black boots, and I kick off mine. She bends down and straightens them on the mat by the door, making me look down at them. Mine are twice the size of hers. They look odd sitting there like they belong together.
I grab my phone and shoot a text to my boy at the cop shop to tell him to make sure her car doesn’t get towed and then ask him to check in to getting the keys out of the sewer drain.
As soon as I put down the phone, Livi clears her throat.
“If that’s your girlfriend Sadi—”
“My what?” I nearly choke.
“The girl kissing on you, the one who seems to have a problem with me, the one—”
“Why do you rub your ass all the time?” She is doing it again now, and I am amped up on being pissed off, so I let it fly out.
“What?”
I fist my hands at my sides. “Livi, you frustrate the hell out of me, even before I knew it was you I fucked that night. You rub your ass, you snort, you’re quirky as fuck, and you—”
“Sorry to be such a burden.” There she goes, rubbing that thing again.
“Never once did I say you are a burden. Never once, Liv. That’s not fucking fair. That bitch is one of many.” When she tries to cut me off, I take two steps before covering her sassy little mouth with my hand. “I don’t bring work home. I don’t fuck people who work for me.” I take my hand away.