The air thickens as we stare at each other. My body feels needy, flushed. My nipples harden, and I can feel that my panties are damp.
And he hasn’t even touched me.
He moves to walk past me but then stops. Gripping my chin with his thumb and index finger, he leans down and plants a quick kiss on my lips before storming outside. That’s it? I touch my lips with my fingers, feeling annoyed even though I know he’s being the responsible one here. Did I need to be responsible though? Talon never said anything to me about staying away from Vinnie, although I guess it didn’t need to be said. It’s not like I make it a habit of wanting to sleep with the men sent to protect me. Usually I’m more worried about staying alive and out of the enemies’ hands, but Vinnie has changed everything. I relax more about all else, because for some reason I trust that he’ll handle it. Just like I’m sure he’ll know how to handle me. Without overthinking it, I stand, my feet taking me outside where Vinnie stands by the pool.
“Not a good idea, Shay,” he growls, turning his head to the side.
What does he think I’m going to do exactly?
I stand behind him and rest my hands on his back. Suddenly, the need for revenge outweighs my lust. With all the strength I can muster, I push him into the pool. As soon as I see the splash, I don’t stick around to find out what happens. I run inside, upstairs and into my room where I lock the door and fall onto my bed, giggling.
That’s one way to take care of his erection.
I’m still laughing when he bangs on my door, rendering me silent. I hide under the sheets, as if that can save me, like a little girl hiding from monsters under her bed.
“Shay, open the fuckin’ door,” he snarls, banging again.
I pull down the sheet, revealing just my eyes. “No!” I call out to him. “I’m going to sleep. We can discuss this in the morning.”
My eyes flare as I hear him mutter some creative curse words. His footsteps disappear, and I relax into the mattress, staring at the ceiling. It’s only a matter of time before the two of us end up in bed together, and every time I think about it, it sounds less like a bad idea and more like a foregone conclusion. I’ll never see him again, and the attraction was there, so why not? Who knows when I’ll have the chance to be with a man next, and never will I find another guy like Vinnie. Who knows how long I’ll even be alive? With that very sobering thought, I decide to forget all the details, to stop overthinking everything, and to just let myself enjoy life a little.
Tomorrow, Vinnie is mine.
After he forgives me for the pool incident.
TWELVE
Vinnie
I SPEND more time coming up with my revenge plan than I’d like to admit. I grin into my coffee and she comes down the stairs, her steps light and unsure. She approaches the kitchen cautiously, then stands patiently as she waits for me to look at her. When I don’t, she clears her throat and says, “Good morning.”
I ignore her, the first part of my plan, and move to the living area, sitting down casually and putting on the TV. She follows me, sitting down and watching me.
“To be fair, you did it to me first,” she says, sighing heavily. “Does this silent treatment mean we aren’t going anywhere today?”
She stands and says, “I’m going to make some breakfast, would you like something?”
Silence.
As she disappears into the kitchen, I sit back and wait. One, two, three, four . . .
Her scream echoes throughout the house and makes me smile widely. Yes, the fake spider that took me half an hour to make was well worth it. She runs into the living room and jumps on my lap. When she sees me smiling, she scowls and stops her wailing, her chest panting up and down. She slaps at my shoulder. “You’re such an asshole!”
I wrap my arms around her and pull her against my chest. “You deserved it.”
She smells so fuckin’ good, like strawberries and icing sugar. Her hair is still a little damp from the shower, and her skin is so soft and smooth. I bury my face in her neck. “You’re a little shit you know, pushing me into the pool. No one else would get away with something like that.”
“I don’t think I got away with it,” she murmurs, touching my cheek. “My heart is still racing. You successfully scared the shit out of me.”
“Good,” I whisper gruffly, pulling back and looking her in the eye. “What are we doing today?”
“You’re letting it go, just like that?” she asks, suspicion written all over her face. “Or do you have more spiders planted around the house?”
“I’m letting it go,” I say, tilting my head to the side. “At least I think I am.”
She rolls her eyes and says, “What do you want to do today? Your choice.”
What I really want to do is spend the day inside her and spank her ass for the stunt she pulled, so really we should get out of this house before I do just that.
Last night Talon finally called me back, and I chewed him out for how he expects Shay to live. He said right now there’s no other option since shit’s going down with his club, and she won’t be any safer there. I told him to get control of his MC, something he didn’t appreciate, but what the fuck? Shay should have the Wild Men at her back, not be hidden away because they can’t protect what’s theirs. You’d think having a cousin who is an MC president would have some perks, but apparently not with the Wild Men.
“Maybe we could go out for lunch, then go for a swim or something?” I suggest. “I’m guessing you didn’t start breakfast.”