Chapter 21 Drive
Liam Carter
The drive home is a fucking nightmare.
Ava’s sitting there beside me, smug as hell, like she didn’t just spend the whole night getting under my skin. Like she didn’t let some asshole put his hands on her, let him think for even a second that he had a shot at what’s mine.
Mine? Fuck! Yes mine!
She knows exactly what she did.
I grip the wheel tighter, jaw clenched so hard it feels like my teeth might shatter. Every muscle in my body is coiled, wired so tight I feel like I might explode. The only thing keeping me from snapping is the knowledge that the second we step through that door, she’s not getting away with it.
Not this time.
When we pull up to the house, she’s the first to get out, stepping ahead of me like she isn’t still testing every last bit of my patience. That tight little dress hugging every goddamn curve isn’t helping either. I don’t say a word as I follow her inside, just walk straight past her and head for the bathroom.
Ice. I need ice.
The shower is freezing, but it barely does anything to cool me down. The second I close my eyes, I see her. That dress. That mouthy smirk. The way her body moved when she let that fucker touch her.
Fuck.
I slam the shower off and step out, barely bothering to dry off before I pull on a pair of sweats. My skin is still damp when I step out of my room, and she’s right there, standing in the hallway like she was waiting for me.
Like she wanted this.
"Something on your mind, Captain?" Her voice is all sugar and venom, her lips curled at the edges.
The way she called me that. I liked it
I exhale sharply, dragging a hand through my wet hair. "You think you’re funny, don’t you?"
"I had fun tonight." She shrugs, playing innocent.
"Yeah? Looked like he did too." My voice is low, edged with something I can’t push down. "Did he even know what you were doing? How you were just using him to piss me off?"
She cocks her head, her grin widening.
"Oh, is that what I was doing? Pissing you off? Seemed like you didn’t care all that much."
I move before I even realize it, closing the distance between us. Her back hits the wall, and I cage her in, my hands pressed on either side of her head. She’s still smiling, but I can see it, the flicker of something darker in her eyes.
"You wanna play games, Snowflakes?" My voice drops, rough and dangerous. "Fine. But let me remind you who you’re playing with."
Her breath catches, but she doesn’t look away. Doesn’t back down. Instead, she tilts her chin up, meeting my stare with that same infuriating challenge.
"Go ahead," she murmurs, her voice daring. "Remind me."
The tension between us is unbearable. My pulse is a war drum in my ears and my body thrumming with the need to put her exactly where she belongs. She’s pushing me, baiting me, waiting to see if I’ll break first.
My hand moves before I can stop it, fingers grazing the bare skin of her thigh, trailing higher, higher till I stopped…no pants.
But then she shifts, slipping right under my arm, and just like that, she’s out of reach.
She wanted me to do that, wanted me to touch her and find out she was bare underneath, A fucking wet slippery trap that I had just gotten caught in
"Goodnight, Captain." She throws the words over her shoulder, walking away like she didn’t just rip the ground out from under me.
Like she didn’t just win.
I stand there, fists clenched, my whole body aching with frustration.
I had lost. I had lost to Ava Reed and that fucking turned me on more than I could ever imagine.