Chapter 27 Drive
Liam Carter
The drive home is fucking suffocating.
Ava is silent. Not the usual kind of silence where she’s lost in thought or pretending she doesn’t like me, this one is heavy and thick with everything she’s not saying. And I hate it. I hate the way her body is turned slightly away from me, the way she keeps tapping her fingers against her thigh like she’s trying to keep herself distracted.
Most of all, I hate that she’s acting like Mia got to her. Was everything she did earlier just a show? Or did she think it did not affect her when in reality it did.
I grip the wheel tighter, my knuckles turning white as I push past another red light. I could say something. hell, I should say something, but I know her. If I bring it up, she’ll just throw more of her attitude at me, and I don’t trust myself to handle that right now.
So I let the silence stretch until it’s unbearable.
She shifts in her seat, crossing her legs. Then she sighs, one of those long sighs that’s designed to get under my skin. And of course, it works.
My grip tightens even more.
“You gonna tell me what your problem is, or are you just gonna keep pouting like a brat?”
“I’m not pouting.” She scoffs, as she snaps her head toward me.
“Could’ve fooled me.” I glance at her, lifting my eyebrows.
“Forget it.” She rolls her eyes and turns back to the window.
“Oh, I’d love to. But it’s kinda hard when you’re practically radiating attitude right now.”
Her fingers curl against her lap. “I’m just processing, okay?”
I let out a sharp breath. “Processing what? The fact that Mia showed up? That she kissed me? You think I wanted that?”
She doesn’t answer right away. Her jaw is tight, her lips pressed into a thin line. When she finally speaks, her voice is controlled, but I can hear the edge in it.
“I just didn’t take you for someone who’s still hung up on their ex.”
If I was so hung up on my ex, then why did she come into our conversation and act like she was marking her territory? Did she even notice how Mia was the most irrelevant thing in the moment when my whole eyes were on her? What is wrong with this woman?
My foot slams on the brakes harder than necessary as I pull the car over to the curb. The sudden stop makes her jerk forward slightly, and when she turns to look at me, her eyes are wide with irritation.
“What the hell, Liam?”
I throw the gear into park and turn in my seat to face her fully. “I’m not hung up on Mia.”
She laughs, but it’s hollow. “Right.”
I lean in slightly, my hands still gripping the wheel.
“You think I want her? After everything? After the way she fucking left?”
Ava shrugs, looking away again, almost like what I said made her feel guilty. Did she know about Mia and I?
“Didn’t look like you minded all that much when she was all over you.”
“I didn’t kiss her back.” My jaw clenches.
“You didn’t stop her either.”
“That’s because I was too busy trying to figure out what the fuck just happened!” My voice rises slightly, frustration creeping in. “She showed up out of nowhere and threw herself at me, and the only thing I could think about was how you were going to react.”
That gets her.
Her lips part slightly, and I see it, the flicker of realization in her eyes.
But she’s Ava. She doesn’t give in that easily.
She straightens her spine and tilts her chin up, her voice still sharp.
“Well, congratulations. You got exactly what you wanted.”
I snap.
Before I can think better of it, I reach out, fingers gripping her chin, tilting her face toward me. Her breath hitches, but she doesn’t pull away.
Her skin is warm, soft beneath my fingers, and fuck, she’s so close. Close enough that I can see the slight flush spreading across her cheeks, close enough that I can see the way her lips part slightly.
“What exactly do you think I wanted?” I ask in a low controlled voice.
She swallows, but she doesn’t answer.
“Go on, Snowflake. Tell me.” I smirk.
Her throat bobs with a swallow, her body suddenly rigid.
“I don’t know.” She whispers
“Bullshit.” My grip tightens just a bit, and her breath stutters. “You think I wanted her? When I have you right here?”
Her lips tremble. “Liam”
I lean in, just enough to make her feel it. Just enough to make her squirm.
“You’re so goddamn quick to jump to conclusions, Snowflakes. So quick to assume the worst about me. But let me make something very fucking clear.”
I move my hand, trailing my fingers along her jaw, my lips hovering over hers.
“I don’t want Mia,” I whisper.
She’s frozen, her breath coming in short, shallow gasps.
This was the reason she earned that nickname…the way she melts in my touch. Fucking euphoric
I should pull away. I should let her go, let her sit with that realization.
But I don’t.
Instead, I let my lips brush against the corner of her mouth, feather-light, just enough to send a shiver down her spine.
She doesn’t move.
Doesn’t breathe.
I pull back, just enough to look her in the eye.
“Got it?”
She doesn’t nod. Doesn’t answer.
Just stares at me like she’s trying to figure out what the fuck just happened.
“Good.” I smirk.
Then I shift back, putting the car in drive, and pull back onto the road like nothing happened.
Like I didn’t just completely fuck with her head.
Like I didn’t just prove my point in the most effective way possible.
But I don’t miss the way she’s breathing heavier. The way she keeps shifting in her seat.
Yeah.
She got the message loud and clear.
And I’m going to enjoy making sure she never forgets it