Chapter 13
Chapter
Thirteen
T heo didn’t even excuse himself when he got up from the table and followed Savannah out of the bar.
Her friends had all stayed inside with their guys and this was his chance to talk to her alone.
For the first time in nine weeks.
“Savannah.”
She stopped.
He really hadn’t been sure she would.
But fuck…they were going on a holiday trip to North Carolina together?
That had just happened, and he still wasn’t totally clear on how it had happened.
He supposed it was a combination of things. The idea of her being there with another man, for starters. Theo wasn’t going to lie to himself and say that had nothing to do with it.
It was also the fact that he’d missed her for nine weeks now. Missed her . They’d run into each other over the past two months about the same number of times and in the same ways they would have if they’d never had that night together. She hadn’t been gone . She hadn’t been avoiding him, exactly. They’d been in the same places, with the same people, in the same ways they’d always been. But yeah, he’d felt like he missed her.
And then there were the words she’d said to him before she’d put her sweet ass in her hoity-toity car and driven away from him.
You say you don’t want people coming down too deep into the trees with you, but I think it’s that you’re afraid of coming out of those trees for too long.
She’d been in his head.
For nine goddamned weeks.
Not her smile. Not her long legs. Not her tight ass. Not the way she felt underneath him or the way she looked when she came.
No, those words, had been rattling around in his brain, taunting him.
Yes, those words were part of why he’d said yes to going to North Carolina with her.
He wanted to show her that he would fucking come out of the trees. For her.
And then there was the other guy. And the fact that he’d missed her.
And, okay, the way she felt underneath him and the way she looked when she came.
He strode across Ellie’s parking lot to where she was standing next to her car. He watched her shoulders rise and fall as she took a deep breath before turning to face him.
“Yeah?”
“We should probably talk.”
She nodded. “Probably.”
Okay, well, he hadn’t been sure she would agree. This was a good start.
“I have a confession,” he started.
“I need to apologize,” she said at the same time.
They both stopped, waited for the other, then opened their mouths again.
“I should tell you?—”
“I overreacted.”
Again, they spoke over one another.
Theo held up his hand. “Let me go.”
She pressed her lips together and nodded.
“I have a confession,” he said again. “I wasn’t actually planning to go to North Carolina for Christmas. But when you looked at me and asked, I just…said yes.”
She was staring at him. And now she crossed her arms. A very defensive posture.
She took a deep breath. “Well, first, I need to apologize.”
He lifted a brow. He hadn’t expected that either. This was turning out to be one surprise after another. He didn’t say anything.
“I overreacted…that morning. I was mad, for sure, and it all felt legitimately bad at the moment, but it wasn’t because you really did anything wrong.” She took a deep breath. “And I should have let you apologize.”
Theo realized he was holding his. He blew it out. “I should have thought about how you’d feel waking up alone.”
She gave a single nod. “Well, some of it was because I was shocked by how close I felt to you so quickly. You made me feel safe and like you really cared and?—”
“I—” he started.
She held up a hand, stopping him.
“And then when you were gone, and I was alone, and in a new environment, I started feeling out of control and questioning letting myself be vulnerable like that and my insecurities just got the best of me,” she continued, staring at the center of his chest instead of looking him in the eye. “I don’t like being out of control. Except…” She wet her lips. “I liked it with you.”
Theo couldn’t see her clearly in the dim light, but he’d put very good money on the fact that she was blushing. His body hardened and he took another step closer.
“And then when you weren’t there, I felt very exposed and I felt dumb about it,” she finished. “But none of that was your fault.” She lifted her eyes to his. “You were just being you. I trusted you because you’re a good guy and I believe that you felt bad about the next morning.”
Theo felt his heart squeeze. “Damn,” he said softly. “That was a pretty good apology.”
The corner of her mouth actually tipped up just slightly. “Yeah? Because I don’t do that a lot.”
“I’m even more honored then.”
“So about this trip,” she started.
“Hang on,” he interrupted. “I have something to say too.”
She frowned. “Okay.”
“If I’d realized how you would feel waking up alone like that, I never would have left. I know you don’t trust easily, and I realize that you like being in control and believe me,” he said sincerely. “Getting you to let go and let me close like that was…” He blew out a breath, finding it difficult to pick the right words. “Humbling,” he finally said. “I did not take that for granted and I’m sorry I left you that morning. For lots of reasons. For making you feel anxious and like I didn’t listen. But also because I wanted to wake up with you and spend the day with you. I am sorry for not waking you up and talking to you. Because even though these past two months have been like they used to be between us, I haven’t liked not talking to you and being closer to you.”
She was staring at him, her mouth open.
So he went on. “I need to know what you want from me with this trip. If you just need a friend so you’re not alone with this Mark, I can do that. If you need me to pretend to be more than that so he’ll really back off, I can do that. If you want me to just drop you off for work and then pick you up after, I can also do that. But, considering…everything, I thought it would be good to put it out there how this is going to go.”
She had been back to Autre five times since their night together. He’d seen her every time and he’d wanted to talk to her, touch her, ask her how she was. But he’d held back. Given her space. Let her decide how things would be between them.
But in spite of basically leaving her alone he was completely twisted up over her.
He’d finally had to admit it to himself on Thanksgiving.
That was one of the times he’d expected to see her in Autre, and she hadn’t been here.
And it had killed him not knowing where she was and if she was in New York with her family, and if so, was she happy? Were they being good to her? Or was she alone somewhere? And if so, was she lonely ? And the idea that she might be lonely and sad had gutted him.
So when Becca had mentioned Savannah spending Christmas alone at a B&B in North Carolina, he’d known immediately that he was going. Whatever that meant, and however Savannah wanted that to play out.
Now she was squeezing her arms against her stomach. She nodded. “That’s probably a good idea.”
Theo tucked his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. “Okay. So…you’re calling the shots.” She should like that. She did like being in control.
Which was what made getting her to turn that control over to him so fucking hot and so much fun…
Theo shut those thoughts down and made himself focus on her and just wait for her response.
Savannah wet her lips and he made himself tear his gaze from them and meet her eyes.
“I don’t want to be alone with Mark,” she said. “So, if you don’t mind staying around for things like the tour of the property and dinner and things like that, I’d appreciate it. I’ll pay for your room and your plane ticket and everything.”
He felt relief rush through him. “I’ll definitely stay,” he said. “But you don’t have to pay.”
“Of course, I do,” she said with a little frown. “You wouldn’t be staying at the inn or flying to North Carolina if it wasn’t for this.”
Theo thought about his next move and next words for about one second. Part of his brain tried to tell him it was a bad idea, but turned out, he was getting better and better at shutting off the practical part of his brain.
“We don’t need a second room though,” he said. “We’ll need to be in the same one.”
Her eyes went wide.
“I mean, if you want Mark to back off, you’ll want to sell him on the idea that you’re taken.” He took a step forward. “And if I’m traveling with my girlfriend, we’re definitely sharing a bed.”
She swallowed hard. “You don’t have to play my boyfriend. I just need you around so he can’t get me alone.”
Theo wanted to get Mark alone. He needed to make Mark understand a couple of things about how he treated women. Savannah in particular, but all women.
“So what’s our story? I’m your friend and we’re on our way to my parents’ house for Christmas after this stop?” Obviously they could go with that. That was kind of the truth. “Or I’m your brother? Cousin? Intern?”
She rolled her eyes. “I suppose we could do the friend thing…” Then she sighed. “Yeah, I guess boyfriend is the easiest. It’s to the point and doesn’t need a big backstory or explanation of why I’m spending the holiday with your family if I’m just a friend.” She nodded. “A boyfriend should keep Mark focused on business only.”
“It will definitely make it easier to explain why your nipples get hard whenever I’m around.”
It was kind of a dick move, but his eyes dropped to her chest. Where her nipples had been prominent this entire time.
She didn’t move to cover them. Theo fought a smile. He loved her fuck-off energy so damned much. This was how to get them back on the right foot.
“So now we’re to the real reason why you agreed to this,” she said.
Theo gave her a slow grin. He knew exactly what she was thinking. “What would that be?”
“Another chance to get me into bed.”
“You think I need to go to North Carolina for that?” he asked, his grin growing.
She was getting that haughty, sassy starch in her spine. He loved when she straightened up like that, lifted her chin, and her eyes shot sparks.
Her arms dropped to her sides, and she took a step closer to him. Now they were toe to toe. “You think you could do that right here, I suppose?” she asked.
“Happened before,” he said.
“Hasn’t happened since.”
“I haven’t given it one ounce of effort.”
Her eyes narrowed and Theo was pretty sure that, for just a second at least, she was wondering why that was.
He’d been giving her space. He wanted her to miss him too. As stupid as that was.
But yeah, right now, looking into her gorgeous blue eyes, and very aware of her hard nipples, he was wondering why he hadn’t been pursuing her. She’d had time to cool off and think over how they’d parted. He should have pushed her to talk to him.
“You think if you gave it even one ounce of effort , I wouldn’t be able to resist?” she finally asked.
He leaned in until their noses were almost touching. “City Girl, your sweet pussy remembers exactly what I can do to it and it’s wet right now thinking about it.” He lifted a hand and dragged a finger down her cheek. “And no matter what that brilliant brain of yours is telling you, your body wants my hands back on it so bad that I think it would take me a half an ounce of effort to get you begging for my cock again.”
There, that would piss her off, put some fire in her and, most importantly, make her agree to this trip—and the shared bedroom—because she would want to prove him wrong.
And winning this competition between them would be so sweet.
Again.
Predictably she said, “You’re an asshole.”
“An asshole that knows how to make you come harder than anyone else ever has,” Theo said. Firmly. She could think he was an asshole, but she was not going to forget or blow off what had happened between them.
It had been more than sex, but while she came to terms with the subtleties of what she felt for him, he wasn’t going to let her hide from what was obvious.
She swallowed hard. “Maybe I don’t need you to come with me to North Carolina after all.”
“I’m coming.”
“You don’t know where I’m going.”
“I’ll find out.”
“You won’t be able to drive there in time.”
Low blow. Very low blow. Theo stepped forward. She stepped back. He kept going until she was backed up against the side of her car. Then he leaned in, bracing his hands on the car, caging her in.
“Look me in the eye and tell me that you haven’t gotten yourself off with that very same vibrator I used on you, at least three times since that night, thinking of me, remembering me, wanting me,” he said, low and firm, his mouth mere inches from hers.
It took her several seconds. He watched her fight with herself. But finally, she said, “It’s been more than three times.”
Triumphant, he leaned in and put his lips against her neck, then dragged his beard up the sensitive skin until his mouth was against her ear. “And tell me you don’t want me back between these pretty thighs. Tell me you don’t have some sweet-but-so-dirty Christmas fantasy about fucking in front of a roaring fire and a sparkly Christmas tree, or being fingered to orgasm while you drink hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps, or having Christmas cookie frosting smeared on your pretty clit and then licked clean.”
She was breathing fast now, but Theo was still surprised when she reached up and grasped the front of his shirt. She turned her face to his and said against his lips, “I am buying you a one-way ticket to North Carolina, and if you don’t make every single one of those things happen, I will leave you there to get back to Louisiana on your own. And I’ll hate you forever.”
He sealed his mouth over hers, kissing her deeply. Hot and thoroughly, fucking her mouth with his tongue.
She met him stroke for stroke, moaning softly and arching to get closer.
When he finally lifted his head, he stared down at her for several seconds. She was so fucking beautiful. He’d never wanted someone like this.
And whatever happened in North Carolina, his heart was never going to be the same.
Finally, he simply said, “Text me the flight details.”
Then he pushed back from her car, turned, and walked away.
His phone lit up with a text from her before he even got to his cabin.
Friday, December 23 nd . 9 a.m. Delta 2526 to Asheville. Ticket is booked in your name.
He smiled and texted his boss that he was going to need some time off.
Then he texted Savannah, Wear a pencil skirt and this on the plane.
Then he attached a photo of a red thong with green letters on the front that read When I think about you, I touch my elf.
She didn’t respond.
He had no idea if she’d do it. But that should accomplish re-establishing some fun, flirty vibes between them.
He was still grinning about it when he got her mailing address from Becca and overnighted the thong to her from the online store.
And the next day when he woke up and thought about it. And the twelve times he thought about it during his work day.
And the next day when he packed his bag and headed for the airport.
And when he boarded the plane and found her already on board. In first class. Her gorgeous long legs crossed under a tight little red pencil skirt, a glass of champagne in hand, and a smirk on her face as he looked at his ticket and realized she’d booked him a seat in economy.
A middle seat.
As he settled down into the seat between a big, burly man holding a tiny dog on his lap and a young woman who wore headphones and a look of absolute disdain on her face when he sat down, he was still grinning over Savannah Lee.
And the fact that he was probably going to fall in love with her in North Carolina.