Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
Revenge is a real bitch. That was my warning to Beast when he said he was taking the busted up truck for a repair estimate and that Aria and I were to proceed to the farm in his vehicle for an urgent meeting.
Unfortunately, my barely veiled threat didn’t even make him flinch.
Big bastard.
It’s hard to scare someone who’s just as equally skilled an operator as you are.
So here I am. Unhappy as fuck. Getting in a truck with the one woman I want a thousand miles from me.
“Aria, did you hear me?”
Her shocked expression morphs in front of my eyes. The soft curve of her kissable mouth becomes a hard slash. “Yeah, I heard you. How about saying, please? ”
Energy crackles up my spine and shoots out of my eyes. The nerve of this tiny creature continues to dismay me.
With a lift of her chin, she holds my gaze. “I can just sit back here. That way you won’t have to be disturbed by my nearness and your mean-mug attitude won’t rub off on me.”
I hang my head as I rub my jaw. “Fuck.”
“And I don’t like that word.”
Closing my eyes, I pray for another lightning strike. This time with me square in the path. “Okay, let me see if I can dial my X-rated SEAL vocabulary back to PG for her highness. How about freak.”
She huffs.
“What, is that too offensive for your delicate little ears? How about Foo-foo?”
“Oh my god. You’re insufferable.”
She’s right. I am. “Get up here.”
“You didn’t say, please.”
I climb into the truck, slam the door and hit the start button. “I’m not going to. We’re at a standoff.”
From the backseat, a tight voice says, “So be it.”
I throw the truck into reverse and hit the gas too hard, causing the Ford to lurch.
Aria squeals. “You maniac!”
“You have no idea. Buckle up.”
Her grumble is really close to my ear. Close enough that a warm breath brushes over my neck.
Alarm bells go off in cells I didn’t know I had. The warning racing from my head to my toes and lighting up several very inconvenient places in between.
I refuse to look at her to see what she’s doing. Shit, I shouldn’t even breathe that soft, feminine scent. The salt on her skin, the hint of rain from last night.
When she squeezes through the gap between the front seats, the hat full of Twinkies fly into my lap and her tit brushes my shoulder.
At least I think that’s what it was.
It was warm and soft and round. Not like anything on my body.
Clenching the wheel, I ignore, ignore, ignore.
She wiggles her way up to the front, making a soft little sound in her throat as she drops into the passenger seat.
Why, god? Why me?
I tear open the wrapper on one of the snack cakes with my teeth, because I’m going to bite my tongue off otherwise.
Goddamnit. Why does she have to look like that?
Girl next door. Oversized eyes as sweet as melted chocolate. Cupid’s-fucking-bow and all. The sleep tangles in her hair don’t help one bit. If she was anyone else—a woman in one of the clubs I go to—she wouldn’t stand a chance.
I’d be all over her.
But that’s never gonna happen.
Boring a hole in the side of my head with her inspection, she asks, “What did you say?”
Fuck. Did I say something out loud?
I shove a creme-filled cake in my mouth, choking on the dry ass thing.
It goes down like sawdust rolled in peanut butter.
I drive and swallow audibly. Praying I don’t need a medical intervention—which she might not be willing to provide—given the way I’ve treated her this morning.
My voice is a croak. “Where’s that bottle of water?”
“The one you threw on the floor when you tossed your hat in the truck?”
“That one.”
She hands me the bottle, and even twists the lid off for me.
Shit.
This girl.
“Thanks.”
A tiny gasp beside me makes me loose my concentration and look at her.
Eyes wide, she clutches her throat. “Oh my god. Did that hurt?”
I shove another cake into my mouth to block my grin.
Those big brown eyes aren’t tender now, they’re full of spitfire. “Seriously, did it hurt you to say thanks?”
“Does it hurt you to be quiet?” I mutter around a mouthful of food. This time, I chase it with half of the bottle of water.
With a huff, she crosses her arms. “God, they must have given you two when they handed out assholes.”
Water shoots out of my nose all over the steering wheel.