Chapter 6 Diego
Diego
Ireached up, touching the heated flesh of my cheek where Hayden had slapped me. It stung, but not in the way I expected. Something about it sent a shiver through my body that quickly dropped to my cock. Suddenly my jeans were far too tight. Nobody had ever slapped me before.
“You okay, sugar?” Dolly asked, pulling me from my aroused stupor.
“Yeah,” I nodded, my gaze still following Hayden as he strode away through the crowd. Damn he was gorgeous. “Or I will be.”
“Well, if I’m being honest,” she continued, placing her hands on her hips. “I think you deserved that one. That was a dirty trick.”
I nodded again, my senses slowly returning. “You’re right. Sorry about that.”
“What’re you apologizin’ to me for?” she laughed. “I ain’t the one you kissed.” She paused, looking over my shoulder. “Oh lord, here comes Mabel. Boy, you’re in trouble now.”
Mabel approached with a determined stride, her braid swinging behind her like a pendulum counting down my doom. She fixed me with a stare that could wilt flowers.
“Diego Mendez,” she said, her voice deceptively calm. “What in heaven’s name do you think you’re doing?”
I cleared my throat, suddenly feeling like a schoolboy caught pulling pigtails. “Just a little holiday fun, Miss Mabel.”
“Fun?” She raised an eyebrow. “That boy looked ready to murder you. And he had the right.”
“He’s got fire,” I admitted, unable to keep the admiration from my voice. “I like that.”
Mabel’s expression softened slightly, and I caught a glimpse of something knowing in her eyes. “You always did chase after the difficult ones.”
“I’m not chasing after anyone,” I protested, though the lie felt hollow even to my own ears.
“Mm-hmm.” She didn’t sound convinced. “Well, you better go apologize before that boy leaves town entirely. And if he does, then you’ll have nothin’ to chase.
” Then she raised a finger, pointed directly at my face.
“And I won’t be bringin’ you no more scones either.
Not after the way you treated that boy.”
Damn. That was a threat.
“Alright, alright,” I said, raising my hands in surrender. “You’re right. It was dumb. I’ll go apologize.”
Mabel just stood there, her hands on her hips. “Well? You goin’ or what?!”
“Oh, you meant right now.” I tried to flash her one of my charming grins. She didn’t fall for it. “Alright. I’m goin’…”
“Good,” she said flatly. “And don’t come back until you’ve made it up to him.”
I tipped my hat to Mabel, knowing when I was beaten. She was a tough old thing. “Yes ma’am.”
I followed the path Hayden had taken, scanning the crowd for that sandy hair and those angry blue eyes.
The festival-goers parted for me, a few giving me sympathetic looks while others snickered behind their hands.
Great. By tomorrow, the whole town would be talking about how Diego Mendez got slapped at the Christmas festival.
I caught sight of him near the edge of the square, walking fast with his shoulders hunched like he was trying to make himself invisible. Something about that posture tugged at my chest. He wasn’t just angry… he was embarrassed.
“Hayden!” I called out, jogging to catch up with him. “Hold up a minute!”
He didn’t slow down. If anything, he walked faster, his long legs eating up the sidewalk.
“Come on, Freckles. Just give me one minute,” I tried again, closing the distance between us.
He whirled around so suddenly I nearly crashed into him. Those blue eyes were blazing, but there was something else there too. Something that looked a lot like hurt.
“What?” he snapped. “You want to humiliate me some more? Got another trick up your sleeve?”
I winced, feeling like an absolute heel. “No. I came to apologize.”
That seemed to catch him off guard. He blinked, but that fire didn’t fade. “Bullshit.”
“No really. I meant it. I’m sorry,” I said, taking off my hat and holding it against my chest like my mama had taught me when making a sincere apology. “That was a jackass move back there. I shouldn’t have tricked you.”
Hayden stared at me for a long moment, like he was trying to figure out if I was being sincere. The Christmas lights from a nearby storefront caught in his hair, giving him a kind of halo that made my breath catch.
“No,” he finally said. “You shouldn’t have.”
I nodded, accepting the rebuke. “You’re right. And you had every right to slap me. I deserved it.”
His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Did Mabel or Dolly send you after me?”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Mabel. How’d you know?”
He gave me a good once over, his expression was one of disdain. “I know your type. You wouldn’t apologize unless someone was holding a proverbial gun to your head.”
“Well, I don’t need anything that drastic…” He was still glaring daggers at me. “But you’re right. Mabel threatened to not let me have anymore of her scones.”
Hayden raised an eyebrow, a little bit of that anger slipping away. “Scones?” he repeated. “Are you kidding me?”
“No, sir,” I replied, serious as I could be. “Mabel’s scones are legendary. And to be honest with you, she’s also terrifying.”
The corner of his mouth twitched like he wanted to smile but was refusing to give me the satisfaction.
“She seems like she could be scary. In a tough grandma kind of way,” he admitted. “But that doesn’t make what you did okay.”
“I know.” I stepped closer, still holding my hat against my chest. “And I really am sorry. Not just because Mabel made me come after you.”
Hayden crossed his arms, studying me with those piercing blue eyes. “So why did you do it, then? Was embarrassing me in front of the whole town that amusing to you? You some kind of high school bully reliving his glory days?”
“No! Not at all… I just…” I hesitated, trying to figure out how to explain something I barely understood myself. “I wasn’t trying to embarrass you. I just... I wanted to kiss you. And I took a stupid shortcut instead of just asking like a normal person.”
“You wanted to kiss me?” He sounded genuinely surprised, which caught me off guard.
“Well, yeah.” I gestured vaguely at his entire person. “Have you looked in a mirror lately? Of course I wanted to kiss you.”
His cheeks flushed pink, and he looked away, suddenly interested in the pavement beneath our feet. “That’s... that’s still not a good enough reason to do what you did.”
“You’re right,” I agreed, taking another step closer. “It’s not. And I’m sorry. For real this time.”
We stood there in silence for a moment, the sounds of the festival floating around us.
Music and laughter and the general cheerfulness of the season that seemed to have skipped Hayden entirely.
Something about him made me want to fix that, to see what he looked like when he wasn’t scowling or rolling those pretty blue eyes. Why was he so determined to be grumpy?
“You could ask,” he said suddenly, so quietly I almost didn’t hear him.
“What’s that?”
He looked up, and there was something vulnerable in his expression that made my chest ache. “You could ask. Like a normal person. Instead of tricking me.”
My heart kicked against my ribs. Was he saying what I thought he was saying? “Are you... giving me permission to ask if I can kiss you?”
“Maybe,” he said, a challenge in his eyes. “Depends on how you ask.” He paused for a moment. “Or are you all hat and no horse, cowboy?”
I couldn’t help but smile at that. Even when he was giving an inch, he made sure to keep me working for it. I liked that about him.
“Hayden,” I said, making sure to use his name instead of the nickname he claimed to hate. “Would you do me the honor of letting me kiss you? Properly this time, with no tricks or games.”
He bit his lower lip, considering me with those intense blue eyes. For a moment, I thought he might laugh in my face or slap me again. Then he stepped forward, closing the distance between us until I could smell the lingering scent of hot chocolate on his breath.
“No,” he said simply.
I blinked, momentarily dazed by how close he was, the heat of his body, and how damn good he smelled. Then his words sunk in and it took every last ounce of self-control I had not to lean forward and make the same mistake all over again.
“Fine,” I managed, trying to hide my disappointment. “I respect that.”
“Oh, so it does have manners,” Hayden sneered, not hiding how much fun he was having with me. “For a minute there I wasn’t sure if you knew what the word no meant.”
“I know that one,” I grinned, placing my hat back on my head. “And I even know all my letters and a couple big words too. You know the ones that have three or four letters in ‘em?”
“Oh god…” Hayden sighed. “He knows how to count.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “You’re funny,” I said, somehow feeling more turned on than I had in a long time. I never got to actually talk with my hookups, much less banter. This was way better. “So tell me, Freckles, what’s a hot and clever city boy like you doin’ out here in the sticks?”
The moment the words left my mouth, I knew I’d asked the wrong question. Hayden’s face fell, his smile faded, and that permanent glare took up residence once more.
“I should get back to the apartment,” he grumbled, turning away from me.
“I’ll walk you,” I offered, falling in stride with him.
“I don’t need an escort.”
“I know you don’t need one. But I’d like to anyway.”
He studied me for a moment, like he was trying to figure out some complicated puzzle. Then he nodded, a single sharp movement. “Fine. Just don’t talk.”
We walked in silence for a while, close enough that our shoulders occasionally brushed. The sounds of the festival faded behind us, replaced by the quiet hum of a small town at night. Christmas lights twinkled from the storefronts we passed, casting colorful shadows across the sidewalk.
“So,” I said finally, unable to stand the silence any longer. “You gonna tell me what you’re running from?”
His head snapped up. “What makes you think I’m running from anything?”