Reckless

Chapter 10

“Come on,” Krista pulls my arm, and we turn and head towards the parking lot. “Should we run?”

“No. Not yet, anyway.”

“O-kay. What does that mean?”

I risk a look over my shoulder. A couple of them have followed, the rest are yelling out at them and going the other way.

“We’ll draw attention if we run. Right now, they only think they recognize me. Where are your keys? Get them out ready.”

Krista takes them out of her purse and holds onto them, moving a little quicker but not running. She goes to look back, but I stop her by putting my arm around her shoulders this time, so her face turns into my chest rather than looking back at them.

“If we act normal, they’ll back off, think they’re seeing things.”

Looking both ways at the road, we cross the street when there is a break in traffic. I can see the RV from here. I’m so fucking irritated with myself for leaving that hat. Even if these guys do nothing, it’s a wake-up call that I’m not like everyone else. Thinking I could be, was crazy.

At the RV, Krista unlocks the door. I glance back and see two of the guys have stopped at the end of the block. One is shaking his head and laughing and slaps his friend on the back. Seeing us getting in an RV is making them think they’re wrong.

They turn and head back to their friends.

“Jude?”

My heart is pounding. I can’t believe I put Krista in a potentially threatening situation. If one of those guys had said my name, there is no way of knowing how many other people would have come over once they realized.

And with the press speculating I’ve disappeared, it’s more likely things could get out of hand.

“Jude, are you okay?”

I snap out of it and look over at Krista, who is halfway up the RV steps. I make sure those guys have given up and get into the RV, closing the door behind us.

I’m so fucking annoyed with myself, I can barely think straight.

“At the risk of repeating myself, which I never like to do. Are you okay?”

Krista is worried as she watches me pace in the very limited space between the couch and the fireplace. She tosses her purse onto the couch and kicks off her sandals, all the while watching me.

“I put you at risk.”

“Is that what you think?”

“If they approached us, things could have got out of hand.”

Krista rests her hip against the counter beside the TV. “They didn’t.”

“But they could have, and that would have been on me, if something happened to you.”

“Jude, the only thing I’m worried about is that you left my hat at the restaurant.”

“This isn’t funny,” I shout.

Krista straightens up and glares at me. The amusement is gone from her face.

“Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell, I’m just…” I run a hand through my hair and peer through the window looking over the street. There is no sign of those guys now. “Sorry,” I repeat.

“You’re taking the blame for something that didn’t happen. Does that make any sense?”

“When you say it like that,” I huff out. “It sounds stupid.”

“You said it.” She walks past me and opens the cabinet that holds the alcohol.

She pours a shot of tequila and hands it to me. There is still an air of pissed off around her, but she does a good job of not losing her temper.

Unlike me.

“Nothing happened, Jude. We’re both fine.”

“It could have gone differently. And they were already interested in you.” I shake my head again.

Krista shrugs. “I’ve dealt with worse than a few looks, Jude. Can you stop pacing? You’re driving me crazy.”

Before I can say or do anything, she walks over, puts a hand on my chest, and pushes me. I fall back onto the couch and barely manage not to spill my drink. I can’t keep the shock off my face.

Krista comes to stand in front of me, her hands on her hips. My eyes are level with her breasts, and I quickly raise them to her face. Last thing I need is to make her mad again. I’m impressed by how quickly she reigned herself in. I deserve for her to be pissed at me for yelling.

“Don’t start acting like a jerk. That situation was out of your hands, no matter the outcome. Do you really think a hat is enough to hide your identity from a true fan?”

“It works,” I say.

“No, it doesn’t. If anything, it draws attention.”

“What? You’re the one who gave me the hat,” I splutter.

“Because it makes you feel better. It makes you relax and have a good time. The reason people don’t notice you is that you aren’t doing the things you’re used to when moving through a crowded street. Today, you were a normal guy, being a tourist. You weren’t all tense looking around, waiting for something to happen. You were too busy enjoying the natural beauty of your surroundings.”

“Are you trying to say the hat is a security blanket?” I ask.

“Those guys paid us more attention because you were glaring at them for looking at me.”

“That isn’t true.”

“Isn’t it?”

If her foot was to tap right now, I wouldn’t be surprised.

“If we’d walked by without paying them any attention, they would have done the same.”

“You can’t know that. I put you in danger. Two of them followed us.”

Krista blinks a few times, then moves to sit beside me. I avoid making eye contact and down the tequila. It burns going down my throat, but I’m used to it.

“And when they saw us getting into an RV, they laughed about it and left. They’re probably still getting shit from their friends for thinking Jude Smallwood is walking down the street in Rapid City, South Dakota, getting into a motorhome. And even if they caught up, see it was you and ask for an autograph or something, you would have dealt with it. I’ve seen you do it before.”

“Yeah, it’s different when I have security around me. They make sure it’s all done safely and can step in if things go haywire.” I twist the empty glass back and forth between my palms.

“Stop beating yourself up. Nothing happened. We’re back here safe and sound. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

“Krista, you don’t understand. If anything happened to you, I’d lose my shit.”

“Nothing was going to happen, Jude,” she takes the glass from me and sets it down on the side, then grabs my hand in both of hers and gives it a squeeze. “And all the horrible scenarios you’re coming up with in your head are pointless. You don’t need to protect everyone. That isn’t on you.”

“There is no way of knowing how they were going to react. There were six of them.”

Her face grows sad, and that makes me even more angry. But it’s short-lived. I don’t want her to be sad, or mad, or disappointed in me. Especially when she is right.

Those guys weren’t a threat. But my life, for so long, has been about watching out for people wanting to harm me, or those around me.

Sometimes harm isn’t their intent, but I’ve had people send hate mail. I’ve had threats. I’ve even had a women with unhinged behavior, who scared me a hell of a lot more than a threatening look from a guy.

None of that matters. All that matters is I was scared for Krista.

Embarrassment fills me. I hate her seeing me react like this. Those guys were nothing. She’s right.

“Jude.”

My eyes close. Hearing her say my name does something to me. It’s been there since the moment I first laid eyes on her. I take a huge breath, exhaling through my nose.

The warmth of her palm on my forearm anchors me. Her hand moves, sweeping up and down. It’s comforting, but it’s doing more. I open my eyes and turn to look at her. I’m expecting sympathy, concern, or a wary expression about my behavior.

That isn’t what I see. She is angled into me on the couch. Our thighs are touching. Her hand is still moving, sending warmth through me.

Fuck.

Our eyes lock and it triggers a sensation in me, one that has become so familiar when I look at her. I move the arm she has hold of, but not to pull it out of her grasp and move away. I slip it under her arm, around her back, so my hand is resting over her hip.

She takes a breath and I feel her full body shiver. Her eyes switch back and forth on mine. A slight crinkle in the skin around her eyes is the only sign she is unsure.

Krista doesn’t pull away, she doesn’t lose eye contact.

My heart is hammering against my chest. I’ve never felt like this before. Part of me doesn’t know what to do with the need to pull away, fighting with the need to lean in.

I’ve never lacked confidence with women. She’s woven some kind of spell over me, and the weirdest part about it, I don’t think she realizes or even understands it. Just like me.

We move at the same time. My hand grips onto her hip. She reaches out and clutches the side of my shirt at my waist. Then our lips move together. It is gentle for all of five seconds. Then her head tilts back, and she opens her mouth, allowing me in, our tongues coming together.

A soft moan falls from her lips and it surges through me. All I want to do is pull her into my lap, to grind on her, taste her, feel every part of her. Somehow, I manage not to give into those desires.

Instead, I slow the kiss, cradling her face, and tracing the delicate curve of her jaw. She responds, her hands gliding up my chest, feeling the steady thrum of my heartbeat under her touch. My fingers feather over the soft skin of her collarbone, to the hollow of her throat, and I feel her pulse against my palm.

The world outside ceases to exist. All the concerns about being identified, the fear of Krista being hurt. There is only the sensation of our lips moving together. The electric connection that sparked with every look between us until this point.

The kiss grows more urgent, hungrier, and she presses closer. The tips of her breasts graze my chest, driving me wild. My fingers itch to move and touch her there, to feel the weight of them in my palms. It’s going to go past the point of no return and I’m not sure we’re ready for that, but this feels fucking amazing, having her in my arms, her lips on mine.

Krista pulls back, tilting her head up so her eyes meet mine. Our breath mingles. We are still so close, the air charged between us. This intoxicating pull towards each other isn’t going away. And I get the feeling this one kiss set fire to any idea we will not act on the attraction.

Right or wrong, I want to feel her mouth on mine. I need to do this again.

Krista drops her forehead and buries her face in my neck. I feel, as well as hear, the deep inhale she takes. We sit like that, holding on and breathing together.

“How far is it to the next campground?” I ask.

“About an hour,” she says, her breath warm on my throat.

“Do we have to leave here tonight?”

“This lot closes at nine. There isn’t anywhere else to park the RV.”

After a moment, she pulls back and looks at me. It’s written all over her face. She thinks I’m avoiding talking about what we did. While I’ve still got my arm around her.

“Why are you asking?” she pulls back a little further.

Her cheeks are all flushed, and it reignites the hunger in me. I have to stop myself from diving back in for more of that mouth of hers.

“So we don’t have to worry about getting somewhere else.” I move my arm, so my hand trails up her spine, underneath all that gorgeous red hair, to her nape.

Krista shivers again as I move my thumb over the sensitive skin there. Clearing her throat, she takes another breath before speaking.

“We need to stick to the schedule.” She straightens out her back and, after looking at me for a long moment, she gets up. My hand falls to the couch where she was sitting. “You won’t want to miss out on where we’re staying tonight.”

“Right.” I keep my eyes on her as her hand flutters around her neck, pulling her hair over one shoulder.

She’s flustered and I hold back the smirk. I get it. The kiss was unexpected and neither of us know what to say about it, but what we started here isn’t over. If she needs to distance herself for now, that’s okay. I understand.

When I stand up, I’m right in front of her and she has to tilt her head back to look at me. The look in her eyes says she is expecting me to lean in again, but this time, I won’t make the first move. I need to know she wants this too, and I won’t pressure her.

Even though she was all in on that kiss.

“We should go then. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can… relax.”

Her next breath is shaky, but her eyes narrow. Some of the Krista I have come to know over the few days is returning.

“Define relax,” she folds her arms between us.

“You know… No more driving.”

Her eyes go back to the couch.

I lean in close to her ear. “And anything else you want to do,” I wink as I step away from her. “I’ll use the bathroom before we go.”

I walk away, leaving her gaping after me. In the bathroom, I stare at myself in the mirror, leaning over the counter with both hands on either side of the basin.

The dullness is lifting from my eyes, my brow feels less heavy. But my cock is half hard, and that is an issue. I squeeze it to ease some of the pressure, but my mind goes back to her hot mouth, and it doesn’t help the situation at all.

I’m so worked up. Nothing is going to fix it, not even trying to figure out complicated math equations, or recalling the woman who broke into my house, and was rolling around on my bed when I came home.

There is nothing I can do but deal with it. I rip open the buttons on my jeans and shove a hand into my underwear. It takes everything in me not to curse as I grip my aching cock. Leaning my back against the door, I tip my head back and close my eyes as my hand moves faster and faster, gritting my teeth as my mind conjures images of what Krista looks like under her clothes. I imagine all that creamy smooth skin, her red hair spilling over her tits, a sexy smile on her mouth.

Next, I see her on her knees, looking up at me, my hand gripping her hair as her lips close over me.

A grunt escapes me as I pump faster, my lower abdomen tightens.

“Fuuuuck,” I grind out, slapping one hand on the counter to stop myself from falling, as my cock jerks, and I come hard all over my hand.

It takes a few minutes for me to catch my breath and I listen for signs Krista heard me. The faint sound of music is all I hear. Shit, is she covering up the noise with music?

A strangled laugh bubbles up my throat. If she did know, would she have joined me?

I wash my hands, use the toilet and wash them again, then head back out. Krista is at the front of the RV. She’s changed into sweats and a t-shirt. Shit, the bathroom is right next to the bedroom. As I pass the fridge, I grab a couple of bottles of soda, then move up to the front.

Krista doesn’t look at me as I sit down. I side-eye her, wondering what she’s thinking.

“Feel better?” she asks, starting up the RV.

My eyes lock hard on the side of her face, but she doesn’t look at me. Her lip tilts though.

Fuck yeah, she knows what I did. I grin and pop my seatbelt into place, then turn to look out of the window.

Neither of us acknowledges it as she pulls out of the lot.