CHAPTER FOURTEEN #3
She tightened her hand around her purse strap. “I want to go home.”
Wes did not argue. “Okay.”
They walked the rest of the way to the parking garage without the easy teasing from earlier. Their footsteps echoed against the concrete as they crossed toward Bee’s car. She unlocked it and reached for the driver’s door. Wes remained beside her.
“What?” Bee asked.
Wes set the bookstore bag on the hood. “Look at me.”
Bee kept one hand on the door handle. “I want to go home.”
“I know,” he replied. “I need you to hear me first.”
Bee kept her eyes on the door handle for another moment. Wes stayed in front of her without rushing her. She finally lifted her eyes to his.
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Wes said.
Bee looked away again. “I know.”
“You didn’t make me get those snacks,” Wes said.
“I know,” she repeated.
Wes moved closer. “I wanted to do it.”
Bee nodded. “I know you did.”
He studied her face for a moment before opening his arms and pulling her against him. Bee froze because he had never hugged her before. His arms settled around her. The surprise passed as she leaned into the warmth of his jacket.
Wes rested his cheek against the top of her head. His hand moved slowly over her back while Bee closed her eyes. The steady pressure of his arms made it harder to pretend Sara’s words had not hurt.
“She isn’t the first person to say it,” Bee admitted.
Wes drew back far enough to see her face. “What do you mean?”
Bee kept her hands against his jacket. “The comments under my snack video called me spoiled. They said I made you drive around when you had work the next morning. Sara said asking you wasn’t cute.”
His eyebrows pulled together. “She wrote that?”
“Then she went to your video and said you were exactly how a man should treat his woman,” Bee continued. “After that, she said she wished her man were more like you.”
Wes stared at her. “The same person?”
Bee nodded. “The same username.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Wes said.
“I know,” Bee replied. “It happened after our date too. I talked about the parking lot. People said I wanted attention. You talked about the same night. They called you sweet.”
Wes stayed quiet while she spoke. Bee watched the confusion on his face harden into frustration. His arms remained around her even after she stopped.
“I never wanted any of that,” Wes said.
“I know,” Bee said.
“I didn’t get the snacks because I wanted strangers to praise me,” Wes said.
Bee met his eyes. “I know that too.”
“I did it because you asked,” Wes said. “I wanted to see you. I wanted to make you happy.”
Bee’s eyes burned before a tear slipped down her cheek. Wes lifted one hand and brushed it away with his thumb. His touch remained gentle as he waited for her to look at him again.
“What happened belongs to us,” Wes said. “They don’t get to change it.”
“You make that sound easy,” Bee said.
He gave her a small smile. “Some things are.”
Bee let out a quiet laugh. “You’re ridiculous.”
“Probably,” Wes replied.
His hand remained against her cheek. Wes held her gaze without looking away. The softness in his expression steadied her.
“I’m serious about you,” Wes said.
Bee’s breath caught. “You are?”
“Yeah,” he replied. “I like being around you. I like going places with you. I like getting you snacks. I like your grandma. I even like seeing you at my mother’s kitchen table, though the stories need to stop.”
Bee smiled through the last of her tears. “They were good stories.”
“I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone with my mother,” Wes said.
Her laugh drew a smile from Wes. He brushed his thumb lightly across her cheek. “I like your videos. I like seeing you happy. Some woman from the internet isn’t going to change any of that.”
Bee held his gaze. “I’m serious about you too.”
Wes’s hand slid from her cheek to her shoulder. “Good.”
Bee stepped back reluctantly and reached for the driver’s door. “You know you’re still my passenger prince.”
Wes stared at her. “After everything I just said?”
“Especially after everything you just said,” Bee replied.
He picked up the bookstore bag from the hood. “I can’t believe you.”
“You love it,” Bee teased.
“I really don’t,” Wes replied.
Bee laughed and climbed into the driver’s seat. Wes walked around the car and opened the passenger door. She looked across the roof at him before he got inside.
“You’re opening your own door now?” Bee asked.
Wes rested one hand on the top of the door. “I thought passenger princes got special treatment.”
“Get in,” Bee said.
He settled into the passenger seat without moving it three times. Bee started the car and followed the signs toward the exit. Neither of them spoke while the concrete levels gave way to the city streets.
Bee rested her hand on the center console as she drove toward the highway. Wes placed his hand beside hers. His fingers brushed against hers before she turned her palm over. He laced their fingers together.
Wes kept her hand in his as the city lights fell away behind them. Bee glanced at their joined hands before returning her gaze to the road. The quiet inside the car belonged to them.