Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
JESSICA
“He’s driving me crazy!” Mae announces as she slides into the chair next to mine, shooting daggers at Nico, who’s talking to one of his colleagues, but I’m pretty sure he’s listening to every single word that comes out of her mouth. That man hardly misses anything where she’s concerned.
“I think the feeling is mutual.”
Mae elbows me. “Whose side are you on?”
“Yours. However…”
“Mine. Period.”
I chuckle at her stubbornness but don’t press further. Mae is like a cat. She’ll attack if backed into a corner.
Shaking my head, I spot a familiar figure from the corner of my eye. When I turn around, I have to do a double take.
Aiden and Eva are sitting together at one of the tables, chatting like two best buddies. What’s up with that?
“Shit.”
Mae’s tone draws my attention, but she’s looking toward the bar.
My brows pull together. “What’s— Shit.”
This is bad.
Like really bad.
I watch as Matthew grabs Damien by the collar and hoists him to his feet, their lips moving.
Heart in my throat, I push upright, and I’m moving before I can even process what I’m going to do. I just know I need to get to them and stop this—immediately.
I push through the crowd, my heart beating wildly inside my chest as I make my way to Matthew.
I should have known something like this would happen. Damien is a ticking time bomb. I should have seen it coming.
“Say it again to my face,” Matthew grits through clenched teeth, his fingers curling into fists by his side.
Damien’s smirk grows wider as he leans closer to Matthew. “I can give you every detail of how I…”
I push in between the two of them, my hand landing on Matthew’s chest. His muscles are stiff under my touch, his gaze firmly fixed on my ex.
“Matthew.”
My heart is hammering a hundred miles an hour as I slowly glide my palms over his chest, tracing his jaw, cupping his face.
“A girl’s gotta save you?” Damien mocks.
I jab my elbow back, feeling a thrill when I hear Damien suck in a sharp breath. “Shut it.”
The muscle in Matthew’s jaw tics.
“Matthew, look at me,” I urge, an unsettling feeling rising inside me.
He’s teetering on the edge, so close to snapping, and if he does, he’ll be in trouble. It doesn’t matter if he was wrong or right. We wouldn’t get a chance to leave the bar before half of Bluebonnet would have heard about the fight.
I can’t allow that.
Not because of me.
Slowly—so impossibly slowly—Matthew diverts his gaze to me.
The pure rage shining in his brown eyes should scare me, but it doesn’t.
The only thing that scares me is the possibility of Matthew losing everything he’s been working so hard to accomplish.
Because of me.
“Don’t.”
“Pussy whipped,” Damien slurs from behind me.
Matthew’s body tenses, and he starts to reach for Damien, but I tighten my grip on him, pressing my forehead against his. “He’s not worth it, babe.”
The endearment falls easily from my lips, and I can feel Matthew relaxing, if only slightly. I use that opportunity to push him back again.
This time, he doesn’t protest.
Damien yells after us, but his friends must have stopped him because he doesn’t try to follow as I guide Matthew to the makeshift dance floor.
Matthew loosens his grip and places his hands on my hips, pulling me closer to him just as the song changes to a slow one.
For a while, neither of us says anything. We just sway to the music. Foreheads still touching while our bodies move together as one.
His chest rises and falls in a steady rhythm, but I can see traces of that wildness shining in his irises.
I slide my hands over his chest. “Better?”
“I fucking hate that guy.”
“You and me both, but I don’t want you to get reprimanded. Not because of me.”
That tic in his jaw is back. “I don’t care.”
No, he wouldn’t.
Matthew never cared about the consequences when he decided to help someone.
I link my fingers behind his neck. “I do.”
His throat bobs as he swallows hard, his eyes boring into mine. Holding me hostage. I can’t look away. I don’t want to.
“Trouble…”
There’s a warning note in his deep voice, but instead of pushing me away, his fingers dig into my hips harder.
I sink my fingers into his hair, running them through the messy locks at his nape. “I won’t let you destroy your life because of me.”
My nails scratch his skin by accident, making his eyes turn darker as a shudder rocks his body.
We’re close. So fucking close. His nose grazes against mine, our breaths mingling together.
The first brush of our lips is slow. A tentative exploration. A teasing touch.
But there is nothing gentle in the way he pulls me to him as he deepens the kiss.
Kissing Matthew Williams is utterly electrifying and all-consuming.
It’s like I’ve been struck by a bolt of lightning. Each swipe of his mouth over mine sends shockwaves through my body, awakening parts of me I didn’t know existed. It should be illegal for a man to kiss like this, to make you feel so much, so alive, but he does exactly that.
His callused fingers run over my body, leaving tingles in their wake as he bends me backward, his hand cupping my neck and tilting my head as he coaxes my lips open, and the only thing I can do is surrender.
My tongue meets his, a low whimper escaping me as he pulls back for a fraction of a second before slipping in deeper.
Nothing and nobody ever felt like this.
Not before him, and certainly not after.
It’s like he’s the ending and the beginning and everything in between.
But he’s not yours.
At this moment, he is.
And that’s all that matters.
We break the kiss, gasping for air. My fingers are gripping his shirt, holding on for dear life.
Matthew’s eyes are dark, but there is a different kind of hunger shining in them now.
His thumb skims over my bottom lip before tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
“Let’s get out of here.”
His words send a rush of heat through my body, the silent promise in his eyes making my thighs clench.
Matthew takes my hand in his and starts pushing through the crowd. For the first time, I notice some curious glances shot our way, so our little interaction didn’t go unnoticed.
I move closer to him, my free hand gripping his shirt. We pass by our table, but Matthew doesn’t slow down, just nods as he pulls me toward the door, our friends looking after us with a mix of glee and surprise.
“Matthew!” I giggle softly as he hurries his steps to the point that I have to run after him to keep up with his pace.
The chilly night air slams into me the moment we get out of the bar, making goosebumps appear on my skin.
He goes left, but I tug at his hand. “My car is in the opposite direction.”
Matthew glances over his shoulder. “My bike isn’t.”
“I’m not getting on that death trap.”
“You’ll have to get on it at some point.”
“Nope.” I shake my head. “Not happening.”
I walk backward, our hands still linked, as he watches me with his heated gaze. This time, when a shudder goes through me, it has nothing to do with the cold and everything to do with him.
Matthew takes two long strides, catching up to me, and the next thing I know, my back is pressed against the car. My lips part in surprise as he cages me in, his head bending down slowly.
“You know, you said the same thing about kissing me, and yet, here we are.”
“D-did I?” I tilt my head back, my gaze zeroing in on those full lips that were on mine only minutes ago.
How is it possible that I’ve spent years not kissing him, and now it’s the only thing I can think about?
“Mmhmm. I’ll get you on that bike sooner or later, Trouble,” he whispers against my mouth. My fingers fist in his shirt, tugging him closer when he tries to pull back, and I can hear a low growl come from deep in his chest.
He nibbles at my lip before breaking away. “Get in the car if you don’t want us to hook up in the back seat like a pair of teens.”
Damn him.
“Fine.” My fingers are shaky as I find my key and unlock the door. The lights flash, and I reach for the handle. “Are you goin—”
“Wait.” Matthew stops me as his eyes narrow, his attention on the back of my car. He pulls out his phone and turns on the flashlight, directing it at the ground.
“What’s—”
He curses under his breath and crouches down to more closely inspect whatever caught his eye. “It’s flat.”
My brows pull together. “My tire? But I just got new ones a few months ago.”
“Well, it’s flat.” Matthew stands up. Any trace of passion shining in his dark gaze is gone.
“I mean, maybe I ran over something?”
Nothing felt strange when I parked, but then again, who knows?
He opens his mouth, his eye twitching slightly as he glances once again at the tire. He presses his lips into a tight line and walks around me to the front, directing his flashlight at that tire.
“Motherfucking son of a bitch.”
He moves to the next one and then the next one, still cursing under his breath.
“They’re all flat.”
“But…”
I could see one tire going flat, but all four of them? What in the ever-loving—
“Slashed.”
My head snaps up as that one word echoes in the night, my heart starts beating faster.
“Slashed? Why would they—”
“Somebody slashed them,” Matthew reiterates. “The cut in the tire is small. Maybe an inch or so. Straight cut.”
Straight cut.
Slashed.
Somebody slashed my tires.
A shudder rocks my body. I wrap my arms around myself, rubbing at my exposed skin.
“Why—?” I shake my head, my gaze going to my SUV. “Who—?” I suck in a breath, my throat feeling tight. “Damien.”
It has to be. Who else could have done something like this?
And why would they do it? Damien is the only one who has a reason to be angry with me.
I just humiliated him in the bar in front of everyone.
Kissed Matthew right in front of his nose.
And if slashing tires doesn’t scream angry, I don’t know what does.
Matthew turns off the flashlight and starts typing something on his phone.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m calling the station.”
My heart speeds up as the panic slams into me. “What? Why?”
The light from the screen illuminates Matthew’s incredulous expression. “What do you mean, why? Your tires have been slashed. Not only is that damage to your property, it’s a clear sign of aggression. You need to report it.”
Report it?
“I’m not going to report it,” I say immediately, shaking my head.
If possible, his expression only grows darker. “Jessica, he slashed your tires.”
My fingers sink into my upper arms, squeezing tightly. “I know!” I yell. Inhaling deeply, I will myself to calm down.
How the hell did we get to this?
“He was pissed off about what happened.”
“You can say that again,” Matthew comments dryly.
“He was drunk.”
“Is there any other state for that guy? Oh, yes, I know. A douchebag. I seriously don’t know what you saw in him in the first place. You have to report it.”
“I don’t have to do anything.”
Matthew growls in frustration. “Jessica…”
“No. I’ve made enough of a spectacle as is. I’m not going to make it worse by filing a report.” Unfolding my arms, I run my fingers through my hair. “He’s going to stop. He just needs time to process it, and things will calm down.”
“He hasn’t stopped so far!” Matthew protests. “That guy is dangerous, and he’s getting cockier by the second. Just think about it rationally.”
“I am thinking about it rationally.”
“What is going on here?”
Grateful for the interruption, I turn around and find Mae walking toward me with Nico beside her, her gaze shifting from Matthew to me and back.
“Can you take me home?” I ask instead of answering her question.
“What’s wrong with your car?”
“Her tires are slashed!” Matthew announces loudly, lifting his hands in the air and then letting them fall by his sides.
Mae’s eyes grow wide. “What—”
“Can you take me home, please?” I clip, not in the mood to discuss this.
Mae’s expression turns grim, but she nods. “Yeah, I— Sure.”
“Thank you.” Nodding, I press my lips together. Without a backward glance, I go to my best friend. She slides her arm around my waist, and together we walk away.
“You okay?” she whispers, rubbing her hand over my arm.
I shake my head silently.
Everything was going so well.
So how did we get here?