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Chapter Fifty: Eternal Crossroads
Tess
When Maverick swaggered intoEmpire Decay Ink at the end of the day, I raised an eyebrow. “See, this is clingy. Just like I said.”
He twisted his lips to the side, but everything in his body language declared he was chill as fuck, and I didn’t have a charm to combat how sexy that was. “It’s not clingy. I don’t really care if you come back with me or not, but I have pizza and a very bored tongue, and it’s going to be hours before I’ll be tired enough to go to sleep. I’ll probably go out and start a fight or something.”
I laughed at how brazen he was. He thought he could just beckon me at his every whim, and I’d trot along behind him.
And I was dismayed to realize he was right. “Oh, I see. So you needmy help?”
He shrugged like it didn’t matter to him one way or the other. But he was here, in front of me, inviting me back to be with him again.
I sighed. “All right. Let me get my things.” What was happening between us was a mystery, but if he was offering another chance, I wouldn’t be stupid enough to pass it up.
“Don’t let me put you out. If you’d rather go home and eat canned soup with your cats, we can do this another time.”
“Shut up. I don’t have any cats.” I quickly shoved things into places they didn’t necessarily belong, just so nothing was left out, but it wasn’t all neatly arranged as usual, either. It didn’t matter. I was the boss now. I could do what I wanted.
A deep, throaty chortle bubbled out of him like the slow froth from a boiling pot. “Not yet. But I can see the future. Keep it up. That’s where you’re headed.”
I tutted and swatted his arm with the back of my hand. “Rude. Does that attitude usually get you girls?”
He caught my wrist and, holding my arm to his chest, made a production of checking both directions. Left, then right, then back at me. A sinister elation unfurled on both sides of his lips, much more enticing than Ivan ever was. “Oh look. Hello, girl.”
Snatching my hand back, I snickered, desperately finishing up getting the bare minimum done so I could go get fucked good and hard again. After this, I’d need a break. I wouldn’t say no, but I hoped he might want to give me a break anyway.
Following him out to his car, I got in, trying not to inhale too deep a whiff. It smelled like him, but concentrated inside. He winked, and I flushed hot.
After we’d been driving for a few minutes, I remembered Addie was expecting me. “Shit,” I whispered, fumbling for my phone out of my bag. I sent her a quick text, and she sent one back right away:
Tess: I probably won’t be home tonight either
Addie: How’s it feel to suddenly be god’s favorite?
Tess: Ominous
Addie: I’d be stuck like a tick to his side, too. Don’t be ashamed
Tess: STFU
Addie: Love ya!
I laughed and sent her a heart emoji back, shoving my phone back into my bag.
“Everything okay?” Maverick asked.
“Yeah, she’s just giving me shit about ditching her again.”
“I just want you to know I have no preference here. I’m completely indifferent. I’ll pull over, and you can walk home if you want.”
I glared at him, and he chuckled, brought my hand up to his lips, and kissed my fingers. We drove for a while longer before either of us spoke again, and I wondered how long he was going to want to spend time with me. Would he ghost me when he got bored, or would he do something scarier? Should I ride the wave or jump ship after tonight? The words were on my lips for at least five minutes. Three hundred seconds of this question trying to break out of me, like the creature from that guy’s chest in Alien. I wanted to know, but I was scared of the answer. In the end, I didn’t ask what I wanted to ask, which was, ‘How long will this last?’ Instead, I tried to press his buttons a little.
“Why are you doing this?”
“What? Driving? It’d be a long walk from the shop to my place.”
“No, this. Pursuing me.”
