Page 207 of A Matter of Time

“Thanks. I’ll see you soon.”

“Sure,” I promised before she hung up on me.

“Who was that?” he asked, yawning.

“Jen,” I said fast. “How ’bout you?”

“My mom.” He sighed deeply. “She wants me to go to Jen’s.”

“Perfect.” I smiled at him. “That’s where Jen wants us to go too.”

“We’re not going.” He shot me a look.

“Oh, the hell we’re not,” I retorted, thinking he was kidding. “Jen needs us. We’re so going.”

“We’re not, and that’s final.”

I nodded slowly.

When we rolled up in front of Jen’s house in La Grange, I immediately opened my door.

“Wait!” he growled at me.

I turned my head and gave him the most exasperated look I could manage.

“You know what?” He pointed at me. “You’re lucky I even gave in and drove your ass over here.”

“Gave in?” I snapped back before I climbed down and slammed the door shut as hard as I could. I turned for the house.

“Will you wait?” he roared at me as he came around the front of the car.

I hopped over to the fence and leaned as he came up beside me, his hand landing heavily on my back.

“Jesus, you’re so fuckin’ stubborn.”

I grunted, realizing I should have been using the crutches. My ankle was still fairly sore when it had to bear weight.

“Can I help you, please?”

I shrugged, and he drew my arm up over his shoulder and tucked me in against him. I was surprised when he bent and kissed my temple.

“What was that for?”

“You’re a pain in the ass, J, but your heart’s in the right place. And seeing you all pissed off is really cute.”

I scowled up at him. “I’m not cute.”

“Yeah, ya are.” He kissed the bridge of my nose. “And your face gets all flushed and your nose scrunches up. It’s adorable.”

I rolled my eyes and decided to ignore him.

“I love you.”

Which basically undid me. Righteous indignation stood no chance in the face of his warm eyes, crooked grin, and the way he looked at me. And his words… He killed me with his words.

“Cat got your tongue, baby?” He leaned down and kissed me, breathing me in, clutching me tight.

I clung to him, and when he pulled back, I could only stare up at him.